For top execs, bigger bonuses but no raise

The House last night voted to approve bigger bonuses for federal executives but deny many top-level Senior Executive Service members a raise in 1999.

The fiscal 1999 Treasury-Postal appropriations bill, which passed by a vote of 290 to 137 last night and is awaiting Senate approval, would increase the amount agencies could award executives in annual bonuses.

Current law restricts the pot of money available for executive bonuses to the greater of either 3 percent of an agency's total SES basic pay budget or 15 percent of the average SES basic salary in an agency. The House proposal would raise the limits to 10 percent of the agency's total SES basic pay budget or 20 percent of the average SES salary.

The bill would also increase bonuses granted under the Presidential Rank Awards program, which honors SES members for outstanding service. Under current rules, SESers awarded meritorious service awards receive $10,000, while distinguished service winners receive $20,000. The House bill would make meritorious awards worth 20 percent of base salary and distinguished awards worth 35 percent of base salary. That means a top ranked SESer who won a distinguished presidential rank award would take home a $44,000 award.

Meanwhile, the bill would block a pay raise for members of Congress. Since the pay scale for SESers is tied to the congressional pay scale, many top senior executives would not get a raise next year either.

SES pay, including base pay and locality adjustments, is capped at Level III of the Executive Schedule--currently $125,900. Executives in the top two pay brackets of the SES in most areas of the country, including the Washington, D.C. area, are paid $125,900 a year. Executives at the third-highest pay bracket in the most expensive areas of the country-Los Angeles, San Francisco and Houston-are also paid $125,900 a year. Those executives would be stuck at their current pay levels, since Executive Schedule pay rates would not change.

SESers at lower pay rates would get a raise, which President Clinton will set in December.

This year was the first year all SESers received a raise since 1993, when members of Congress first began denying themselves automatic cost-of-living increases to avoid the political repercussions of voting themselves raises. A pay increase for Congress-and therefore, senior executives-squeaked through as part of the 1998 Treasury-Postal appropriations bill. But the prospect of congressional elections in November have turned members skittish about allowing another raise to go through.