The Week in Comments: Toilet paper thrift, six-day mail delivery and pay raises
The best in reader reaction to recent articles.
A roundup of some of the comments received this week in the GovExec.com Mailbag. All comments are presented in their original, unedited form.
On Panels vote to maintain six-day postal delivery schedule
In Canada they are more rural than we are and have inclement weather to deal with on much more frequent occurence. Somehow the little old ladies waiting for medicine seem to manage. This is a joke .... Save the PO and the environment. Eliminate Saturday once and for all. If it is good enough for the rest of the world and Canada, its good enough for USA .
More stupid decisions. Why in the world do we need Saturday delivery of regular mail? Why? We can wait until Monday to get all that Junk mail. But the unions need jobs and we need to spend billions on trucks, fuel, salaries, and facilities.
Sen. Tester, I'm from Montana and we only get mail via rural carrier three days a week. So where do I sign up to get Saturday mail. I am surrised how your comments are only used to save USPS jobs and are not fiscally sound. So send me my junk mail on Saturday! I can't wait!
On Bill with 1.4 percent federal pay raise clears Senate committee
Social Security recipients and civil service retiree were not given an increase last year because the cost of living did not increase. What justification does Congress have to have to approve increases for government workers? Something seems off balance with the yearly increases. Especially when our taxes increase on a yearly basis.
This raise is going to come back to haunt federal workers when Republicans take control of Congress.
With half the nation out of work, Congress should look at reducing salaries for GS-11s and above by 1.4 percent. SES's should take a 5% cut in pay.
What does the retiree get? We have not gotten increase in cost of living since 2009. What are we to do. President made no mention of the goverment retirees in any portion of this response.
On Going green is a popular money-saving idea among feds
Year end spending is such a joke. Anyone in acquisitions knows that if you are purchasing office supplies or whatever with this year's money, then by law those supplies must be used during this fiscal year. How and why year after year organizations are permited to break the law and not have to answer for it is beyond me. Or buying new furniture just because you find yourself with money left over. Who is monitoring this frenzy at the end of the fiscal year? I would say no one.
You failed to mentioned the idea that ranked #2 in number of votes, which is both cost-cutting and green. It was the suggestion that GSA and other refrain from trashing half rolls of toilet paper each morning (and afternoon) when restrooms are cleaned on the FDA campus and elsewhere in the government where GSA manages the buildings. It is an example of one simple policy change that saves lots of paper and saves taxpayer money.
Do you people have your heads in the sand? The five suggestions with the highest net vote count had over 200 votes. Of those, the only one that was really implementable, with immediate savings had to do with toilet paper waste. Is it too embarrassing to admit that a change in policy on tossing half (or fuller) rolls of toilet paper could produce major savings for the Federal Government, perhaps more than any other implementable suggestion that was submitted.
On Defense should do more to spur energy innovation, report says
Should be interesting to see how carriers achieve launch speed under sail. All the solar panels we now have on our buildings, recycling programs, alternative fuel vehicles used on bases. Sounds more like "let's steal from the military budget because the other finance sources are running out of patience".
I'm very encouraged to see DOD and DOE working together (again) and acknowledgement that Energy Security and National Security are linked. But we've been down this path before, as I was a Air Force liaison with in the DOE Albuquerqe Operations Office working on joint renewable energy programs in the early '80s. Let's hope we have more 'staying power' for breaking the stranglehold of reliance on oil imports this time around.
On OMB will provide funding for program evaluations
I am very pleased to see the OMB emphasis, guidance, and available funding for program evaluation. It is high time for specific incentives to have decisions based on hard evidence from rigorous analysis and evaluation. I applaud the plan to share information on evaluation methods and to look at alternative approaches.
Finally, someone has invented the wheel again! My guess is that it will be revinvented again in the next administration. Brilliance does not dim in government because it is constantly viewed by a new audience without a clue.
Isn't that nice that this president has discovered program evaluations. And, since his own OMB director says "...some programs have persisted year after year without adequate evidence that they work...", wouldn't it be nice if he cared enough (and had the cajones) to mandate evaluations?
On Lawmaker proposes alternative mail delivery schedule
I don't get it! Why not just raise the postal rates to cover the cost. We have in this country the lowest rates in the world for universal mail delivery and at a uniform price. Why not let demand and supply determine the price?
If Representative Chaffetz really wants to save money for the government by targeting the postal service, I recommend he introduce legislation that will eliminate the free postal service (franking) for the members of the House and Senate. If they want to 'advise' or otherwise provide information to their 'constituents', their political party should pay the normal fees.
If the USPS really wanted to save money, it would get rid of the union and make the employees pay a larger share for their health insurance. No other government agency has such a generous medical plan than the Postal Union employees. That would save millions each year, and the price of a stamp could remain the same forever.
On Union praises workforce provisions in appropriations bill
It's amazing the number of duped sheep who actually think the shepherd (union) is there to represent them...when they are really just there to promote their own importance, because without the sheep (and your ever-increasing dues), the shepherd wouldn't have a job. They serve almost no purpose in "right-to-work" states, which are ever increasing, thanks to the increasing numbers of illegal aliens who are willing to work for significanlty less (and tackle the menial labor jobs) than even the most uneducated, illiterate American. Go figure...don't know where our uneducated, illiterate, unemployed masses get their self-importance from...but hang in there, buddies, your unions depend on your for their jobs!!
The only difference between BIG BUSINESS and BIG LABOR is that business creates jobs.
On Obama orders freeze on appointee bonuses
seriously? he is such a hypocrite! if he was serious about being concerned for taxpayers monies then why PUSH obama care and bailouts. he needs to resign and go back to chicago as a private citizen and pay his taxes.
I am a federal employee, quite conservative in my views, and it is pretty rare that I agree with the President. This is one time I do. With unemployement officially at just shy of 10% and some segment of society upwards of 25%, everybody needs to tighten the belt. Even a token raise this year will be fuel for the "Those Gov Employees Are Overpaid" crowd. Freeze all federal raises, especially the political ones.
Why are political appointees receiving bonuses??? They were hired with an exorbitant pay to begin with to do a particular job. They need to earn their salaries. Forget the bonuses for them.
It makes sense to do this.. Hopefully, additional steps will be taken......like cutting Defense spending in some areas
Every little bit helps to improve the economy and save on taxes. Good for you Mr. President! You give me and other millions hope.
I dunno. Sounds good to stick it to the top echelons, and makes for great political points. BUT, where is the incentive for senior folks to perform above the minimum level? My work literally involves preventing a nuclear bomb from going off. However, my pay will not be impacted if a bomb does go off, and, if I personally stopped ten weapons from detonating, I would receive no extra reward. Feds simply have to get a "satisfactory" in their annual appraisals to be retained. That level of performance may not be adequate for a supervisor or decision maker. The incentives work. Further, (and I don't want to sound like I am back in uniform, but here goes) it seems all the carrots have been removed - again - but the big stick is still there. So the message - again - from on high to all us peasants is: the boss will not hand out any bennies no matter how well you do, but if you screw up, you will be hammered just as fast as ever.
On Freeze on bonuses could have trickledown effect
Gee, just when you thought it was about loyalty, integrity to country and God, it comes back to the same ole thing "THE DOLLAR". Most SES positions make over 100K per annum, yet they want bonuses.Tell that to the CBP employee crawling through the insides of a cago ship looking for contraband and stow aways. And you know they don't make over a 100k per year. You say well it's two different positions, two different levels of education. Well here's the rest of the story, Polical appointees for the most part have no prior experience in the position they assume. Yet the rank and file, lets say a CBP Officer has to have education and experience that can be applied to the position they are going into.And trust me you will be hard pressed to hear the word bonus. Well I guess that says it all.
Is there any place that doesn't have whiners? Any idiot can complain but it takes a leader to make tough decisions. If this decision hurts so much, resign and move into the private sector...........The jobs are plentiful so I hear on the streets.
All awards should stop. They are a bad joke on the tax payers. Nobody has any confidence in them. Bosses give them to the office cuties and their pals. They are almost all secret because they are so shameful.
It takes a big person to do the right thing even when they have been wronged, or feel like they've been wronged. Unfortunately there are many little people in this world. Undoubtedly the discontent will trickle down to the clerks and the view of the lazy civil servant will continue to perpetuate. Why try hard, to just get shot down? I'm going to gripe about my boss because I'm emulating him... We need more integrity, leadership, and values in our senior leaders.
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