GOP's Supercommittee Wish List: Pay, Benefits, Workforce Cuts

Talking Points Memo has gotten its hands on what it says appears to be a Republican wish list of proposals for the congressional supercommittee looking at ways to slash the federal budget. Apparently, someone left the document on a table outside the House Speaker's lobby.

So what's on the list? Well, if you're a federal employee, suffice it to say you're probably not going to be thrilled. TPM writes:

Most of the ideas focused on finding costs savings by reducing the federal workforce, eliminating cost-of-living increases for federal workers and increasing the amount federal employees contribute to their retirements and list either the bipartisan "fiscal commission," the "House budget resolution" or the Congressional Budget Office as the source of the ideas.

But one idea identifies "Chairman Issa" as the source, while another lists "leadership discussions," an apparent reference to ideas being floated around the GOP leadership table run by Speaker John Boehner (R-OH).

Issa's idea would eliminate "periodic step increases" for federal employees' salaries and is estimated to save $1 billion.

"Federal employees receive periodic step increases driven largely by passage of time equivalent to three percent of basic pay," the doc states.

The other proposal, credited to "leadership," would "update" the Federal Employees Retirement System for existing employees by increasing the employee share by half a percentage point, and up the the employee contribution for new employees to 4 percent of pay, among other ideas.