GAO workforce reform bill passes Senate panel

The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday approved a bill that would give the General Accounting Office more personnel management flexibility.

The committee approved the bill (S.1522)-which is based on a proposal by GAO Comptroller General David Walker to make his agency a management model for the federal government-by voice vote. GAO is an independent legislative agency that examines management in executive agencies.

The measure would make permanent the agency's three-year-old congressional authority to offer early retirement and buyout incentives to its employees. The watchdog agency would no longer receive the government-wide January pay raises. Instead, the comptroller general would set annual pay raise levels, tying raises more closely to performance appraisal ratings.

The bill would also create an exchange employee program with the private sector, expand the agency's ability to pay employee relocation expenses and change its name to the Government Accountability Office.

GAO employees are not represented by unions and cannot negotiate changes in benefits or working conditions. Instead the agency has a 23-member Employees Advisory Council that it polled for views and concerns while crafting its legislation.

Several agencies, including NASA and the Defense Department, are seeking personnel flexibility as Congress and the Bush administration discuss ways to reform the civil service, create a pay-for-performance environment and make hiring easier at federal agencies.

The bill is similar to a House bill (H.R. 2751), which passed a House Government Reform subcommittee in July by voice vote.

Before the panel passed the Senate bill, it approved a substitute amendment by voice vote to make technical changes to the original legislation.