As in the private sector, certain government employees can receive additional pay if their work leads to "administratively uncontrollable overtime" hours (AUO). The problem? Many agencies abuse the allowance, to the tune of $8.7 million according to recent reports. The issue was addressed on Capitol Hill recently in the form of H.R. 3463/S. 1691, as featured in this week's edition of The Taxpayer's Tab.
Congressman Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and Senator Jon Tester (D-MT) introduced the Border Patrol Agent Pay Reform Act of 2013 in order to curb some of the overtime pay abuses that were recently brought to light. Investigations revealed millions of dollars in overtime pay had been wrongfully awarded to employees within the Department of Homeland Security, particularly the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agents stationed at the agency's headquarters. The bill would reduce spending by $125 million per year ($625 million over five years) by reworking the current CBP pay scale.
Also featured in this week's Tab:
- Most Friended: Congressman Lou Barletta (R-PA) and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced H.R. 3979/S. 1798 to make sure that volunteer firefighters and medical personnel won't be counted as full-time equivalents under the Affordable Care Act's employer mandate. The Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act had 106 cosponsors as of this publication.
- Wildcard: Wyoming's Representative-at-large Cynthia Lummis (R) and Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced the River Paddling Protection Act to allow managers more freedom in deciding where to allow boating, kayaking and canoeing in Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks. The administrative requirements in H.R. 3492/S. 2018 would require about $1 million per year in additional spending.
- Budgetary Discrepancies? The White House's economic projections in the FY 2015 budget differ markedly form those released by the Congressional Budget Office last month. NTUF put together an infographic to demonstrate what that means for taxpayers.
For more, check out the latest edition of The Taxpayer's Tab.