This report provides an update on issues affecting federal managers. As always, I encourage you to visit www.fedmanagers.org on a regular basis for more information on these and other matters.

Also, be sure to look for the FMA Grassroots Update, where we offer links to action letters and FMA-PAC matters we do not address in the Washington Report. The grassroots newsletter is sent exclusively to non-governmental email addresses to avoid any Hatch Act violations. If you are not receiving it, contact the national office to provide your non-governmental email address.

Please feel free to provide feedback any time by emailing Adam Kay at akay@fedmanagers.org or by calling the National Office at (703) 683-8700. Thank you for your membership in FMA. It’s an honor to represent your interests before Congress and the administration.

Last month, we reported that the House had passed nine of twelve appropriations bills, while the Senate had thus far failed to pass a single bill. After an additional month of work and debate, the total number of appropriations bills passed stands at nine of twelve passed by the House, and zero by the Senate. Congress’s main achievement thus far has been avoiding a government shutdown by passing a continuing resolution to fund the government at current levels through December 3. While this may have seemed adequate originally, Vice-Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) has stated that a further continuing resolution will likely be necessary when the current one expires. This is, to put it mildly, not a hopeful sign for the appropriations process.

FMA National President Craig Carter issued the following statement after passage of the continuing resolution in October: “The Federal Managers Association commends the House and Senate on the passage of a continuing resolution (CR) earlier today. A CR is definitely preferable to a government shutdown and will keep America’s hard working federal employees doing their Congressionally-mandated jobs. Of course, a CR is never preferable to budgets passed in a timely manner. Continuing resolutions hinder the ability of the government and the military to plan for the fiscal year ahead. Key positions cannot be filled with new hires. Critical projects cannot begin because there is no guarantee they will be funded by the eventual budget, and a lack of resources to lay the groundwork even if they are funded. Contractors and small businesses suffer unnecessarily. The total cost to taxpayers and the government as a result of the uncertainty from any CR is reliably in the billions of dollars.”

A version of this piece originally ran in FEDmanager.com as an FMA partner column.

Imagine going to the doctor for a routine check-up. The doctor notices some unspecified issues that don't seem to be causing a problem thus far, and she decides to run some expensive tests. Fair enough — she's the expert. Then, while you await the results of the tests, she informs you she's gone ahead and decided to remove your kidney without any proof that anything is wrong with it. The results of the tests that will say if that was necessary will not arrive until after you've gone under the knife.

Is this Ridiculous? Sure. Malpractice? Definitely. Yet, this is precisely what the House of Representatives has voted to do in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2022 (NDAA). The Act's two-year probationary period at the Department of Defense (DOD) bypasses an NDAA that repeals new hires' current two-year probationary period.

In last month’s Washington Report, we announced that on September 23, 2021, the House passed a $778 billion National Defense Authorization Act by a bipartisan vote of 316-113. The Senate has version has yet to be approved by the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) and sent to the Senate floor for a vote. In a press release upon House passage, we wrote, “FMA understands the critical importance of the NDAA each year and the need for its ultimate passage into law. There is much in this bill that FMA supports, including the efforts to combat sexual harassment and assault, the pay raise for the uniformed military, and the extension of parental leave benefits.” As discussed in a separate article, FMA strongly opposes the House of Representatives’ premature action related to the DOD probationary period (Section 1108) and are actively working to prevent its inclusion in the final conference report.

The pay raise for the uniformed military is set at 2.7% and preserves the tradition of pay parity between uniformed military servicemembers and their civilian counterparts across the federal government. At $778 billion, this NDAA represents a $38 billion increase over the 2021 NDAA. $12.5 billion of this funding is marked for the public and private shipyards.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced the 2022 Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program rates today. The open season for health benefits, dental and vision insurance, and flexible spending accounts will be November 8 through December 13, 2021.

The overall average FEHB premium increase will be 2.4 percent in 2022. The average enrollee share increase will be 3.8 percent. (This is down from a 4.9 percent increase last year.) The new health premiums go into effect in January 2022.

On average, enrollees with FEHB Self Only coverage will pay $3.17 more per biweekly pay period than in 2021. Enrollees with Self Plus One coverage will pay $7.61 more per biweekly pay period, while those enrolled in Self and Family coverage will pay $10.09 more.

The average premium increase for dental plans for 2022 is 0.81 percent, and the average premium increase for vision plans is 0.95 percent.

On Tuesday, October 19, the Employee Thrift Advisory Council (ETAC) met with the staff of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) for its annual meeting. Federal Managers Association National President Craig Carter represented the association.

Meeting participants reviewed Thrift Savings Fund statistics, heard a legislative update, reviewed the FY2022 FRTIB Budget, and reviewed the Thrift Savings Plan participant satisfaction survey results. Impressively, the FY21 FRTIB operational highlights encompassed:

The Partnership for Public Service hosted their 2021 Service to America Medals ceremony, known as the Sammies, on October 28, 2021. For context, “The Partnership is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization whose mission is to help make our government more effective, and the Sammies honorees represent the many exceptional federal workers who are doing just that—breaking down barriers, overcoming huge challenges and getting results. Whether they’re defending the homeland, protecting the environment, ensuring public safety, making scientific and medical discoveries, or responding to natural and man-made disasters, these men and women put service before self and make a lasting difference.”