Federation of Connecticut Taxpayer Organizations

From the Federation:� The greatest costs to taxpayers � on the local, state and federal levels of government � are public sector employee salaries and benefits.� Below is the latest information on Federal employee salaries.� We suggest you also �visit�� Leaders in Government Transparency in Connecticut where you can access the salaries and benefits of State employees.� The Town of East Hartford has included salaries and benefits on its website as well.� As such, you may wish to consider approaching your own town and requesting similar information be added to its website as well.� If you have any questions, email fctopresident@aol.dcom.

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Congressional Hearing Considered In Wake Of WUSA9 Bonus Investigation

May 16, 2012

Also refer to the two articles below this one which are captioned:

Federal Workers' 2011 Salary Data Exposed Online and Some Federal Agency Workers Average Bonuses Ten Times Higher Than Others

A 9 News Now investigation into federal bonuses could result in a congressional hearing.

Our reports have been controversial because the data bank we used is public information and on line--in fact we posted it early Tuesday morning on wusa9.com.

Click here to see if your federal payroll information is included.

The data bank has the names, bonus and payroll information for about 70 percent of the federal work force.

Our review identified 439-million dollars in such bonus payments for 2011, and in 16 cases individual federal workers receiving bonuses in excess of $60,000.

At the Department of Agriculture, only one of its workers earned the top $62,895 bonus.

That's in addition to his $179,700 salary.

A spokesman identified the employee as the federal government's top veterinarian, but declined our request to profile how he qualified for the bonus.

We identified 15 other federal workers earning the nation's top bonus at Department of Veterans Affairs, Social Security Administration, NASA, and Departments of Interior, Health and Human Services, EPA, and Commerce.

They all received the bonus as recipients of the Presidential Rank Awards.

The awards were established in 1978.

On the Office of Personnel Management website, it says winners are strong leaders, professionals and scientists selected by a board comprised of private citizens looking for strength, integrity, and industry. Winners get a lump sum of 35 percent of their annual salary.

According to a Administration source, less than one in 10,000 federal workers qualify for the award.

Stephen Losey, a reporter at WUSA sister publication Federal Times said the award has received criticism for lack of transparency.

"We don't know what makes these people so special," Losey said. "Presumably, they're the cream of the crop."

Shortly after we first published our bonus investigation on WUSA9.com, even before our broadcast aired Tuesday night, discussions on bonuses were already beginning her on Capitol Hill.

"We need to probably look at dictating some guidelines in order for the award of bonuses," said Rep Dennis Ross, R-Florida, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Federal Workforce. "I think we have to bring it to the table and have as witnesses those supervisors who oversee the authorization of these bonuses and find out why they're given."

Ross said supervisors who approved bonuses may be called before Congress to explain standards.

In addition to a pay freeze, a White House Spokeswoman said President Obama has ordered restrictions making bonuses tougher to get, smaller in size, and elimination of some bonuses altogether.

Our analysis of 2011 bonuses showed overall, award payments were down more than $40 million.

You can follow Investigative Reporter Russ Ptacek on Twitter.com/russptacek or Facebook.com/russptacek, or e-mail 9 Wants to Know at tips@wusa9.com.

http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=205567

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Federal Workers' 2011 Salary Data Exposed Online

May 16, 2012

http://wusa9.com/news/article/205352/158/Federal-Workers-2011-Salary-

WASHINGTON, DC (WUSA) -- Your paycheck information, or that of your neighbor's, is likely on a new database that went public Tuesday morning.

It opens the curtain on the personal payroll of over one million federal workers.

We found some workers averaged bonuses as much as ten times higher than workers at other federal agencies.

UPDATES:

Click here for an update on $62,895 individual bonuses and potential Congressional hearing.

Click here to see story of federal worker concerns that database is invasion of privacy.

Click here for latest update on $439 Million in bonuses paid to federal workers.

By clicking here, you can access the DataUniverse.com 2011 payroll information too.

The data, obtained through a Freedom of Information Act placed with the Office of Personnel Management by a WUSA9/Gannett sister publication, The Asbury Park Press, allows you to enter a federal worker's name to obtain salary and bonus information.

DataUniverse.com estimates the databank covers about 70% of federal workers, but Department of Defense, White House, Congress, CIA, FBI, and some other agencies are excluded.

Before the system went online, 9NEWS Now's investigative reporter, Russ Ptacek, tested it by searching Veterans Affairs Secretary, Eric Shinseki.

In a split second, the database returned his $199,700 earnings in 2011.

You can also search by agency.

Our search identified a Department of Agriculture employee who earned over $179,000 as a base salary and a $62,895 bonus.

Our review identified 16 workers from various agencies with $62,895 bonuses which a White House official said were awarded to .01% of federal employees under a presidential program recognizing excellence.

Our review identified more than a hundred federal workers with bonuses in excess of $40,000

Follow @russptacek on Twitter or like Facebook.com/russptacek.

If you have a tip for 9 Wants to Know, contact us at tips@wusa9.com.

UPDATE: US Dept. of Agriculture issues statement on $62,895 service bonus.

"(He) is the federal government's top veterinarian and recently was awarded a Presidential Distinguished Rank award, the highest civil service career award given to federal career employees. You can learn more about the award here http://www.opm.gov/ses/performance/presrankawards.asp and here http://main.opm.gov/ses/performance/rankaward.asp."

"Each year, the President recognizes and celebrates a small group of career Senior Executives and senior career employees with the Presidential Rank Award. Recipients of this prestigious award are strong leaders, professionals, and scientists who achieve results and consistently demonstrate strength, integrity, industry and a relentless commitment to excellence in public service."

"There are two categories of rank awards: Distinguished and Meritorious. Award winners are chosen through a rigorous selection process. They are nominated by their agency heads, evaluated by boards comprised of private citizens, and approved by the President. The evaluation criteria focus on leadership and results.'

"Distinguished Rank recipients receive a lump-sum payment of 35 percent of their rate of annual basic pay; Meritorious Rank recipients receive 20 percent of their rate of annual basic pay. All recipients receive a framed certificate signed by the President. As per OPM, each respective federal agency pays for their executives' rank awards, and agencies are expected to plan for awards as part of executive compensation each year."

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Some Federal Agency Workers Average Bonuses Ten Times Higher Than Others

http://www.wusa9.com/news/article/205506/158/Data-Shows-Which-Govt-Workers-Get-Most-Of-439M--Bonus-Pool

May 17, 2012�� Washington, D.C. (WUSA)--According to new payroll data reviewed by 9 News Now, the federal government paid about $439 million on bonuses to workers earning as much as $62,895 in individual 2011 awards.

9 Wants to Know worked with Gannett sister publication the Asbury Park Press which filed an open records request to obtain the salary information, which is public under federal law.

Click here to review individual federal worker salary records click at DataUniverse.com.

Our review identified more than a hundred workers with bonuses in excess of $40,000, and three at $62,895.

"Excessive, far too excessive," said taxpayer Gerald Molkenthin . "No way, no way."

"They seem high to me for your government federal employee, yeah," said taxpayer Jonathan Kurland.

We identified a total of $439 million in government bonuses.

"I believe about $43 million less than the previous year," said Federal Times reporter Steven Losey about the 2011 bonuses.

Losey analyzes government pay at our Gannett sister publication, Federal Times, and attributes the overall reduction to a White House order reducing bonuses.

"This data shows it's having some effect already," Losey said.

The White House declined an on-camera interview, but a spokeswoman said the President's elimination of bonuses for all political appointees and a pay freeze will save $3 billion by the end of this year.

"The Administration eliminated bonuses for all political appointees, directed agencies to adopt more rigorous personnel management processes, and set a cap to reduce spending on awards for career staff," said White House Office of Management and Budget spokeswoman Moira Mack. "On his first day in office, the President froze pay for senior White House appointees and thereafter froze pay for all employees government-wide for two years."

Many of the workers who received the high end bonuses we found were recipients of a presidential award program recognizing performance.

"Presidential Rank Awards recognize extraordinary long-term achievements," said Health & Human Services spokesman Bill Hall. "The President makes the final selections from among the nominees."

"If they did a very thorough job and was some type of checks and balances, I don't think that's a bad thing," said taxpayer Traci Brown.

We analyzed 1.3 million federal worker salaries and bonuses, finding the largest bonus pool, $67.9 million, at the largest employer, the Department of Veterans Affairs.

A spokesman said the agency uses bonuses to "recruit, retain and reward positive performance."

"Few things we do impact the lives of Veterans as much as hiring, training and retaining the right people fully capable of serving our nation's Veterans," said VA spokeswoman Josephine Schuda in a statement. "In the past year, we tightened oversight of retention and incentive awards."

But averaging $214 a person, the VA didn't even make our list's top five for average individual bonuses.

The General Services Administration awarded the highest average bonus at over $1,000 Followed by the Departments of Energy at $545, Transportation at $415, Interior at $375 and Agriculture at $317.

A FAA spokeswoman said a $6 million dollar grievance settlement skewed bonus reporting at the Department of Transporation.

"Under the terms of the agreement, the FAA agreed to a one-time payment totaling $6 million that was distributed to current and former air traffic employees who worked at the facility," said FAA spokeswoman Laura J. Brown. "For accounting purposes, the payments were listed in personnel records as "cash awards."

In last place for bonuses, Department of Education workers averaged bonuses of $81 a piece.

On base pay, NASA pays most on average at over $112,000, followed by Transportation at $105,386, Energy at $102,860, Education at 101,146, and Housing and Urban Development at $93,346.

Department of Agriculture workers averaged the lowest wage at about $64,000

The list also identifies 100 of the nation's highest paid federal workers. 99 of those paychecks come from here at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The VA attributes that to medical pay up to $398,322 for a small percentage of its doctors.

"The number of physicians earning over $342,000 is 129 (0.62% of all physicians)." The statement from VA's Schuda said. "The average salary, plus special pay for physicians, is currently $204,477."

DataUniverse.com estimates the data covers about 70% of federal workers. The White House, Department of Defense, Congress and a handful of other agencies are not included.