Topic: Obama Orders Raise for Biden, Members of Congress, Federal Workers

[Pandora]

President Barack Obama issued an executive order to end the pay freeze on federal employees, in effect giving some federal workers a raise.

One federal worker now to receive a pay increase is Vice President Joe Biden.

... Members of Congress, from the House and Senate, also will receive a little bump, as their annual salary will go from $174,000 to 174,900. Leadership in Congress, including the speaker of the House, will likewise get an increase.

Congress at one time was responsible for this issue, however:

"Congress is required by Article I, Section 6, of the Constitution to determine its own pay. However, Congress no longer sets salaries for federal officials each year.

Currently, salaries are set by the 1989 Ethics Reform Act, which provides an annual salary adjustment for both White House executives and members of the Senate and the House of Representatives (103 Stat. 1716, at 1769).

Adjustments are based on the percent of change in the private sector wages and salaries element of the Employment Cost Index (ECI) minus 0.5%. They are to go into effect at the same time as, and at a rate no greater than, the basic pay rate adjustments for the General Schedule (GS). GS rates are set by the President."

Ain't that just ducky?  In 1989, abrogated their Constitutional duty by arrogating it to the President, thus giving him power he isn't supposed to have.  As far back as '89 ......

H/T Drudge

[charlesoakwood]

The line-item-veto gives a president too much authority, also, congress ability to load up a bill with unrelated acts should be prohibited. One bill one law. They should be clean and short. And, yes, they need to do a lot of cleaning.

***
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=17885
Statement on Signing the Ethics Reform Act of 1989
November 30, 1989
Public Papers of the Presidents
George Bush 1989: Book II

Today I have signed into law H.R. 3660, the "Ethics Reform Act of 1989," which contains important reforms that strengthen Federal ethical standards. It is based on the legislation that I sent to the Congress last April, the recommendations of the President's Commission on Federal Ethics Law Reform, and the report of the House Bipartisan Ethics Task Force.

Key reforms in the Act include: the extension of post-employment "revolving door" restrictions to the legislative branch; a ban on receipt of honoraria by Federal employees (except the Senate); limitations on outside earned income for higher-salaried, noncareer employees in all branches; increased financial disclosure; creation of conflict-of-interest rules for legislative branch staff; and limitations on gifts and travel.

Together, these measures go far to carry out the four ethics reform principles I set forth in January. I stated then that our Federal ethics standards should be:

exacting enough to ensure that public officials act with the utmost integrity and warrant the public's confidence;

fair, objective, and consistent with common sense;

equitable all across the three branches of the Federal Government; and

not unreasonably restrictive so as to discourage able citizens from entering public service.

The Act also includes important adjustments to compensation for all three branches of Government.

To avoid constitutional concerns, I will view as advisory the section calling for the President to recommend to the Congress equal rates of pay for different positions. I will similarly construe as advisory the provisions allowing officials lacking executive powers to issue interpretative opinions purporting to insulate Federal employees from the consequences of potentially violative acts.

George Bush

The White House,

November 30, 1989.
***

Always, always they write a necessary bill then load it up with unconstitutional or nasty crap which a president, virtually, must sign which leaves us (US) holding the bag.

[Libertas]

Fothermucking corksuckers!