Sponsors (29)
The bill raises federal pay in 2027—providing meaningful, predictable boosts for millions of federal workers and reducing some internal pay disparities—while increasing federal payroll costs and risking misalignment with local labor markets that could erode real pay or complicate recruitment in high‑cost areas.
Federal civilian employees (including wage‑grade and those covered by locality pay) receive higher pay in 2027 — a 3.1% across‑the‑board basic pay increase plus a 1% locality increase for covered employees — raising take‑home pay and purchasing power.
Wage‑grade (prevailing‑rate) workers get a uniform 3.1% raise immediately, avoiding delays from local wage surveys and delivering prompt, predictable increases.
A uniform adjustment for 2027 reduces pay disparities between statutory and prevailing‑rate employees, improving internal pay equity for federal workers.
Higher federal payroll costs from the raises increase government spending, which may add to budgetary pressures borne by taxpayers.
Waiving the normal wage survey for prevailing‑rate workers risks misaligning pay with local private‑sector wages, creating the possibility of overpayment in some localities and underpayment in others.
Applying uniform percentage increases can ignore local cost‑of‑living and market changes that surveys would capture, potentially reducing real pay and harming recruitment/retention in high‑cost areas.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Raises base pay for most federal civilian employees by 3.1 percent for calendar year 2027 and sets locality pay adjustments at 1.0 percent for calendar year 2027. For wage‑grade (prevailing‑rate) employees, it increases prevailing rate schedules by 3.1 percent for fiscal year 2027 and waives the usual wage survey requirement for that year. Applies across statutory pay systems and prevailing‑rate systems under chapter 53 of title 5, increasing federal payroll costs but not creating new programs or directing new appropriations; agencies would absorb the higher personnel costs within existing budget processes.
Introduced February 10, 2026 by James R. Walkinshaw · Last progress February 10, 2026