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by Shaw, Bransford & Roth, P.C.
March 9, 2010
Last Wednesday, House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Joe Barton (R-Texas) sent letters to nine federal agencies asking for details on the "explosive increase" in the number of federal employees earning $100,000 or more annually. The agencies include the Department of Health and Human Services; Department of Energy; Department of Treasury; Department of Commerce; Consumer Product Safety Commission; Environmental Protection Agency; Federal Communications Commission; Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and the Federal Trade Commission. Barton stated that in one case, in 2007, a large agency had only one person making $170,000 annually. Two years later, that same agency reported nearly 1,700 employees earning $170,000 annually.
In a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Barton wrote, "According to USA Today, ‘the growth in six-figure salaries has pushed the average federal worker's pay to $71,206, compared with $40,331 in the private sector.' In addition, The Washington Examiner noted that ‘federal employees making salaries of $100,000 or more jumped from 14 to 19 percent during the recession's first 18 months.' This disparity between public and private-sector compensation for comparable work leads us to question the basis for these salaries and raises, especially during an economic recession when countless Americans have either lost their jobs or must accept sharp reductions in pay to keep their jobs."
Barton also asked the agencies to disclose whether funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 "was used to augment already-high federal salaries rather than to stimulate the lagging private sector or to fund critical infrastructure projects."
Barton has asked the leaders of each of the nine agencies to respond to the following: - How many total employees does your agency presently employ?
- How many new employees did your agency hire in both calendar and fiscal year 2009?
- How many employees in your agency presently receive compensation, inclusive of all bonuses, of $100,000 or more for the fiscal year?
- How many employees in your agency presently receive compensation, inclusive of all bonuses, of $140,000 or more for the fiscal year?
- How many employees in your agency presently receive compensation, inclusive of all bonuses, of $180,000 or more for the fiscal year?
- What is the average pay of all full-time SES employees in your agency at the conclusion of calendar and fiscal year 2009?
- List every employee (including job title and department or office assignment) who in some capacity is responsible for overseeing or managing American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding or has any involvement with the grant process associated with funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
- Has your agency contracted or outsourced any of the duties associated with the handling, managing, allocation or grant process related to American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds?
- List all professional service contracts or purchase orders for professional services with your agency for $100,000 or more in any of the past three fiscal or calendar years. Please include the name of the contractor, the amount of the contract, and the total number of individuals, if known, included under the contract.
To view the letters to the department heads, as well as the news articles they reference, visit the Committee on Energy and Commerce website.
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