POLICE AND FIREMEN PAY INCREASE TUESDAY, JANUARY 23, 1968 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, COMMITTEE ON THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Washington, D.C. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10 a.m. in room 1310, Longworth House Office Building, Hon. Basil L. Whitener (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives McMillan (chairman of full committee), Whitener (chairman of subcommittee), Dowdy, Fuqua, Adams, Nelsen, Broyhill, and Gude. Also Present: James T. Clark, clerk; Hayden S. Garber, counsel; Sara Watson, assistant counsel; Donald Tubridy, minority clerk; and Leonard O. Hilder, investigator. Mr. WHITENER. The subcommittee will come to order. We will proceed with hearings on legislation relating to the pay of police and firemen of the District of Columbia. Among those bills are H.R. 10761, H.R. 11278, H.R. 11435, H.R. 13980, H.R. 6644, H.R. 11149, and H.R. 13981. We will not deal at this hearing with H. R. 14430 or H.R. 14448, bills relating to the establishment of a Commissioner of Police for the District of Coumbia. Those matters will be considered in separate hearings at a later date. Briefly, the cost estimates of the bills before us are as follows: H.R. 10761 (McMillan, H.R. 11278 (Mathias), H.R. 11435 (Machen), H.R. 13980 (Broyhill to increase pay of police and firemen by 8.7 percent (cost: $4.4 million on a full year basis; $4.1 million excluding vacancies.) H.R. 11149 (Adams), H.R. 6644 (Steiger) to increase pay of police privates (Cost: $1.2 million,; provide recruitment incentives, travel to D.C., resettlement cash allowance (cost: $127,000 yearly). above (cost: Modified Commissioner's bill to increase pay of police and firemen, provide recruitment incentives, etc. (cost: $3.3 million, excluding vacancies). H.R. 13981 (Broyhill) to provide recruitment incentives as $127,000 yearly). I note that under Public Law 89-810, approved Nov. 13, 1966, but which became effective July 3, 1966, Congress provided the last pay increase (9.9 percent) for District of Columbia police and firemen. So, we are now engaged in a study to determine what amount of pay increase for these public servants would be warranted and equitable. (The staff comparison and various bills referred to follow): STAFF COMPARISON OF H. R. BILLS WITH D.C. PROPOSAL FOR POLICE AND FIREMEN PAY INCREASES 1 H.R. 10761 (McMillan) H.R. 11278 (Mathias) H.R. 11435 (Machen) H. R. 13980 (Broyhill) Section 1-Salaries a. Provides a schedule of rates averaging 8.7% increase for estimated annual cost of $4.1 million, excluding vacancies. b. Provides a beginning salary of $7500 (in lieu of $6700 present law) with $340 increments between steps for Classes 1 through 4. NOTE: H.R. 11435 combines all Police, Fire and Detective Sergeants in subclass 4(a) using subclass 4(b) rates as provided by H. R. 10761, H. R. 11278 and H. R. 13980 for Detective Sergeants only. c. Provides $428 increments between steps for Classes 5 and 6, and $535 increments between steps for Classes 7 through 10. Comments: Starting salary is the same in Class 1 in the House bills and D.C. proposal. Beginning step of Class 2 in D.C. proposal, $160.00 less; beginning steps of Classes 3 and 4 in D.C. proposal $200.00 less with the exception of Class 4(a) of D.C. proposal which is $710 less when compared to Class 4(a), H. R. 11435. Increments in Classes 1 through 4 of D.C. proposal are $40.00 less than H. R. bills. All salaries at the various steps in Classes 5 through 10 are identical in the House bills and D.C. proposal. D.C. Proposal Section 1-Salaries a. Provides a schedule of rates averaging 7% increase for estimated annual cost of $3.3 million, excluding vacancies. b. Provides a beginning salary of $7500 (in lieu of $6700 present law) with $300 increments between steps for Classes 1 through 4. (This results in a range of rates in these classes which are lower than in the H. R. bills.) c. Same as H.R. bills. 1 Prepared by the Classification Division of D.C. Personnel Office-Oct. 23, 1967, as revised Jan. 22, 1968: (Comments added.) Section 2 H.R. 10761 (McMillan) H.R. 11278 (Mathias) H.R. 11435 (Machen) H.R. 13980 (Broyhill) a. Provides for application of new schedule rates. b. Provides for the payment of $500 per annum additional to the pay for the Police Executive Officer who is also assigned as one of the Assistant Chiefs of Police, with such additional compensation being subject to retirement benefits. No other man to receive this when present Executive Officer is separated from the service. Comments: Officers and members in all classes and steps will receive the new rate of pay corresponding to their class and step. Additionally, officers and members in Classes 1 through 4, service step 6 and longevity steps 7 and 8 having 3 years service (reduced from 4 years service in present law) in step will be given the next higher longevity step rate with any excess service time credited toward next allowable longevity step. Also, a private upon completion of 10 years, 13 years or 16 years of service will be advanced to longevity steps, 7, 8 or 9 respectively. Also, officers and members in Classes 5 through 10, service step 4 or longevity step 7 having 3 years service (reduced from 4 years in present law) in step will be given the next higher longevity step rate with any excess time credited toward next allowable longevity step. Section 3.-Educational Incentive House bills (except H. R. 13980) provide that upon completion of one year probation, a payment of $600 will be made for completion of thirty college credit hours, and $1200 for completion of sixty or more college credit hours to all Police Department officers and members below Deputy Chief. H.R. 13980 provides for the same compensation for educational attainment for Police and Fire and also designates the need for credit hours in law enforcement or administration or fire science or administration. The D.C. Commissioners to develop regulations as to qualifications for Metropolitan Police, Secretary of Treasury for White House Police and Secretary of Interior for Park Police. The Commissioners and Secretaries shall standardize qualifications to the fullest extent. Section 2 D.C. Proposal a. Essentially the same as H. R. bills. b. Same as H.R. bills but provides that the additional amount of compensation should be subject to insurance benefits as well as retirement benefits. Comments: D.C. proposal includes similar application and service time benefits as House bills through use of different phraseology and without specifying numerical designations for longevity step increases. Revision to existing law proposed in Section 4 of House bills and Section 5 of D.C. proposal does not include any numerical designation for longevity step increases. Section 3.-Educational Incentive Provides for similar compensation for educational attainment for both Police and Fire. Kinds of subjects, number of semester hours required, and amount of applicable compensation will be determined by D.C. Council for Metropolitan Police and Firemen; and Secretary of Treasury, and Secretary of Interior, for the White House and Park Police respectively and embodied in regulatory issuances standardized to the fullest extent between concerned agencies. Section 6 of H.R. 10761, H.R. 11278 D.C. proposal provides for the efand H.R. 11435 provides for the effective date to be retroactive to the fective date to be the first day of the first day of the pay period which began first pay period on or after enactment on December 31, 1967. date. Section 7 H.R. 13980 provides for the effective date to be the first day of the first pay period which begins on or after the first day of October, 1967. |