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INS Fact Sheet Template

March 20, 2000

**Pay Reform as It Applies to Border Patrol Agents**
As part of the Administration’s FY 2001 budget, INS has proposed a comprehensivepay reform package that will fundamentally reform and improve the overall compensation andbenefit pay for Border Patrol Agents. The pay reform package will offer Border PatrolAgents better overall compensation for their work and put INS in a much stronger positionto recruit new agents and retain experienced agents. The three major components of the payreform plan are:
- Upgrading the journey level of agents from GS-9 to GS-11,
- Changing the overtime system to Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP), and
- Implementing Special Salary Rates (SSR) for GS-5 to GS-11 agents.

**Upgrading the Journey Level**

The upgrades, effective in June 2000, will provide additional promotion potential foragents in non-supervisory positions by raising the journey level grade of Border PatrolAgents from GS-9 to GS-11. The upgrades are based on extensive analysis that has shown theincreased complexity of the work performed by today's Border Patrol and will have apositive impact on recruitment and retention. Work will be structured and assigned in amanner that will allow an across-the-board increase. INS does not anticipate that thischange in the journey level will have any effects beyond the GS-11 level, because it isalready basing Border Patrol supervisors’ grades on supervising GS-11 level work.Existing GS-11 agents will not be affected by the upgrades; however, they will benefitfrom the provisions of Pay Reform, which include the payment of LEAP and the new specialsalary rates.

**Pay Reform**

Pay reform will provide LEAP for all Border Patrol Agents and pilots, like thatcurrently paid to Criminal Investigators in INS, across the Department of Justice andother federal agencies. Pay Reform will benefit approximately 12,533 INS employees, ofwhich 8,396 are Border Patrol Agents and 78 are pilots (as of February 2000). 

INS currently pays Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime (AUO) to Border PatrolAgents and pilots. Agents at the same grade and step, working exactly the same overtimehours, can receive different pay based solely on Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) status.AUO is also extremely difficult to administer and becomes increasingly expensive to thegovernment as agents are determined to be covered by FLSA. LEAP provides a standard 25percent annual premium pay in exchange for an average of two unscheduled duty hours eachworkday. LEAP also counts toward the calculation of retirement benefits.

Under current pay practices, the typical agent is paid his or her locality rate of pay,plus 45 Act overtime, and FLSA overtime as follows: Locality pay, plus 25 percent of thelocality pay as AUO, plus scheduled overtime, plus FLSA overtime for hours worked inexcess of 85.5 per pay period. AUO is also subject to intense scrutiny by outside agencies(e.g., the General Accounting Office and the Department of Justice InspectorGeneral’s Office). All other large federal law enforcement agencies use LEAP tocompensate their Criminal Investigators pursuant to legislation enacted in 1994.

Coverage under Law Enforcement Availability Pay will:
- Provide a standard 25 percent annual premium pay in exchange for an average of two    unscheduled duty hours each workday;
- Ensure that agents are not penalized for accepting duty assignments in locations that    may not meet the criteria for payment of AUO, such as training and assignments to    headquarters or regional functions;
- Count for retirement, TSP, lump-sum annual leave payments and life insurance;
- Ease scheduling and simplify and streamline the administration of overtime for officers,    which worked well for INS’ Criminal Investigators;
- Eliminate pay compression problems caused by lower grade officers earning more than    supervisory officers because of FLSA overtime payments; and
- Provide a fiscally sound method of overtime compensation while ensuring that employees    are duly compensated for unscheduled duty associated with their jobs.

**Special Salary Rates**

Special Salary Rates (SSR) are higher than normal pay rates established by the Officeof Personnel Management to overcome handicaps in the recruitment or retention ofwell-qualified personnel. Under the provisions of Pay Reform, the Attorney General canincrease the pay for GS-5 through GS-11 Border Patrol agents by paying SSRs. A necessarypart of the reform package, this will make salary levels more competitive and strengthenrecruitment and retention incentives. Agents eligible for the SSRs will receive higherbasic pay, more take-home pay, increased earnings for retirement contributions, and asimpler overtime system. 

While Pay Reform reduces the amount of overtime we pay these agents, it increases theamount of base pay that they receive. For some people, only about 62 pilots and 950supervisory GS-12 agents, there will be a loss of FLSA overtime earnings, which is notoffset by SSRs. This also occurred in 1994 when Criminal Investigators throughout thefederal government were changed to coverage under LEAP in order to provide a simplifiedmeans of compensating them fairly for the long hours associated with law enforcementactivities, and exempt them from complicated FLSA overtime provisions.

**Benefit to the Agent**

After implementation of pay reform, the employee would be paid the new SSR for his orher grade and step as basic pay, plus 25 percednt LEAP and any 45 Act overtime earned forscheduled overtime work at the higher hourly rate derived from his or her special salaryrate. A comparison of current pay versus SSR/LEAP rates based on 1999 data and ratesfollows. The "Current" column is an average amount for the grade and includeslocality pay, scheduled overtime, AUO and FLSA overtime. The "New" columnincludes the new SSR and LEAP.

The following table shows what might have been payable in San Diego in 1999 followingthe methodology discussed above. 

 
Salary (Before Taxes)Pay Basis for TSP, Retirement**San Diego**Current**New**% Increase**Current**New**% IncreaseGS-11/4$ 62,688$ 62,862
0.3%$ 56,178$ 61,132
8.8%P>GS-09/2$ 50,792$ 51,887
2.2%$ 45,028$ 49,221
9.3%GS-07/1$ 43,761$ 44,322
1.3%$ 39,107$ 42,352
8.3%GS-05/1$ 37,616$ 38,467
2.3%$ 34,350$ 37,620
9.5%
 

As you can see, the total compensation is increased for Border Patrol Agents in gradesGS-05 through GS-11. These increases in basic pay have several effects:- A substantial increase in the amount credited for retirement, Thrift Savings, and life    insurance;
- An increase in the regularly scheduled overtime rate of pay;
- An increase in take home salary; and
- Higher salaries paid upon promotion (even promotions to the GS-12 level).

For these employees and the agency, it is a win-win situation.

**What Happens Next**

These pay proposals will be debated in Congress during the coming months as part of theappropriations process that culminates in the Federal Budget being enacted for the fiscalyear that begins in October 2000. INS’ Headquarters Human Resources Division will beworking with the Chief of the Border Patrol to restructure the GS-9 jobs to support anacross-the-board upgrade in the journey level to GS-11. The upgrades will be effective inJune of this year.
Last Modified 02/20/2003**************