The subcommittee has started its research by looking at flexible benefits plans offered by the U.S. Postal Service and the federal judiciary. At the Postal Service, employees may participate in a flexible spending account program after one year of service. The federal judiciary's flexible benefits program is available to judges and court employees who work at least 16 hours per week. Employees enrolled in a federal health insurance plan may deduct the cost of that plan from their salary before taxes are withheld. In most cases, according to benefits experts, cafeteria plans include accident and health benefits, disability benefits, accidental death and dismemberment benefits, dependent care assistance and life insurance.
Employees order the mix of benefits they want and the levels of coverage they think appropriate.
A number of private-sector companies require their workers to subscribe to a core group of benefits, in part because they want to ensure that no employee goes without health insurance. For the cafeteria plans that include flexible spending accounts, employees decide how much money they want to contribute to their accounts at the start of each year. There are usually limits on how much money an employee can shelter from taxes, and any funds not used during the year are forfeited. The Senior Executive Association, which represents the government's top cadre of managers, scientists and technical experts, has made congressional approval of cafeteria plans a part of its legislative agenda, said SEA President Carol A. Bonosaro. But one federal union lobbyist expressed skepticism that cafeteria plans would be appropriate for the federal workforce, contending that they would give the government a way to force new or increased benefits cost-sharing on employees.