Evening star., 1928-12-26
DALE BILL IS HELD
ECONOMY MEASURE
Actuary Mccoy Sees Govern
ment Saving in Liberalized
u. Retirement Law.

With the Dale bill to liberaliZe the
civil service retirement law promised
consideration in the House promptly
after the members reasSemble on jan
uary 3. where it is predicted it undoubt-
edly will pass as soon as 1t is allowed
to come up for a vote, each member Of
the House has been supplied with a
copy of statement prepared some time
ago by the Government actuary, Joseph
G. Mccoy. showing that the Govern
ment would actually save consider
able sum annually by having the en-
tire expense borne from the Federal
Treasury.
Robert H. Alcorn, chairman of the
joint conference on retirement, repre-
sentative of more than 300, 900 Govern
ment employees who come under the re-
tirement act. has supplied all members
with ID statement showing how the
retirement fund has been built up to a
huge surplus by the contributions of
the employees themselves and how much
larger 1t will be in a few years now
that the Government has undertaken
annual appropriations to amortize it's
accrued liability to this fund, % the
statement by the Government actualy
showing that in economy and increased
efficiency and in building up the morale
of the employees, the Government profits
in better service and in considerable
actual saving under the retirement sys-
tenn.
Bill Approved by Senate.
The Dale bill has passed the Senate
and the big majority of House men,
bers are on record as urging its carly
passage. The policy committee OF the
House has ordered special rule giving
it privileged status. The Republican
steering committee in announcing its
program said that this Dale bill would
be allowed to come up for vote in the
House after the Christmas holidays.
The Mccoy statement was prepared
at the request of the congressional COM
mittee considering this legislation. 1t
was based on figures for the fiscal year
1924. He points out that "in esti-
mating the cost to the Government of
retiring its employees incapacitated by
age, or physical or mental disability,
| little attention has been given to the
incidental saving to the Government" ="
In explanation of this he argued as fol-
lows
According to the report of the board
OF actuarieS, the entire normal cost of
the retirement system under the pres
ent law is 1882 per cent of the pay roll.
OF this, the employees pay $50 per cent,
leaving balance to be made up by the
Government of only 1872 per cent. The
deficiency cost, however, for some years
to come will be 2.55 per cent in addition
to this normal cost.
Cost to Government.
This is the cost that must eventual
ly be met by the Government, and this
is the cost that is more than counter
balanced by the saving in increased
efficiency and morals due to the retire.
ment of those whose productive capaci-
ty is reduced by age or disability This
cost amounted during the fiscal year
1924 to $5,694 ,899. On the other hand,
the Government has promoted some
twenty-five or thirty thousand younger
and more efficient employees, reducing
the total number of employees, solely
because of the retirement law, over
| 5000, and bringing into the service
due to the same law, some 5000 new
employees. The salaries of the 10,55O
upon the retired list probably averaged
about 81 500, while their annuities ave-
rage about $3.50 per annum. The sala-
ries of the new employees entering the
service because of these retirements
average probably about $1.100 per an
mum.
Fiscal Year 1924 Cited.
Thus it is evident that for the fiscal
year 1924 the Government, had it paid
directly from the Treasury the entire
cost of all the annuities, would actual
ly have saved some $3.50, 900 in cash. Add
to this the cash value of the increased
efficiency and improved morale of the
service due to the numerous promo
tions and introduction of new blood,
and we may count gain to the Gov
ernment of not only $880,000. but of
many times the total amount of an
nuities paid for that year."