Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-02-16
Gibson Says Majority Favors
Measure LiberaIizing Civil
Service Retirement Law.
ORDERLY LEGISLATION,
NOT CRITICISM, AIM
Situation Outlined by Member of
Committee in Announcement
on Floor.

Designed to force the House leader
ship to allow the Dale bill to liberalize
the civil service retirement law to come
up for vote in the House, a petition,
addressed to the Speaker, the majority
leader and the chairman of the rules
committee and signed by more than $50
members of the House, has been pre-
pared asking for consideration at this
session of the Dale bill, which has al
ready passed the Senate.
This announcement was made on the
floor of the House late yesterday by
Representative Gibson, Republican, OF
Vermont. a member of the civil service
committee, who said that 1t was not
In a spirit of criticism that the atten-
tion of the House was brought to this
matter. but in the interests OF orderly
legislation. I'VE who are In favor OF
the bill are bound to do whatsoever we
can to secure favorable action" MI.
Gibson explained.
Favored by Majority.
He pointed out that:
a majority of the members of the
House have expressed themselves as
favorable to the legislation. and yet
we are unable to get action. The func-
tions of the House as body represent
ing the people are involved. The leg
isIation is urgently demanded. ask
the leaders to permit the proposed leg
islation to come to vote that we may
ali pass upon it in the light of our
hest Judgment and not be compelled to
90 back to our people and explain tnat
It is possible in their legislative body Tor
q small group to prevent the corlSlo-
Grafton of legislation"
In endeavoring to clear away some
Of the misapprehensions or mlsunoer-
standings of House leaders regarolng
this legislation, Mr.. Gibson outlined the
present situation as regards to retire.
ments and explained the proposed hp-
eralization.
Idea Declared Not New.
Retirement for civil employees OF the
government is not a new idea" he
said. "It has been in successful opera
ton for years by some of the leading
governments of the world, and on a
more liberal basis than is here pro-
posed. 1t is in use by several OF the
States, by leading municipalities; by
banking and other business enterprises,
and with much more liberality OF pro-
visions than have even been suggested
for our Government employees.
Commission in its last report recon- |
mended optional retirement after 80
years service at so years of age. The
commission we'll said it would make the
system flexible and humane and cure
abuses now existing"
The bill as reported by the committee
offers optional retirement, cuts the
optional ages by two years, increases
the maximum annuity from $1,000 to
81, 200 and the average annuity to about
1920
at is urged that these changes would
add to the cost to an extent that the
Government could not afford 1t. Thls
argument is based on estimates Of ac-
tuaries who have been consistently
wrong. When the act was first passed
we were told that the fund would be
exhausted in 10 or IL years. The fact
Is that 1t has risen to over q hundred
million dollars, only 10 million of which
has been appropriated by the Congress.
This fund Except as to the 10 million
Just referred to) has come from con-
tributions of the employees. The fund
has not only taken care of all demands
upon it, but has actually accumulated
q surplus of $83, 100000 aside from the
Government contribution.
Treasury's Theoretical Liability.
''There is, of course, a theoretical
liability upon the Treasury. The pres
ent ratio of normal cost is estimated at
1893 per cent of the pay roll, Of which
the employees now contribute $50 per
cent The balance of 0.48 per cent rests
on the Government. Under the pro-
posed amendments the normal cost to
the Government would be increased to
1.18 per cent, a small amount when
compared with the benefits to be de-
rived by the Government and its
employees.
There is another element Of cost that
Is sometimes misunderstood and that
is the accrued liability" When the
law went into effect in 1920 employees
then in the service and due to retire
before the expiration of 80 years were
not able to pay over the whole period.
In the beginning this cost $40 per cent
of the pay roll, must be borne by the
Government. This cost constantly de-
creases, as the employees contribute in
increasing periods before retirement.
All of the cost, however, is offset by
Increased efficiency through the turn
over in personnel.