Federal Daily - May 19, 2008
Agencies Increase Employee Student Loan Repayments
Federal agencies paid out $42 million last year as part of a work force benefits program that repays
employee student loans, according to an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) report released last week.
OPM noted that the 33 participating agencies provided repayments for 6,619 employees in Fiscal Year
(FY) 2007, which represents a 15 percent increase in the number of employees receiving such benefits
compared with FY 2006. The $42 million paid out last year is a 17 percent increase in total pay-outs
compared to the previous year, the report noted. The federal student loan repayment program permits
agencies to repay federally insured student loans as a recruitment or retention incentive and all federal
employees (except those exempted from the competitive civil service) are eligible. Although the student
loan is not forgiven, agencies may make payments up to a maximum of $10,000 for an employee in a calendar
year and not more than $60,000 for any one employee. The average loan repayment benefit was $6,377,
which is a 39 percent increase over the average loan repayment in FY 2002. In addition to the 33 agencies
that provided student loan repayments during FY 2007, five additional agencies have an established
student loan repayment program ready to use in the future, OPM said. To see more, go to: http://www.opm.gov/oca/PAY/StudentLoan/index.asp.
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Military Spouse Education Demo Project Expanded
A demonstration project launched by DoD and the Department of Labor to help military spouses get credentials
for high-demand careers has been expanded to include all active-duty military spouses at the project’s
locations, the military announced last week. The military spouse career advancement initiative, which
is being conducted for a limited time at 18 installations in eight states, also has been expanded to
include four additional career fields. Because of the high interest in the program, project limitations
that were based on the rank of the active-duty servicemember have been abolished, and now all spouses
at the demo sites are eligible, the military said. Since the program began in January, more than 1,000
military spouses have enrolled in career development programs. Military spouses in the program can
receive grants of up to $6,000 for to cover the costs for tuition, fees, books, equipment and credentialing
and licensing fees. In addition to careers in education, healthcare, information technology, construction
trades, financial services, the demonstration projects now include specific occupations within human
resources, business and management, hospitality management and homeland security. To see more, go to: www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123098829.
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AFGE Campaigns for Better VA Funding
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) last week launched a radio advertising campaign
urging lawmakers to fully fund the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. The ads call into question
a proposal by presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who floated a
plan to offer veterans vouchers to receive care at private for-profit healthcare facilities. That move,
according to AFGE, would be tantamount to dismantling the current Veteran’s Health Administration. “Vouchers
could cripple the system by diverting much needed funds away from veterans’ healthcare,” said
J. David Cox, AFGE national secretary-treasurer and a former VA nurse. “While it has been argued
that the VA has not been responsive to the growing needs of burgeoning veterans’ population,
many of the shortfalls can be directly attributed to a lack of funding.” To see more, go to: www.afge.org/Index.cfm?Page=PressReleases&PressReleaseID=850.
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