1. United States
2. Mo.
3. Letter

I am writing as a constituent to express my deep concern and frustration over the continued policies coming from this administration that negatively affect federal employees. The administration has now proposed freezing the pay of most civilian federal employees at 2026 levels for 2027, while proposing a 3.8 percent increase for federal law enforcement personnel. More than 100 members of Congress from both parties have already urged congressional leadership to reject the freeze and provide federal civilian employees with a meaningful pay increase. I find the continued treatment of the federal workforce as though we are expendable deeply troubling. Federal employees perform essential work every day, often under increasingly difficult conditions, while agencies are already dealing with staffing and recruitment challenges. I am also extremely concerned about the direction of federal workforce policy under OMB Director Russell Vought and OPM Director Scott Kupor. Their agencies have enormous influence over federal employment, compensation, hiring, and workforce policy. Congress has a responsibility to exercise meaningful oversight when those policies place additional pressure on an already strained federal workforce. A pay freeze is not simply a number on a paycheck. When the cost of housing, food, utilities, transportation, healthcare, and other necessities continues to rise, keeping salaries flat reduces employees’ purchasing power. That makes it harder for the government to recruit and retain experienced employees and ultimately affects the public services Americans depend upon. Congress has previously intervened when presidential pay freeze proposals threatened the federal workforce. In 2019, Congress rejected President Trump’s proposed freeze and enacted a 1.9 percent average pay increase for civilian federal employees. I am asking you to take a clear position on this issue and support congressional action to prevent the proposed 2027 pay freeze. I also expect you to exercise meaningful oversight of the administration’s broader federal workforce policies rather than simply accepting them. Federal employees are your constituents too. We deserve to know that our elected representatives recognize the value of our work and will take seriously the consequences of policies that diminish the federal workforce. Please tell me specifically what actions you intend to take regarding the proposed pay freeze and the administration’s broader federal workforce policies.