Need for Recognition of the Full Cost of Retirement Benefits for Federal Work Force

The Senate adopted a resolution requiring the Secretary of the Treasury to conduct a complete study of certain Federal and District of Columbia retirement programs to determine their financing methods, the extent of their unfunded liabilities, and any actions necessary to insure their solvency. A series of reports on Federal retirement matters have been issued since 1974. Congress is not being provided realistic and consistent information on the costs of Federal retirement programs, and as a consequence, its ability to make sound fiscal and legislative decisions on establishing and amending, or funding retirement and agency programs is inhibited. A lack of full recognition of the cost of currently accruing retirement benefits results in an understatement of the cost of Government programs, including subsidies to agencies whose operations are intended to be self-supporting.