1. This Year in Albany
This was a strong year for CSEA. We secured crucial pension reform for Tier 6 members and eliminated the burdensome five-day salary withholding program and lag payroll for state employees. We passed groundbreaking legislation to regulate the use of artificial intelligence in the public sector and achieved significant changes to improve the civil service system, making it more accessible and efficient for current and prospective public employees. We’ve summarized our victories and other must-know information about this year’s legislative session and budget in our “This Year in Albany” publication, which you can find here.
2. Legislative Victory: EMPIRE Act
CSEA was successful in blocking the passage of the EMPIRE Act, S.541/A.9012, which would have outsourced wage theft enforcement actions to private organizations. This work is performed by staff at the Department of Labor (DOL). Advocates of this legislation claim that it is necessary because the DOL does not have sufficient staff. We agree that the staffing levels must increase. However, the solution is not the privatization of this function, rather, it is for the state to hire additional staff to enforce these laws.
3. Project 2025: Impact on the Economy
The Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 is a policy playbook for the next Republican administration that would fundamentally alter the way our government functions. This week, we’re highlighting some of the document’s proposals that would hurt the economy and middle-class families. According to the document:
- The Treasury should simplify the tax code to just two brackets: 15% and 30%. There are currently seven brackets ranging from 10% to 37%. This would reduce taxes for the wealthy and increase taxes for middle- and low-income earners. [p.696]
- “Capital gains should be taxed at 15 percent,” which would increase taxes on low- and middle-income investors, and decrease them for the wealthy. [p.696]
- “The corporate income tax should be reduced to 18 percent,” which would boost profits of wealthy corporations, while reducing federal tax revenues by nearly $30 billion. [p.696]
These are just a few of the many negative impacts that Project 2025 would have. In each issue, we’ll be highlighting additional areas of concern. To read the full document, click here. You can also view and share our Project 2025 fliers here.
4. Social Security Benefits Increase
Social Security benefits and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments for more than 72.5 million Americans are set to increase by 2.5% in 2025, as announced by the Social Security Administration on Thursday. This adjustment, effective from January 2025, will result in an average monthly increase of approximately $50 for Social Security beneficiaries, raising the average benefit from about $1,927 to $1,976. The increase reflects a modest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) aimed at helping recipients cope with inflation.
5. CSEA Legislative Toolkit
We’re encouraging members to get the word out about our legislative successes. Click the icons below for informational documents that you can print, share, and post on social media to spread the news. You can also check out CSEA’s summary of the 2024-2025 Enacted Budget here.
Tier 6 Reform:
Updating Civil Service Exams:
Counting Provisional Time Toward Promotions:
Employee Notice of Records Disclosure:
Minimum Age & Education Requirements for Exams: