By Jack Moore
Federal News Radio

The new debt-limit deal means the government has to cut trillions of dollars from the budget in coming years.

But it also raises questions about how those cuts will play out at the agency level. The initial debt deal called for some $900 billion in cuts to discretionary spending. The second round involves the so-called “super-committee”: a group of six senators and representatives from both parties tasked with finding as much as $1.5 trillion in additional cuts.

John Palguta, vice president for policy at the Partnership for Public Service, joined the Federal Drive to discuss what managers should be preparing for now.

“There’s some tough times coming — no doubt about it,” Palguta said. “There really is no silver lining in this dark deficit-reduction cloud for federal managers or employees. But on the other hand, the sky’s not falling either.”

Agency budgets are one likely target. “We’re looking at, for many agencies, smaller budgets but not smaller workloads,” he said.

Agencies may also face reduced workforces, partial pay freezes, amped-up contributions to FERS and even the extension of the current federal pay freeze, he said.

While much of the cuts are still mere speculation, “the betting is clearly that you’re not going to be given more money to operate,” he said.

Amid these challenges, Palguta said there are some things managers should be doing.

• Scenario planning. Managers should begin identifying possible areas to scale back sooner rather than later. “Start at least outlining your plan so you don’t have to start from scratch once you get the final news,” he said.
• Set priorities. “If less of something is going to have to be done, what is it?” he said. “No manager should be thinking, ‘Well, we’ll just take a slice across the board.’ … That’s not responsible management.”
• Ask employees for help. This was a cornerstone of the National Performance Review of the 1990s, Palguta said.
• Consider temporary workers to fill some positions. “Those folks coming in taking a temporary job know that if things get tight their job may end,” Palguta said. “But that’s part of the bargain. You don’t have to go through Reductions in Force (as you do) for permanent employees.”
• Broaden the focus. Don’t just fixate on your programs and budgets, he said. “I think you have to focus on: ‘How do I keep my employees engaged,'” he said, which will be a tough job going forward. “If employees aren’t feeling the love from Congress or the general public, it’s even more important that managers express their appreciation to employees and remind them of the value of what they’re doing,” he added.
• Inform. Agency employees and managers are barred from lobbying members of Congress, Palguta said. “But certainly they can inform,” Congress and the public of the impact of cuts, he added.

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