Skip to content
Congress·In Committee·about 1 year ago

Congress Proposes 2026 Pay Raise for Federal Workers, Including 3.3% Base Pay Increase and 1% Locality Boost

Also known as: FAIR Act

Legislative Progress

✓ Filed
Review
Senate
House
President

Impacts

Mixed Impacts(1)
Retiree
Neutral
Positive Impacts(1)
Federal Employee
Helps

Key Points

  • Would raise base pay for many federal employees by 3.3% in calendar year 2026.
  • Would also raise pay for federal “prevailing rate” (wage-grade) workers by 3.3% for fiscal year 2026.
  • Adds a 1% increase to locality pay in 2026, which affects pay based on where you work.
  • If passed, this would increase federal payroll costs and take-home pay for eligible federal workers.
  • Main impact is on federal employees and their families; it does not change private-sector wages directly.
Labor EmploymentEconomy

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Jan 16, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Jan 16, 2025

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

Start of calendar year 2026 (when 2026 pay rates take effect)

If Congress passes the bill, 2026 federal base pay tables are increased by 3.3%.

Covered federal employees would see higher base pay starting in 2026, increasing regular paychecks and possibly overtime rates tied to base pay.

Start of calendar year 2026

If Congress passes the bill, locality pay percentages rise by an additional 1% for 2026.

Federal employees in higher-cost areas would typically see a slightly larger total raise because locality pay stacks on top of base pay.

Related News

3 articles
Government Executive·6 months ago

Trump intends to give feds 1% pay raise with some law enforcement officers getting more

Covers the Administration’s alternative pay plan for January 2026 and explicitly contrasts it with the FAIR Act’s proposed 4.3% average raise.

C=
Government Executive·about 1 year ago

Democrats introduce bills to provide feds 4.3% average pay raise in 2026, standardize retiree COLAs

Direct coverage of the FAIR Act’s proposed 3.3% across-the-board increase plus ~1% locality pay, and context on prospects in Congress.

C=
Federal News Network·about 1 year ago

Democrats introduce FAIR Act to raise federal pay in 2026

Brief item on the FAIR Act proposing a 4.3% pay increase beginning January 2026 and notes the bill’s history of limited action.

C=

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

FAIR Act

Bill NumberS 126
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(16)
D: 15I: 1

Analysis generated by AI. While we strive for accuracy, this should not be considered legal or professional advice. Always verify information with official government sources.