Janice Schakowsky: “I also include in the Record Mr. Kovacic's testimony. House of Representatives, Committee on Energy and Commerce…”

“I also include in the Record Mr. Kovacic's testimony. House of Representatives, Committee on Energy and Commerce, Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce Safeguarding American Consumers: Fighting Frauds and Scams During the Pandemic Testimony of William E. Kovacic, February 4, 2021 Federal Trade Commission Budget and Compensation Levels for Employees There is a grave mismatch between the duties Congress has assigned the FTC and the resources it has given the agency to carry out its mandate. There is a serious need to raise the FTC's budget, but not simply to build a larger staff by hiring more people. Reforms to the federal compensation system are necessary to attract and retain a larger number of elite personnel. I do not see how the FTC or many other public agencies can recruit and retain necessary personnel without a significant increase in the salaries paid to managers and staff. Consider two possibilities for compensation reform. The first is to align FTC salaries with the highest scale paid to the various US financial service regulators. One model would be the compensation scale used to pay employees of the banking regulatory agencies; the salary scale for these bodies exceeds the General Schedule (GS) federal civil service wage scale by roughly twenty percent.…”