Summary
Sets new pay and salary schedules for many federal workers, including military, executive, and judicial branch employees, starting in 2026.
What problem does this solve?
Federal employee salaries need regular updates to keep up with the cost of living and private sector jobs. This order provides these updates to help the government attract and keep skilled workers.
Who does this affect?
- Federal civilian employees
- Members of the uniformed services
- Federal judges and high-level officials
What does this order do?
Updates general pay schedules for federal employees
Sets new rates of basic pay for employees under the General Schedule, the Foreign Service Schedule, and the Veterans Health Administration schedules.
Adjusts pay for military members
Establishes new monthly basic pay rates for members of the uniformed services, as well as for cadets and midshipmen.
Sets salaries for high-level government officials
Establishes new pay rates for the Vice President, members of Congress, federal justices and judges, and officials on the Executive Schedule.
Establishes locality-based pay adjustments
Authorizes locality-based comparability payments to adjust federal pay based on the cost of living in different geographic areas.
Updates pay for senior executives and judges
Sets new pay ranges for senior executives in the Senior Executive Service and new pay rates for administrative law judges.
Considers pay raise for federal law enforcement
Directs the Office of Personnel Management to evaluate giving an additional pay increase of up to 3.8 percent to certain federal civilian law enforcement workers.
Replaces the previous year's pay order
Supersedes Executive Order 14132 from the previous year, making this order the new authority for federal pay rates.
What is the real world impact?
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Provides a routine cost-of-living adjustment for federal workers
Adjusts federal salaries to keep pace with inflation and ensure government pay remains competitive with the private sector. This is a standard administrative action often taken annually to maintain a capable federal workforce.
When does this start?
The new pay rates take effect at the beginning of 2026, with slightly different start dates for military and civilian personnel.
Pay adjustment for uniformed services
The new pay schedule for military members (Schedule 8) becomes effective on January 1, 2026.
Pay adjustment for all other federal employees
All other pay schedules take effect on the first day of the first applicable pay period that begins on or after January 1, 2026.