CONGRESS FOR VOTERS

LaMonica McIver (D-NJ)

MERIT Act

H.R. 1835 · House bill Government Operations and Politics

A Democratic bill with 109 Democratic cosponsors · See all 109 cosponsors

Last activity — Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

In committee

Introduced and handed to a committee in the chamber it started in.

The committee holds it, and most bills are never heard from again. A hearing or a committee vote would be news; silence is the usual outcome, and it kills the bill without anyone voting against it.

Its path through Congress

  1. Introduced
  2. In Committee

What this bill would do

This bill, known as the "MERIT Act," requires the reinstatement of certain probationary Federal employees who were part of a mass termination. It mandates that these individuals be offered positions in their former agencies that are the same or similar to their previous roles. Additionally, the bill provides for back pay or compensation to account for the time they were not employed by their former agency. The legislation includes specific rules for calculating these payments based on current or new Federal positions held during the gap. It also requires agencies to notify affected employees and mandates reports from the Comptroller General and the Office of Personnel Management.

Yes

  • Scored +7

    Does this make what the government does easier for the public to see?

    The bill mandates specific reporting requirements from the Comptroller General and OPM to Congress.

  • Scored +5

    Does this protect the right to fair treatment by the courts?

    The bill restores employment rights and provides back pay for those affected by mass terminations.

The opposite

  • Scored -2

    Does this reduce what the federal government spends?

    The bill increases government spending by requiring back pay and reinstatement for former employees.