Mr. NORRELL. If there are no further questions on the general statement we will turn to page 79. The first appropriation, the main item, is salaries and expenses where you want an increase of $524,210. We will insert pages 4 through 7, inclusive, in the record at this point. (The pages referred to follow :) Increases: 1. Regular pay in excess of 52-week base. 2. Purchase of a new panel truck to replace 1953 Chevrolet panel truck authorized for 1960. Total decreases. 3. Ingrade increases, reallocations, and wage board increases.. -$21, 390 1960 required the appropriation of funds for one additional day than is normally necessary, or a total of 262 days. 1961 will require only 261 days. - 1,600 -22, 990 +$77, 244 Of this amount it is expected that 50 percent will be needed for ingrade increases, 40 percent for reallocations, and 10 percent for wage board increases. 4. Contribution to health insurance program (present staff only). Public Law 86-382 provides for Federal agency contribution to the health insurance program effective at the beginning of fiscal year 1961. The specific requirements for this increase have been based on the formula provided by the Bureau of the Budget. 5. Binding-pay increase at Government Printing Office. Women binders of the Government Printing Office were granted a 10 cent an hour 6. Additional telephone facilities and extensions.. For rental of additional telephone extensions, switchboard facilities, trunk lines and related equipment, and to provide for increased local service. 7. Summer uniforms for guard force.. Summer uniforms, which have become standard equipment for guards of other agencies, add to the comfort and increase the efficiency of the staff. $5,000 currently available for uniforms should be increased to $6,500 to allow for the purchase of summer weight uniforms. Even with this increase, the $6,500 is much less than would be required under the $100 allowance permitted by the Fringe Benefits Act for uniforms. +67, 300 +13, 416 +5,000 +1,500 Analysis of increases and decreases-Continued Increases-Continued 8. New positions requested. Processing Department: To handle increased workload under proposed ex- 2 GS-5 and 1 GS-4. Contribution to retirement fund. Group life insurance. Contribution to health insurance program.. +116, 340 $11, 877 777 40 165 12,859 $20,487 1,341 68 220 22, 116 55, 390 5 GS-11 and 1 GS-6. Contribution to retirement fund. Group life insurance. Contribution to health insurance program.. Total, Law Library................ Total positions listed above.--- 9. Space rental and related costs.. Estimates amended by H. Doc. No. 382 to provide for rental of buildings and related costs as follows: Moving costs (nonrecurring). Purchase of truck (nonrecurring) Space rental (62,500 square feet, at $3 per square foot). Administrative Department: To provide staff for rented building: Total increases....... Net Increases. Mr. NORRELL. I have been advised that the estimate at the top of page 4 might be in error. You may correct that if it is. Mr. MUMFORD. Yes. The amended request for rental space in the amount of $266,400 is not reflected in that figure. Mr. NORRELL. Will you discuss each increase like we usually do. The first item of increase is $77,244. Will you discuss that? Mr. MUMFORD. Yes; I would like to say, first, Mr. Chairman, that as you know this is the appropriation that supports the basic operations of the Library. These operations are carried on through the Processing Department, the Reference Department, the Law Library, and the Administrative Department and include the acquisition and processing of materials for the Library's collection, and custody and general service of collections as well as the general administration of the Library, all of which are fundamental to all services of the Library. FUNDS FOR PROMOTIONS AND WAGE-BOARD INCREASES Taking up the items of increase one by one, the first one is concerned with in-grade increases, reallocations, and wage-board increases. Of this amount it is expected that 50 percent will be needed for in-grade increases, 40 percent for reallocations, and 10 percent for wage-board increases making a total of $77,244. Mr. NORRELL. Concerning the increase of $77,244, we have covered this in other years, but tell us why you ask each year for more money for within-grade increases. Do you have a turnover which is rather large? Mr. MUMFORD. Well, the turnover certainly does not offset the promotion of people through the in-grade increases, and there is each year some reallocation of people who are doing more responsible work. Our rate of turnover does not vary very much, and it is mostly in the lower grades. The people in the middle and higher grades tend to remain with us and they advance through the grades, step by step, and it requires in-grade increases in order to take care of the extra step. Mr. NORRELL. Now, you have about 40 percent of that which goes for reallocations and upgrading. What brings that about? Mr. MUMFORD. Well, it results when the classification people find that a person is doing work at a higher level than he is graded. Now, in the Legislative Reference Service, particularly, in order to meet the heavy workload and the deadlines, we have to let people work at whatever level of proficiency they are qualified. If an inquiry comes in and it would normally go to a grade 13, but if there is a GS-12 who can do it Mr. NORRELL. Can you give us some kind of a breakdown, briefly, regarding that? Mr. MUMFORD. In spite of these reallocations that occur each year, our average grade level has risen only two-tenths of 1 percent from 1959 to the 1961 estimate. It was 6.2 in 1959, 6.3 in 1960, and 6.4 in 1961. Therefore, I think this is evidence that we are not promoting people wholesale through reallocations, but only where the classifiers find that the person is undergraded for the work he is doing. Mr. NORRELL. How many people do you have under the Wage Board system? Mr. ROSSITER. We can supply that for the record. Mr. MUMFORD. We do not have the total number of people employed on the Wage Board scale, but we can supply it for the record. Mr. NORRELL. All right; I wish you would do that. Mr. NORRELL. Is the wage board increase to cover past rate increases, or what would you say regarding that? Mr. MUMFORD. Following a survey of prevailing wages, there was an increase in the wage board level in about February. Mr. NORRELL. Is that anticipated or is that actual? Mr. MUMFORD. We have been absorbing it for this year, but it is included in this total figure for the following year. Mr. ROGERS. That is explained on page 5 at the top of the page. INCREASE FOR NEW HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM Mr. NORRELL. I believe you have $67,300 for the next item, which is item No. 4. Would you discuss that, Doctor? Mr. MUMFORD. Yes, sir; that is the requirement under Public Law 86-32 to the effect that each Federal agency contribute to the healthinsurance program. This will be effective beginning fiscal year 1961, and the specific requirements for this increase have been based on a formula provided by the Bureau of the Budget. Mr. NORRELL. How did you figure the $67,300 for the new health. program-what assumptions did you make regarding that? Mr. ROSSITER. According to the formula prescribed by the Bureau of the Budget, you estimate that 90 percent of the staff will participate in the health-benefits program and, of the 90 percent, 60 percent will take the family plan and 40 percent of that 90 percent will be insured for self only. They have given us the cost for each of those groups and, based on those individual costs, we arrived at this figure, sir. INCREASED GPO BINDING COSTS Mr. NORRELL. Your next increase is contained in item No. 5. Mr. MUMFORD. Mr. Chairman, this is related to the increased cost of binding by the Government Printing Office. The women binders of the Government Printing Office were granted to 10-cent-an-hour increase, effective May 13, 1959, and the men bookbinders were given a 13-cent-per-hour increase effective August 31, 1959. The laborers were increased 5 cents per hour, effective September 6, 1959, and the Government Printing Office estimates the annual cost of these pay increases to the Library at $13,416. This is automatically passed on to the Library as an additional cost in binding. WAGE-BOARD INCREASES, 1956-60 Mr. Bow. May I ask a question at this point, Mr. Chairman? Mr. NORRELL. Yes. Mr. Bow. What has been the average increase for wage board employees in, say, the last 5 years? Do you have a breakdown of it? Mr. ROSSITER. No, sir; we do not. Mr. Bow. Could you submit for the record at this point a breakdown of the wage board increases percentagewise, and also give the dollar figures, taking a period of, say, the last 5 years? Mr. ROSSITER. Yes, sir. (The information requested follows:) Increases in custodial wage board hourly rates applicable to Library of Congress custodial wage board employees, 1955-60 Mr. MUMFORD. Item No. 6, Mr. Chairman, is for additional telephone facilities and extensions-for rental of additional telephone extensions, switchboard facilities, trunklines and related equipment, and to provide for increased local service. The increased volume of work at the Library necessitates this request. We need more trunklines in order that people may not be held up when they telephone the Library, and with the increase in volume of work, from time to time we have to have additional extensions within the buildings. Mr. NORRELL. How many do you plan to install? Mr. MUMFORD. Mr. Gooch, do you have that information? |