Federal Personnel Office Recommends Increase in Benefits for Death, Funerals

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management proposes to increase death benefits for federal employees killed on the job to $100,000, and the funeral allowance to $8,800 from $800, under a legislative proposal the agency sent to Congress on Friday. Under the proposal, both benefits would increase annually with the rise in the Consumer Price Index, according to a press release by the agency. OPM said in a press release that the federal death benefit of $10,000 has not changed since its inception in 1997, and the $800 funeral benefit has not increased since 1966. "This legislation is nec...