President Obama released his plan Sept. 12 for stimulating economic growth while attempting to reduce the national deficit.

Federal employees would be expected to take some of that burden, according to the presidents plan, which proposes raising the employee contribution rate to their pensions by 1.2 percent over three years beginning in 2013 — a rate of 0.4 percent each year during that time.

“While federal agency contributions for currently accruing costs of employee pensions would decline, these employers would pay an additional amount toward unfunded liabilities of the retirement system that would leave total agency contributions unchanged over the 10-year budget window,” the plan stated. The policy change in the contribution level would be permanent and would affect all federal civilian employees.

The president also recommended eliminating the Federal Employees Retirement System Annuity Supplement for newly hired employees.

“The administration is proposing a group of reforms to better align these retirement programs with the private sector while still preserving the federal government’s ability to recruit and retain the personnel that the American people need,” said the report.

The White House expects those proposals will save $21 billion over a decade. The plan is also expected to save about $20 billion from proposals that would modify the health care costs to military service members.

“The administration does not anticipate this policy change will negatively affect its human capital planning and management nor inhibit the government’s ability to serve the American people,” the plan noted. During a briefing at the White House, Obama called the changes “modest adjustments to federal retirement programs.”