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Washington, D.C.—The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) and 14 other federal organizations are urging Congress not to use the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), the federal government’s retirement savings program, as a revenue source.

In a letter to House and Senate leadership, NTEU and other members of the Employee Thrift Advisory Council (ETAC) argue that proposals to make changes to the TSP are worrisome to millions of federal employees and retirees who were assured that it won’t be subject to political manipulation.

“Federal employees and retirees have long been promised that Congress will not siphon money away from the TSP for other government programs. Any talk that even hints at the possibility of that promise being broken sends an unwelcome message that the TSP is not a safe retirement option. Tapping the personal retirement savings of federal employees, retirees and members of the military to offset spending is simply unacceptable,” NTEU National President Tony Reardon said Wednesday.

At an ETAC meeting in August, NTEU urged the group to take a strong stand against proposals to manipulate the TSP.

The TSP is the federal government’s version of the 401(k) retirement program that private-sector employers offer their employees. NTEU and other members of the ETAC represent about 4.9 million TSP account holders, including millions of federal and postal workers, 293,000 members of the Uniformed Services and thousands of retirees.

The Federal Thrift Investment Board manages the TSP. In 1989, Congress and the Office of Management and Budget agreed that the TSP will not be considered part of the federal budget.

In a letter to congressional leaders last week, ETAC Chairman Clifford Dailing urged them to “declare the TSP off-limits as a source of revenue” to reassure federal employees that their retirement savings will be left untouched.

“The TSP is an important part of the retirement system for federal employees. For some in the military, it may be their only retirement savings during their service years. Without it, most will not have sufficient retirement income,” Dailing wrote.

NTEU is the largest independent federal union, representing 150,000 employees in 31 agencies and departments.