Not sure about that $150k. I'm a GS-13 step 3 and I make $103.5k. Each step increase is about $2,500 gross pay so a step 10 tops out around $122k right now I believe. I don't even think a GS-15 tops out at $150k, much less a 13 or 14.

Most of us try not to leave money on the table so you'll usually find us killing ourselves at the end of the FY trying to burn our pay days. We have historically and comically called this "RUTA-paloosa".

Retirement is about 1% per year of service. If you do 25 years as an ART and make $125k when you retire, you get 25% of that per month when you leave. Although, I don't think they include locality adjustment into that. The 4.4% is basically us paying into our pension. So if you figure it out, over 25 years, 4.4% each year plus interest earned is probably something north of $200,000, which means if your retirment pay is $25,000 per year, you just payed 8 years worth of retirement (68 years old). I'm sure the GVT is banking on you being dead shortly there after.