WASHINGTON — House conservatives want to extend to a full three years the current freeze on cost-of-living pay increases for the nation's 2 million civilian federal workers.

They say that blocking a modest raise proposed by President Barack Obama for the last nine months of this year will save $11 billion over the long run and that well-compensated federal employees can afford it.

Democrats, and a few Republicans, say federal workers have already done more than their fair share in helping reduce the federal deficit and they are being singled out for punishment by anti-government lawmakers.