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              OFFICE OF COMPLIANCELA 200, John Adams Building, 110 Second              Street, S. E.              Washington, D. C. 20540-1999 
______________________AFSCME Council 26,        Petitioner,                                                    Case No. 00-LMR-03            andOffice of the Architect  of the Capitol,        Employing Office______________________
Before the Board of Directors; Susan S. Robfogel,              Chair; Barbara L. Camens; Alan V. Friedman; Roberta L. Holzwarth;              Barbara Childs Wallace, Members.

DECISION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

This is a negotiability appeal in which the Board              must decide whether a proposed collective bargaining agreement provision              is "inconsistent with any Federal law..." and therefore nonnegotiable,              pursuant to Section 7117(a)(1) of the Federal Service Labor-Management              Relations Statute ("FSLRMS"), 5 U. S. C. 7117(a)(1), as applied              by Section 220(c) of the Congressional Accountability Act ("CAA"),              2 U. S. C. 1351(c). The Board is authorized to resolve such negotiability              appeals under Section 7105(a)(2)(E) of the FSLMRS, 5 U. S. C. 7105(a)(2)(E),              as applied by Section 220(c)(1) of the CAA, 2 U. S. C. 1351(c)(1).

The proposed contract provision is deemed "inconsistent              with Federal law" by the employing office, the Office of the Architect              of the Capitol (hereinafter, "AOC"); AFSCME Council 26 ("the Union")              disagrees and contends that there is no inconsistency with the law.              In effect, the proposed agreement states that make-whole relief,              including back pay, may be awarded to bargaining unit employees              who prevail in binding arbitration, or successfully achieve pre-arbitration              settlement, under the grievance procedure to be incorporated in              the parties' collective bargaining agreement. The proposal further              provides that the parties shall jointly request the Office of Compliance              to approve such awards and settlements, and direct payment pursuant              to Section 415(a) of the CAA. The disputed portions of the proposal              provide that if the Office of Compliance fails to direct payment              from its Section 415(a) account at the U. S. Treasury, AOC itself              is then financially responsible for complying with the award or              settlement.1

The parties agree that their collective bargaining              agreement must provide a negotiated grievance procedure, including              binding arbitration. See Section 7121 of the FSLMRS, 5 U. S. C.              Section 7121, as applied by Section 220(a) of the CAA. The parties              also agree that AOC employees may obtain back pay and other make-whole              relief in negotiated grievance proceedings. However, the parties              disagree as to the proper source of funding to satisfy such awards              and settlements.

AOC asserts that any requirement that AOC pay              monetary awards and settlements in negotiated grievance proceedings              from its own appropriated funds is inconsistent with Federal law.              Specifically, AOC contends that there is no clear and unequivocal              statutory authority for it to make back pay payments and, accordingly,              the doctrine of sovereign immunity applies. Under that doctrine,              the government is not liable for monetary awards unless its immunity              has been unequivocally waived. See, *e. g., United States v. Nordic              Village, Inc.*, 503 U. S. 30 (1992). Further, AOC contends, the              CAA itself establishes that the sole basis and source of payment              for awards and settlements under the Act is the Section 415(a) fund              administered by the Office of Compliance.2

The Union maintains that nothing in the CAA,              or other provision of Federal law, bars AOC from submitting disputes              to binding arbitration that may result in its paying back pay or              other make-whole relief from its own funds. The Union also asserts              that Section 415(a) of the CAA should not apply to arbitration awards              or settlements under the parties' collective bargaining agreement,              as such awards and settlements do not constitute awards and settlements              "under this Act" within the meaning of Section 415(a). Rather, the              Union contends, Section 415(b) covers awards and settlements in              grievance cases because it expressly authorizes appropriations for              "administrative, personnel, and similar expenses of employing offices              which are needed to comply with this Act." 2 U. S. C. Section 1415(b).

We address, first, AOC's sovereign immunity argument.              It is true, of course, that a waiver of the Federal government's              sovereign immunity must be expressed unequivocally in statutory              text. It is also true, as AOC points out, that AOC is not one of              the agencies identified in the 1966 Back Pay Act, 5 U. S. C. 5596(a),              as authorized to make back pay payments to agency employees who              successfully challenge "unwarranted personnel actions". *Id.*But              the 1966 Back Pay Act is not the only statutory basis for finding              a waiver.

Section 7122 of the FSLMRS explicitly authorizes              the payment in grievance cases of back pay by covered Federal government              entities:

"An agency shall take the actions required                by an arbitrator's final award. The award may include the payment                of back pay (as provided in section 5596 of this title)." 5 U.                S. C. 7122(b)

When Congress enacted the CAA in 1995, it expressly              extended the rights, protections, and responsibilities contained              in Section 7122 of the FSLMRS to AOC and its employees. (See, Section              220(a) of the CAA, 2 U. S. C. 1351(a).) By doing so, Congress made              its intention clear to subject the employing offices to back pay              obligations in the same manner as the Federal agencies covered by              the FSLMRS and the Back Pay Act, and thereby effectively and unambiguously              waived AOC's immunity. There was, therefore, no need to amend the              Back Pay Act to accomplish an effective waiver of sovereign immunity.

Thus, we conclude, the CAA provides that AOC              employees are entitled to obtain back pay and related relief in              negotiated grievance procedures. However, the question remains as              to the proper source of payment for such relief. According to AOC,              the only proper source for such monetary relief is the U. S. Treasury              account established in Section 415(a). According to the Union, however,              the employing office may properly be required to pay such sums from              its own appropriated funds pursuant to Section 415(b). This dispute              presents the Board with an important issue of first impression:              is an arbitrator's award or settlement providing back pay or other              make-whole relief in a contract grievance one of those "awards and              settlements" which must be satisfied only from the Section 415(a)              U. S. Treasury account?

The parties have not cited and we have not found              any judicial or administrative precedent. Our task then is to discern,              as best we can, what Congress intended, as evidenced by the text              and structure of the CAA itself, and its legislative history.

Section 415(a) provides that, with certain inapplicable              exceptions, "only funds which are appropriated to an account of              the Office in the Treasury of the United States for the payment              of awards and settlements may be used for the payment of awards              and settlements *under this Act*." 2 U. S. C. 1415(a) (emphasis              supplied). It is argued that an arbitration award or grievance settlement              in a negotiated grievance procedure does not fit this description,              even though it is the CAA (" this Act") that imposes upon AOC and              other covered entities the duty to establish a negotiated grievance              procedure including binding arbitration. See 5 U. S. C. Section              7121, as applied by Section 220 (a)(1) of the CAA. The Union contends              that the phrase "awards and settlements under this Act" applies              only to those awards and settlements resolving violations of the              labor and employment statutes incorporated in the CAA. Given the              important and well-established distinction between contractual rights              and statutory rights under the FSLMRS, and in labor-management law              generally, there is some basis for an interpretation of Section              415(a) that would differentiate between remedies for breach of contract              and remedies for statutory violations.

Although awards and settlements in negotiated              grievance procedures are not expressly covered under Section 415(b)              of the CAA, 2 U. S. C. 1415(b), the Union proposes a broad interpretation              of Section 415(b), which authorizes appropriations for "administrative,              personnel, and similar expenses of employing offices which are needed              to comply with this Act." The quoted phrase in Section 415 (b) is,              indeed, susceptible to different meanings. Viewed out of context,              it might well be read to embrace back pay for any employees who              were paid less than their bargaining agreement--as interpreted by              an arbitrator--actually required. But we cannot adopt this broad              interpretation of Section 415(b).

First, we note that Section 415(b) appears as              one of several related subsections, which were intended to be read              together. Section 415(a), fairly read, supports a narrow reading              of Section 415(b) because it purports to govern all awards and settlements:              " ... only [Section 415(a)] funds... may be used for the payment..."              (emphasis supplied). Moreover, Section 415(a) prohibits the use              of its fund for awards and settlements involving certain specified              legislative entities (e.g., the General Accounting Office) or to              correct violation of certain substantive provisions of the CAA (e.g.,              Section 215, regarding occupational safety and health). If Congress              had intended to preclude Section 415(a) from being used to satisfy              arbitration awards, it might therefore have been expected to express              this exclusion as well.

Finally, we note that the legislative history              of Section 415(b) also supports a narrower reading than the Union              proposes. The following discussion of Section 415(b) appears in              the section-by-section analysis of the Senate version of the bill              (S. 2) that ultimately became the CAA which was introduced into              the Congressional Record by Senators Grassley and Lieberman, sponsor              and co-sponsor of the bill, respectively:

Subsection (b) provides that, except as provided                in subsection (c), there are authorized appropriations of such                sums as may be necessary for administrative, personnel and similar                expenses of employing offices which are needed to comply with                this Act. These expenses could be such items as funding management                side labor negotiations under Section 220. These expenses are                costs of adhering to the Act, but not costs of complying with                adjudicative decisions remediating violations, which are addressed                in Section 415.

141 Cong. Rec. S621-02 (January 9, 1995).

In our view, these remarks reveal that the true              function of Section 415(b) is to deal with certain on-going employer              compliance expenses which are unrelated to the costs of complying              with particular judgments and awards, such as the costs attributable              to hiring more employees to perform the labor relations functions              required by enactment of the CAA.

Since the Union's disputed contract proposal              clearly would impose responsibility upon AOC to pay a back pay award              or settlement from its own appropriated funds under certain circumstances,              and since Section 415(a), as we have construed it, requires payment              of such awards and settlements from the OOC account at the U. S.              Treasury, the disputed proposal is, to that extent, inconsistent              with Federal law. Accordingly, it is nonnegotiable.3

For the reasons set forth above, the Union's              petition/ appeal is denied.

IT IS SO ORDERED

Issued, Washington, D. C., January 29, 2001.

1 The full text of the disputed proposal              is:

"The parties agree that the arbitrator shall have              the authority to award make whole relief, including back pay in              appropriate circumstances. If the arbitrator makes such an award              and the Employer determines not to file exceptions to the award,              or in the event the Board of Directors affirms the award after the              employer has filed exceptions the parties will jointly request the              Office of Compliance to approve the award and direct payment from              its awards and judgments account under Section 415(a) of the Congressional              Accountability Act. In the event the Office of Compliance fails              to approve the award and direct payment the Employer will be responsible              for complying with the award. Similarly, in the event the parties'              settlement of a pending grievance requires payment of make whole              relief to the grievant(s) the parties will jointly request the Office              of Compliance to approve the settlement and direct payment from              the awards and judgments account under Section 415(a) of the Act.              In the event the Office of Compliance fails to approve the settlement              and direct payment, the Employer will be responsible for complying              with the settlement."

2 The full text of Section 415 is:

"SECTION 415. PAYMENTS" "(a) AWARDS AND SETTLEMENTS.              -- Except as provided in subsection (c), only funds which are appropriated              to an account of the Office in the Treasury of the United States              for the payment of awards and settlements may be used for the payment              of awards and settlements under this Act. There are authorized to              be appropriated for such account such sums as may be necessary to              pay such awards and settlements. Funds in the account are not available              for awards and settlements involving the General Accounting Office,              the Government Printing Office, or the Library of Congress.

(b) COMPLIANCE. -- Except as provided in subsection              (c), there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be              necessary for administrative, personnel, and similar expenses of              employing offices which are needed to comply with this Act.

(c) OSHA, ACCOMMODATION, AND ACCESS REQUIREMENTS.              -- Funds to correct violations of section 201(a)(3), 210, or 215              of this Act may be paid only from funds appropriated to the employing              office or entity responsible for correcting such violations. There              are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary              for such funds."

3 The distinction between the costs              of complying with an award and the costs of complying with the statute              may, in some situations, be difficult to discern. Some grievance              awards and settlements might, for example, impose permanent obligations              of a continuing nature--such as training or record-keeping functions--upon              an employing office. We need not, and do not, hold that any and              all such awards or settlements must be satisfied from Section 415(a).

 

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