I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1601

To provide for reform relating to Federal employment, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2003

Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on Government Reform 

A BILL

To provide for reform relating to Federal employment, and 

for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2003’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—FEDERAL HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT 

INNOVATIONS 

Sec. 101. Streamlined personnel management demonstration projects. 

Sec. 102. Effective date. 
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TITLE II—REFORMS RELATING TO FEDERAL HUMAN CAPITAL 

MANAGEMENT 

Sec. 201. Recruitment, relocation, and retention bonuses. 

Sec. 202. Streamlined critical pay authority. 

Sec. 203. Civil service retirement system computation for part-time service. 

Sec. 204. Corrections relating to pay administration. 

TITLE III—REFORMS RELATING TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEE 

CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND BENEFITS 

Sec. 301. Agency training. 

Sec. 302. Annual leave enhancements.

1 TITLE I—FEDERAL HUMAN RE2 SOURCES MANAGEMENT IN3 NOVATIONS 

4 SEC. 101. STREAMLINED PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT DEM5 ONSTRATION PROJECTS. 

6 Chapter 47 of title 5, United States Code, is amend7 ed—

8 (1) in section 4701—

9 (A) in subsection (a)—

10 (i) by striking ‘‘(a)’’; 

11 (ii) by striking paragraph (1) and in12 serting the following: 

13 ‘‘(1) ‘agency’ means an Executive agency and 

14 any entity that is subject to any provision of this 

15 title that could be waived under section 4703, but 

16 does not include—

17 ‘‘(A) the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 

18 the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense In19 telligence Agency, the National Imagery and 
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1 Mapping Agency, the National Security Agency, 

2 and, as determined by the President, any Exec3 utive agency or unit thereof which is designated 

4 by the President and which has as its principal 

5 function the conduct of foreign intelligence or 

6 counterintelligence activities; or 

7 ‘‘(B) the General Accounting Office;’’; 

8 (iii) in paragraph (4), by striking 

9 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

10 (iv) by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

11 paragraph (6); and 

12 (v) by inserting after paragraph (4) 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(5) ‘modification’ means a significant change 

15 in 1 or more of the elements of a demonstration 

16 project plan as described in section 4703(b)(1); 

17 and’’; and 

18 (B) by striking subsection (b); and 

19 (2) in section 4703—

20 (A) in subsection (a)—

21 (i) by striking ‘‘conduct and evaluate 

22 demonstration projects’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘conduct, modify, and evaluate demonstra24 tion projects’’; 
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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘, including any law or 

2 regulation relating to—’’ and all that fol3 lows and inserting a period; and 

4 (iii) by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: ‘‘The decision to initiate or modify 

6 a project under this section shall be made 

7 by the Office.’’; 

8 (B) by striking subsection (b) and insert9 ing the following: 

10 ‘‘(b) Before conducting or entering into any agree11 ment or contract to conduct a demonstration project, the 

12 Office shall ensure—

13 ‘‘(1) that each project has a plan which de14 scribes—

15 ‘‘(A) its purpose; 

16 ‘‘(B) the employees to be covered; 

17 ‘‘(C) its anticipated outcomes and resource 

18 implications, including how the project relates 

19 to carrying out the agency’s strategic plan, in20 cluding meeting performance goals and objec21 tives, and accomplishing its mission; 

22 ‘‘(D) the personnel policies and procedures 

23 the project will use that differ from those other24 wise available and applicable, including a spe25 cific citation of any provisions of law, rule, or 
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1 regulation to be waived and a specific descrip2 tion of any contemplated action for which there 

3 is a lack of specific authority; 

4 ‘‘(E) the method of evaluating the project; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(F) the agency’s system for ensuring that 

7 the project is implemented in a manner con8 sistent with merit system principles; 

9 ‘‘(2) notification of the proposed project to em10 ployees who are likely to be affected by the project; 

11 ‘‘(3) an appropriate comment period; 

12 ‘‘(4) publication of the final plan in the Federal 

13 Register; 

14 ‘‘(5) notification of the final project at least 90 

15 days in advance of the date any project proposed 

16 under this section is to take effect to employees who 

17 are likely to be affected by the project; 

18 ‘‘(6) publication of any subsequent modification 

19 in the Federal Register; and 

20 ‘‘(7) notification of any subsequent modification 

21 to employees who are included in the project.’’; 

22 (C) in subsection (c)—

23 (i) by striking paragraph (1) and in24 serting the following:
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1 ‘‘(1) any provision of chapter 63 or subpart G 

2 of part III of this title;’’; 

3 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (4) 

4 and (5) as paragraphs (6) and (7), respec5 tively; 

6 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘(4) section 7342, 7351, or 7353; 

9 ‘‘(5) the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

10 U.S.C. App.);’’; and 

11 (iv) in paragraph (6) as redesignated, 

12 by striking ‘‘paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of 

13 this subsection; or’’ and inserting ‘‘para14 graphs (1) through (5);’’; 

15 (D) by striking subsections (d) and (e) and 

16 inserting the following: 

17 ‘‘(d)(1) Unless terminated at an earlier date in ac18 cordance with this section, each demonstration project 

19 shall terminate at the end of the 10-year period beginning 

20 on the date on which the project takes effect. 

21 ‘‘(2) On or before the end of the 7-year period begin22 ning on the date on which a demonstration project takes 

23 effect, the Office shall submit a recommendation to Con24 gress on whether Congress should enact legislation to 

25 make that project permanent. 
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1 ‘‘(e) The Office may terminate a demonstration 

2 project under this chapter if the Office determines that 

3 the project—

4 ‘‘(1) is not consistent with merit system prin5 ciples set forth in section 2301, veterans’ preference 

6 principles, or the provisions of this chapter; or 

7 ‘‘(2) otherwise imposes a substantial hardship 

8 on, or is not in the best interests of, the public, the 

9 Government, employees, or eligibles.’’; and 

10 (E) by striking subsections (h) and (i) and 

11 inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(h) Notwithstanding section 2302(e)(1), for pur13 poses of applying section 2302(b)(11) in a demonstration 

14 project under this chapter, the term ‘veterans’ preference 

15 requirement’ means any of the specific provisions of the 

16 demonstration project plan that are designed to ensure 

17 that the project is consistent with veterans’ preference 

18 principles. 

19 ‘‘(i) The Office shall ensure that each demonstration 

20 project is evaluated. Each evaluation shall assess—

21 ‘‘(1) the project’s compliance with the plan de22 veloped under subsection (b)(1); and 

23 ‘‘(2) the project’s impact on improving public 

24 management. 
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1 ‘‘(j) Upon request of the Director of the Office of 

2 Personnel Management, agencies shall cooperate with and 

3 assist the Office in any evaluation undertaken under sub4 section (i) and provide the Office with requested informa5 tion and reports relating to the conducting of demonstra6 tion projects in their respective agencies.’’. 

7 SEC. 102. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

8 This title shall take effect 180 days after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act. 

10 TITLE II—REFORMS RELATING 

11 TO FEDERAL HUMAN CAP12 ITAL MANAGEMENT 

13 SEC. 201. RECRUITMENT, RELOCATION, AND RETENTION 

14 BONUSES. 

15 (a) BONUSES.—

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 57 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, is amended by striking sections 5753 

18 and 5754 and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 5753. Recruitment and relocation bonuses 

20 ‘‘(a) In this section, the term ‘employee’ has the 

21 meaning given that term under section 2105, except that 

22 such term also includes an employee described under sub23 section (c) of that section. 

24 ‘‘(b)(1) The Office of Personnel Management may 

25 authorize the head of an agency to pay a bonus to an indi-
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1 vidual appointed or moved to a position that is likely to 

2 be difficult to fill in the absence of such a bonus, if the 

3 individual—

4 ‘‘(A)(i) is newly appointed as an employee of 

5 the Federal Government; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) is currently employed by the Federal Gov7 ernment and moves to a new position in the same 

8 geographic area under circumstances described in 

9 regulations of the Office; or 

10 ‘‘(B) is currently employed by the Federal Gov11 ernment and must relocate to accept a position sta12 tioned in a different geographic area. 

13 ‘‘(2) Except as provided by subsection (h), a bonus 

14 may be paid under this section only to an employee cov15 ered by the General Schedule pay system established 

16 under subchapter III of chapter 53. 

17 ‘‘(c)(1) Payment of a bonus under this section shall 

18 be contingent upon the employee entering into a written 

19 service agreement to complete a period of employment 

20 with the agency, not to exceed 4 years. The Office may, 

21 by regulation, prescribe a minimum service. 

22 ‘‘(2)(A) The agreement shall include—

23 ‘‘(i) the length of the required service period; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the bonus; 

25 ‘‘(iii) the method of payment; and 
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1 ‘‘(iv) other terms and conditions under which 

2 the bonus is payable, subject to subsections (d) and 

3 (e) and regulations of the Office. 

4 ‘‘(B) The terms and conditions for paying a bonus, 

5 as specified in the service agreement, shall include—

6 ‘‘(i) the conditions under which the agreement 

7 may be terminated before the agreed-upon service 

8 period has been completed; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the effect of the termination. 

10 ‘‘(3) The agreement shall be made effective upon em11 ployment with the agency or movement to a new position 

12 or geographic area, as applicable, except that a service 

13 agreement with respect to a recruitment bonus may be 

14 made effective at a later date under circumstances de15 scribed in regulations of the Office, such as when there 

16 is an initial period of formal basic training. 

17 ‘‘(d)(1) Except as provided in subsection (e), a bonus 

18 under this section shall not exceed 25 percent of the an19 nual rate of basic pay of the employee at the beginning 

20 of the service period multiplied by the number of years 

21 (or fractions thereof) in the service period, not to exceed 

22 4 years.

23 ‘‘(2) A bonus under this section may be paid as an 

24 initial lump sum, in installments, as a final lump sum 
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1 upon the completion of the full service period, or in a com2 bination of these forms of payment. 

3 ‘‘(3) A bonus under this section is not part of the 

4 basic pay of an employee for any purpose. 

5 ‘‘(4) Under regulations of the Office, a recruitment 

6 bonus under this section may be paid to an eligible indi7 vidual before that individual enters on duty. 

8 ‘‘(e) The Office may authorize the head of an agency 

9 to waive the limitation under subsection (d)(1) based on 

10 a critical agency need, subject to regulations prescribed 

11 by the Office. Under such a waiver, the amount of the 

12 bonus may be up to 50 percent of the employee’s annual 

13 rate of basic pay at the beginning of the service period 

14 multiplied by the number of years (or fractions thereof) 

15 in the service period, not to exceed 100 percent of the em16 ployee’s annual rate of basic pay at the beginning of the 

17 service period. 

18 ‘‘(f) The Office shall require that, before paying a 

19 bonus under this section, an agency shall establish a plan 

20 for paying recruitment bonuses and a plan for paying relo21 cation bonuses, subject to regulations prescribed by the 

22 Office. 

23 ‘‘(g) The Office may prescribe regulations to carry 

24 out this section, including regulations relating to the re25 payment of a recruitment or relocation bonus in appro-
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1 priate circumstances when the agreed-upon service period 

2 has not been completed. 

3 ‘‘(h)(1) At the request of the head of an Executive 

4 agency, the Office may extend coverage under this section 

5 to categories of employees within the agency who other6 wise would not be covered by this section. 

7 ‘‘(2) The Office shall not extend coverage to the head 

8 of an Executive agency, including an Executive agency 

9 headed by a board or other collegial body composed of 2 

10 or more individual members. 

11 ‘‘§ 5754. Retention bonuses 

12 ‘‘(a) In this section, the term ‘employee’ has the 

13 meaning given that term under section 2105, except that 

14 such term also includes an employee described in sub15 section (c) of that section.

16 ‘‘(b) The Office of Personnel Management may au17 thorize the head of an agency to pay a retention bonus 

18 to an employee, subject to regulations prescribed by the 

19 Office, if—

20 ‘‘(1) the unusually high or unique qualifications 

21 of the employee or a special need of the agency for 

22 the employee’s services makes it essential to retain 

23 the employee; and 
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1 ‘‘(2) the agency determines that, in the absence 

2 of a retention bonus, the employee would be likely to 

3 leave—

4 ‘‘(A) the Federal service; or 

5 ‘‘(B) for a different position in the Federal 

6 service under conditions described in regula7 tions of the Office. 

8 ‘‘(c) The Office may authorize the head of an agency 

9 to pay retention bonuses to a group of employees in 1 or 

10 more categories of positions in 1 or more geographic areas, 

11 subject to the requirements of subsection (b)(1) and regu12 lations prescribed by the Office, if there is a high risk that 

13 a significant portion of employees in the group would be 

14 likely to leave in the absence of retention bonuses. 

15 ‘‘(d) Except as provided in subsection (j), a bonus 

16 may be paid only to an employee covered by the General 

17 Schedule pay system established under subchapter III of 

18 chapter 53. 

19 ‘‘(e)(1) Payment of a retention bonus is contingent 

20 upon the employee entering into a written service agree21 ment with the agency to complete a period of employment 

22 with the agency. 

23 ‘‘(2)(A) The agreement shall include—

24 ‘‘(i) the length of the required service period; 

25 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the bonus; 
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1 ‘‘(iii) the method of payment; and 

2 ‘‘(iv) other terms and conditions under which 

3 the bonus is payable, subject to subsections (f) and 

4 (g) and regulations of the Office. 

5 ‘‘(B) The terms and conditions for paying a bonus, 

6 as specified in the service agreement, shall include—

7 ‘‘(i) the conditions under which the agreement 

8 may be terminated before the agreed-upon service 

9 period has been completed; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) the effect of the termination. 

11 ‘‘(3)(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a written 

12 service agreement is not required if the agency pays a re13 tention bonus in biweekly installments and sets the install14 ment payment at the full bonus percentage rate estab15 lished for the employee with no portion of the bonus de16 ferred. 

17 ‘‘(B) If an agency pays a retention bonus in accord18 ance with subparagraph (A) and makes a determination 

19 to terminate the payments, the agency shall provide writ20 ten notice to the employee of that determination. Except 

21 as provided in regulations of the Office, the employee shall 

22 continue to be paid the retention bonus through the end 

23 of the pay period in which such written notice is provided. 
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1 ‘‘(4) A retention bonus for an employee may not be 

2 based on any period of such service which is the basis for 

3 a recruitment or relocation bonus under section 5753. 

4 ‘‘(f)(1) Except as provided in subsection (g), a reten5 tion bonus, which shall be stated as a percentage of the 

6 employee’s basic pay for the service period associated with 

7 the bonus, may not exceed—

8 ‘‘(A) 25 percent of the employee’s basic pay if 

9 paid under subsection (b); or 

10 ‘‘(B) 10 percent of an employee’s basic pay if 

11 paid under subsection (c). 

12 ‘‘(2) A retention bonus may be paid to an employee 

13 in installments after completion of specified periods of 

14 service or in a single lump sum at the end of the full pe15 riod of service required by the agreement. An installment 

16 payment may not exceed the product derived from multi17 plying the amount of basic pay earned in the installment 

18 period by a percentage not to exceed the bonus percentage 

19 rate established for the employee. If the installment pay20 ment percentage is less than the bonus percentage rate, 

21 the accrued but unpaid portion of the bonus is payable 

22 as part of the final installment payment to the employee 

23 after completion of the full service period under the terms 

24 of the service agreement.
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1 ‘‘(3) A retention bonus is not part of the basic pay 

2 of an employee for any purpose. 

3 ‘‘(g) Upon the request of the head of an agency, the 

4 Office may waive the limit established under subsection 

5 (f)(1) and permit the agency head to pay an otherwise 

6 eligible employee or category of employees retention bo7 nuses of up to 50 percent of basic pay, based on a critical 

8 agency need. 

9 ‘‘(h) The Office shall require that, before paying a 

10 bonus under this section, an agency shall establish a plan 

11 for paying retention bonuses, subject to regulations pre12 scribed by the Office. 

13 ‘‘(i) The Office may prescribe regulations to carry out 

14 this section. 

15 ‘‘(j)(1) At the request of the head of an Executive 

16 agency, the Office may extend coverage under this section 

17 to categories of employees within the agency who other18 wise would not be covered by this section. 

19 ‘‘(2) The Office shall not extend coverage under this 

20 section to the head of an Executive agency, including an 

21 Executive agency headed by a board or other collegial body 

22 composed of 2 or more individual members.’’. 

23 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND24 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 57 of title 

25 5, United States Code, is amended by striking the 
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1 item relating to section 5754 and inserting the fol2 lowing:

‘‘5754. Retention bonuses.’’.

3 (b) RELOCATION PAYMENTS.—Section 407 of the 

4 Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990 (5 

5 U.S.C. 5305 note; 104 Stat. 1467) is repealed. 

6 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE AND APPLICATION.—

7 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Except as provided 

8 under paragraphs (2) and (3), this section shall take 

9 effect on the first day of the first applicable pay pe10 riod beginning on or after 180 days after the date 

11 of enactment of this Act. 

12 (2) APPLICATION TO AGREEMENTS.—A recruit13 ment or relocation bonus service agreement that was 

14 authorized under section 5753 of title 5, United 

15 States Code, before the effective date under para16 graph (1) shall continue, until its expiration, to be 

17 subject to section 5753 as in effect on the day before 

18 such effective date.

19 (3) APPLICATION TO ALLOWANCES.—Payment 

20 of a retention allowance that was authorized under 

21 section 5754 of title 5, United States Code, before 

22 the effective date under paragraph (1) shall con23 tinue, subject to section 5754 as in effect on the day 

24 before such effective date, until the retention allow-
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1 ance is reauthorized or terminated (but no longer 

2 than 1 year after such effective date). 

3 SEC. 202. STREAMLINED CRITICAL PAY AUTHORITY. 

4 Section 5377 of title 5, United States Code, is 

5 amended— 

6 (1) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(c) The Office of Personnel Management, in con9 sultation with the Office of Management and Budget, 

10 may, upon the request of the head of an agency, grant 

11 authority to fix the rate of basic pay for 1 or more posi12 tions in such agency in accordance with this section.’’;

13 (2) in subsection (e)(1), by striking ‘‘Office of 

14 Management and Budget’’ and inserting ‘‘Office of 

15 Personnel Management’’; 

16 (3) by striking subsections (f) and (g) and in17 serting the following: 

18 ‘‘(f) The Office of Personnel Management may not 

19 authorize the exercise of authority under this section with 

20 respect to more than 800 positions at any 1 time, of which 

21 not more than 30 may, at any such time, be positions the 

22 rate of basic pay for which would otherwise be determined 

23 under subchapter II. 

24 ‘‘(g) The Office of Personnel Management shall con25 sult with the Office of Management and Budget before 
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1 making any decision to grant or terminate any authority 

2 under this section.’’; and 

3 (4) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘The Office of 

4 Management and Budget shall report to the Com5 mittee on Post Office and Civil Service’’ and insert6 ing ‘‘The Office of Personnel Management shall re7 port to the Committee on Government Reform.’’. 

8 SEC. 203. CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM COMPUTA9 TION FOR PART-TIME SERVICE. 

10 Section 8339(p) of title 5, United States Code, is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(3) In the administration of paragraph (1)—

13 ‘‘(A) subparagraph (A) of such paragraph 

14 shall apply to any service performed before, on, 

15 or after April 7, 1986; 

16 ‘‘(B) subparagraph (B) of such paragraph 

17 shall apply to all service performed on a part18 time or full-time basis on or after April 7, 

19 1986; and 

20 ‘‘(C) any service performed on a part-time 

21 basis before April 7, 1986, shall be credited as 

22 service performed on a full-time basis.’’.
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1 SEC. 204. CORRECTIONS RELATING TO PAY ADMINISTRA2 TION. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 53 of title 5, United 

4 States Code, is amended—

5 (1) in section 5302, by striking paragraph (8) 

6 and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(8) the term ‘rates of pay under the General 

8 Schedule’, ‘rates of pay for the General Schedule’, or 

9 ‘scheduled rates of basic pay’ means the unadjusted 

10 rates of basic pay in the General Schedule as estab11 lished by section 5332, excluding additional pay of 

12 any kind; and’’; 

13 (2) in section 5305—

14 (A) by striking subsection (a) and insert15 ing the following: 

16 ‘‘(a)(1) Whenever the Office of Personnel Manage17 ment finds that the Government’s recruitment or retention 

18 efforts with respect to 1 or more occupations in 1 or more 

19 areas or locations are, or are likely to become, significantly 

20 handicapped due to any of the circumstances described in 

21 subsection (b), the Office may establish for the areas or 

22 locations involved, with respect to individuals in positions 

23 paid under any of the pay systems referred to in sub24 section (c), higher minimum rates of pay for 1 or more 

25 grades or levels, occupational groups, series, classes, or 

26 subdivisions thereof, and may make corresponding in-
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1 creases in all rates of pay range for each such grade or 

2 level. However, a minimum rate so established may not 

3 exceed the maximum rate of basic pay (excluding any lo4 cality-based comparability payment under section 5304 or 

5 similar provision of law) for the grade or level by more 

6 than 30 percent, and no rate may be established under 

7 this section in excess of the rate of basic pay payable for 

8 level IV of the Executive Schedule. In the case of individ9 uals not subject to the provisions of this title governing 

10 appointment in the competitive service, the President may 

11 designate another agency to authorize special rates under 

12 this section. 

13 ‘‘(2) The head of an agency may determine that a 

14 category of employees of the agency will not be covered 

15 by a special rate authorization established under this sec16 tion. The head of an agency shall provide written notice 

17 to the Office of Personnel Management (or other agency 

18 designated by the President to authorize special rates) 

19 which identifies the specific category or categories of em20 ployees that will not be covered by special rates authorized 

21 under this section. If the head of an agency removes a 

22 category of employees from coverage under a special rate 

23 authorization after that authorization takes effect, the loss 

24 of coverage will take effect on the first day of the first 

25 pay period after the date of the notice.’’; 
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1 (B) in subsection (b), by striking para2 graph (4) and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(4) any other circumstances which the Office 

4 of Personnel Management (or such agency as the 

5 President may designate) considers appropriate.’’; 

6 (C) in subsection (d)—

7 (i) by striking ‘‘President’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘Office of Personnel Management’’; 

9 and 

10 (ii) by striking ‘‘he’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘the President’’; 

12 (D) in subsection (e), by striking ‘‘basic 

13 pay’’ and inserting ‘‘pay’’; 

14 (E) by striking subsection (f) and inserting 

15 the following: 

16 ‘‘(f) When a schedule of special rates established 

17 under this section is adjusted under subsection (d), a cov18 ered employee’s special rate will be adjusted in accordance 

19 with conversion rules prescribed by the Office of Personnel 

20 Management or by such agency as the President may des21 ignate.’’; 

22 (F) in subsection (g)(1)—

23 (i) by striking ‘‘basic pay’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘pay’’; and 
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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘President (or his des2 ignated agency)’’ and inserting ‘‘Office of 

3 Personnel Management (or such agency as 

4 the President may designate)’’; 

5 (G) by striking subsection (h) and insert6 ing the following: 

7 ‘‘(h) An employee’s entitlement to a rate of pay estab8 lished under this section terminates when the employee is 

9 entitled to a higher rate of pay (including basic pay as 

10 adjusted to include any locality-based comparability pay11 ment under section 5304 or similar provision of law).’’; 

12 and 

13 (H) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(i) When an employee who is receiving a rate of pay 

15 established under this section moves to a new official duty 

16 station at which different pay schedules apply, the em17 ployee shall be entitled to the rates of pay applicable in 

18 the new pay area based on the employee’s position, grade, 

19 and step (or relative position in the rate range) before the 

20 movement, as determined under regulations prescribed by 

21 the Office of Personnel Management or other agency des22 ignated by the President under subsection (a). Such pay 

23 conversion upon geographic movement shall be effected be24 fore processing any other simultaneous pay action (other 

25 than a general pay adjustment). 
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1 ‘‘(j) A rate established under this section shall be con2 sidered to be part of basic pay for purposes of subchapter 

3 III of chapter 83, chapter 84, chapter 87, subchapter V 

4 of chapter 55, section 5941, and for such other purposes 

5 as may be expressly provided for by law or as the Office 

6 of Personnel Management may by regulation prescribe.’’; 

7 (3) in section 5334—

8 (A) in subsection (b), by adding at the end 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘If an employee’s rate after promotion or transfer is 

11 greater than the maximum rate of basic pay for the em12 ployee’s grade, that rate shall be treated as a retained rate 

13 under section 5363. The Office of Personnel Management 

14 shall prescribe by regulation the circumstances under 

15 which and the extent to which special rates under section 

16 5305 (or similar provision of law) or locality-adjusted 

17 rates under section 5304 (or similar provision of law) are 

18 considered to be basic pay in applying this subsection.’’; 

19 and 

20 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(g) When an employee moves to a new official duty 

22 station at which different pay schedules apply, the em23 ployee shall be entitled to the rates of pay applicable in 

24 the new pay area based on the employee’s position, grade, 

25 and step (or relative position in the rate range) before the
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1 movement. Such pay conversion upon geographic move2 ment shall be effected before processing any other simulta3 neous pay action (other than a general pay adjustment).’’; 

4 (4) in section 5361—

5 (A) by striking paragraphs (3) and (4) and 

6 redesignating paragraphs (5) through (7) as 

7 paragraphs (3) through (5), respectively; 

8 (B) in paragraph (4), as redesignated, by 

9 striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

10 (C) in paragraph (5), as redesignated, by 

11 striking the period and inserting a semicolon; 

12 and 

13 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(6) ‘rate of basic pay’ means—

15 ‘‘(A) the rate of pay prescribed by law (in16 cluding regulations) for the position held by an 

17 employee before any deductions or additions of 

18 any kind, but including—

19 ‘‘(i) any applicable locality-based pay20 ment under section 5304 or similar provi21 sion of law; 

22 ‘‘(ii) any applicable special salary rate 

23 under section 5305 or similar provision of 

24 law; and 
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1 ‘‘(iii) any applicable existing retained 

2 rate of pay established under section 5363 

3 or similar provision of law; and 

4 ‘‘(B) in the case of a prevailing rate em5 ployee, the scheduled rate of pay determined 

6 under section 5343; 

7 ‘‘(7) ‘former highest applicable rate of basic 

8 pay’ means the highest applicable rate of basic pay 

9 payable to the employee immediately before the ac10 tion that triggers pay retention under section 5363; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(8) ‘highest applicable basic pay rate range’ 

13 means the range of rates of basic pay for the grade 

14 or level of the employee’s current position with the 

15 highest maximum rate, except as otherwise provided 

16 in regulations prescribed by the Office of Personnel 

17 Management in cases where another rate range pro18 vides higher rates only in the lower portion of the 

19 range.’’; 

20 (5) in section 5363—

21 (A) in subsection (a), by amending the 

22 matter following paragraph (4) to read as fol23 lows: 

24 ‘‘is entitled to pay retention under the conditions set forth 

25 in this section. Notwithstanding any other provision of 
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1 law, this section may not be applied to employees whose 

2 rate of basic pay is reduced solely because of the recompu3 tation of pay upon movement to a new official duty station 

4 at which different pay schedules apply. When a geographic 

5 move is accompanied by a simultaneous pay action that 

6 reduces the employee’s rate of basic pay after the employ7 ee’s pay has been recomputed to reflect the geographic 

8 move, this section shall be applied, if otherwise applica9 ble.’’; and 

10 (B) by striking subsections (b) and (c) and 

11 inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(b)(1) If an employee is entitled to pay retention 

13 under subsection (a), paragraphs (2) and (3) shall apply 

14 in determining the employee’s rate of pay: 

15 ‘‘(2) If the employee’s former highest applicable rate 

16 of basic pay is less than or equal to the maximum rate 

17 of the highest applicable basic pay rate range for the em18 ployee’s current position, the employee is entitled to the 

19 lowest payable rate of basic pay in that rate range that 

20 equals or exceeds the former rate, and pay retention 

21 ceases to apply. 

22 ‘‘(3) If the employee’s former highest applicable rate 

23 of basic pay exceeds the maximum rate of the highest ap24 plicable basic pay rate range for the employee’s current 
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1 position, the employee is entitled to a retained rate equal 

2 to the lesser of—

3 ‘‘(A) the employee’s former highest applicable 

4 rate of basic pay; or 

5 ‘‘(B) 150 percent of the maximum rate of the 

6 highest applicable basic pay rate range for the em7 ployee’s position. 

8 ‘‘(c) An employee’s retained rate shall be increased 

9 at the time of any increase in the maximum rate of the 

10 highest applicable basic pay rate range for the employee’s 

11 position by 50 percent of the dollar increase in that max12 imum rate. 

13 ‘‘(d) The rate of pay for an employee who is receiving 

14 a retained rate under this section and who is moved to 

15 a new official duty station at which different pay schedules 

16 apply shall be determined under regulations prescribed by 

17 the Office of Personnel Management consistent with the 

18 purposes of this section. 

19 ‘‘(e) A retained rate shall be considered part of basic 

20 pay for purposes of this subchapter and for purposes of 

21 subchapter III of chapter 83, chapters 84 and 87, sub22 chapter V of chapter 55, section 5941, and for such other 

23 purposes as may be expressly provided for by law or as 

24 the law or as the Office of Personnel Management may 

25 by regulation prescribe. For other purposes, the Office
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1 shall prescribe by regulation what constitutes basic pay 

2 for employees receiving a retained rate. 

3 ‘‘(f) Subsections (a) through (e) do not apply (or shall 

4 cease to apply) to an employee who—

5 ‘‘(1) has a break in service of 1 workday or 

6 more; 

7 ‘‘(2) is entitled by operation of this subchapter 

8 or chapter 51 or 53 to a rate of basic pay which is 

9 equal to or higher than, or declines a reasonable 

10 offer of a position the rate of basic pay for which 

11 is equal to or higher than, the rate to which the em12 ployee is entitled under this section; or 

13 ‘‘(3) is demoted for personal cause or at the 

14 employee’s request.’’; and 

15 (6) in section 5365(b) by inserting after ‘‘provi16 sions of this subchapter’’ the following: ‘‘(subject to 

17 any conditions or limitations the Office may estab18 lish)’’.

19 (b) SPECIAL RATES FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI20 CERS.—Section 403(c) of the Federal Employees Pay 

21 Comparability Act of 1990 (5 U.S.C. 5305 note; Public 

22 Law 101–509) is amended by striking all after ‘‘provision 

23 of law)’’ and inserting ‘‘and shall be basic pay for all pur24 poses. The rates shall be adjusted at the time of adjust-
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1 ments in the General Schedule to maintain the step link2 age set forth in subsection (b)(2).’’. 

3 (c) PAY RETENTION.—Subject to any regulations the 

4 Office of Personnel Management may prescribe, any em5 ployee in a covered pay schedule who is receiving a re6 tained rate under section 5363 of title 5, United States 

7 Code, or similar authority on the effective date of this Act 

8 shall have the pay of that employee converted on that date. 

9 The newly applicable retained rate shall equal the formerly 

10 applicable retained rate as adjusted to include any applica11 ble locality-based payment under section 5304 of title 5, 

12 United States Code, or similar provision of law. Any em13 ployee in a covered pay system receiving a rate that ex14 ceeds the maximum rate of the highest applicable basic 

15 pay rate range for the employee’s position (as defined 

16 under section 5361(8) of that title, as amended by this 

17 Act) under any authority shall be considered to be receiv18 ing a retained rate under section 5363 of that title. 

19 TITLE III—REFORMS RELATING 

20 TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEE CA21 REER DEVELOPMENT AND 

22 BENEFITS 

23 SEC. 301. AGENCY TRAINING. 

24 (a) TRAINING TO ACCOMPLISH PERFORMANCE

25 PLANS AND STRATEGIC GOALS.—Section 4103 of title 5, 
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1 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

2 following: 

3 ‘‘(c) The head of each agency shall—

4 ‘‘(1) evaluate each program or plan established, 

5 operated, or maintained under subsection (a) with 

6 respect to accomplishing specific performance plans 

7 and strategic goals in performing the agency mis8 sion; and 

9 ‘‘(2) modify such program or plan to accom10 plish such plans and goals.’’. 

11 (b) AGENCY TRAINING OFFICER; SPECIFIC TRAINING

12 PROGRAMS.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 41 of title 5, United 

14 States Code, is amended by adding after section 

15 4119 the following:

16 ‘‘§ 4120. Agency training officer 

17 ‘‘Each agency shall appoint or designate a training 

18 officer who shall be responsible for developing, coordi19 nating, and administering training for the agency. 

20 ‘‘§ 4121. Specific training programs 

21 ‘‘In consultation with the Office of Personnel Man22 agement, each head of an agency shall establish—

23 ‘‘(1) a comprehensive management succession 

24 program to provide training to employees to develop 

25 managers for the agency; and 
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1 ‘‘(2) a program to provide training to managers 

2 on actions, options, and strategies a manager may 

3 use in—

4 ‘‘(A) relating to employees with unaccept5 able performances; and 

6 ‘‘(B) mentoring employees and improving 

7 employee performance and productivity.’’. 

8 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND9 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 41 of title 

10 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

11 end the following:

‘‘4120. Agency training officer. 

‘‘4121. Specific training programs.’’.

12 SEC. 302. ANNUAL LEAVE ENHANCEMENTS. 

13 (a) ACCRUAL OF LEAVE FOR NEWLY HIRED FED14 ERAL EMPLOYEES WITH QUALIFIED EXPERIENCE.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6303 of title 5, 

16 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘(e)(1) In this subsection, the term ‘period of quali19 fied non-Federal service’ means any equal period of service 

20 performed by an individual that—

21 ‘‘(A) except for this subsection would not other22 wise be service performed by an employee for pur23 poses of subsection (a); and 

24 ‘‘(B) was performed in a position—
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1 ‘‘(i) the duties of which were directly re2 lated to the duties of the position in an agency 

3 that such individual holds; and

4 ‘‘(ii) which meets such other conditions as 

5 the Office of Personnel Management shall pre6 scribe by regulation. 

7 ‘‘(2) For purposes of subsection (a), the head of an 

8 agency may deem a period of qualified non-Federal service 

9 performed by an individual to be a period of service per10 formed as an employee.’’. 

11 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take 

12 effect 120 days after the date of enactment of this 

13 Act and shall only apply to an individual hired on 

14 or after that effective date. 

15 (b) SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE ANNUAL LEAVE

16 ENHANCEMENTS.—

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6303(a) of title 5, 

18 United States Code, is amended—

19 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

20 the end; 

21 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking the pe22 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

23 (C) by adding after paragraph (3) the fol24 lowing: 
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1 ‘‘(4) one day for each full biweekly pay period 

2 for an employee in a position paid under section 

3 5376 or 5383, or for an employee in an equivalent 

4 category for which the minimum rate of basic pay is 

5 greater than the rate payable at GS–15, step 10.’’. 

6 (2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 120 days 

7 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Office 

8 of Personnel Management shall prescribe regulations 

9 to carry out the amendments made by this sub10 section. 

11 (3) EFFECTIVE DATES.—

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) shall 

13 take effect 120 days after the date of enact14 ment of this Act. 

15 (B) REGULATIONS.—Paragraph (2) shall 

16 take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.

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