59–006 

114TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session 114–484 

TO AMEND TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE, TO REQUIRE THAT THE OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT TO 

CONGRESS RELATING TO THE USE OF OFFICIAL TIME BY FEDERAL EMPLOYEES 

APRIL 12, 2016.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of 

the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. CHAFFETZ, from the Committee on Oversight and Government 

Reform, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

[To accompany H.R. 4392] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, to whom 

was referred the bill (H.R. 4392) to amend title 5, United States 

Code, to require that the Office of Personnel Management submit 

an annual report to Congress relating to the use of official time by 

Federal employees, having considered the same, report favorably 

thereon with an amendment and recommend that the bill as 

amended do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

Committee Statement and Views ........................................................................... 2 

Section-by-Section .................................................................................................... 4 

Explanation of Amendments ................................................................................... 4 

Committee Consideration ........................................................................................ 5 

Roll Call Votes ......................................................................................................... 5 

Application of Law to the Legislative Branch ....................................................... 5 

Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee ...... 5 

Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives .................................... 5 

Duplication of Federal Programs ............................................................................ 5 

Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings ..................................................................... 5 

Federal Advisory Committee Act ............................................................................ 5 

Unfunded Mandate Statement ............................................................................... 6 

Earmark Identification ............................................................................................ 6 

Committee Estimate ................................................................................................ 6 

Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate .................... 6 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
2 

Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ..................................... 7 

Additional Views ...................................................................................................... 9 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. REPORTING REQUIREMENT. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7131 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘(e)(1)(A) Not later than March 31 of each calendar year, the Office of Personnel 

Management, in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget, shall submit to each House of Congress a report on the operation of this section during the 

fiscal year last ending before the start of such calendar year. 

‘‘(B) Not later than December 31 of each calendar year, each agency (as defined 

by section 7103(a)(3)) shall furnish to the Office of Personnel Management the information which such Office requires, with respect to such agency, for purposes of the 

report which is next due under subparagraph (A). 

‘‘(2) Each report by the Office of Personnel Management under this subsection 

shall include, with respect to the fiscal year described in paragraph (1)(A), at least 

the following information: 

‘‘(A) The total amount of official time granted to employees. 

‘‘(B) The average amount of official time expended per bargaining unit employee. 

‘‘(C) The specific types of activities or purposes for which official time was 

granted, and the impact which the granting of such official time for such activities or purposes had on agency operations. 

‘‘(D) The total number of employees to whom official time was granted, and, 

of that total, the number who were not engaged in any activities or purposes 

except activities or purposes involving the use of official time. 

‘‘(E) The total amount of compensation (including fringe benefits) afforded to 

employees in connection with activities or purposes for which they were granted 

official time. 

‘‘(F) A description of any room or space designated at the agency (or its subcomponent) where official time activities will be conducted, including the square 

footage of any such room or space. 

‘‘(3) All information included in a report by the Office of Personnel Management 

under this subsection with respect to a fiscal year— 

‘‘(A) shall be shown both agency-by-agency and for all agencies; and 

‘‘(B) shall be accompanied by the corresponding information (submitted by the 

Office in its report under this subsection) for the fiscal year before the fiscal 

year to which such report pertains, together with appropriate comparisons and 

analyses. 

‘‘(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘official time’ means any period of 

time, regardless of agency nomenclature— 

‘‘(A) which may be granted to an employee under this chapter (including a 

collective bargaining agreement entered into under this chapter) to perform representational or consultative functions; and 

‘‘(B) during which the employee would otherwise be in a duty status.’’. 

(b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by subsection (a) shall be effective beginning with the report which, under the provisions of such amendment, is first required to be submitted by the Office of Personnel Management to each House of 

Congress by a date which occurs at least 6 months after the date of the enactment 

of this Act. 

COMMITTEE STATEMENT AND VIEWS

PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

H.R. 4392 amends title 5 to require the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), in consultation with the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB), to submit an annual report to Congress relating to the use of ‘‘official time’’ by federal employees. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Section 7131 of title 5, United States Code, defines and authorizes official time for unions representing federal employees. Official 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
3 

time, broadly defined, is paid time off from assigned government 

duties to represent a union or its bargaining unit employees, and 

in lieu of the employee’s regularly assigned work. Federal employees on official time are treated as if they are in duty status when 

they are engaging in representational activities. While current law 

permits the use of official time for union representational activities 

of the federal government, there are no requirements for agencies 

to report use of official time by federal employees. The Office of 

Personnel Management (OPM) has provided limited reporting on 

this topic, and this reporting is often untimely and intermittent. 

In one example, OPM only released official time data for fiscal 

year (FY) 2011 in February 2013, but only after pressure in a January 14, 2013 letter from the Committee to OPM. Moreover, the 

most recent report from OPM was issued in October 2014 and only 

provides official time data for FY2012. The FY2012 data reveals 

that unions at 62 agencies represented more than 1.2 million nonpostal bargaining unit employees. This represented an increase of 

approximately 1.65 percent or 19,804 bargaining unit employees 

when compared to the data from FY2011. The most recent report 

also shows that bargaining unit employees spent 3.4 million total 

official time hours during FY2012, a 1.3 percent increase when 

compared to FY2011. Finally, the most recent report shows that 

the federal government charged the taxpayer $157 million for official time hours in salaries and benefits FY 2012. 

To provide more transparent information to the taxpayer on how 

money is spent on official time, H.R. 4392 requires an annual reporting of official time use by federal agencies. Under the bill, 

agencies will be required to report official time use to OPM by the 

end of each calendar year. In turn, OPM will report to Congress 

such use on an annual basis (by March 31 of each year). 

In the report, OPM will be required to provide the total amount 

of official time granted, the average amount of official time expended per bargaining unit employee, the specific types of activities 

for which official time was used (such as mid-term negotiations, 

dispute resolution, or general labor-management-relations), and the 

impact of official time on agency operations. OPM must also report 

the number of federal employees who are on 100 percent official 

time, that is, are exclusively in official time capacity, and the total 

amount of compensation (including fringe benefits) afforded to employees in connection with official time activities. 

An amendment in the nature of a substitute adopted during Full 

Committee consideration of the bill also requires OPM to include 

in the annual report to Congress a description of any room or space 

(including the square footage) designated at the agency where official time activities are conducted. In response to a letter sent from 

the Committee in February 2016 to federal agencies requesting information on space designated for conducting official time activities, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was able 

to promptly respond and reported that the agency has one room 

(approximately 70 square feet) designated for official time activities. The CFPB response shows that this additional reporting requirement should not be burdensome for agencies and will provide 

helpful information in the annual reports. 

Ultimately, H.R. 4392 is designed to ensure Congress, and the 

American public, receives specific and timely information on official 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
4 

time use and that such use is reasonable, necessary, and in the 

public interest. The continued and timely release of official time information is necessary for the Committee to assess the extent to 

which such time contributes to the productivity and effectiveness of 

the federal government. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 4392 was introduced on January 13, 2016, by Congressman 

Dennis Ross (R–FL) and referred to the Committee on Oversight 

and Government Reform. On March 1, 2016, the Committee on 

Oversight and Government Reform ordered H.R. 4392 favorably reported, as amended. 

The bill is similar to legislation introduced by Congressman Ross 

in the 113th Congress, H.R. 568. During the 113th Congress, the 

Committee favorably reported the bill, as amended, by voice vote. 

Also, in the 112th Congress, Congressman Ross introduced similar 

legislation, H.R. 2066, and the Committee held a hearing on June 

1, 2011 to review the use of official time by federal workers. That 

bill saw no further action. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION

Section 1. Reporting requirement 

Requires the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget, to annually 

report to each House of Congress on the use of official time by federal employees. Official time is time spent by federal employees 

performing representational work for a bargaining unit in lieu of 

their regularly assigned work. 

The report must include information on the total amount of official time granted, the average amount of official time expended per 

bargaining unit employee, and the specific types of activities for 

which official time was used (such as mid-term negotiations, dispute resolution, or general labor-management-relations) including 

the impact of official time on agency operations. OPM must also report on the number of agency employees who are on 100 percent 

official time, the total amount of compensation (including fringe 

benefits) afforded to employees in connection with official time activities, and a description of any room or space (including the 

square footage) designated at the agency where official time activities are conducted. 

Reports are due March 31 following the reportable fiscal year. 

EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS

During Full Committee consideration of the bill, Congressman 

Jody Hice (R–GA) offered an amendment in the nature of a substitute that would insert an additional provision requiring OPM to 

include in the annual report to Congress a description of any room 

or space (including the square footage) designated at the agency 

where official time activities are conducted. The amendment was 

adopted by voice vote. 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
5 

COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

On March 1, 2016, the Committee met in open session and ordered reported favorably, as amended, the bill, H.R. 4392, by voice 

vote, a quorum being present. 

ROLL CALL VOTES

No roll call votes were requested or conducted during Full Committee consideration of H.R. 4392. 

APPLICATION OF LAW TO THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104–1 requires a description of 

the application of this bill to the legislative branch where the bill 

relates to the terms and conditions of employment or access to public services and accommodations. This bill requires an annual reporting to Congress on the use of official time. As such this bill 

does not relate to employment or access to public services and accommodations. 

STATEMENT OF OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF

THE COMMITTEE

In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause (2)(b)(1) 

of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee’s oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the 

descriptive portions of this report. 

STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

In accordance with clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, the Committee’s performance goal or objective of the bill is to amend title 5, United States Code, to require 

that the Office of Personnel Management submit an annual report 

to Congress relating to the use of official time by Federal employees. 

DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

No provision of this bill establishes or reauthorizes a program of 

the federal government known to be duplicative of another federal 

program, a program that was included in any report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 

of Public Law 111–139, or a program related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. 

DISCLOSURE OF DIRECTED RULE MAKINGS

The Committee estimates that enacting this bill does not direct 

the completion of any specific rule makings within the meaning of 

5 U.S.C. 551. 

FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT

The Committee finds that the legislation does not establish or 

authorize the establishment of an advisory committee within the 

definition of 5 U.S.C. App., Section 5(b). 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
6 

UNFUNDED MANDATE STATEMENT

Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded Mandate 

Reform Act, P.L. 104–4) requires a statement as to whether the 

provisions of the reported include unfunded mandates. In compliance with this requirement, the Committee has received a letter 

from the Congressional Budget Office included herein. 

EARMARK IDENTIFICATION

This bill does not include any congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in clause 9 of rule 

XXI. 

COMMITTEE ESTIMATE

Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs that would be incurred in carrying out this bill. 

However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that Rule provides that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report 

a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 

Congressional Budget Act of 1974. 

BUDGET AUTHORITY AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST

ESTIMATE

With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of 

the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the 

Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect to requirements 

of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 

1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for 

this bill from the Director of Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 4392—A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to require 

that the Office of Personnel Management submit an annual report to Congress relating to the use of official time by federal 

employees 

H.R. 4392 would require the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) to provide annual reports to the Congress on the use of official time by federal employees who also serve as union officers. Official time is paid time off from assigned government duties to represent a labor union. 

CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no 

significant effect on the federal budget because most of the information needed for the reports required under the bill is currently 

collected. Because the legislation could affect direct spending by 

agencies not funded through annual appropriations, pay-as-you-go 

procedures apply. CBO estimates, however, that any net increase 

in spending by those agencies would be negligible. Enacting the bill 

would not affect revenues. 

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 4392 would not increase net 

direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 

10-year periods beginning in 2027. 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
7 

H.R. 4392 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew Pickford. The 

estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the 

House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill, 

as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is printed in italic 

and existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in 

roman): 

TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE 

* * * * * * * 

PART III—EMPLOYEES 

* * * * * * * 

SUBPART E—LABOR-MANAGEMENT AND 

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS 

* * * * * * * 

CHAPTER 71—LABOR-MANAGEMENT RELATIONS 

* * * * * * * 

SUBCHAPTER IV—ADMINISTRATIVE AND OTHER 

PROVISIONS 

§ 7131. Official time 

(a) Any employee representing an exclusive representative in the 

negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement under this chapter 

shall be authorized official time for such purposes, including attendance at impasse proceeding, during the time the employee otherwise would be in a duty status. The number of employees for 

whom official time is authorized under this subsection shall not exceed the number of individuals designated as representing the 

agency for such purposes. 

(b) Any activities performed by any employee relating to the internal business of a labor organization (including the solicitation of 

membership, elections of labor organization officials, and collection 

of dues) shall be performed during the time the employee is in a 

non-duty status. 

(c) Except as provided in subsection (a) of this section, the Authority shall determine whether any employee participating for, or 

on behalf of, a labor organization in any phase of proceedings before the Authority shall be authorized official time for such purpose 

during the time the employee otherwise would be in a duty status. 

(d) Except as provided in the preceding subsections of this section— 

(1) any employee representing an exclusive representative, or 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
8 

(2) in connection with any other matter covered by this chapter, any employee in an appropriate unit represented by an exclusive representative, 

shall be granted official time in any amount the agency and the exclusive representative involved agree to be reasonable, necessary, 

and in the public interest. 

(e)(1)(A) Not later than March 31 of each calendar year, the Office 

of Personnel Management, in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget, shall submit to each House of Congress a report on the operation of this section during the fiscal year last ending before the start of such calendar year. 

(B) Not later than December 31 of each calendar year, each agency (as defined by section 7103(a)(3)) shall furnish to the Office of 

Personnel Management the information which such Office requires, 

with respect to such agency, for purposes of the report which is next 

due under subparagraph (A). 

(2) Each report by the Office of Personnel Management under this 

subsection shall include, with respect to the fiscal year described in 

paragraph (1)(A), at least the following information: 

(A) The total amount of official time granted to employees. 

(B) The average amount of official time expended per bargaining unit employee. 

(C) The specific types of activities or purposes for which official time was granted, and the impact which the granting of 

such official time for such activities or purposes had on agency 

operations. 

(D) The total number of employees to whom official time was 

granted, and, of that total, the number who were not engaged 

in any activities or purposes except activities or purposes involving the use of official time. 

(E) The total amount of compensation (including fringe benefits) afforded to employees in connection with activities or purposes for which they were granted official time. 

(F) A description of any room or space designated at the 

agency (or its subcomponent) where official time activities will 

be conducted, including the square footage of any such room or 

space. 

(3) All information included in a report by the Office of Personnel 

Management under this subsection with respect to a fiscal year— 

(A) shall be shown both agency-by-agency and for all agencies; and 

(B) shall be accompanied by the corresponding information 

(submitted by the Office in its report under this subsection) for 

the fiscal year before the fiscal year to which such report pertains, together with appropriate comparisons and analyses. 

(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘‘official time’’ means 

any period of time, regardless of agency nomenclature— 

(A) which may be granted to an employee under this chapter 

(including a collective bargaining agreement entered into under 

this chapter) to perform representational or consultative functions; and 

(B) during which the employee would otherwise be in a duty 

status. 

* * * * * * * 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
(9) 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

H.R. 4392, A BILL TO REQUIRE THE OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT TO SUBMIT AN ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS ON OFFICIAL

TIME

Committee Democrats submit the following additional views on 

H.R. 4392, as amended during Committee consideration. 

The legislation would require the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to submit an annual report to Congress on the use of 

‘‘official time.’’ Federal employees who are union representatives 

use official time to represent employees in grievances, participate 

in labor-management meetings, and negotiate collective bargaining 

agreements. Official time also has been used to enable labor-management collaboration on training and implementation of new 

agency programs as well as to improve workplace safety and to address workplace conflicts. 

The legislation would require agencies and OPM to report on 

some additional information not already captured in reports on official time that OPM currently publishes, such as the impact of official time on agency operations, the total number of employees who 

used official time, and the number and percentage of federal employees who spent 100% of their work hours on official time. 

Reporting on some of the additional data may be difficult, costly, 

and burdensome for federal agencies since they currently do not 

track this information. For example, it is unclear whether a determination of agency impact would involve assessments of productivity, efficiency, costs, employee performance, employee engagement, working conditions, work environment, labor-management 

relations, workplace disputes and litigation, and quality of products 

and services. 

In addition, OPM’s current reporting system does not track the 

number of employees who use official time, and that information 

may require manual reporting by agencies. 

Lastly, the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute offered by 

Rep. Hice during Committee consideration added back into the bill 

a requirement, which was removed during the last Congress, to 

provide a description of the space used for conducting official time 

activities, including square footage. The Committee Majority has 

already issued letters to certain agencies asking for this information, and we believe it could be burdensome for some agencies to 

gather this information. 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING
10 

We hope to work with the Committee Majority prior to House 

consideration to make additional refinements to the legislation to 

reduce the burden of the reporting requirements mandated by the 

bill. 

ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, 

Ranking Member. 

Æ 


rfrederick on DSK6VPTVN1PROD with HEARING