This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

the Superintendent of Documents. Prices of

new books are listed in the first FEDERAL

REGISTER issue of each week.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

68139

Vol. 62, No. 250

Wednesday, December 31, 1997

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL

MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 178

RIN 3206–AH89

Procedures for Settling Claims

AGENCY: Office of Personnel

Management.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel

Management (OPM) is issuing final

rules of procedure for the settlement of

claims submitted to OPM for Federal

civilian employees’ compensation and

leave, for proceeds of canceled checks

for veterans’ benefits payable to

deceased beneficiaries, and for the

settlement of deceased employees’

compensation. Before June 30, 1996,

these claims were settled by the United

States General Accounting Office

(GAO). However, on that date, pursuant

to the Legislative Branch

Appropriations Act of 1996, the

authority to settle these claims

transferred to the Director, Office of

Management and Budget, who delegated

this function to the Office of Personnel

Management.

EFFECTIVE DATE: January 30, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul

Britner, Senior Attorney, (202) 606–

2233, Claims Adjudication Unit, Office

of the General Counsel, Room 7537,

Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E

Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Pursuant to the Legislative Branch

Appropriations Act of 1996, most of the

claims settlement functions performed

by the General Accounting Office were

transferred to the Director, Office of

Management and Budget. See Sec. 211,

Pub. L. 104–53, 109 Stat. 535.

Subsequently, the Acting Director

delegated these functions to various

components within the Executive

branch in a determination order dated

June 28, 1996. In summary, this order

delegated to the Office of Personnel

Management the authority to settle

claims against the United States

involving Federal employees’

compensation and leave, deceased

employees’ compensation, and proceeds

of canceled checks for veterans’ benefits

payable to deceased beneficiaries.

Subsequently, Congress codified these

changes through additional legislation.

See Pub.L. 104–316, 110 Stat. 3826. The

proposed rules were published in the

Federal Register on August 25, 1997.

The deadline for receiving comments

has passed and no comments regarding

the proposed rules have been received.

The final procedures contain no changes

from the proposed procedures and are

substantially similar to the procedures

formerly used by GAO, which are found

at 4 CFR parts 31, 32 and 33.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

I certify that these regulations would

not have a significant economic impact

on a substantial number of small entities

because they would only apply to

Federal agencies and employees.

Paperwork Reduction Act

The information collection

requirements contained in this rule have

been approved by the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) in

accordance with the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (42 U.S.C. 3501–

3530), and assigned OMB control

number 3206–0232. An agency may not

conduct or sponsor, and a person is not

required to respond to, a collection of

information unless the collection

displays a valid control number.

Executive Order 12866, Regulatory

Review

This rule has been reviewed by the

Office of Management and Budget in

accordance with Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 178

Administrative practice and

procedure, Claims, Compensation,

Government employees.

U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Janice R. Lachance,

Director.

Accordingly, OPM is amending 5 CFR

by adding part 178 as follows:

PART 178—PROCEDURES FOR

SETTLING CLAIMS

Subpart A—Administrative Claims—

Compensation and Leave, Deceased

Employees’ Accounts and Proceeds of

Canceled Checks for Veterans’ Benefits

Payable to Deceased Beneficiaries

Sec.

178.101 Scope of subpart.

178.102 Procedures for submitting claims.

678.103 Claim filed by a claimant’s

representative.

178.104 Statutory limitations on claims.

178.105 Basis of claim settlements.

178.106 Form of claim settlements.

178.107 Finality of claim settlements.

Subpart B—Settlement of Accounts for

Deceased Civilian Officers and Employees

178.201 Scope of subpart.

178.202 Definitions.

178.203 Designation of beneficiary.

178.204 Order of payment precedence.

178.205 Procedures upon death of

employee.

178.206 Return of unnegotiated

Government checks.

178.207 Claims settlement jurisdiction.

178.208 Applicability of general

procedures.

Subpart A—Administrative Claims—

Compensation and Leave, Deceased

Employees’ Accounts and Proceeds of

Canceled Checks for Veterans’

Benefits Payable to Deceased

Beneficiaries

Authority: 31 U.S.C. 3702; 5 U.S.C. 5583;

38 U.S.C. 5122; Pub. L. No. 104–53, 211, Nov.

19, 1995; E.O. 12107.

§ 178.101 Scope of subpart.

(a) Claims covered. This subpart

prescribes general procedures

applicable to claims against the United

States that may be settled by the

Director of the Office of Personnel

Management pursuant to 31 U.S.C.

3702, 5 U.S.C. 5583 and 38 U.S.C. 5122.

In general, these claims involve Federal

employees’ compensation and leave and

claims for proceeds of canceled checks

for veterans’ benefits payable to

deceased beneficiaries.

(b) Claims not covered. This subpart

does not apply to claims that are under

the exclusive jurisdiction of

administrative agencies pursuant to

specific statutory authority or claims

concerning matters that are subject to

negotiated grievance procedures under

collective bargaining agreements

entered into pursuant to 5 U.S.C.

7121(a). Also, these procedures do not
68140 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

apply to claims under the Fair Labor

Standards Act (FLSA). Procedures for

FLSA claims are set out in part 551 of

this chapter.

§ 178.102 Procedures for submitting

claims.

(a) Content of claims. Except as

provided in paragraph (b) of this

section, a claim shall be submitted by

the claimant in writing and must be

signed by the claimant or by the

claimant’s representative. While no

specific form is required, the request

should describe the basis for the claim

and state the amount sought. The claim

should also include:

(1) The name, address, telephone

number and facsimile machine number,

if available, of the claimant;

(2) The name, address, telephone

number and facsimile machine number,

if available, of the agency employee who

denied the claim;

(3) A copy of the denial of the claim;

and,

(4) Any other information which the

claimant believes OPM should consider.

(b) Agency submissions of claims. At

the discretion of the agency, the agency

may forward the claim to OPM on the

claimant’s behalf. The claimant is

responsible for ensuring that OPM

receives all the information requested in

paragraph (a) of this section.

(c) Administrative report. At OPM’s

discretion, OPM may request the agency

to provide an administrative report.

This report should include:

(1) The agency’s factual findings;

(2) The agency’s conclusions of law

with relevant citations;

(3) The agency’s recommendation for

disposition of the claim;

(4) A complete copy of any regulation,

instruction, memorandum, or policy

relied upon by the agency in making its

determination;

(5) A statement that the claimant is or

is not a member of a collective

bargaining unit, and if so, a statement

that the claim is or is not covered by a

negotiated grievance procedure that

specifically excludes the claim from

coverage; and

(6) Any other information that the

agency believes OPM should consider.

(d) Canceled checks for veterans’

benefits. Claims for the proceeds of

canceled checks for veterans’ benefits

payable to deceased beneficiaries must

be accompanied by evidence that the

claimant is the duly appointed

representative of the decedent’s estate

and that the estate will not escheat.

(e) Where to submit claims. (1) All

claims under this section should be sent

to the Claims Adjudication Unit, Room

7535, Office of the General Counsel,

Office of Personnel Management, 1900 E

Street NW., Washington, DC 20415.

Telephone inquiries regarding these

claims may be made to (202) 606–2233.

(2) FLSA claims should be sent to the

appropriate OPM Oversight Division as

provided in part 551 of this chapter.

§ 178.103 Claim filed by a claimant’s

representative.

A claim filed by a claimant’s

representative must be supported by a

duly executed power of attorney or

other documentary evidence of the

representative’s right to act for the

claimant.

§ 178.104 Statutory limitations on claims.

(a) Statutory limitations relating to

claims generally. Except as provided in

paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section or

as otherwise provided by law, all claims

against the United States Government

are subject to the 6-year statute of

limitations contained in 31 U.S.C.

3702(b). To satisfy the statutory

limitation, a claim must be received by

the Office of Personnel Management, or

by the department or agency out of

whose activities the claim arose, within

6 years from the date the claim accrued.

The claimant is responsible for proving

that the claim was filed within the

applicable statute of limitations.

(b) Claims under the Fair Labor

Standards Act. Claims arising under the

FLSA, 29 U.S.C. 207, et seq., must be

received by the Office of Personnel

Management, or by the department or

agency out of whose activity the claim

arose, within the time limitations

specified in the FLSA.

(c) Other statutory limitations.

Statutes of limitation other than that

identified in paragraph (a) of this

section may apply to certain claims.

Claimants are responsible for informing

themselves regarding other possible

statutory limitations.

§ 178.105 Basis of claim settlements.

The burden is upon the claimant to

establish the timeliness of the claim, the

liability of the United States, and the

claimant’s right to payment. The

settlement of claims is based upon the

written record only, which will include

the submissions by the claimant and the

agency. OPM will accept the facts

asserted by the agency, absent clear and

convincing evidence to the contrary.

§ 178.106 Form of claim settlements.

OPM will send a settlement to the

claimant advising whether the claim

may be allowed in whole or in part. If

OPM requested an agency report or if

the agency forwarded the claim on

behalf of the claimant, OPM also will

send the agency a copy of the

settlement.

§ 178.107 Finality of claim settlements.

(a) The OPM settlement is final; no

further administrative review is

available within OPM.

(b) Nothing is this subpart limits the

right of a claimant to bring an action in

an appropriate United States court.

Subpart B—Settlement of Accounts for

Deceased Civilian Officers and

Employees

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5581, 5582, 5583.

§ 178.201 Scope of subpart.

(a) Accounts covered. This subpart

prescribes forms and procedures for the

prompt settlement of accounts of

deceased civilian officers and

employees of the Federal Government

and of the government of the District of

Columbia (including wholly owned and

mixed-ownership Government

corporations), as stated in 5 U.S.C. 5581,

5582, 5583.

(b) Accounts not covered. This

subpart does not apply to accounts of

deceased officers and employees of the

Federal land banks, Federal

intermediate credit banks, or regional

banks for cooperatives (see 5 U.S.C.

5581(1)). Also, these procedures do not

apply to payment of unpaid balance of

salary or other sums due deceased

Senators or Members of the House of

Representatives or their officers or

employees (see 2 U.S.C. 36a, 38a).

§ 178.202 Definitions.

(a) The term deceased employees as

used in this part includes former

civilian officers and employees who die

subsequent to separation from the

employing agency.

(b) The term money due means the

pay, salary, or allowances due on

account of the services of the decedent

for the Federal Government or the

government of the District of Columbia.

It includes, but is not limited to:

(1) All per diem instead of

subsistence, mileage, and amounts due

in reimbursement of travel expenses,

including incidental and miscellaneous

expenses which are incurred in

connection with the travel and for

which reimbursement is due;

(2) All allowances upon change of

official station;

(3) All quarters and cost-of-living

allowances and overtime or premium

pay;

(4) Amounts due for payment of cash

awards for employees’ suggestions;

(5) Amounts due as refund of salary

deductions for United States Savings

bonds;
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 68141

(6) Payment for all accumulated and

current accrued annual or vacation

leave equal to the pay the decedent

would have received had he or she lived

and remained in the service until the

expiration of the period of such annual

or vacation leave;

(7) The amounts of all checks drawn

in payment of such compensation

which were not delivered by the

Government to the officer or employee

during his or her lifetime or of any

unnegotiated checks returned to the

Government because of the death of the

officer or employee; and

(8) Retroactive pay under 5 U.S.C.

5344(b)(2).

§ 178.203 Designation of beneficiary.

(a) Agency notification. The

employing agency shall notify each

employee of his or her right to designate

a beneficiary or beneficiaries to receive

money due, and of the disposition of

money due if a beneficiary is not

designated. An employee may change or

revoke a designation at any time under

regulations promulgated by the Director

of the Office of Personnel Management

or his or her designee.

(b) Designation Form. Standard Form

1152, Designation of Beneficiary,

Unpaid Compensation of Deceased

Civilian Employee, is prescribed for use

by employees in designating a

beneficiary and in changing or revoking

a previous designation; each agency will

furnish the employee a Standard Form

1152 upon request. In the absence of the

prescribed form, however, any

designation, change, or cancellation of

beneficiary witnessed and filed in

accordance with the general

requirements of this part will be

acceptable.

(c) Who may be designated. An

employee may designate any person or

persons as beneficiary. The term person

or persons as used in this part includes

a legal entity or the estate of the

deceased employee.

(d) Executing and filing a designation

of beneficiary form. The Standard Form

1152 must be executed in duplicate by

the employee and filed with the

employing agency where the proper

officer will sign it and insert the date of

receipt in the space provided on each

part, file the original, and return the

duplicate to the employee. When a

designation of beneficiary is changed or

revoked, the employing agency should

return the earlier designation to the

employee, keeping a copy of only the

current designation on file.

(e) Effective period of a designation. A

properly executed and filed designation

of beneficiary will be effective as long

as employment by the same agency

continues. If an employee resigns and is

reemployed, or is transferred to another

agency, the employee must execute

another designation of beneficiary form

in accordance with paragraph (d) of this

section. A new designation of

beneficiary is not required, however,

when an employee’s agency or site,

function, records, equipment, and

personnel are absorbed by another

agency.

§ 178.204 Order of payment precedence.

To facilitate the settlement of the

accounts of the deceased employees,

money due an employee at the time of

the employee’s death shall be paid to

the person or persons surviving at the

date of death, in the following order of

precedence, and the payment bars

recovery by another person of amounts

so paid:

(a) First, to the beneficiary or

beneficiaries designated by the

employee in a writing received in the

employing agency prior to the

employee’s death;

(b) Second, if there is no designated

beneficiary, to the surviving spouse of

the employee;

(c) Third, if none of the above, to the

child or children of the employee and

descendants of deceased children by

representation;

(d) Fourth, if none of the above, to the

parents of the deceased employee or the

survivor of them;

(e) Fifth, if none of the above, to the

duly appointed legal representative of

the estate of the deceased employee; and

(f) Sixth, if none of the above, to the

person or persons entitled under the

laws of the domicile of the employee at

the time of his or her death.

§ 178.205 Procedures upon death of

employee.

(a) Claim form. As soon as practicable

after the death of an employee, the

agency in which the employee was last

employed will request, in the order of

precedence outlined in § 178.204, the

appropriate person or persons to

execute Standard Form 1153, Claim for

Unpaid Compensation of Deceased

Civilian Employee.

(b) Claims involving minors or

incompetents. If a guardian or

committee has been appointed for a

minor or incompetent appearing

entitled to unpaid compensation, the

claim should be supported by a

certificate of the court showing the

appointment and qualification of the

claimant in such capacity. If no

guardian or committee has been or will

be appointed, the initial claim should be

supported by a statement showing:

(1) Claimant’s relationship to the

minor or incompetent, if any;

(2) The name and address of the

person having care and custody of the

minor or incompetent;

(3) That any moneys received will be

applied to the use and benefit of the

minor or incompetent; and

(4) That the appointment of a

guardian or committee is not

contemplated.

§ 178.206 Return of unnegotiated

Government checks.

All unnegotiated United States

Government checks drawn to the order

of a decedent representing money due

as defined in § 178.202, and in the

possession of the claimant, should be

returned to the employing agency

concerned. Claimants should be

instructed to return any other United

States Government checks drawn to the

order of a decedent, such as veterans

benefits, social security benefits, or

Federal tax refunds, to the agency from

which the checks were received, with a

request for further instructions from that

agency.

§ 178.207 Claims settlement jurisdiction.

(a) District of Columbia and

Government corporations. Claims for

unpaid compensation due deceased

employees of the government of the

District of Columbia shall be paid by the

District of Columbia, and those of

Government corporations or mixed

ownership Government corporations

may be paid by the corporations.

(b) Office of Personnel Management.

Each agency shall pay undisputed

claims for the compensation due a

deceased employee. Except as provided

in paragraph (a) of this section, disputed

claims for money due deceased

employees of the Federal Government

will be submitted to the Claims

Adjudication Unit, Office of General

Counsel, in accordance with § 178.102

of subpart A. For example:

(1) When doubt exists as to the

amount or validity of the claim;

(2) When doubt exists as to the

person(s) properly entitled to payment;

or

(3) When the claim involves

uncurrent checks. Uncurrent checks are

unnegotiated and/or undelivered checks

for money due the decedent which have

not been paid by the end of the fiscal

year after the fiscal year in which the

checks were issued. The checks, if

available, should accompany the claims.

(c) Payment of claim. Claims for

money due will be paid by the

appropriate agency only after settlement

by the Claims Adjudication Unit occurs.
68142 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 250 / Wednesday, December 31, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

§ 178.208 Applicability of general

procedures.

When not in conflict with this

subpart, the provisions of subpart A of

this part relating to procedures

applicable to claims generally are also

applicable to the settlement of account

of deceased civilian officers and

employees.

[FR Doc. 97–33928 Filed 12–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6325–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Farm Service Agency

7 CFR Part 760

RIN 0560–AF–30

Dairy Indemnity Payment Program

AGENCY: Farm Service Agency, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule amends the

authority citation for the Dairy

Indemnity Payment Program (DIPP)

regulations to cover the expenditure of

additional funds that were recently

appropriated. The DIPP indemnifies

dairy farmers and manufacturers for

losses suffered with respect to milk and

milk products, through no fault of their

own.

EFFECTIVE DATE: December 31, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Raellen Erickson, Agricultural Program

Specialist, Price Support Division, FSA,

USDA, STOP 0512, 1400 Independence

Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250–

0512; telephone (202) 720–7320; e-mail

address is RErickso@wdc.fsa.usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866

This rule has been determined to be

not significant for purposes of Executive

Order 12866 and therefore has not been

reviewed by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB).

Federal Assistance Program

The title and number of the Federal

Assistance Program, as found in the

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance,

to which this rule applies are Dairy

Indemnity Payments, Number 10.053.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

It has been determined that the

Regulatory Flexibility Act is not

applicable to this final rule because the

Farm Service Agency is not required by

5 U.S.C. 533 or any other provision of

law to publish a notice of proposed

rulemaking with respect to the subject

matter of these determinations.

Environmental Evaluation

It has been determined by an

environmental evaluation that this

action will have no significant impact

on the quality of the human

environment. Therefore, neither an

environmental assessment nor an

Environmental Impact Statement is

needed.

Executive Order 12372

This program is not subject to the

provisions of Executive Order 12372,

which requires intergovernmental

consultation with State and local

officials. See the Notice related to 7 CFR

part 3015, subpart V, published at 48 FR

29115 (June 24, 1983).

Executive Order 12988

This rule has been reviewed pursuant

to Executive Order 12988. To the extent

State and local laws are in conflict with

these regulatory provisions, it is the

intent of CCC that the terms of the

regulations prevail. The provisions of

this rule are not retroactive. Prior to any

judicial action in a court of competent

jurisdiction, administrative review

under 7 CFR part 780 must be

exhausted.

Paperwork Reduction Act

The information collections in 7 CFR

part 760 will be published in a separate

Federal Register Notice with request for

comments. A regular submission of this

information collection package will be

forwarded to OMB at the end of the 60-

day comment period.

Background

The DIPP was originally authorized

by section 331 of the Economic

Opportunity Act of 1964. The statutory

authority for the program was extended

several times. Most recently, funds were

appropriated for this program by the

Agriculture, Rural Development, Food

and Drug Administration, and Related

Agencies Act, 1998 (‘‘the Act’’), Pub. L.

105–86, 111 Stat. 2079, which

authorizes the program to be carried out

until the funds appropriated under the

Act are expended. The objective of DIPP

is to indemnify dairy farmers and

manufacturers of dairy products who,

through no fault of their own, suffer

income losses with respect to milk or

milk products removed from

commercial markets because such milk

or milk products contain certain

harmful residues. In addition, dairy

farmers can also be indemnified for

income losses with respect to milk

required to be removed from

commercial markets due to residues of

chemicals or toxic substances or

contamination by nuclear radiation or

fallout.

The regulations governing the

program are set forth at 7 CFR §§ 760.1–

760.34. This final rule makes no

changes in the provisions of the

regulations. Since the only purpose of

this final rule is to revise the authority

citation pursuant to the Act, it has been

determined that no further public

rulemaking is required. Therefore, this

final rule shall become effective upon

the date of publication in the Federal

Register.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 760

Dairy products, Indemnity payments,

Pesticides and pests.

Accordingly, 7 CFR Part 760 is

amended as follows:

PART 760—INDEMNITY PAYMENT

PROGRAMS

Subpart—Dairy Indemnity Payment

Program

The authority citation for Subpart—

Dairy Indemnity Payment Program is

revised to read as follows:

Authority: Dairy Indemnity Program, Pub.

L. 105–86, 111 Stat. 2079.

Signed in Washington, DC, on December

22, 1997.

Keith Kelly,

Administrator, Farm Service Agency.

[FR Doc. 97–34032 Filed 12–30–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–05–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 905

[Docket No. FV97–905–1 FIR]

Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and

Tangelos Grown in Florida; Limiting

the Volume of Small Florida Red

Seedless Grapefruit

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Department of

Agriculture (Department) is finalizing

without change the provisions of an

amended interim final rule limiting the

volume of small red seedless grapefruit

entering the fresh market under the

Florida citrus marketing order. The

marketing order regulates the handling

of oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, and

tangelos grown in Florida and is

administered locally by the Citrus

Administrative Committee (committee).

The amended interim final rule limited