I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3975

To establish temporary measures to facilitate the reemployment of Federal

employees who are involuntarily separated from teaching positions

abroad; to amend title 5, United States Code, with respect to continuing

health benefits for such employees; and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 8, 1994

Mr. MCCLOSKEY introduced the following bill; which was referred jointly to

the Committees on Post Office and Civil Service and Education and Labor

A BILL

To establish temporary measures to facilitate the reemployment of Federal employees who are involuntarily separated from teaching positions abroad; to amend title

5, United States Code, with respect to continuing health

benefits for such employees; 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.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Defense

5 Overseas Educators Act’’.
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1 SEC. 2. TEMPORARY MEASURES TO FACILITATE REEM2 PLOYMENT OF DISPLACED TEACHERS.

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this section—

4 (1) the term ‘‘agency’’ means an Executive

5 agency (as defined by section 105 of title 5, United

6 States Code), excluding the General Accounting Of7 fice;

8 (2) the term ‘‘DoDDS teacher’’ means a teach9 er within the meaning of section 2(2) of the Defense

10 Department Overseas Teachers Pay and Personnel

11 Practices Act (20 U.S.C. 901(2)); and

12 (3) the term ‘‘displaced employee’’ means—

13 (A) a DoDDS teacher who has been given

14 specific notice that such individual is to be sep15 arated due to a reduction in force; and

16 (B) any individual who has been involun17 tarily separated from service as a DoDDS

18 teacher due to a reduction in force.

19 (b) CONSIDERATION FOR VACANT POSITIONS.—In

20 accordance with regulations which the Office of Personnel

21 Management shall prescribe (consistent with otherwise ap22 plicable provisions of law), an agency shall, in filling a va23 cant position for which a qualified displaced employee has

24 applied in timely fashion, give full consideration to the ap25 plication of the displaced employee before selecting any

26 candidate from outside the agency for the position.
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1 (c) LIMITATION.—A displaced employee shall remain

2 entitled to the consideration described in subsection (b)

3 until the end of the 12-month period beginning on—

4 (1) the date such employee receives the specific

5 notice described in subsection (a)(3)(A); or

6 (2) if the employee is involuntarily separated

7 (as described in subsection (a)(3)(B)), the effective

8 date of the separation.

9 (d) APPLICABILITY.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—This section shall apply to

11 any individual who—

12 (A) becomes a displaced employee during

13 the 12-month period ending on the day before

14 the date of enactment of this Act; or

15 (B) becomes a displaced employee on or

16 after the date of enactment of this Act and be17 fore October 1, 1997.

18 (2) RULE FOR APPLYING THE 12-MONTH LIMI19 TATION TO CURRENT DISPLACED EMPLOYEES.—For

20 the purpose of any displaced employee described in

21 paragraph (1)(A), the 12-month period under sub22 section (c) shall be considered to begin on the date

23 of enactment of this Act, rather than the date which

24 would otherwise be required by subsection (c).
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1 (3) POSITIONS TO WHICH THIS SECTION SHALL

2 NOT APPLY.—Nothing in this section shall be consid3 ered to apply with respect to any position—

4 (A) which has been filled as of the date of

5 enactment of this Act; or

6 (B) which has been excepted from the com7 petitive service because of its confidential, pol8 icy-determining, policy-making or policy-advo9 cating character.

10 SEC. 3. TEACHER RECRUITMENT.

11 (a) AMENDMENT RELATING TO BENEFITS FOR

12 TEACHERS RECRUITED ABROAD.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 5 of the Defense De14 partment Overseas Teachers Pay and Personnel

15 Practices Act (20 U.S.C. 903) is amended by redes16 ignating subsection (d) as subsection (e), and by in17 serting after subsection (c) the following:

18 ‘‘(d)(1) Each individual recruited outside the United

19 States for service in a teaching position shall, after such

20 individual completes 1 full school year of service in a

21 teaching position, be entitled to the same benefits as an

22 individual recruited in the United States, to the extent

23 that such benefits are based on service in a teaching posi24 tion.
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1 ‘‘(2)(A) Paragraph (1) shall not apply in the case of

2 any individual who is the spouse of, and residing in the

3 same household as, a member of a uniformed service who

4 is eligible (as such a member) for benefits comparable to

5 those described in section 7 or 8 of this Act.

6 ‘‘(B) An individual shall not be considered to have

7 ceased to reside in the same household as a member if

8 due to a reassignment of such member for 90 days or

9 less.’’.

10 (2) SERVICE TO BE CONSIDERED.—In admin11 istering the amendment made by paragraph (1),

12 service performed before, on, or after the date of en13 actment of this Act shall be considered.

14 (b) AMENDMENT RELATING TO THE DEFINITION OF

15 A ‘‘TEACHING POSITION’’.—Paragraph (1) of section 2 of

16 the Defense Department Overseas Teachers Pay and Per17 sonnel Practices Act (20 U.S.C. 901(1)) is amended by

18 striking the period at the end of subparagraph (B)(iii) and

19 inserting a comma, and by adding at the end of such para20 graph the following:

21 ‘‘including those cases in which such duties and re22 sponsibilities are performed—

23 ‘‘(I) in a substitute capacity;

24 ‘‘(II) as a summer school teacher;
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1 ‘‘(III) as an instructor for the Junior Re2 serve Officers’ Training Corps;

3 ‘‘(IV) as a paraprofessional or teacher

4 aide;

5 ‘‘(V) for a definite term, not to exceed 1

6 school year, in the excepted service; or

7 ‘‘(VI) for an indefinite term in the ex8 cepted service.’’.

9 SEC. 4. COMPENSATION; LEAVE TRANSFERS; RECERTIF10 ICATION.

11 (a) COMPENSATION; LEAVE TRANSFERS.—The De12 fense Department Overseas Teachers Pay and Personnel

13 Practices Act (20 U.S.C. 901 and following) is amended—

14 (1) in sections 4(a)(2) and 5(c) by striking

15 ‘‘urban’’; and

16 (2) in section 6 by adding at the end the follow17 ing:

18 ‘‘(h) The Director of Dependents’ Education, in con19 sultation with the Director of the Office of Personnel Man20 agement, shall establish for teachers—

21 ‘‘(1) a voluntary leave transfer program similar

22 to the one under subchapter III of chapter 63 of

23 title 5, United States Code; and
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1 ‘‘(2) a voluntary leave bank program similar to

2 the one under subchapter IV of chapter 63 of title

3 5, United States Code.’’.

4 (b) RECERTIFICATION.—Paragraph (5) of section

5 1413 of the Defense Dependents’ Education Act of 1978

6 (20 U.S.C. 931(5)) is amended to read as follows:

7 ‘‘(5) provide for a recertification program for

8 professional personnel employed in the system to ob9 tain not more than 6 semester-hours of graduate or

10 undergraduate coursework in any discipline or sub11 ject area taught by schools of the defense depend12 ents’ education system, and’’.

13 (c) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by sub14 section (a)(1)—

15 (1) shall apply with respect to compensation for

16 service performed in fiscal years beginning more

17 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this

18 Act; and

19 (2) shall be deemed not to have been enacted

20 for purposes of determining compensation for service

21 performed before the first fiscal year to which such

22 amendments apply under paragraph (1).

23 SEC. 5. CONTINUED HEALTH BENEFITS.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8905a(d) of title 5,

25 United States Code, is amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (1)(A) by striking ‘‘Except as

2 provided in paragraph (4),’’ and inserting ‘‘Except

3 as provided in paragraph (4) or (5),’’;

4 (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘in accordance

5 with paragraph (1) or (4),’’ and inserting ‘‘in ac6 cordance with paragraph (1), (4), or (5),’’; and

7 (3) by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(5)(A) For the purpose of this paragraph, the term

9 ‘teaching position’ has the meaning given such term under

10 section 2(1) of the Defense Department Overseas Teach11 ers Pay and Personnel Practices Act.

12 ‘‘(B) If the basis for continued coverage under this

13 section is an involuntary separation from a teaching posi14 tion due to a reduction in force—

15 ‘‘(i) the individual shall be liable for not more

16 than the employee contributions referred to in para17 graph (1)(A)(i); and

18 ‘‘(ii) the agency which last employed the indi19 vidual shall pay the remaining portion of the amount

20 required under paragraph (1)(A).

21 ‘‘(C) This paragraph shall apply with respect to any

22 individual whose continued coverage is based on a separa23 tion occurring on or after the date of enactment of this

24 paragraph and before—

25 ‘‘(i) October 1, 1997; or
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1 ‘‘(ii) February 1, 1998, if specific notice of such

2 separation was given to such individual before Octo3 ber 1, 1997.’’.

4 (b) SOURCE OF PAYMENTS.—Any amount which be5 comes payable by an agency as a result of the enactment

6 of subsection (a) shall be paid out of funds or appropria7 tions available for salaries and expenses of such agency.

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