United States Department of Agriculture

Marketing and Regulatory Programs

Agricultural Marketing Service

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Mission Area Directive MRP 4335.1 11/24/2020

Distribution: APHIS & AMS Originating Office: MRPBS-HRD-HRPB

VOLUNTARY CHANGE IN OFFICIAL DUTY STATION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. PURPOSE................................................................................................................................ 1

2. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS AND REPLACEMENT HIGHLIGHTS .................................. 1

3. BACKGROUND..................................................................................................................... 2

4. AUTHORITIES AND REFERENCES................................................................................... 2

5. SCOPE..................................................................................................................................... 2

6. EXCEPTIONS......................................................................................................................... 3

7. POLICY................................................................................................................................... 3

8. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES....................................................................................... 3

9. PROCEDURES ....................................................................................................................... 4

10. FORMS.................................................................................................................................... 4

11. RECORDS MANAGEMENT................................................................................................. 4

12. INQUIRIES AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION............................................................. 5

1. PURPOSE 

This Directive establishes MRP policy for Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 

(APHIS) and Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) employee requests for a voluntary 

change in official duty station.

2. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS AND REPLACEMENT HIGHLIGHTS

a. This is a new Directive.

b. This Directive is in force until cancelled or superseded.
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3. BACKGROUND 

This Directive is issued as a supportive response to continued employee challenges in 

balancing work and family life. Human Resources recognizes those challenges and works 

to support a balance while ensuring mission accomplishment. 

4. AUTHORITIES AND REFERENCES 

This Directive must be applied in conjunction with:

a. 5 United States Code, Chapter 65, Telework;

b. 5 Code of Federal Regulation (CFR) 335.102, Agency Authority to Promote, 

Demote or Reassign;

c. General Services Administration, Federal Travel Regulation;

d. USDA Department Regulation (DR) 4080-811-002, Telework Program, dated 

01/04/2018;

e. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Guide to Processing Personnel Actions, 

Chapter 23, Change in Duty Station;

f. OPM Official Worksite for Location-Based Pay Purposes Fact Sheet; and

g. OPM Guide to Telework in the Federal Government, dated April 2011.

5. SCOPE 

This Directive applies to all MRP employees who want to continue to work in their 

current position but need to do so, due to personal reasons, from another location on a 

temporary or permanent basis, who are:

a. General Schedule (GS) employees;

b. Performance Management and Recognition System (GM) employees; 

c. Administratively Determined (AD) employees; or

d. Term Appointments.
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6. EXCEPTIONS

This Directive does not apply to MRP employees who:

a. Want to move into a different job in a different location;

b. Want to work in foreign countries either on a permanent or temporary basis;

c. Are assigned overseas;

d. Are temporary (Not To Exceed [NTE] 1 year);

e. Are Prevailing Rate;

f. Are members of a bargaining unit; 

g. Are members of the Senior Executive Service, SL or similar, or,

h. Are on detail with another Federal Agency or international organization.

Note: This Directive is excluded from the administrative grievance system. An appeal 

process has been established to review denials. 

7. POLICY 

It is MRP policy to support a balance between a family-friendly workplace and a resultsfocused mission area which expects its mission to be carried out as efficiently and 

effectively as possible. When employees are faced with significant life events and it is in 

the Mission Area’s best long-term interest, alternatives to traditional duty station 

designations may be considered. While management will do its best, approval of a 

voluntary reassignment request, whether temporary or permanent, is not guaranteed. 

Ultimately, the mission takes precedence. 

8. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

The effective implementation of the policy and procedures as established by this 

Directive requires the responsibilities of the following individuals and/or groups:

a. Administrators will decide employee appeals of denials. This authority may not 

be re-delegated in AMS. This authority may be re-delegated to the Associate 

Administrator in APHIS. 
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b. Program Deputy Administrators or equivalent will be delegated the authority to 

approve requests that are for more than six (6) months or on a permanent basis. 

This authority may not be re-delegated to lower supervisory levels.

c. First Level Supervisors will be delegated the authority to approve requests that are 

six (6) months or less. 

d. Employees will be responsible for adequately describing their situation and 

providing documentation to support their request.

9. PROCEDURES

Additional materials and information may be found in the Human Resources Desk Guide

(HRDG) Subchapter 4335, Voluntary Change in Official Duty Station.

10. FORMS

The form(s) that are referenced and required for use as established by this Directive 

include:

a. MRP Form 370 – Managerial Assessment Worksheet for Change in Official Duty 

Station

b. MRP Form 371 – Change in Official Duty Station Agreement

c. MRP Form 372 – Employee Application for Change in Official Duty Station (ODS)

d. MRP Form 373 - Decision Documentation for Change in Official Duty Station (ODS)

e. MRP Form 374 – Administrator’s Decision on Denial of Change in Official Duty 

Station

f. MRP Form 375 - Employee Declaration of Residence for Home Leave 

Determinations, if applicable.

The forms listed above can be accessed at the APHIS Master Electronic Forms Library. 

11. RECORDS MANAGEMENT

Federal records created by this Directive must be maintained in accordance with the 

established General Records Schedule (GRS) and/or the APHIS/AMS Records 

Management Handbook when applicable. If employees are named in an active litigation 
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hold, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, and/or other action, those records, 

regardless of media, must be preserved and maintained in their native format until 

otherwise notified by your Agency Records Officer and/or the Office of General Counsel.

a. The Marketing and Regulatory Program - Information Technology, Information 

Management Branch (MRP-IT, IMB) is the official record keeper of this 

Directive which is to be preserved permanently, per Paperwork and Data 

Management (PDM) 4-1.

b. The Servicing Personnel Office is the official record keeper of forms and 

documentation relating to a voluntary change in official duty station, which will 

be destroyed three (3) years unless longer retention is required for business use, in 

accordance with DAA-GRS-2017-0007-0001 or APHIS/AMS Records 

Handbook. 

c. Medical records concerning an employee’s Reasonable Accommodation (RA) are 

to be forwarded to the RA staff, HRD. These files will be destroyed three (3) 

years after employee separation from the Agency or when all appeals, including 

third party, are concluded whichever is later. Longer retention is permitted if 

required for business use. See DAA-GRS-2015-0007- 0005.

12. INQUIRIES AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

a. Direct any general inquiries on procedural matters to the Servicing Personnel 

Office, Human Resources Operations, Minneapolis, MN.

b. Direct requests for complex policy interpretations to the Pay, Leave, and Tours of 

Duty Specialist, HR Policy Branch, Human Resources Division, MRP Business 

Services at 301-851-2929.

c. For records management inquiries contact your Program Records Management

Liaison for AMS or APHIS. 

d. Additional materials and information can be found in the Human Resources Desk 

Guide (HRDG) Subchapter 4335, Voluntary Change in Official Duty Station.

e. This Directive can be accessed on the APHIS and AMS Issuances homepages. 

/s/ Doug Nash

Deputy Administrator

MRPBS Business Services