II

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1486

To direct the Office of Personnel Management to establish placement programs for Federal employees affected by reduction in force actions,

and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

DECEMBER 20, 1995

Mr. LAUTENBERG (for himself, Mr. ROBB, Mr. SARBANES, and Ms. MIKULSKI) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to

the Committee on Governmental Affairs

A BILL

To direct the Office of Personnel Management to establish

placement programs for Federal employees affected by

reduction in force actions, 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. PLACEMENT PROGRAMS FOR FEDERAL EM4 PLOYEES AFFECTED BY REDUCTION IN

5 FORCE ACTIONS.

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

7 ‘‘Public Servant Priority Placement Act of 1995’’.
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1 (b) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 33 of title

2 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end

3 thereof the following new section:

4 ‘‘§ 3329b. Placement programs for Federal employees

5 affected by reduction in force actions

6 ‘‘(a) For purposes of this section the term ‘‘agency’’

7 means an ‘‘Executive agency’’ as defined under section

8 105, except such term shall not include the General Ac9 counting Office.

10 ‘‘(b) No later than 180 days after the date of the

11 enactment of this section, the Director of the Office of

12 Personnel Management shall establish a Government-wide

13 program and each agency shall establish an agency pro14 gram to facilitate employment placement for Federal em15 ployees who—

16 ‘‘(1) are scheduled to be separated from service

17 under a reduction in force under—

18 ‘‘(A) regulations prescribed under section

19 3502; or

20 ‘‘(B) procedures established under section

21 3595; or

22 ‘‘(2) are separated from service under such a

23 reduction in force.

24 ‘‘(c) Each agency placement program established

25 under subsection (b) shall provide a system to require the
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1 offer of a vacant position in an agency to an employee

2 of such agency affected by a reduction in force action, if—

3 ‘‘(1) the position cannot be filled within the

4 agency;

5 ‘‘(2) the employee to whom the offer is made is

6 qualified for the offered position;

7 ‘‘(3)(A) the classification of the offered position

8 is equal to or no more than one grade below the

9 classification of the employee’s present or last held

10 position; or

11 ‘‘(B)(i) the basic rate of pay of the offered posi12 tion is equal to the basic rate of pay of the employ13 ee’s present or last held position; or

14 ‘‘(ii) sections 5362 and 5363 apply to the basic

15 rate of pay of the employee in the offered position;

16 and

17 ‘‘(4) the geographic location of the offered posi18 tion is within the commuting area of—

19 ‘‘(A) the residence of the employee; or

20 ‘‘(B) the location of the employee’s present

21 or last held position.

22 ‘‘(d) The Government-wide placement program estab23 lished under subsection (b) shall—

24 ‘‘(1) coordinate with programs established by

25 agencies for the placement of agency employees af-
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1 fected by a reduction in force action within such

2 agency; and

3 ‘‘(2) provide a system to require the offer of a

4 vacant position in an agency to an employee of an5 other agency affected by a reduction in force action,

6 if—

7 ‘‘(A) the vacant position cannot be filled

8 through the placement program or otherwise be

9 filled from within the agency in which the posi10 tion is located;

11 ‘‘(B) the employee to whom the offer is

12 made is well qualified for the offered position;

13 ‘‘(C)(i) the classification of the offered po14 sition is equal to the classification of the em15 ployee’s present or last held position; or

16 ‘‘(ii) the basic rate of pay of the offered

17 position is equal to the basic rate of pay of the

18 employee’s present or last held position; and

19 ‘‘(D) the geographic location of the offered

20 position is within the commuting area of—

21 ‘‘(i) the residence of the employee; or

22 ‘‘(ii) the location of the employee’s

23 present or last held position.

24 ‘‘(e)(1) The agency placement program established

25 under this section shall not affect any priority placement
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1 program of the Department of Defense that is in operation

2 on the date of the enactment of this section.

3 ‘‘(2) The interagency placement program established

4 under this section shall not affect the priority of placement

5 of any employee under the agency placement program of

6 such employee’s employing agency.’’.

7 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

8 (1) The section heading for the second section 3329 (relat9 ing to Government-wide list of vacant positions) is amend10 ed to read as follows:

11 ‘‘§ 3329a. Government-wide list of vacant positions’’.

12 (2) The table of sections for chapter 33 of title 5,

13 United States Code, is amended by striking out the item

14 relating to the second section 3329 (relating to Govern15 ment-wide list of vacant positions) and inserting in lieu

16 thereof the following:

‘‘3329a. Government-wide list of vacant positions.

‘‘3329b. Placement programs for Federal employees affected by reduction in

force actions.’’.

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