104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3841

AN ACT

To amend the civil service laws of the United

States, and for other purposes.
104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3841

AN ACT

To amend the civil service laws of the United States, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

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

5 ‘‘Omnibus Civil Service Reform Act of 1996’’.
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

TITLE I—DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS

Sec. 101. Demonstration projects.

TITLE II—PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT ENHANCEMENT

Sec. 201. No appeal of denial of periodic step-increases.

Sec. 202. Performance appraisals.

Sec. 203. Amendments to incentive awards authority.

Sec. 204. Due process rights of managers under negotiated grievance procedures.

Sec. 205. Collection and reporting of training information.

TITLE III—ENHANCEMENT OF THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN AND

CERTAIN OTHER BENEFITS

Sec. 301. Loans under the Thrift Savings Plan for furloughed employees.

Sec. 302. Domestic relations orders.

Sec. 303. Unreduced additional optional life insurance.

TITLE IV—REORGANIZATION FLEXIBILITY

Sec. 401. Voluntary reductions in force.

Sec. 402. Nonreimbursable details to Federal agencies before a reduction in

force.

TITLE V—SOFT-LANDING PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Temporary continuation of Federal employees’ life insurance.

Sec. 502. Continued eligibility for health insurance.

Sec. 503. Job placement and counseling services.

Sec. 504. Education and retraining incentives.

TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 601. Reimbursements relating to professional liability insurance.

Sec. 602. Employment rights following conversion to contract.

Sec. 603. Debarment of health care providers found to have engaged in fraudulent practices.

Sec. 604. Consistent coverage for individuals enrolled in a health plan administered by the Federal banking agencies.

Sec. 605. Amendment to Public Law 104–134.

Sec. 606. Miscellaneous amendments relating to the health benefits program for

Federal employees.

Sec. 607. Pay for certain positions formerly classified at GS–18.

Sec. 608. Repeal of section 1307 of title 5 of the United States Code.

Sec. 609. Extension of certain procedural and appeal rights to certain personnel of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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1 TITLE I—DEMONSTRATION

2 PROJECTS

3 SEC. 101. DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.

4 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Paragraph (1) of section 4701(a)

5 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking sub6 paragraph (A) and by redesignating subparagraphs (B)

7 and (C) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively.

8 (b) PRE-IMPLEMENTATION PROCEDURES.—Sub9 section (b) of section 4703 of title 5, United States Code,

10 is amended to read as follows:

11 ‘‘(b) Before an agency or the Office may conduct or

12 enter into any agreement or contract to conduct a dem13 onstration project, the Office—

14 ‘‘(1) shall develop or approve a plan for such

15 project which identifies—

16 ‘‘(A) the purposes of the project;

17 ‘‘(B) the methodology;

18 ‘‘(C) the duration; and

19 ‘‘(D) the methodology and criteria for eval20 uation;

21 ‘‘(2) shall publish the plan in the Federal Reg22 ister;

23 ‘‘(3) may solicit comments from the public and

24 interested parties in such manner as the Office con25 siders appropriate;
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1 ‘‘(4) shall obtain approval from each agency in2 volved of the final version of the plan; and

3 ‘‘(5) shall provide notification of the proposed

4 project, at least 30 days in advance of the date any

5 project proposed under this section is to take ef6 fect—

7 ‘‘(A) to employees who are likely to be af8 fected by the project; and

9 ‘‘(B) to each House of the Congress.’’.

10 (c) NONWAIVABLE PROVISIONS.—Section 4703(c) of

11 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

12 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the

13 following:

14 ‘‘(1) any provision of subchapter V of chapter

15 63 or subpart G of part III of this title;’’; and

16 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the

17 following:

18 ‘‘(3) any provision of chapter 15 or subchapter

19 II or III of chapter 73 of this title;’’.

20 (d) LIMITATIONS.—Subsection (d) of section 4703 of

21 title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

22 ‘‘(d)(1) Each demonstration project shall terminate

23 before the end of the 5-year period beginning on the date

24 on which the project takes effect, except that the project

25 may continue for a maximum of 2 years beyond the date
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1 to the extent necessary to validate the results of the

2 project.

3 ‘‘(2)(A) Not more than 15 active demonstration

4 projects may be in effect at any time, and of the projects

5 in effect at any time, not more than 5 may involve 5,000

6 or more individuals each.

7 ‘‘(B) Individuals in a control group necessary to vali8 date the results of a project shall not, for purposes of any

9 determination under subparagraph (A), be considered to

10 be involved in such project.’’.

11 (e) EVALUATIONS.—Subsection (h) of section 4703

12 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at

13 the end the following: ‘‘The Office may, with respect to

14 a demonstration project conducted by another agency, re15 quire that the preceding sentence be carried out by such

16 other agency.’’.

17 (f) PROVISIONS FOR TERMINATION OF PROJECT OR

18 MAKING IT PERMANENT.—Section 4703 of title 5, United

19 States Code, is amended—

20 (1) in subsection (i) by inserting ‘‘by the Of21 fice’’ after ‘‘undertaken’’; and

22 (2) by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘(j)(1) If the Office determines that termination of

24 a demonstration project (whether under subsection (e) or

25 otherwise) would result in the inequitable treatment of em-
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1 ployees who participated in the project, the Office shall

2 take such corrective action as is within its authority. If

3 the Office determines that legislation is necessary to cor4 rect an inequity, it shall submit an appropriate legislative

5 proposal to both Houses of Congress.

6 ‘‘(2) If the Office determines that a demonstration

7 project should be made permanent, it shall submit an ap8 propriate legislative proposal to both Houses of Con9 gress.’’.

10 TITLE II—PERFORMANCE

11 MANAGEMENT ENHANCEMENT

12 SEC. 201. NO APPEAL OF DENIAL OF PERIODIC STEP-IN13 CREASES.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5335(c) of title 5, United

15 States Code, is amended—

16 (1) by striking the second sentence;

17 (2) in the third sentence by striking ‘‘or ap18 peal’’; and

19 (3) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘and the en20 titlement of the employee to appeal to the Board do

21 not apply’’ and inserting ‘‘does not apply’’.

22 (b) PERFORMANCE RATINGS.—Section 5335 of title

23 5, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), is

24 further amended—
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1 (1) in subsection (a)(B) by striking ‘‘work of

2 the employee is of an acceptable level of com3 petence’’ and inserting ‘‘performance of the em4 ployee is at least fully successful’’;

5 (2) in subsection (c)—

6 (A) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘work

7 of an employee is not of an acceptable level of

8 competence,’’ and inserting ‘‘performance of an

9 employee is not at least fully successful,’’; and

10 (B) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘ac11 ceptable level of competence’’ and inserting

12 ‘‘fully successful work performance’’; and

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

14 ‘‘(g) For purposes of this section, the term ‘fully suc15 cessful’ denotes work performance that satisfies the re16 quirements of section 351.504(d)(3)(D) of title 5 of the

17 Code of Federal Regulations (as deemed to be amended

18 by section 3502(g)(2)(B)).’’.

19 SEC. 202. PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 4302 of title 5, United

21 States Code, is amended—

22 (1) in subsection (b) by striking paragraphs (5)

23 and (6) and inserting the following:
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1 ‘‘(5) assisting employees in improving unaccept2 able performance, except in circumstances described

3 in subsection (c); and

4 ‘‘(6) reassigning, reducing in grade, removing,

5 or taking other appropriate action against employees

6 whose performance is unacceptable.’’; and

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

8 ‘‘(c) Upon notification of unacceptable performance,

9 an employee shall be afforded an opportunity to dem10 onstrate acceptable performance before a reduction in

11 grade or removal may be proposed under section 4303

12 based on such performance, except that an employee so

13 afforded such an opportunity shall not be afforded any

14 further opportunity to demonstrate acceptable perform15 ance if the employee’s performance again is determined

16 to be at an unacceptable level.’’.

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

19 this section and the amendments made by this sec20 tion shall take effect 180 days after the date of the

21 enactment of this Act.

22 (2) EXCEPTION.—The amendments made by

23 this section shall not apply in the case of any pro24 posed action as to which the employee receives ad25 vance written notice, in accordance with section
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1 4303(b)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code, before

2 the effective date of this section.

3 SEC. 203. AMENDMENTS TO INCENTIVE AWARDS AUTHOR4 ITY.

5 Chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amend6 ed—

7 (1) by amending section 4501 to read as fol8 lows:

9 ‘‘§ 4501. Definitions

10 ‘‘For the purpose of this subchapter—

11 ‘‘(1) the term ‘agency’ means—

12 ‘‘(A) an Executive agency;

13 ‘‘(B) the Library of Congress;

14 ‘‘(C) the Office of the Architect of the

15 Capitol;

16 ‘‘(D) the Botanic Garden;

17 ‘‘(E) the Government Printing Office; and

18 ‘‘(F) the United States Sentencing Com19 mission;

20 but does not include—

21 ‘‘(i) the Tennessee Valley Authority; or

22 ‘‘(ii) the Central Bank for Cooperatives;

23 ‘‘(2) the term ‘employee’ means an employee as

24 defined by section 2105; and
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1 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Government’ means the Govern2 ment of the United States.’’;

3 (2) by amending section 4503 to read as fol4 lows:

5 ‘‘§ 4503. Agency awards

6 ‘‘(a) The head of an agency may pay a cash award

7 to, and incur necessary expense for the honorary recogni8 tion of, an employee who—

9 ‘‘(1) by his suggestion, invention, superior ac10 complishment, or other personal effort, contributes

11 to the efficiency, economy, or other improvement of

12 Government operations or achieves a significant re13 duction in paperwork; or

14 ‘‘(2) performs a special act or service in the

15 public interest in connection with or related to his

16 official employment.

17 ‘‘(b)(1) If the criteria under paragraph (1) or (2) of

18 subsection (a) are met on the basis of the suggestion, in19 vention, superior accomplishment, act, service, or other

20 meritorious effort of a group of employees collectively, and

21 if the circumstances so warrant (such as by reason of the

22 infeasibility of determining the relative role or contribution

23 assignable to each employee separately), authority under

24 subsection (a) may be exercised—
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1 ‘‘(A) based on the collective efforts of the

2 group; and

3 ‘‘(B) with respect to each member of such

4 group.

5 ‘‘(2) The amount awarded to each member of a group

6 under this subsection—

7 ‘‘(A) shall be the same for all members of such

8 group, except that such amount may be prorated to

9 reflect differences in the period of time during which

10 an individual was a member of the group; and

11 ‘‘(B) may not exceed the maximum cash award

12 allowable under subsection (a) or (b) of section

13 4502, as applicable.’’; and

14 (3) in subsection (a)(1) of section 4505a by

15 striking ‘‘at the fully successful level or higher’’ and

16 inserting ‘‘higher than the fully successful level’’.

17 SEC. 204. DUE PROCESS RIGHTS OF MANAGERS UNDER NE18 GOTIATED GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (2) of section 7121(b)

20 of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as fol21 lows:

22 ‘‘(2) The provisions of a negotiated grievance proce23 dure providing for binding arbitration in accordance with

24 paragraph (1)(C)(iii) shall, if or to the extent that an al25 leged prohibited personnel practice is involved, allow the
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1 arbitrator to order a stay of any personnel action in a

2 manner similar to the manner described in section 1221(c)

3 with respect to the Merit Systems Protection Board.’’.

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

5 subsection (a)—

6 (1) shall take effect on the date of the enact7 ment of this Act; and

8 (2) shall apply with respect to orders issued on

9 or after the date of the enactment of this Act, not10 withstanding the provisions of any collective bargain11 ing agreement.

12 SEC. 205. COLLECTION AND REPORTING OF TRAINING IN13 FORMATION.

14 (a) TRAINING WITHIN GOVERNMENT.—The Office of

15 Personnel Management shall collect information concern16 ing training programs, plans, and methods utilized by

17 agencies of the Government and submit a report to the

18 Congress on this activity on an annual basis.

19 (b) TRAINING OUTSIDE OF GOVERNMENT.—The Of20 fice of Personnel Management, to the extent it considers

21 appropriate in the public interest, may collect information

22 concerning training programs, plans, and methods utilized

23 outside the Government. The Office, on request, may

24 make such information available to an agency and to Con25 gress.
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1 TITLE III—ENHANCEMENT OF

2 THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN AND

3 CERTAIN OTHER BENEFITS

4 SEC. 301. LOANS UNDER THE THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN FOR

5 FURLOUGHED EMPLOYEES.

6 Section 8433(g) of title 5, United States Code, is

7 amended by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘(6) An employee who has been furloughed due to

9 a lapse in appropriations may not be denied a loan under

10 this subsection solely because such employee is not in a

11 pay status.’’.

12 SEC. 302. DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDERS.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8705 of title 5, United

14 States Code, is amended—

15 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘(a) The’’ and

16 inserting ‘‘(a) Except as provided in subsection (e),

17 the’’; and

18 (2) by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(e)(1) Any amount which would otherwise be paid

20 to a person determined under the order of precedence

21 named by subsection (a) shall be paid (in whole or in part)

22 by the Office to another person if and to the extent ex23 pressly provided for in the terms of any court decree of

24 divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of

25 any court order or court-approved property settlement
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1 agreement incident to any court decree of divorce, annul2 ment, or legal separation.

3 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, a decree, order,

4 or agreement referred to in paragraph (1) shall not be

5 effective unless it is received, before the date of the cov6 ered employee’s death, by the employing agency or, if the

7 employee has separated from service, by the Office.

8 ‘‘(3) A designation under this subsection with respect

9 to any person may not be changed except—

10 ‘‘(A) with the written consent of such person, if

11 received as described in paragraph (2); or

12 ‘‘(B) by modification of the decree, order, or

13 agreement, as the case may be, if received as de14 scribed in paragraph (2).

15 ‘‘(4) The Office shall prescribe any regulations nec16 essary to carry out this subsection, including regulations

17 for the application of this subsection in the event that 2

18 or more decrees, orders, or agreements, are received with

19 respect to the same amount.’’.

20 (b) DIRECTED ASSIGNMENT.—Section 8706(e) of

21 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

22 (1) by striking ‘‘(e)’’ and inserting ‘‘(e)(1)’’;

23 and

24 (2) by adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘(2) A court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal

2 separation, or the terms of a court-approved property set3 tlement agreement incidental to any court decree of di4 vorce, annulment, or legal separation, may direct that an

5 insured employee or former employee make an irrevocable

6 assignment of the employee’s or former employee’s inci7 dents of ownership in insurance under this chapter (if

8 there is no previous assignment) to the person specified

9 in the court order or court-approved property settlement

10 agreement.’’.

11 SEC. 303. UNREDUCED ADDITIONAL OPTIONAL LIFE INSUR12 ANCE.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8714b of title 5, United

14 States Code, is amended—

15 (1) in subsection (c)—

16 (A) by striking the last 2 sentences of

17 paragraph (2); and

18 (B) by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(3) The amount of additional optional insurance

20 continued under paragraph (2) shall be continued, with

21 or without reduction, in accordance with the employee’s

22 written election at the time eligibility to continue insur23 ance during retirement or receipt of compensation arises,

24 as follows:
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1 ‘‘(A) The employee may elect to have

2 withholdings cease in accordance with subsection

3 (d), in which case—

4 ‘‘(i) the amount of additional optional in5 surance continued under paragraph (2) shall be

6 reduced each month by 2 percent effective at

7 the beginning of the second calendar month

8 after the date the employee becomes 65 years of

9 age and is retired or is in receipt of compensa10 tion; and

11 ‘‘(ii) the reduction under clause (i) shall

12 continue for 50 months at which time the insur13 ance shall stop.

14 ‘‘(B) The employee may, instead of the option

15 under subparagraph (A), elect to have the full cost

16 of additional optional insurance continue to be with17 held from such employee’s annuity or compensation

18 on and after the date such withholdings would other19 wise cease pursuant to an election under subpara20 graph (A), in which case the amount of additional

21 optional insurance continued under paragraph (2)

22 shall not be reduced, subject to paragraph (4).

23 ‘‘(C) An employee who does not make any elec24 tion under the preceding provisions of this para-
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1 graph shall be treated as if such employee had made

2 an election under subparagraph (A).

3 ‘‘(4) If an employee makes an election under para4 graph (3)(B), that individual may subsequently cancel

5 such election, in which case additional optional insurance

6 shall be determined as if the individual had originally

7 made an election under paragraph (3)(A).’’; and

8 (2) in the second sentence of subsection (d)(1)

9 by inserting ‘‘if insurance is continued as provided

10 in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (3),’’ after ‘‘ex11 cept that,’’.

12 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

13 this section shall take effect on the 120th day after the

14 date of the enactment of this Act and shall apply to em15 ployees who become eligible, on or after such 120th day,

16 to continue additional optional insurance during retire17 ment or receipt of compensation.

18 TITLE IV—REORGANIZATION

19 FLEXIBILITY

20 SEC. 401. VOLUNTARY REDUCTIONS IN FORCE.

21 Section 3502(f) of title 5, United States Code, is

22 amended to read as follows:

23 ‘‘(f)(1) The head of an Executive agency or military

24 department may, in accordance with regulations pre25 scribed by the Office of Personnel Management—
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1 ‘‘(A) separate from service any employee who

2 volunteers to be separated under this subparagraph

3 even though the employee is not otherwise subject to

4 separation due to a reduction in force; and

5 ‘‘(B) for each employee voluntarily separated

6 under subparagraph (A), retain an employee in a

7 similar position who would otherwise be separated

8 due to a reduction in force.

9 ‘‘(2) The separation of an employee under paragraph

10 (1)(A) shall be treated as an involuntary separation due

11 to a reduction in force, except for purposes of priority

12 placement programs and advance notice.

13 ‘‘(3) An employee with critical knowledge and skills

14 (as defined by the head of the Executive agency or military

15 department concerned) may not participate in a voluntary

16 separation under paragraph (1)(A) if the agency or de17 partment head concerned determines that such participa18 tion would impair the performance of the mission of the

19 agency or department (as applicable).

20 ‘‘(4) The regulations prescribed under this section

21 shall incorporate the authority provided in this subsection.

22 ‘‘(5) No authority under paragraph (1) may be exer23 cised after September 30, 2001.’’.
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1 SEC. 402. NONREIMBURSABLE DETAILS TO FEDERAL AGEN2 CIES BEFORE A REDUCTION IN FORCE.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3341 of title 5, United

4 States Code, is amended to read as follows:

5 ‘‘§ 3341. Details; within Executive agencies and mili6 tary departments; employees affected by

7 reduction in force

8 ‘‘(a) The head of an Executive agency or military de9 partment may detail employees, except those required by

10 law to be engaged exclusively in some specific work, among

11 the bureaus and offices of the agency or department.

12 ‘‘(b) The head of an Executive agency or military de13 partment may detail to duties in the same or another

14 agency or department, on a nonreimbursable basis, an em15 ployee who has been identified by the employing agency

16 as likely to be separated from the Federal service by re17 duction in force or who has received a specific notice of

18 separation by reduction in force.

19 ‘‘(c)(1) Details under subsection (a)—

20 ‘‘(A) may not be for periods exceeding 120

21 days; and

22 ‘‘(B) may be renewed (1 or more times) by

23 written order of the head of the agency or depart24 ment, in each particular case, for periods not exceed25 ing 120 days each.

26 ‘‘(2) Details under subsection (b)—
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1 ‘‘(A) may not be for periods exceeding 90 days;

2 and

3 ‘‘(B) may not be renewed.

4 ‘‘(d) The 120-day limitation under subsection (c)(1)

5 for details and renewals of details does not apply to the

6 Department of Defense in the case of a detail—

7 ‘‘(1) made in connection with the closure or re8 alignment of a military installation pursuant to a

9 base closure law or an organizational restructuring

10 of the Department as part of a reduction in the size

11 of the armed forces or the civilian workforce of the

12 Department; and

13 ‘‘(2) in which the position to which the em14 ployee is detailed is eliminated on or before the date

15 of the closure, realignment, or restructuring.

16 ‘‘(e) For purposes of this section—

17 ‘‘(1) the term ‘base closure law’ means—

18 ‘‘(A) section 2687 of title 10;

19 ‘‘(B) title II of the Defense Authorization

20 Amendments and Base Closure and Realign21 ment Act; and

22 ‘‘(C) the Defense Base Closure and Re23 alignment Act of 1990; and

24 ‘‘(2) the term ‘military installation’—
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1 ‘‘(A) in the case of an installation covered

2 by section 2687 of title 10, has the meaning

3 given such term in subsection (e)(1) of such

4 section;

5 ‘‘(B) in the case of an installation covered

6 by the Act referred to in subparagraph (B) of

7 paragraph (1), has the meaning given such

8 term in section 209(6) of such Act; and

9 ‘‘(C) in the case of an installation covered

10 by the Act referred to in subparagraph (C) of

11 paragraph (1), has the meaning given such

12 term in section 2910(4) of such Act.’’.

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

14 for chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, is amended

15 by striking the item relating to section 3341 and inserting

16 the following:

‘‘3341. Details; within Executive agencies and military departments; employees

affected by reduction in force.’’.

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

18 this section shall take effect 30 days after the date of the

19 enactment of this Act.
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1 TITLE V—SOFT-LANDING

2 PROVISIONS

3 SEC. 501. TEMPORARY CONTINUATION OF FEDERAL EM4 PLOYEES’ LIFE INSURANCE.

5 Section 8706 of title 5, United States Code, is

6 amended by adding at the end the following:

7 ‘‘(g)(1) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of

8 this section, an employee whose coverage under this chap9 ter would otherwise terminate due to a separation de10 scribed in paragraph (3) shall be eligible to continue basic

11 insurance coverage described in section 8704 in accord12 ance with this subsection and regulations the Office may

13 prescribe, if the employee arranges to pay currently into

14 the Employees Life Insurance Fund, through the former

15 employing agency or, if an annuitant, through the respon16 sible retirement system, an amount equal to the sum of—

17 ‘‘(A) both employee and agency contributions

18 which would be payable if separation had not oc19 curred; plus

20 ‘‘(B) an amount, determined under regulations

21 prescribed by the Office, to cover necessary adminis22 trative expenses, but not to exceed 2 percent of the

23 total amount under subparagraph (A).

24 ‘‘(2) Continued coverage under this subsection may

25 not extend beyond the date which is 18 months after the
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1 effective date of the separation which entitles a former em2 ployee to coverage under this subsection. Termination of

3 continued coverage under this subsection shall be subject

4 to provision for temporary extension of life insurance cov5 erage and for conversion to an individual policy of life in6 surance as provided by subsection (a). If an eligible em7 ployee does not make an election for purposes of this sub8 section, the employee’s insurance will terminate as pro9 vided by subsection (a).

10 ‘‘(3)(A) This subsection shall apply to an employee

11 who, on or after the date of enactment of this subsection

12 and before the applicable date under subparagraph (B)—

13 ‘‘(i) is involuntarily separated from a position

14 due to a reduction in force, or separates voluntarily

15 from a position the employing agency determines is

16 a ‘surplus position’ as defined by section

17 8905(d)(4)(C); and

18 ‘‘(ii) is insured for basic insurance under this

19 chapter on the date of separation.

20 ‘‘(B) The applicable date under this subparagraph is

21 October 1, 2001, except that, for purposes of any involun22 tary separation referred to in subparagraph (A) with re23 spect to which appropriate specific notice is afforded to

24 the affected employee before October 1, 2001, the applica25 ble date under this subparagraph is February 1, 2002.’’.
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1 SEC. 502. CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR HEALTH INSUR2 ANCE.

3 (a) CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY AFTER RETIRE4 MENT.—Section 8905 of title 5, United States Code, is

5 amended—

6 (1) in the first sentence of subsection (b) by

7 striking ‘‘An’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to subsection

8 (g), an’’; and

9 (2) by adding at the end the following:

10 ‘‘(g)(1) The Office shall waive the requirements for

11 continued enrollment under subsection (b) in the case of

12 any individual who, on or after the date of the enactment

13 of this subsection and before the applicable date under

14 paragraph (2)—

15 ‘‘(A) is involuntarily separated from a position,

16 or voluntarily separated from a surplus position, in

17 or under an Executive agency due to a reduction in

18 force,

19 ‘‘(B) based on the separation referred to in sub20 paragraph (A), retires on an immediate annuity

21 under subchapter III of chapter 83 or subchapter II

22 of chapter 84, and

23 ‘‘(C) is enrolled in a health benefits plan under

24 this chapter as an employee immediately before re25 tirement.
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1 ‘‘(2) The applicable date under this paragraph is Oc2 tober 1, 2001, except that, for purposes of any involuntary

3 separation referred to in paragraph (1)(A) with respect

4 to which appropriate specific notice is afforded to the af5 fected employee before October 1, 2001, the applicable

6 date under this paragraph is February 1, 2002.

7 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘sur8 plus position’, with respect to an agency, means any posi9 tion determined in accordance with regulations under sec10 tion 8905a(d)(4)(C) for such agency.’’.

11 (b) TEMPORARY CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY AFTER

12 BEING INVOLUNTARILY SEPARATED.—Section

13 8905a(d)(4) of title 5, United States Code, is amended—

14 (1) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘the De15 partment of Defense’’ and inserting ‘‘an Executive

16 agency’’; and

17 (2) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as

18 follows:

19 ‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘sur20 plus position’ means a position that, as determined under

21 regulations prescribed by the head of the agency involved,

22 is identified during planning for a reduction in force as

23 being no longer required and is designated for elimination

24 during the reduction in force.’’.
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1 SEC. 503. JOB PLACEMENT AND COUNSELING SERVICES.

2 (a) AUTHORITY FOR SERVICES.—The head of each

3 Executive agency may establish a program to provide job

4 placement and counseling services to current and former

5 employees.

6 (b) TYPES OF SERVICES AUTHORIZED.—A program

7 established under this section may include such services

8 as—

9 (1) career and personal counseling;

10 (2) training in job search skills; and

11 (3) job placement assistance, including assist12 ance provided through cooperative arrangements

13 with State and local employment service offices.

14 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICES.—Services authorized

15 by this section may be provided to—

16 (1) current employees of the agency or, with the

17 approval of such other agency, any other agency;

18 and

19 (2) employees of the agency or, with the ap20 proval of such other agency, any other agency who

21 have been separated for less than 1 year, if the sepa22 ration was not a removal for cause on charges of

23 misconduct or delinquency.

24 (d) REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS.—The costs of

25 services provided to current or former employees of an26 other agency shall be reimbursed by that agency.
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1 SEC. 504. EDUCATION AND RETRAINING INCENTIVES.

2 (a) NON-FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT INCENTIVE PAY3 MENTS.—

4 (1) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub5 section—

6 (A) the term ‘‘eligible employee’’ means an

7 employee who is involuntarily separated from a

8 position, or voluntarily separated from a sur9 plus position, in or under an Executive agency

10 due to a reduction in force, except that such

11 term does not include an employee who, at the

12 time of separation, meets the age and service

13 requirements for an immediate annuity under

14 subchapter III of chapter 83 or chapter 84 of

15 title 5, United States Code, other than under

16 section 8336(d) or 8414(b) of such title;

17 (B) the term ‘‘non-Federal employer’’

18 means an employer other than the Government

19 of the United States or any agency or other in20 strumentality thereof;

21 (C) the term ‘‘Executive agency’’ has the

22 meaning given such term by section 105 of title

23 5, United States Code; and

24 (D) the term ‘‘surplus position’’ has the

25 meaning given such term by section

26 8905(d)(4)(C) of title 5, United States Code.
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1 (2) AUTHORITY.—The head of an Executive

2 agency may pay retraining and relocation incentive

3 payments, in accordance with this subsection, in

4 order to facilitate the reemployment of eligible em5 ployees who are separated from such agency.

6 (3) RETRAINING INCENTIVE PAYMENT.—

7 (A) AGREEMENT.—The head of an Execu8 tive agency may enter into an agreement with

9 a non-Federal employer under which the non10 Federal employer agrees—

11 (i) to employ an individual referred to

12 in paragraph (2) for at least 12 months

13 for a salary which is mutually agreeable to

14 the employer and such individual; and

15 (ii) to certify to the agency head any

16 costs incurred by the employer for any nec17 essary training provided to such individual

18 in connection with the employment by such

19 employer.

20 (B) PAYMENT OF RETRAINING INCENTIVE

21 PAYMENT.—The agency head shall pay a re22 training incentive payment to the non-Federal

23 employer upon the employee’s completion of 12

24 months of continuous employment by that em-
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1 ployer. The agency head shall prescribe the

2 amount of the incentive payment.

3 (C) PRORATION RULE.—The agency head

4 shall pay a prorated amount of the full retrain5 ing incentive payment to the non-Federal em6 ployer for an employee who does not remain

7 employed by the non-Federal employer for at

8 least 12 months, but only if the employee re9 mains so employed for at least 6 months.

10 (D) LIMITATION.—In no event may the

11 amount of the retraining incentive payment

12 paid for the training of any individual exceed

13 the amount certified for such individual under

14 subparagraph (A), subject to subsection (c).

15 (4) RELOCATION INCENTIVE PAYMENT.—The

16 head of an agency may pay a relocation incentive

17 payment to an eligible employee if it is necessary for

18 the employee to relocate in order to commence em19 ployment with a non-Federal employer. Subject to

20 subsection (e), the amount of the incentive payment

21 shall not exceed the amount that would be payable

22 for travel, transportation, and subsistence expenses

23 under subchapter II of chapter 57 of title 5, United

24 States Code, including any reimbursement author25 ized under section 5724b of such title, to a Federal
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1 employee who transfers between the same locations

2 as the individual to whom the incentive payment is

3 payable.

4 (5) DURATION.—No incentive payment may be

5 paid for training or relocation commencing after

6 June 30, 2002.

7 (6) SOURCE.—An incentive payment under this

8 subsection shall be payable from appropriations or

9 other funds available to the agency for purposes of

10 training (within the meaning of section 4101(4) of

11 title 5, United States Code).

12 (b) EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.—

13 (1) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub14 section—

15 (A) the term ‘‘eligible employee’’ means an

16 eligible employee, within the meaning of sub17 section (a), who —

18 (i) is employed full-time on a perma19 nent basis;

20 (ii) has completed at least 3 years of

21 current continuous service in any Execu22 tive agency or agencies; and

23 (iii) is admitted to an institution of

24 higher education within 1 year after sepa25 ration;
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1 (B) the term ‘‘Executive agency’’ has the

2 meaning given such term by section 105 of title

3 5, United States Code;

4 (C) the term ‘‘educational assistance’’

5 means payments for educational assistance as

6 provided in section 127(c)(1) of the Internal

7 Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 127(c)(1));

8 and

9 (D) the term ‘‘institution of higher edu10 cation’’ has the meaning given such term by

11 section 1201(a) of the Higher Education Act of

12 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1141(a)).

13 (2) AUTHORITY.—Under regulations prescribed

14 by the Office of Personnel Management, and subject

15 to the limitations under subsection (c), the head of

16 an Executive agency may, in his or her discretion,

17 provide educational assistance under this subsection

18 to an eligible employee for a program of education

19 at an institution of higher education after the sepa20 ration of the employee.

21 (3) DURATION.—No educational assistance

22 under this subsection may be paid later than 10

23 years after the separation of the eligible employee.

24 (4) SOURCE.—Educational assistance payments

25 shall be payable from appropriations or other funds
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1 which would have been used to pay the salary of the

2 eligible employee if the employee had not separated.

3 (5) REGULATIONS.—The Office of Personnel

4 Management shall prescribe regulations for the ad5 ministration of this subsection. Such regulations

6 shall provide that educational assistance payments

7 shall be limited to amounts necessary for current

8 tuition and fees only.

9 (c) LIMITATIONS.—

10 (1) AGGREGATE LIMITATION.—No incentive

11 payment or educational assistance payment may be

12 paid under this section to or on behalf of any indi13 vidual to the extent that such amount would cause

14 the aggregate amount otherwise paid or payable

15 under this section, to or on behalf of such individual,

16 to exceed $10,000.

17 (2) LIMITATION RELATING TO EDUCATIONAL

18 ASSISTANCE.—The total amount paid under sub19 section (b) to any individual—

20 (A) may not exceed $6,000 if the individ21 ual has at least 3 but less than 4 years of quali22 fying service; and

23 (B) may not exceed $8,000 if the individ24 ual has at least 4 but less than 5 years of quali25 fying service.
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1 (3) QUALIFYING SERVICE.—For purposes of

2 paragraph (2), the term ‘‘qualifying service’’ means

3 service performed as an employee, within the mean4 ing of section 2105 of title 5, United States Code,

5 on a permanent full-time or permanent part-time

6 basis (counting part-time service on a prorated

7 basis).

8 TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS

9 SEC. 601. REIMBURSEMENTS RELATING TO PROFESSIONAL

10 LIABILITY INSURANCE.

11 (a) AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding any other provi12 sion of law, any amounts appropriated, for fiscal year

13 1997 or any fiscal year thereafter, for salaries and ex14 penses of Government employees may be used to reim15 burse any qualified employee for not to exceed one-half

16 the costs incurred by such employee for professional liabil17 ity insurance. A payment under this section shall be con18 tingent upon the submission of such information or docu19 mentation as the employing agency may require.

20 (b) QUALIFIED EMPLOYEE.—For purposes of this

21 section, the term ‘‘qualified employee’’ means—

22 (1) an agency employee whose position is that

23 of a law enforcement officer;

24 (2) an agency employee whose position is that

25 of a supervisor or management official; or
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1 (3) such other employee as the head of the

2 agency considers appropriate

3 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes 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;

7 (2) the term ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ means

8 an employee, the duties of whose position are pri9 marily the investigation, apprehension, prosecution,

10 or detention of individuals suspected or convicted of

11 offenses against the criminal laws of the United

12 States, including any law enforcement officer under

13 section 8331(20) or 8401(17) of such title 5;

14 (3) the terms ‘‘supervisor’’ and ‘‘management

15 official’’ have the respective meanings given them by

16 section 7103(a) of such title 5; and

17 (4) the term ‘‘professional liability insurance’’

18 means insurance which provides coverage for—

19 (A) legal liability for damages due to inju20 ries to other persons, damage to their property,

21 or other damage or loss to such other persons

22 (including the expenses of litigation and settle23 ment) resulting from or arising out of any

24 tortious act, error, or omission of the covered

25 individual (whether common law, statutory, or
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1 constitutional) while in the performance of such

2 individual’s official duties as a qualified em3 ployee; and

4 (B) the cost of legal representation for the

5 covered individual in connection with any ad6 ministrative or judicial proceeding (including

7 any investigation or disciplinary proceeding) re8 lating to any act, error, or omission of the cov9 ered individual while in the performance of such

10 individual’s official duties as a qualified em11 ployee, and other legal costs and fees relating

12 to any such administrative or judicial proceed13 ing.

14 (d) POLICY LIMITS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Reimbursement under this

16 section shall not be available except in the case of

17 any professional liability insurance policy providing

18 for—

19 (A) not to exceed $1,000,000 of coverage

20 for legal liability (as described in subsection

21 (c)(4)(A)) per occurrence per year; and

22 (B) not to exceed $100,000 of coverage for

23 the cost of legal representation (as described in

24 subsection (c)(4)(B)) per occurrence per year.
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1 (2) ADJUSTMENTS.—The head of an agency

2 may from time to time adjust the respective dollar

3 amount limitations applicable under this subsection

4 to the extent that the head of such agency considers

5 appropriate to reflect inflation.

6 SEC. 602. EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS FOLLOWING CONVERSION

7 TO CONTRACT.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—An employee whose position is

9 abolished because an activity performed by an Executive

10 agency (within the meaning of section 105 of title 5, Unit11 ed States Code) is converted to contract shall receive from

12 the contractor an offer in good faith of a right of first

13 refusal of employment under the contract for a position

14 for which the employee is deemed qualified based upon

15 previous knowledge, skills, abilities, and experience. The

16 contractor shall not offer employment under the contract

17 to any person prior to having complied fully with this obli18 gation, except as provided in subsection (b), or unless no

19 employee whose position is abolished because such activity

20 has been converted to contract can demonstrate appro21 priate qualifications for the position.

22 (b) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding the contractor’s

23 obligation under subsection (a), the contractor is not re24 quired to offer a right of first refusal to any employee who,

25 in the 12 months preceding conversion to contract, has
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1 been the subject of an adverse personnel action related to

2 misconduct or has received a less than fully successful per3 formance rating.

4 (c) LIMITATION.—No employee shall have a right to

5 more than 1 offer under this section based on any particu6 lar separation due to the conversion of an activity to con7 tract.

8 (d) REGULATIONS.—Regulations to carry out this

9 section may be prescribed by the President.

10 SEC. 603. DEBARMENT OF HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS

11 FOUND TO HAVE ENGAGED IN FRAUDULENT

12 PRACTICES.

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8902a of title 5, United

14 States Code, is amended—

15 (1) in subsection (a)(2)(A) by striking ‘‘sub16 section (b) or (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (b), (c),

17 or (d)’’;

18 (2) in subsection (b)—

19 (A) by striking ‘‘may’’ and inserting

20 ‘‘shall’’ in the matter before paragraph (1); and

21 (B) by amending paragraph (5) to read as

22 follows:

23 ‘‘(5) Any provider that is currently suspended

24 or excluded from participation under any program of
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•HR 3841 EH

1 the Federal Government involving procurement or

2 nonprocurement activities.’’;

3 (3) by redesignating subsections (c) through (i)

4 as subsections (d) through (j), respectively, and by

5 inserting after subsection (b) the following:

6 ‘‘(c) The Office may bar the following providers of

7 health care services from participating in the program

8 under this chapter:

9 ‘‘(1) Any provider—

10 ‘‘(A) whose license to provide health care

11 services or supplies has been revoked, sus12 pended, restricted, or not renewed, by a State

13 licensing authority for reasons relating to the

14 provider’s professional competence, professional

15 performance, or financial integrity; or

16 ‘‘(B) that surrendered such a license while

17 a formal disciplinary proceeding was pending

18 before such an authority, if the proceeding con19 cerned the provider’s professional competence,

20 professional performance, or financial integrity.

21 ‘‘(2) Any provider that is an entity directly or

22 indirectly owned, or with a 5 percent or more con23 trolling interest, by an individual who is convicted of

24 any offense described in subsection (b), against

25 whom a civil monetary penalty has been assessed
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1 under subsection (d), or who has been excluded from

2 participation under this chapter.

3 ‘‘(3) Any provider that the Office determines, in

4 connection with claims presented under this chapter,

5 has charged for health care services or supplies in

6 an amount substantially in excess of such provider’s

7 customary charges for such services or supplies (un8 less the Office finds there is good cause for such

9 charge), or charged for health care services or sup10 plies which are substantially in excess of the needs

11 of the covered individual or which are of a quality

12 that fails to meet professionally recognized stand13 ards for such services or supplies.

14 ‘‘(4) Any provider that the Office determines

15 has committed acts described in subsection (d).’’;

16 (4) in subsection (d), as so redesignated by

17 paragraph (3), by amending paragraph (1) to read

18 as follows:

19 ‘‘(1) in connection with claims presented under

20 this chapter, that a provider has charged for a

21 health care service or supply which the provider

22 knows or should have known involves—

23 ‘‘(A) an item or service not provided as

24 claimed;
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•HR 3841 EH

1 ‘‘(B) charges in violation of applicable

2 charge limitations under section 8904(b); or

3 ‘‘(C) an item or service furnished during a

4 period in which the provider was excluded from

5 participation under this chapter pursuant to a

6 determination by the Office under this section,

7 other than as permitted under subsection

8 (g)(2)(B);’’;

9 (5) in subsection (f), as so redesignated by

10 paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘(where such debarment

11 is not mandatory)’’ after ‘‘under this section’’ the

12 first place it appears;

13 (6) in subsection (g), as so redesignated by

14 paragraph (3)—

15 (A) by striking ‘‘(g)(1)’’ and all that fol16 lows through the end of paragraph (1) and in17 serting the following:

18 ‘‘(g)(1)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B),

19 debarment of a provider under subsection (b) or (c) shall

20 be effective at such time and upon such reasonable notice

21 to such provider, and to carriers and covered individuals,

22 as shall be specified in regulations prescribed by the Of23 fice. Any such provider that is excluded from participation

24 may request a hearing in accordance with subsection

25 (h)(1).
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1 ‘‘(B) Unless the Office determines that the health or

2 safety of individuals receiving health care services war3 rants an earlier effective date, the Office shall not make

4 a determination adverse to a provider under subsection

5 (c)(4) or (d) until such provider has been given reasonable

6 notice and an opportunity for the determination to be

7 made after a hearing as provided in accordance with sub8 section (h)(1).’’;

9 (B) in paragraph (3)—

10 (i) by inserting ‘‘of debarment’’ after

11 ‘‘notice’’; and

12 (ii) by adding at the end the follow13 ing: ‘‘In the case of a debarment under

14 paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection

15 (b), the minimum period of exclusion shall

16 not be less than 3 years, except as pro17 vided in paragraph (4)(B)(ii).’’; and

18 (C) in paragraph (4)(B)(i)(I) by striking

19 ‘‘subsection (b) or (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub20 section (b), (c), or (d)’’;

21 (7) in subsection (h), as so redesignated by

22 paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘(h)(1)’’ and all that fol23 lows through the end of paragraph (2) and inserting

24 the following:
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1 ‘‘(h)(1) Any provider of health care services or sup2 plies that is the subject of an adverse determination by

3 the Office under this section shall be entitled to reasonable

4 notice and an opportunity to request a hearing of record,

5 and to judicial review as provided in this subsection after

6 the Office renders a final decision. The Office shall grant

7 a request for a hearing upon a showing that due process

8 rights have not previously been afforded with respect to

9 any finding of fact which is relied upon as a cause for

10 an adverse determination under this section. Such hearing

11 shall be conducted without regard to subchapter II of

12 chapter 5 and chapter 7 of this title by a hearing officer

13 who shall be designated by the Director of the Office and

14 who shall not otherwise have been involved in the adverse

15 determination being appealed. A request for a hearing

16 under this subsection must be filed within such period and

17 in accordance with such procedures as the Office shall pre18 scribe by regulation.

19 ‘‘(2) Any provider adversely affected by a final deci20 sion under paragraph (1) made after a hearing to which

21 such provider was a party may seek review of such deci22 sion in the United States District Court for the District

23 of Columbia or for the district in which the plaintiff re24 sides or has his principal place of business by filing a no25 tice of appeal in such court within 60 days from the date
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1 the decision is issued and simultaneously sending copies

2 of such notice by certified mail to the Director of the Of3 fice and to the Attorney General. In answer to the appeal,

4 the Director of the Office shall promptly file in such court

5 a certified copy of the transcript of the record, if the Office

6 conducted a hearing, and other evidence upon which the

7 findings and decision complained of are based. The court

8 shall have power to enter, upon the pleadings and evidence

9 of record, a judgment affirming, modifying, or setting

10 aside, in whole or in part, the decision of the Office, with

11 or without remanding the cause for a rehearing. The dis12 trict court shall not set aside or remand the decision of

13 the Office unless there is not substantial evidence on the

14 record, taken as a whole, to support the findings by the

15 Office of a cause for action under this section or unless

16 action taken by the Office constitutes an abuse of discre17 tion.’’; and

18 (8) in subsection (i), as so redesignated by

19 paragraph (3)—

20 (A) by striking ‘‘subsection (c)’’ and in21 serting ‘‘subsection (d)’’; and

22 (B) by adding at the end the following:

23 ‘‘The amount of a penalty or assessment as fi24 nally determined by the Office, or other amount

25 the Office may agree to in compromise, may be
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1 deducted from any sum then or later owing by

2 the United States to the party against whom

3 the penalty or assessment has been levied.’’.

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para6 graph (2), this section shall take effect on the date

7 of the enactment of this Act.

8 (2) EXCEPTIONS.—(A) Paragraphs (2) and (4)

9 of section 8902a(c) of title 5, United States Code,

10 as amended by subsection (a), shall apply only to the

11 extent that the misconduct which is the basis for de12 barment thereunder occurs after the date of the en13 actment of this Act.

14 (B) Section 8902a(d)(1)(B) of title 5, United

15 States Code, as amended by subsection (a), shall

16 apply only with respect to charges which violate sec17 tion 8904(b) of such title 5 for items and services

18 furnished after the date of the enactment of this

19 Act.

20 (C) Section 8902a(g)(3) of title 5, United

21 States Code, as amended by subsection (a), shall

22 apply only with respect to debarments based on con23 victions occurring after the date of the enactment of

24 this Act.
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1 SEC. 604. CONSISTENT COVERAGE FOR INDIVIDUALS EN2 ROLLED IN A HEALTH PLAN ADMINISTERED

3 BY THE FEDERAL BANKING AGENCIES.

4 Section 5 of the FEGLI Living Benefits Act (Public

5 Law 103–409; 108 Stat. 4232) is amended—

6 (1) by inserting ‘‘and the Board of Governors

7 of the Federal Reserve System’’ after ‘‘Office of the

8 Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift

9 Supervision’’ each place it appears;

10 (2) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or under a

11 health benefits plan not governed by chapter 89 of

12 such title in which employees and retirees of the

13 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

14 participated before January 4, 1997,’’ after ‘‘Janu15 ary 7, 1995,’’;

16 (3) in subsection (b)—

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘(in the case of the Comp18 troller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift

19 Supervision) or on January 4, 1997 (in the case

20 of the Board of Governors of the Federal Re21 serve System)’’ after ‘‘on January 7, 1995’’

22 each place it appears;

23 (B) by inserting ‘‘, or in which employees

24 and retirees of the Board of Governors of the

25 Federal Reserve System participate,’’ after ‘‘Of26 fice of the Comptroller of the Currency or the
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1 Office of Thrift Supervision’’ each place it ap2 pears; and

3 (C) by inserting ‘‘(in the case of the Comp4 troller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift

5 Supervision) or after January 5, 1997 (in the

6 case of the Board of Governors of the Federal

7 Reserve System)’’ after ‘‘January 8, 1995’’

8 each place it appears;

9 (4) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by striking ‘‘title;’’

10 and inserting ‘‘title or a retiree (as defined in sub11 section (e);’’; and

12 (5) by adding at the end the following:

13 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the

14 term ‘retiree’ shall mean an individual who is receiving

15 benefits under the Retirement Plan for Employees of the

16 Federal Reserve System.’’.

17 SEC. 605. AMENDMENT TO PUBLIC LAW 104–134.

18 Paragraph (3) of section 3110(b) of the Omnibus

19 Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996

20 (Public Law 104–134; 110 Stat. 1321–343) is amended

21 to read as follows:

22 ‘‘(3) The Corporation shall pay to the Thrift Savings

23 Fund such employee and agency contributions as are re24 quired by sections 8432 and 8351 of title 5, United States

25 Code, for those employees who elect to retain their cov-
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1 erage under the Civil Service Retirement System or the

2 Federal Employees’ Retirement System pursuant to para3 graph (1).’’.

4 SEC. 606. MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

5 THE HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM FOR FED6 ERAL EMPLOYEES.

7 (a) DEFINITION OF A CARRIER.—Paragraph (7) of

8 section 8901 of title 5, United States Code, is amended

9 by striking ‘‘organization;’’ and inserting ‘‘organization

10 and the Government-wide service benefit plan sponsored

11 by an association of organizations described in this para12 graph;’’.

13 (b) SERVICE BENEFIT PLAN.—Paragraph (1) of sec14 tion 8903 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by

15 striking ‘‘plan,’’ and inserting ‘‘plan, underwritten by par16 ticipating affiliates licensed in any number of States,’’.

17 (c) PREEMPTION.—Section 8902(m) of title 5, Unit18 ed States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘(m)(1)’’ and all

19 that follows through the end of paragraph (1) and insert20 ing the following:

21 ‘‘(m)(1) The terms of any contract under this chapter

22 which relate to the nature, provision, or extent of coverage

23 or benefits (including payments with respect to benefits)

24 shall supersede and preempt any State or local law, or
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1 any regulation issued thereunder, which relates to health

2 insurance or plans.’’.

3 SEC. 607. PAY FOR CERTAIN POSITIONS FORMERLY CLASSI4 FIED AT GS–18.

5 Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the rate

6 of basic pay for positions that were classified at GS–18

7 of the General Schedule on the date of the enactment of

8 the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990

9 shall be set and maintained at the rate equal to the high10 est rate of basic pay for the Senior Executive Service

11 under section 5382(b) of title 5, United States Code.

12 SEC. 608. REPEAL OF SECTION 1307 OF TITLE 5 OF THE

13 UNITED STATES CODE.

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1307 of title 5, United

15 States Code, is repealed.

16 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections

17 for chapter 13 of title 5, United States Code, is amended

18 by repealing the item relating to section 1307.

19 SEC. 609. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN PROCEDURAL AND AP20 PEAL RIGHTS TO CERTAIN PERSONNEL OF

21 THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7511(b)(8) of title 5,

23 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘the Federal

24 Bureau of Investigation,’’.
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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

2 this section shall apply with respect to any personnel ac3 tion taking effect after the end of the 45-day period begin4 ning on the date of the enactment of this Act.

Passed the House of Representatives September 27,

1996.

Attest:

Clerk.