I

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 3841

To amend the civil service laws of the United States, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 17, 1996

Mr. MICA (for himself, Mr. MORAN, and Mrs. MORELLA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform

and Oversight

A BILL

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’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

TITLE I—DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS

Sec. 101. Demonstration projects.

TITLE II—SIMPLIFYING APPEALS
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Sec. 201. Elimination of mixed-case procedures.

Sec. 202. Appeal to Merit Systems Protection Board as exclusive administrative

remedy.

Sec. 203. Agency flexibility and encouraging the use of alternative dispute resolution techniques.

Sec. 204. Effective date.

TITLE III—PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT ENHANCEMENT

Sec. 301. Increased weight given to performance for order-of-retention purposes

in a reduction in force.

Sec. 302. No appeal of denial of periodic step-increases.

Sec. 303. Performance appraisals.

Sec. 304. Amendments to incentive awards authority.

Sec. 305. Due process rights of managers under negotiated grievance procedures.

Sec. 306. Collection and reporting of training information.

TITLE IV—ENHANCEMENT OF THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN AND

CERTAIN OTHER BENEFITS

Subtitle A—Additional Investment Funds for the Thrift Savings Plan

Sec. 401. Short title.

Sec. 402. Additional investment funds for the Thrift Savings Plan.

Sec. 403. Acknowledgement of investment risk.

Sec. 404. Effective date.

Subtitle B—Thrift Savings Account Liquidity

Sec. 411. Short title.

Sec. 412. Notice to spouses for in-service withdrawals; de minimus accounts;

Civil Service Retirement System participants.

Sec. 413. In-service withdrawals; withdrawal elections, Federal Employees Retirement System participants.

Sec. 414. Survivor annuities for former spouses; notice to Federal Employees

Retirement System spouses for in-service withdrawals.

Sec. 415. De minimus accounts relating to the judiciary.

Sec. 416. Definition of basic pay.

Sec. 417. Eligible rollover distributions.

Sec. 418. Effective date.

Subtitle C—Other Provisions Relating to the Thrift Savings Plan

Sec. 421. Percentage limitations on contributions.

Sec. 422. Loans under the Thrift Savings Plan for furloughed employees.

Sec. 423. Immediate participation in the Thrift Savings Plan.

Subtitle D—Resumption of Certain Survivor Annuities That Terminated by

Reason of Marriage

Sec. 431. Resumption of certain survivor annuities that terminated by reason

of marriage.

Subtitle E—Life Insurance Benefits

Sec. 441. Domestic relations orders.
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Sec. 442. Exception from provisions requiring reduction in additional optional

life insurance.

Sec. 443. Temporary continuation of Federal employees’ life insurance.

TITLE V—REORGANIZATION FLEXIBILITY

Sec. 501. Voluntary reductions in force.

Sec. 502. Nonreimbursable details to Federal agencies before a reduction in

force.

TITLE VI—SOFT-LANDING PROVISIONS

Sec. 601. Continued eligibility for life insurance.

Sec. 602. Continued eligibility for health insurance.

Sec. 603. Priority placement programs for Federal employees affected by a reduction in force.

Sec. 604. Job placement and counseling services.

Sec. 605. Education and retraining incentives.

TITLE VII—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 701. Reimbursements relating to professional liability insurance.

Sec. 702. Employment rights following conversion to contract.

Sec. 703. Debarment of health care providers found to have engaged in fraudulent practices.

Sec. 704. Extension of certain procedural and appeal rights to certain personnel of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Sec. 705. Conversion of certain excepted service positions in the United States

Fire Administration to competitive service positions.

Sec. 706. Eligibility for certain survivor annuity benefits.

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

2 enter into any agreement or contract to conduct a dem3 onstration project, the Office—

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

5 project which identifies—

6 ‘‘(A) the purposes of the project;

7 ‘‘(B) the methodology;

8 ‘‘(C) the duration; and

9 ‘‘(D) the methodology and criteria for eval10 uation;

11 ‘‘(2) shall publish the plan in the Federal Reg12 ister;

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

14 interested parties in such manner as the Office con15 siders appropriate;

16 ‘‘(4) shall obtain approval from each agency in17 volved of the final version of the plan; and

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

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

20 project proposed under this section is to take ef21 fect—

22 ‘‘(A) to employees who are likely to be af23 fected by the project; and

24 ‘‘(B) to each House of the Congress.’’.
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1 (c) NONWAIVABLE PROVISIONS.—Section 4703(c) of

2 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

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

4 following:

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

6 63 or subpart G of this title;’’; and

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

8 following:

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

16 may continue for a maximum of 2 years beyond the date

17 to the extent necessary to validate the results of the

18 project.

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

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

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

22 or more individuals each.

23 ‘‘(B) Individuals in a control group necessary to vali24 date the results of a project shall not, for purposes of any
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1 determination under subparagraph (A), be considered to

2 be involved in such project.’’.

3 (e) CONDITION RELATING TO BARGAINING AGREE4 MENTS.—Paragraph (1) of section 4703(f) of title 5, Unit5 ed States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘(as defined in

6 section 7103(8) of this title)’’ and inserting ‘‘(as defined

7 in section 7103(8), excluding any agreements entered into

8 or renewed after the date of the enactment of the Omnibus

9 Civil Service Reform Act of 1996)’’.

10 (f) EVALUATIONS.—Subsection (h) of section 4703 of

11 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the

12 end the following: ‘‘The Office may, with respect to a dem13 onstration project conducted by another agency, require

14 that the preceding sentence be carried out by such other

15 agency.’’.

16 (g) PROVISIONS FOR TERMINATION OF PROJECT OR

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

18 States Code, is amended—

19 (1) in subsection (i) by inserting ‘‘by the Of20 fice’’ after ‘‘undertaken’’; and

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

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

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

24 otherwise) would result in the inequitable treatment of em25 ployees who participated in the project, the Office shall
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1 take such corrective action as is within its authority. If

2 the Office determines that legislation is necessary to cor3 rect an inequity, it shall submit an appropriate legislative

4 proposal to both Houses of Congress.

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

6 project should be made permanent, it shall submit an ap7 propriate legislative proposal to both Houses of Con8 gress.’’.

9 TITLE II—SIMPLIFYING

10 APPEALS

11 SEC. 201. ELIMINATION OF MIXED-CASE PROCEDURES.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7702, paragraph (2) of

13 section 7703(b), and the last sentence of section 7121(d)

14 of title 5, United States Code, are repealed.

15 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

16 (1) The item relating to section 7702 in the table of sec17 tions at the beginning of chapter 77 of title 5, United

18 States Code, is repealed.

19 (2) Section 7701(e)(1) of title 5, United States Code,

20 is amended—

21 (A) by striking ‘‘(e)(1) Except as provided in

22 section 7702 of this title, any’’ and inserting ‘‘(e)

23 Any’’;

24 (B) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and

25 (B) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively; and
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1 (C) by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A) of this para2 graph.’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1).’’.

3 (3) Section 753(e)(1) of title 31, United States Code,

4 is amended by striking ‘‘sections 7701 and 7702’’ and in5 serting ‘‘section 7701’’.

6 (4) Section 7703(c) of title 5, United States Code,

7 is amended by striking the semicolon at the end of para8 graph (3) and all that follows through ‘‘court.’’ and insert9 ing a period.

10 SEC. 202. APPEAL TO MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD

11 AS EXCLUSIVE ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDY.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7701(b)(1) of title 5,

13 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘(b)(1)’’ and

14 inserting ‘‘(b)(1)(A)’’ and by adding at the end the follow15 ing:

16 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

17 rule, or regulation, an appeal under this section shall be

18 the exclusive administrative remedy for any action by an

19 employee or applicant who—

20 ‘‘(i) has been affected by an action which the

21 employee or applicant may appeal to the Merit Sys22 tems Protection Board; and

23 ‘‘(ii) alleges that a basis for the action was dis24 crimination prohibited by—
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1 ‘‘(I) section 717 of the Civil Rights Act of

2 1964;

3 ‘‘(II) section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Stand4 ards Act of 1938;

5 ‘‘(III) section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act

6 of 1973;

7 ‘‘(IV) sections 12 and 15 of the Age Dis8 crimination in Employment Act of 1967; or

9 ‘‘(V) any rule, regulation, or policy direc10 tive prescribed under any provision of law de11 scribed in subclauses (I) through (IV).

12 ‘‘(C) In lieu of filing an appeal under this section,

13 an employee or applicant described in paragraph (B) may

14 file a civil action under—

15 ‘‘(i) section 717(c) of the Civil Rights Act of

16 1964 or section 15(c) of the Age Discrimination in

17 Employment Act of 1967, as applicable, within 90

18 days after receipt of notice of final action taken by

19 the agency on a complaint of discrimination under a

20 provision of law described in subclause (I), (III), or

21 (IV) of subparagraph (B)(ii) or any rule, regulation,

22 or policy directive prescribed under any such provi23 sion of law; or

24 ‘‘(ii) section 16(b) of the Fair Labor Standards

25 Act of 1938 within 2 years (or, if the violation is
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1 willful, within 3 years) after the date of an alleged

2 violation of section 6(d) of the Fair Labor Stand3 ards Act of 1938 or any rule, regulation, or policy

4 directive prescribed thereunder.’’.

5 (b) PETITION FOR BOARD REVIEW.—(1) Section

6 7701(e)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

7 by striking ‘‘a party to the appeal or the Director’’ and

8 inserting ‘‘a party to the appeal, the Director, or the

9 Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’’.

10 (2) Subsection (e) of section 7701 of title 5, United

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow12 ing:

13 ‘‘(3) The Equal Employment Opportunity Commis14 sion may petition the Board for review under paragraph

15 (1) only if the Commission is of the opinion that the deci16 sion is erroneous and will have a substantial impact on

17 any equal employment opportunity law, rule, or regulation

18 under the jurisdiction of the Commission.’’.

19 (3) Subsection (d) of section 7703 of title 5, United

20 States Code, is amended to read as follows:

21 ‘‘(d)(1) The Director of the Office of Personnel Man22 agement may obtain review of any final order or decision

23 of the Board by filing a petition for judicial review in the

24 United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

25 if the Director determines, in his discretion, that the
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1 Board erred in interpreting a civil service law, rule, or reg2 ulation affecting personnel management and that the

3 Board’s decision will have a substantial impact on a civil

4 service law, rule, regulation, or policy directive.

5 ‘‘(2) The Equal Employment Opportunity Commis6 sion may obtain review of any final order or decision of

7 the Board by filing a petition for judicial review in the

8 United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit

9 if the Commission determines, in its discretion, that the

10 Board erred in interpreting an equal employment oppor11 tunity law and that the Board’s decision will have a sub12 stantial impact on an equal employment opportunity law,

13 rule, regulation, or policy directive.

14 ‘‘(3) If the Director or the Commission did not inter15 vene in a matter before the Board, the Director or the

16 Commission may not petition for review of a Board deci17 sion under this section unless the Director or the Commis18 sion first petitions the Board for reconsideration of its de19 cision, and such petition is denied.

20 ‘‘(4) In addition to the named respondent, the Board

21 and all other parties to the proceedings before the Board

22 shall have the right to appear in the proceeding before

23 the Court of Appeals. The granting of the petition for re24 view shall be at the discretion of the Court of Appeals,

25 except that it may not deny a petition for review solely
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1 because it disagrees with the determination of the Director

2 or the Commission that the Board’s decision will have a

3 substantial impact on a law, rule, regulation, or policy di4 rective within their jurisdiction. The Court of Appeals

5 shall require payment by the Director or the Commission,

6 as appropriate, of reasonable attorney fees incurred by the

7 other parties if, after rendering a decision on the merits

8 of the petition, the court determines that the Board’s deci9 sion would not have had a substantial impact on a law,

10 rule, regulation, or policy directive within their jurisdic11 tion.’’.

12 SEC. 203. AGENCY FLEXIBILITY AND ENCOURAGING THE

13 USE OF ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION

14 TECHNIQUES.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 77 of title 5, United

16 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow17 ing:

18 ‘‘§ 7704. Alternative dispute resolution techniques

19 ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each

20 agency (including the United States Postal Service, the

21 Postal Rate Commission, and the Tennessee Valley Au22 thority) shall have the authority to develop an internal

23 procedure under which its employees may file with the

24 agency a complaint of discrimination by the agency under

25 the laws described in subclauses (I) through (V) of section
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1 7701(b)(1)(B)(ii), or any other matter appealable to the

2 Merit Systems Protection Board or the Federal Labor Re3 lations Authority. Agencies are encouraged to use alter4 native dispute resolution techniques in order to resolve

5 such complaints. An agency may require its employees to

6 exhaust such internal procedure for a period not to exceed

7 90 days before seeking external administrative or judicial

8 review under this chapter. To the extent that a private

9 entity may do so, an agency may require employees to sub10 mit to alternative dispute resolution techniques in lieu of

11 other administrative or judicial review.’’.

12 (b) TASK FORCE.—In order to encourage the use of

13 alternative dispute resolution techniques in resolving per14 sonnel-related disputes within the Federal Government,

15 the Chairman of the Merit Systems Protection Board

16 shall, in consultation with the Chairman of the Equal Em17 ployment Opportunity Commission, the Chairman of the

18 Federal Labor Relations Authority, the Director of the Of19 fice of Personnel Management, the Special Counsel, and

20 the Director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation

21 Service, organize and chair a task force—

22 (1) to study and evaluate the use of alternative

23 dispute resolution techniques in resolving Federal

24 personnel disputes;
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1 (2) to facilitate the exchange of information be2 tween agencies;

3 (3) to examine and evaluate alternative dispute

4 resolution techniques used in the private sector for

5 possible application to Federal personnel disputes;

6 and

7 (4) to issue a report to Congress no later than

8 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act

9 on the use of alternative dispute resolution tech10 niques in personnel disputes by Federal agencies, in11 cluding Federal adjudicatory agencies.

12 The Merit Systems Protection Board shall provide admin13 istrative support to the task force.

14 SEC. 204. EFFECTIVE DATE.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

16 this section, this title and the amendments made by this

17 title shall take effect 6 months after the date of the enact18 ment of this Act.

19 (b) TASK FORCE.—Subsection (b) of section 203

20 shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.

21 (c) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Matters or proceedings

22 pending as of, and continuing after, the effective date of

23 this title shall continue as if this title had not been en24 acted.
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1 TITLE III—PERFORMANCE

2 MANAGEMENT ENHANCEMENT

3 SEC. 301. INCREASED WEIGHT GIVEN TO PERFORMANCE

4 FOR ORDER-OF-RETENTION PURPOSES IN A

5 REDUCTION IN FORCE.

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3502 of title 5, United

7 States Code, is amended—

8 (1) in subsection (a)(4) by striking ‘‘ratings.’’

9 and inserting ‘‘ratings, in conformance with the re10 quirements of subsection (g).’’; and

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

12 ‘‘(g)(1) The regulations prescribed to carry out sub13 section (a)(4) shall be the regulations in effect, as of Janu14 ary 1, 1996, under section 351.504 of title 5 of the Code

15 of Federal Regulations, except as otherwise provided in

16 this subsection.

17 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection—

18 ‘‘(A) subsections (b)(4) and (e) of such section

19 351.504 shall be disregarded;

20 ‘‘(B) subsection (d) of such section 351.504

21 shall be considered to read as follows:

22 ‘‘ ‘(d)(1) The additional service credit an employee re23 ceives for performance under this subpart shall be ex24 pressed in additional years of service and shall consist of

25 the sum of the employee’s 3 most recent (actual and/or
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1 assumed) annual performance ratings received during the

2 4-year period prior to the date of issuance of reduction3 in-force notices or the 4-year period prior to the agency4 established cutoff date (as appropriate), computed in ac5 cordance with paragraph (2) or (3) (as appropriate).

6 ‘‘ ‘(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), an em7 ployee shall receive—

8 ‘‘ ‘(A) 5 additional years of service for each per9 formance rating of fully successful (Level 3) or

10 equivalent;

11 ‘‘ ‘(B) 7 additional years of service for each per12 formance rating of exceeds fully successful (Level 4)

13 or equivalent; and

14 ‘‘ ‘(C) 10 additional years of service for each

15 performance rating of outstanding (Level 5) or

16 equivalent.

17 ‘‘ ‘(3)(A) If the employing agency uses a rating sys18 tem having only 1 rating to denote performance which is

19 fully successful or better, then an employee under such

20 system shall receive 5 additional years of service for each

21 such rating.

22 ‘‘ ‘(B) If the employing agency uses a rating system

23 having only 2 ratings to denote performance which is fully

24 successful or better, then an employee under such system

25 shall receive—
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1 ‘‘ ‘(i) 5 additional years of service for each per2 formance rating at the lower of those 2 ratings; and

3 ‘‘ ‘(ii) 7 additional years of service for each per4 formance rating at the higher of those 2 ratings.

5 ‘‘ ‘(C) If the employing agency uses a rating system

6 having 3 or more ratings to denote performance which is

7 fully successful or better, then an employee under such

8 system shall receive—

9 ‘‘ ‘(i) 5 additional years of service for each per10 formance rating at the lowest of those 3 or more

11 ratings;

12 ‘‘ ‘(ii) 7 additional years of service for each per13 formance rating at the next rating above the rating

14 referred to in clause (i); and

15 ‘‘ ‘(iii) 10 additional years of service for each

16 performance rating above the rating referred to in

17 clause (ii).

18 ‘‘ ‘(D) For purposes of this paragraph, a rating shall

19 not be considered to denote performance which is fully

20 successful or better unless, in order to receive such rating,

21 such performance must satisfy all requirements for a fully

22 successful rating (Level 3) or equivalent, as established

23 under part 430 of this chapter (as in effect as of January

24 1, 1996).’; and
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1 ‘‘(C) subsection (c) of such section shall be con2 sidered to read as follows:

3 ‘‘ ‘(c)(1) Service credit for employees who do not have

4 3 actual annual performance ratings of record received

5 during the 4-year period prior to the date of issuance of

6 reduction-in-force notices, or the 4-year period prior to the

7 agency-established cutoff date for ratings permitted in

8 subsection (b)(2) of this section, shall be determined in

9 accordance with paragraph (2).

10 ‘‘ ‘(2) An employee who has not received 1 or more

11 of the 3 annual performance ratings of record required

12 under this section shall—

13 ‘‘ ‘(A) receive credit for performance on the

14 basis of the rating or ratings actually received (if

15 any); and

16 ‘‘ ‘(B) for each performance rating not actually

17 received, be given credit for 5 additional years of

18 service.’.’’.

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

20 this section shall apply with respect to reductions in force

21 taking effect on or after October 1, 1999.

22 SEC. 302. NO APPEAL OF DENIAL OF PERIODIC STEP-IN23 CREASES.

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

25 States Code, is amended—
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1 (1) by striking the second sentence;

2 (2) in the third sentence by striking ‘‘or ap3 peal’’; and

4 (3) in the last sentence by striking ‘‘and the en5 titlement of the employee to appeal to the Board do

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

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

8 5, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), is

9 further amended—

10 (1) in subsections (a)(B) and (c) by striking ‘‘of

11 an acceptable level of competence’’ and inserting ‘‘at

12 least fully successful’’;

13 (2) in the last sentence of subsection (c) by

14 striking ‘‘acceptable level of competence’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘fully successful work performance’’; and

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

17 ‘‘(g) For purposes of this section, the term ‘fully suc18 cessful’ has a meaning similar to that given under section

19 351.504(d)(3)(D) of title 5 of the Code of Federal Regula20 tions (as deemed to be amended by section 301(a)(2) of

21 the Omnibus Civil Service Reform Act of 1996).’’.

22 SEC. 303. PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS.

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

24 States Code, is amended—
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1 (1) in subsection (b) by striking paragraphs (5)

2 and (6) and inserting the following:

3 ‘‘(5) assisting employees in improving unaccept4 able performance, except in circumstances described

5 in subsection (c); and

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

7 or taking other appropriate action against employees

8 whose performance is unacceptable.’’; and

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

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

11 an employee shall be afforded an opportunity to dem12 onstrate acceptable performance before a reduction in

13 grade or removal may be proposed under section 4303

14 based on such performance, except that an employee so

15 afforded such an opportunity shall not be afforded any

16 further opportunity to demonstrate acceptable perform17 ance if the employee’s performance again is determined

18 to be at an unacceptable level.’’.

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

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

21 this section and the amendments made by this sec22 tion shall take effect 180 days after the date of the

23 enactment of this Act.

24 (2) EXCEPTION.—The amendments made by

25 this section shall not apply in the case of any pro-
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1 posed action as to which the employee receives ad2 vance written notice, in accordance with section

3 4303(b)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code, before

4 the effective date of this section.

5 SEC. 304. AMENDMENTS TO INCENTIVE AWARDS AUTHOR6 ITY.

7 Chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amend8 ed—

9 (1) by amending section 4501 to read as fol10 lows:

11 ‘‘§ 4501. Definitions

12 ‘‘For the purpose of this subchapter—

13 ‘‘(1) the term ‘agency’ means—

14 ‘‘(A) an Executive agency;

15 ‘‘(B) the Library of Congress;

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

17 Capitol;

18 ‘‘(D) the Botanic Garden;

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

20 ‘‘(F) the United States Sentencing Com21 mission;

22 but does not include—

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

24 ‘‘(ii) the Central Bank for Cooperatives;
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1 ‘‘(2) the term ‘employee’ means an employee as

2 defined by section 2105; and

3 ‘‘(3) the term ‘Government’ means the Govern4 ment of the United States.’’; and

5 (2) by amending section 4503 to read as fol6 lows:

7 ‘‘§ 4503. Agency awards

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

9 to, and incur necessary expense for the honorary recogni10 tion of, an employee who—

11 ‘‘(1) by his suggestion, invention, superior ac12 complishment, sustained superior performance, or

13 other personal effort contributes to the efficiency,

14 economy, or other improvement of Government oper15 ations or achieves a significant reduction in paper16 work; or

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

18 public interest in connection with or related to his

19 official employment.

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

21 subsection (a) are met on the basis of the suggestion, in22 vention, superior accomplishment, act, service, or other

23 meritorious effort of a group of employees collectively, and

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

25 infeasibility of determining the relative role or contribution
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1 assignable to each employee separately), authority under

2 subsection (a) may be exercised—

3 ‘‘(A) based on the collective efforts of the

4 group; and

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

6 group.

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

8 under this subsection—

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

10 group; and

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

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

13 4502, as applicable.’’.

14 SEC. 305. DUE PROCESS RIGHTS OF MANAGERS UNDER NE15 GOTIATED GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES.

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

17 of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as fol18 lows:

19 ‘‘(2) The provisions of a negotiated grievance proce20 dure providing for binding arbitration in accordance with

21 paragraph (1)(C)(iii) shall, if or to the extent that an al22 leged prohibited personnel practice is involved, allow the

23 arbitrator to order a stay of any personnel action in a

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

25 with respect to the Merit Systems Protection Board.’’.
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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by

2 subsection (a)—

3 (1) shall take effect on the date of the enact4 ment of this Act; and

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

6 or after the date of the enactment of this Act, not7 withstanding the provisions of any collective bargain8 ing agreement.

9 SEC. 306. COLLECTION AND REPORTING OF TRAINING IN10 FORMATION.

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

12 Personnel Management shall collect information concern13 ing training programs, plans, and methods utilized by

14 agencies of the Government and submit a report to the

15 Congress on this activity on an annual basis.

16 (b) TRAINING OUTSIDE OF GOVERNMENT.—The Of17 fice of Personnel Management, to the extent it considers

18 appropriate in the public interest, may collect information

19 concerning training programs, plans, and methods utilized

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

21 make such information available to an agency and to Con22 gress.
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1 TITLE IV—ENHANCEMENT OF

2 THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN AND

3 CERTAIN OTHER BENEFITS

4 Subtitle A—Additional Investment

5 Funds for the Thrift Savings Plan

6 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

7 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Thrift Savings In8 vestment Funds Act of 1996’’.

9 SEC. 402. ADDITIONAL INVESTMENT FUNDS FOR THE

10 THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN.

11 Section 8438 of title 5, United States Code, is

12 amended—

13 (1) in subsection (a)—

14 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (5)

15 through (8) as paragraphs (6) through (9), re16 spectively;

17 (B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the

18 following new paragraph:

19 ‘‘(5) the term ‘International Stock Index Invest20 ment Fund’ means the International Stock Index In21 vestment Fund established under subsection

22 (b)(1)(E);’’;

23 (C) in paragraph (8) (as redesignated by

24 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph) by strik25 ing out ‘‘and’’ at the end thereof;
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1 (D) in paragraph (9) (as redesignated by

2 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph)—

3 (i) by striking out ‘‘paragraph

4 (7)(D)’’ in each place it appears and in5 serting in each such place ‘‘paragraph

6 (8)(D)’’; and

7 (ii) by striking out the period and in8 serting in lieu thereof a semicolon and

9 ‘‘and’’; and

10 (E) by adding at the end thereof the fol11 lowing new paragraph:

12 ‘‘(10) the term ‘Small Capitalization Stock

13 Index Investment Fund’ means the Small Capitaliza14 tion Stock Index Investment Fund established under

15 subsection (b)(1)(D).’’; and

16 (2) in subsection (b)—

17 (A) in paragraph (1)—

18 (i) in subparagraph (B) by striking

19 out ‘‘and’’ at the end thereof;

20 (ii) in subparagraph (C) by striking

21 out the period and inserting in lieu thereof

22 a semicolon; and

23 (iii) by adding at the end thereof the

24 following new subparagraphs:
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1 ‘‘(D) a Small Capitalization Stock Index

2 Investment Fund as provided in paragraph (3);

3 and

4 ‘‘(E) an International Stock Index Invest5 ment Fund as provided in paragraph (4).’’; and

6 (B) by adding at the end thereof the fol7 lowing new paragraphs:

8 ‘‘(3)(A) The Board shall select an index which is a

9 commonly recognized index comprised of common stock

10 the aggregate market value of which represents the United

11 States equity markets excluding the common stocks in12 cluded in the Common Stock Index Investment Fund.

13 ‘‘(B) The Small Capitalization Stock Index Invest14 ment Fund shall be invested in a portfolio designed to rep15 licate the performance of the index in subparagraph (A).

16 The portfolio shall be designed such that, to the extent

17 practicable, the percentage of the Small Capitalization

18 Stock Index Investment Fund that is invested in each

19 stock is the same as the percentage determined by dividing

20 the aggregate market value of all shares of that stock by

21 the aggregate market value of all shares of all stocks in22 cluded in such index.

23 ‘‘(4)(A) The Board shall select an index which is a

24 commonly recognized index comprised of stock the aggre25 gate market value of which is a reasonably complete rep-
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1 resentation of the international equity markets excluding

2 the United States equity markets.

3 ‘‘(B) The International Stock Index Investment Fund

4 shall be invested in a portfolio designed to replicate the

5 performance of the index in subparagraph (A). The port6 folio shall be designed such that, to the extent practicable,

7 the percentage of the International Stock Index Invest8 ment Fund that is invested in each stock is the same as

9 the percentage determined by dividing the aggregate mar10 ket value of all shares of that stock by the aggregate mar11 ket value of all shares of all stocks included in such

12 index.’’.

13 SEC. 403. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF INVESTMENT RISK.

14 Section 8439(d) of title 5, United States Code, is

15 amended by striking out ‘‘Each employee, Member, former

16 employee, or former Member who elects to invest in the

17 Common Stock Index Investment Fund or the Fixed In18 come Investment Fund described in paragraphs (1) and

19 (3),’’ and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘Each employee, Mem20 ber, former employee, or former Member who elects to in21 vest in the Common Stock Index Investment Fund, the

22 Fixed Income Investment Fund, the International Stock

23 Index Investment Fund, or the Small Capitalization Stock

24 Index Investment Fund, defined in paragraphs (1), (3),

25 (5), and (10),’’.
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1 SEC. 404. EFFECTIVE DATE.

2 This subtitle shall take effect on the date of enact3 ment of this Act, and the Funds established under this

4 subtitle shall be offered for investment at the earliest prac5 ticable election period (described in section 8432(b) of title

6 5, United States Code) as determined by the Executive

7 Director in regulations.

8 Subtitle B—Thrift Savings Account

9 Liquidity

10 SEC. 411. SHORT TITLE.

11 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Thrift Savings

12 Plan Act of 1996’’.

13 SEC. 412. NOTICE TO SPOUSES FOR IN-SERVICE WITHDRAW14 ALS; DE MINIMUS ACCOUNTS; CIVIL SERVICE

15 RETIREMENT SYSTEM PARTICIPANTS.

16 Section 8351(b) of title 5, United States Code, is

17 amended—

18 (1) in paragraph (5)—

19 (A) in subparagraph (B)—

20 (i) by striking out ‘‘An election,

21 change of election, or modification (relat22 ing to the commencement date of a de23 ferred annuity)’’ and inserting in lieu

24 thereof ‘‘An election or change of election’’;

25 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’ after

26 ‘‘and a loan’’;
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1 (iii) by inserting ‘‘and (h)’’ after

2 ‘‘8433(g)’’;

3 (iv) by striking out ‘‘the election,

4 change of election, or modification’’ and in5 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘the election or

6 change of election’’; and

7 (v) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’ after

8 ‘‘for such loan’’; and

9 (B) in subparagraph (D)—

10 (i) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawals’’ after

11 ‘‘of loans’’; and

12 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or (h)’’ after

13 ‘‘8433(g)’’; and

14 (2) in paragraph (6)—

15 (A) by striking out ‘‘$3,500 or less’’ and

16 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘less than an amount

17 that the Executive Director prescribes by regu18 lation’’; and

19 (B) by striking out ‘‘unless the employee

20 or Member elects, at such time and otherwise in

21 such manner as the Executive Director pre22 scribes, one of the options available under sub23 section (b)’’.
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1 SEC. 413. IN-SERVICE WITHDRAWALS; WITHDRAWAL ELEC2 TIONS, FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT

3 SYSTEM PARTICIPANTS.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8433 of title 5, United

5 States Code, is amended—

6 (1) by striking out subsections (b) and (c) and

7 inserting in lieu thereof the following:

8 ‘‘(b) Subject to section 8435 of this title, any em9 ployee or Member who separates from Government em10 ployment is entitled and may elect to withdraw from the

11 Thrift Savings Fund the balance of the employee’s or

12 Member’s account as—

13 ‘‘(1) an annuity;

14 ‘‘(2) a single payment;

15 ‘‘(3) 2 or more substantially equal payments to

16 be made not less frequently than annually; or

17 ‘‘(4) any combination of payments as provided

18 under paragraphs (1) through (3) as the Executive

19 Director may prescribe by regulation.

20 ‘‘(c)(1) In addition to the right provided under sub21 section (b) to withdraw the balance of the account, an em22 ployee or Member who separates from Government service

23 and who has not made a withdrawal under subsection

24 (h)(1)(A) may make one withdrawal of any amount as a

25 single payment in accordance with subsection (b)(2) from

26 the employee’s or Member’s account.
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1 ‘‘(2) An employee or Member may request that the

2 amount withdrawn from the Thrift Savings Fund in ac3 cordance with subsection (b)(2) be transferred to an eligi4 ble retirement plan.

5 ‘‘(3) The Executive Director shall make each transfer

6 elected under paragraph (2) directly to an eligible retire7 ment plan or plans (as defined in section 402(c)(8) of the

8 Internal Revenue Code of 1986) identified by the em9 ployee, Member, former employee, or former Member for

10 whom the transfer is made.

11 ‘‘(4) A transfer may not be made for an employee,

12 Member, former employee, or former Member under para13 graph (2) until the Executive Director receives from that

14 individual the information required by the Executive Di15 rector specifically to identify the eligible retirement plan

16 or plans to which the transfer is to be made.’’;

17 (2) in subsection (d)—

18 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking out ‘‘Sub19 ject to paragraph (3)(A)’’ and inserting in lieu

20 thereof ‘‘Subject to paragraph (3)’’;

21 (B) by striking out paragraph (2) and re22 designating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2);

23 and

24 (C) in paragraph (2) (as redesignated

25 under subparagraph (B) of this paragraph)—
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1 (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking

2 out ‘‘(A)’’; and

3 (ii) by striking out subparagraph (B);

4 (3) in subsection (f)(1)—

5 (A) by striking out ‘‘$3,500 or less’’ and

6 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘less than an amount

7 that the Executive Director prescribes by regu8 lation; and

9 (B) by striking out ‘‘unless the employee

10 or Member elects, at such time and otherwise in

11 such manner as the Executive Director pre12 scribes, one of the options available under sub13 section (b), or’’ and inserting a comma;

14 (4) in subsection (f)(2)—

15 (A) by striking out ‘‘February 1’’ and in16 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘April 1’’;

17 (B) in subparagraph (A)—

18 (i) by striking out ‘‘65’’ and inserting

in lieu thereof ‘‘701 19 ⁄2’’; and

20 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or’’ after the semi21 colon;

22 (C) by striking out subparagraph (B); and

23 (D) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as

24 subparagraph (B);

25 (5) in subsection (g)—
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1 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking out ‘‘after

2 December 31, 1987, and’’; and

3 (B) by striking out paragraph (2) and re4 designating paragraphs (3) through (5) as

5 paragraphs (2) through (4), respectively; and

6 (6) by adding after subsection (g) the following

7 new subsection:

8 ‘‘(h)(1) An employee or Member may apply, before

9 separation, to the Board for permission to withdraw an

10 amount from the employee’s or Member’s account based

11 upon—

12 ‘‘(A) the employee or Member having attained

age 591 13 ⁄2; or

14 ‘‘(B) financial hardship.

15 ‘‘(2) A withdrawal under paragraph (1)(A) shall be

16 available to each eligible participant one time only.

17 ‘‘(3) A withdrawal under paragraph (1)(B) shall be

18 available only for an amount not exceeding the value of

19 that portion of such account which is attributable to con20 tributions made by the employee or Member under section

21 8432(a) of this title.

22 ‘‘(4) Withdrawals under paragraph (1) shall be sub23 ject to such other conditions as the Executive Director

24 may prescribe by regulation.
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1 ‘‘(5) A withdrawal may not be made under this sub2 section unless the requirements of section 8435(e) of this

3 title are satisfied.’’.

4 (b) INVALIDITY OF CERTAIN PRIOR ELECTIONS.—

5 Any election made under section 8433(b)(2) of title 5,

6 United States Code (as in effect before the effective date

7 of this title), with respect to an annuity which has not

8 commenced before the implementation date of this title as

9 provided by regulation by the Executive Director in ac10 cordance with section 407, shall be invalid.

11 SEC. 414. SURVIVOR ANNUITIES FOR FORMER SPOUSES;

12 NOTICE TO FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIRE13 MENT SYSTEM SPOUSES FOR IN-SERVICE

14 WITHDRAWALS.

15 Section 8435 of title 5, United States Code, is

16 amended—

17 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(A)—

18 (A) by striking out ‘‘may make an election

19 under subsection (b)(3) or (b)(4) of section

20 8433 of this title or change an election pre21 viously made under subsection (b)(1) or (b)(2)

22 of such section’’ and inserting in lien thereof

23 ‘‘may withdraw all or part of a Thrift Savings

24 Fund account under subsection (b) (2), (3), or
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1 (4) of section 8433 of this title or change a

2 withdrawal election’’; and

3 (B) by adding at the end thereof ‘‘A mar4 ried employee or Member (or former employee

5 or Member) may make a withdrawal from a

6 Thrift Savings Fund account under subsection

7 (c)(1) of section 8433 of this title only if the

8 employee or Member (or former employee or

9 Member) satisfies the requirements of subpara10 graph (B).’’;

11 (2) in subsection (c)—

12 (A) in paragraph (1)—

13 (i) by striking out ‘‘An election,

14 change of election, or modification of the

15 commencement date of a deferred annuity’’

16 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘An election

17 or change of election’’; and

18 (ii) by striking out ‘‘modification, or

19 transfer’’ and inserting in lien thereof ‘‘or

20 transfer’’; and

21 (B) in paragraph (2) in the matter follow22 ing subparagraph (B)(ii) by striking out ‘‘modi23 fication,’’;

24 (3) in subsection (e)—

25 (A) in paragraph (1)—
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1 (i) in subparagraph (A)—

2 (I) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’

3 after ‘‘A loan’’;

4 (II) by inserting ‘‘and (h)’’ after

5 ‘‘8433(g)’’; and

6 (III) by inserting ‘‘or with7 drawal’’ after ‘‘such loan’’;

8 (ii) in subparagraph (B) by inserting

9 ‘‘or withdrawal’’ after ‘‘loan’’; and

10 (iii) in subparagraph (C)—

11 (I) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’

12 after ‘‘to a loan’’; and

13 (II) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’

14 after ‘‘for such loan’’; and

15 (B) in paragraph (2)—

16 (i) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawal’’ after

17 ‘‘loan’’; and

18 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and (h)’’ after

19 ‘‘8344(g)’’; and

20 (4) in subsection (g)—

21 (A) by inserting ‘‘or withdrawals’’ after

22 ‘‘loans’’; and

23 (B) by inserting ‘‘and (h)’’ after

24 ‘‘8344(g)’’.
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1 SEC. 415. DE MINIMUS ACCOUNTS RELATING TO THE JUDI2 CIARY.

3 (a) JUSTICES AND JUDGES.—Section 8440a(b)(7) of

4 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

5 (1) by striking out ‘‘$3,500 or less’’ and insert6 ing in lieu thereof ‘‘less than an amount that the

7 Executive Director prescribes by regulation’’; and

8 (2) by striking out ‘‘unless the justice or judge

9 elects, at such time and otherwise in such manner

10 as the Executive Director prescribes, one of the op11 tions available under section 8433(b)’’.

12 (b) BANKRUPTCY JUDGES AND MAGISTRATES.—Sec13 tion 8440b(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended—

14 (1) in paragraph (7) in the first sentence by in15 serting ‘‘of the distribution’’ after ‘‘equal to the

16 amount’’; and

17 (2) in paragraph (8)—

18 (A) by striking out ‘‘$3,500 or less’’ and

19 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘less than an amount

20 that the Executive Director prescribes by regu21 lation’’; and

22 (B) by striking out ‘‘unless the bankruptcy

23 judge or magistrate elects, at such time and

24 otherwise in such manner as the Executive Di25 rector prescribes, one of the options available

26 under subsection (b)’’.
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1 (c) FEDERAL CLAIMS JUDGES.—Section 8440c(b) of

2 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

3 (1) in paragraph (7) in the first sentence by in4 serting ‘‘of the distribution’’ after ‘‘equal to the

5 amount’’; and

6 (2) in paragraph (8)—

7 (A) by striking out ‘‘$3,500 or less’’ and

8 inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘less than an amount

9 that the Executive Director prescribes by regu10 lation’’; and

11 (B) by striking out ‘‘unless the judge

12 elects, at such time and otherwise in such man13 ner as the Executive Director prescribes, one of

14 the options available under section 8433(b)’’.

15 SEC. 416. DEFINITION OF BASIC PAY.

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Section 8401(4) of title 5,

17 United States Code, is amended by striking out ‘‘except

18 as provided in subchapter III of this chapter,’’.

19 (2) Section 8431 of title 5, United States Code, is

20 repealed.

21 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

22 (1) The table of sections for chapter 84 of title 5, United

23 States Code, is amended by striking out the item relating

24 to section 8431.
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1 (2) Section 5545a(h)(2)(A) of title 5, United States

2 Code, is amended by striking out ‘‘8431,’’.

3 (3) Section 615(f) of the Treasury, Postal Service,

4 and General Government Appropriations Act, 1996 (Pub5 lic Law 104–52; 109 Stat. 500; 5 U.S.C. 5343 note) is

6 amended by striking out ‘‘section 8431 of title 5, United

7 States Code,’’.

8 SEC. 417. ELIGIBLE ROLLOVER DISTRIBUTIONS.

9 Section 8432 of title 5, United States Code, is

10 amended by adding at the end the following:

11 ‘‘(j)(1) For the purpose of this subsection—

12 ‘‘(A) the term ‘eligible rollover distribution’ has

13 the meaning given such term by section 402(c)(4) of

14 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and

15 ‘‘(B) the term ‘qualified trust’ has the meaning

16 given such term by section 402(c)(8) of the Internal

17 Revenue Code of 1986.

18 ‘‘(2) An employee or Member may contribute to the

19 Thrift Savings Fund an eligible rollover distribution from

20 a qualified trust. A contribution made under this sub21 section shall be made in the form described in section

22 401(a)(31) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. In the

23 case of an eligible rollover distribution, the maximum

24 amount transferred to the Thrift Savings Fund shall not

25 exceed the amount which would otherwise have been in-
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1 cluded in the employee’s or Member’s gross income for

2 Federal income tax purposes.

3 ‘‘(3) The Executive Director shall prescribe regula4 tions to carry out this subsection.’’.

5 SEC. 418. EFFECTIVE DATE.

6 This subtitle shall take effect on the date of the en7 actment of this Act and withdrawals and elections as pro8 vided under the amendments made by this subtitle shall

9 be made at the earliest practicable date as determined by

10 the Executive Director in regulations.

11 Subtitle C—Other Provisions

12 Relating to the Thrift Savings Plan

13 SEC. 421. PERCENTAGE LIMITATIONS ON CONTRIBUTIONS.

14 (a) AMENDMENTS RELATING TO FERS.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section

16 8432 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by

17 striking ‘‘10 percent of’’.

18 (2) JUSTICES AND JUDGES.—Subsection (b) of

19 section 8440a of title 5, United States Code, is

20 amended—

21 (A) by striking paragraph (2) and by re22 designating paragraphs (3) through (7) as

23 paragraphs (2) through (6), respectively; and

24 (B) in paragraph (6) (as so redesignated

25 by subparagraph (A)) by striking ‘‘paragraphs
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1 (4) and (5)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraphs (3) and

2 (4)’’.

3 (3) BANKRUPTCY JUDGES AND MAG4 ISTRATES.—Subsection (b) of section 8440b of title

5 5, United States Code, is amended—

6 (A) by striking paragraph (2) and by re7 designating paragraphs (3) through (8) as

8 paragraphs (2) through (7), respectively;

9 (B) in paragraph (4) (as so redesignated

10 by subparagraph (A)) by striking ‘‘paragraph

11 (4)(A), (B), or (C)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph

12 (3)(A), (B), or (C)’’; and

13 (C) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated

14 by subparagraph (A)) by striking ‘‘Notwith15 standing paragraph (4),’’ and inserting ‘‘Not16 withstanding paragraph (3),’’.

17 (4) COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS JUDGES.—

18 Subsection (b) of section 8440c of title 5, United

19 States Code, is amended—

20 (A) by striking paragraph (2) and by re21 designating paragraphs (3) through (8) as

22 paragraphs (2) through (7), respectively;

23 (B) in paragraph (4) (as so redesignated

24 by subparagraph (A)) by striking ‘‘paragraph
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1 (4)(A) or (B)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (3)(A)

2 or (B)’’; and

3 (C) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated

4 by subparagraph (A)) by striking ‘‘Notwith5 standing paragraph (4),’’ and inserting ‘‘Not6 withstanding paragraph (3),’’.

7 (5) JUDGES OF THE UNITED STATES COURT OF

8 VETERANS APPEALS.—Paragraph (2) of section

9 8440d(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended

10 to read as follows:

11 ‘‘(2) For purposes of contributions made to the Thrift

12 Savings Fund, basic pay does not include any retired pay

13 paid pursuant to section 7296 of title 38.’’.

14 (b) AMENDMENTS RELATING TO CSRS.—Paragraph

15 (2) of section 8351(b) of title 5, United States Code, is

16 amended by striking ‘‘5 percent of’’.

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by

19 this section shall take effect 6 months after the date

20 of the enactment of this Act or such earlier date as

21 the Executive Director may by regulation prescribe.

22 (2) COORDINATION WITH ELECTION PERI23 ODS.—The Executive Director shall by regulation

24 determine the first election period in which elections
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1 may be made consistent with the amendments made

2 by this section.

3 (3) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub4 section—

5 (A) the term ‘‘election period’’ means a pe6 riod afforded under section 8432(b) of title 5,

7 United States Code; and

8 (B) the term ‘‘Executive Director’’ has the

9 meaning given such term by section 8401(13)

10 of title 5, United States Code.

11 SEC. 422. LOANS UNDER THE THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN FOR

12 FURLOUGHED EMPLOYEES.

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

14 amended by adding at the end the following:

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

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

17 this subsection solely because such employee is not in a

18 pay status.’’.

19 SEC. 423. IMMEDIATE PARTICIPATION IN THE THRIFT SAV20 INGS PLAN.

21 (a) ELIMINATION OF CERTAIN WAITING PERIODS

22 FOR PURPOSES OF EMPLOYEE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Para23 graph (4) of section 8432(b) of title 5, United States

24 Code, is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘(4) The Executive Director shall prescribe such reg2 ulations as may be necessary to carry out the following:

3 ‘‘(A) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) of

4 paragraph (2), an employee or Member described in

5 such subparagraph shall be afforded a reasonable

6 opportunity to first make an election under this sub7 section beginning on the date of commencing service

8 or, if that is not administratively feasible, beginning

9 on the earliest date thereafter that such an election

10 becomes administratively feasible, as determined by

11 the Executive Director.

12 ‘‘(B) An employee or Member described in sub13 paragraph (B) of paragraph (2) shall be afforded a

14 reasonable opportunity to first make an election

15 under this subsection (based on the appointment or

16 election described in such subparagraph) beginning

17 on the date of commencing service pursuant to such

18 appointment or election or, if that is not administra19 tively feasible, beginning on the earliest date there20 after that such an election becomes administratively

21 feasible, as determined by the Executive Director.

22 ‘‘(C) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions

23 of this paragraph, contributions under paragraphs

24 (1) and (2) of subsection (c) shall not be payable

25 with respect to any pay period before the earliest
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1 pay period for which such contributions would other2 wise be allowable under this subsection if this para3 graph had not been enacted.

4 ‘‘(D) Sections 8351(a)(2), 8440a(a)(2),

5 8440b(a)(2), 8440c(a)(2), and 8440d(a)(2) shall be

6 applied in a manner consistent with the purposes of

7 subparagraphs (A) and (B), to the extent those sub8 paragraphs can be applied with respect thereto.

9 ‘‘(E) Nothing in this paragraph shall affect

10 paragraph (3).’’.

11 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

12 (1) Section 8432(a) of title 5, United States Code, is

13 amended—

14 (A) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘(b)(1)’’

15 and inserting ‘‘(b)’’; and

16 (B) by amending the second sentence to read as

17 follows: ‘‘Contributions under this subsection pursu18 ant to such an election shall, with respect to each

19 pay period for which such election remains in effect,

20 be made in accordance with a program of regular

21 contributions provided in regulations prescribed by

22 the Executive Director.’’.

23 (2) Section 8432(b)(1)(B) of such title is amended

24 by inserting ‘‘(or any election allowable by virtue of para25 graph (4))’’ after ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’.
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1 (3) Section 8432(b)(3) of such title is amended by

2 striking ‘‘Notwithstanding paragraph (2)(A), an’’ and in3 serting ‘‘An’’.

4 (4) Section 8432(i)(1)(B)(ii) of such title is amended

5 by striking ‘‘either elected to terminate individual con6 tributions to the Thrift Savings Fund within 2 months

7 before commencing military service or’’.

8 (5) Section 8439(a)(1) of such title is amended by

9 inserting ‘‘who makes contributions or’’ after ‘‘for each

10 individual’’ and by striking ‘‘section 8432(c)(1)’’ and in11 serting ‘‘section 8432’’.

12 (6) Section 8439(c)(2) of such title is amended by

13 adding at the end the following: ‘‘Nothing in this para14 graph shall be considered to limit the dissemination of in15 formation only to the times required under the preceding

16 sentence.’’.

17 (7) Sections 8440a(a)(2) and 8440d(a)(2) of such

18 title are amended by striking all after ‘‘subject to’’ and

19 inserting ‘‘subject to this chapter.’’.

20 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect

21 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act or

22 such earlier date as the Executive Director (within the

23 meaning of section 8401(13) of title 5, United States

24 Code) may by regulation prescribe.
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1 Subtitle D—Resumption of Certain

2 Survivor Annuities That Termi3 nated by Reason of Marriage

4 SEC. 431. RESUMPTION OF CERTAIN SURVIVOR ANNUITIES

5 THAT TERMINATED BY REASON OF MAR6 RIAGE.

7 (a) CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—Section

8 8341(e) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by add9 ing at the end the following:

10 ‘‘(4) If the annuity of a child under this subchapter

11 terminates under paragraph (3)(E) because of marriage,

12 then, if such marriage ends (whether by death of the

13 spouse, divorce, or annulment), such annuity shall resume

14 on the first day of the month in which the marriage ends,

15 but only if—

16 ‘‘(A) any lump sum paid is returned to the

17 Fund; and

18 ‘‘(B) that individual is not otherwise ineligible

19 for such annuity.’’.

20 (b) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—

21 Section 8443(b) of such title is amended by adding at the

22 end the following: ‘‘If the annuity of a child under this

23 subchapter terminates under subparagraph (E) because of

24 marriage, then, if such marriage ends (whether by death

25 of the spouse, divorce, or annulment), such annuity shall
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1 resume on the first day of the month in which the mar2 riage ends, but only if any lump sum paid is returned to

3 the Fund, and that individual is not otherwise ineligible

4 for such annuity.’’.

5 (c) HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM.—Section 8908 of

6 title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the

7 end the following:

8 ‘‘(d) An individual—

9 ‘‘(1) whose survivor annuity under section

10 8341(e) is terminated, and then later restored under

11 paragraph (4) thereof, or

12 ‘‘(2) whose survivor annuity under section

13 8443(b) is terminated, and then later restored under

14 the last sentence thereof,

15 may, under regulations prescribed by the Office, enroll in

16 a health benefits plan described by section 8903 or 8903a

17 if such individual was covered by any such plan imme18 diately before such annuity so terminated.’’.

19 (d) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by this

20 section shall apply with respect to any termination of mar21 riage taking effect before, on, or after the date of the en22 actment of this Act, except that no amount shall be pay23 able by reason of the amendments made by subsections

24 (a) and (b), respectively, except to the extent of any

25 amounts accruing for periods beginning on or after the
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1 first day of the first month beginning on or after the later

2 of—

3 (1) the date of the enactment of this Act; or

4 (2) the date as of which termination of mar5 riage takes effect.

6 Subtitle E—Life Insurance Benefits

7 SEC. 441. DOMESTIC RELATIONS ORDERS.

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

9 States Code, is amended—

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

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

12 the’’; and

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

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

15 to a person determined under the order of precedence

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

17 by the Office to another person if and to the extent ex18 pressly provided for in the terms of any court decree of

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

20 any court order or court-approved property settlement

21 agreement incident to any court decree of divorce, annul22 ment, or legal separation.

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

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

25 effective unless it is received, before the date of the cov-
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1 ered employee’s death, by the employing agency or, if the

2 employee has separated from service, by the Office.

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

4 to any person may not be changed except—

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

6 received as described in paragraph (2); or

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

8 agreement, as the case may be, if received as de9 scribed in paragraph (2).

10 ‘‘(4) The Office shall prescribe any regulations nec11 essary to carry out this subsection, including regulations

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

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

14 respect to the same amount.’’.

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

16 title 5, United States Code, is amended—

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

18 and

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

20 ‘‘(2) A court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal

21 separation, or the terms of a court-approved property set22 tlement agreement incidental to any court decree of di23 vorce, annulment, or legal separation, may direct that an

24 insured employee or former employee make an irrevocable

25 assignment of the employee’s or former employee’s inci-
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1 dents of ownership in insurance under this chapter (if

2 there is no previous assignment) to the person specified

3 in the court order or court-approved property settlement

4 agreement.’’.

5 SEC. 442. EXCEPTION FROM PROVISIONS REQUIRING RE6 DUCTION IN ADDITIONAL OPTIONAL LIFE IN7 SURANCE.

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (c) of section 8714b

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

10 the end the following:

11 ‘‘(3)(A) The amount of additional optional insurance

12 continued under paragraph (2) shall be continued, without

13 any reduction under the last two sentences thereof, if—

14 ‘‘(i) at the time of retirement, there is in effect

15 a designation under section 8705 under which the

16 entire amount of such insurance would be paid to an

17 individual who is permanently disabled; and

18 ‘‘(ii) an election under subsection (d)(3) on be19 half of such individual is made in timely fashion.

20 ‘‘(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), any reduc21 tion required under paragraph (2) shall be made if—

22 ‘‘(i) the additional optional insurance is not in

23 fact paid in accordance with the designation under

24 section 8705, as in effect at the time of retirement;
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1 ‘‘(ii) the Office finds that adequate arrange2 ments have not been made to ensure that the insur3 ance provided under this section will be used only

4 for the care and support of the individual so des5 ignated; or

6 ‘‘(iii) the election referred to in subparagraph

7 (A)(ii) terminates at any time before the death of

8 the individual who made such election.

9 ‘‘(C) For purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘per10 manently disabled’ shall have the meaning given such term

11 under regulations which the Office shall prescribe based

12 on subparagraphs (A) and (C) of section 1614(a)(3) of

13 the Social Security Act, except that, in applying subpara14 graph (A) of such section for purposes of this subpara15 graph, ‘which can be expected to last permanently’ shall

16 be substituted for ‘which has lasted or can be expected

17 to last for a continuous period of not less than twelve

18 months’.’’.

19 (b) CONTINUED WITHHOLDINGS.—Subsection (d) of

20 such section 8714b is amended by adding at the end the

21 following:

22 ‘‘(3)(A) To be eligible for unreduced additional op23 tional insurance under subsection (c)(3), the insured indi24 vidual shall be required to elect, at such time and in such

25 manner as the Office by regulation requires (including
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1 procedures for demonstrating compliance with the require2 ments of subsection (c)(3)), to have the full cost thereof

3 continue to be withheld from the former employee’s annu4 ity or compensation, as the case may be, beginning as of

5 when such withholdings would otherwise cease under the

6 second sentence of paragraph (1).

7 ‘‘(B) An election made by an insured individual under

8 subparagraph (A) (and withholdings pursuant thereto)

9 shall terminate in the event that—

10 ‘‘(i) the insured individual—

11 ‘‘(I) revokes such election; or

12 ‘‘(II) makes any redesignation or other

13 change in the designation under section 8705

14 (as in effect at the time of retirement); or

15 ‘‘(ii) the Office finds, upon the application of

16 the insured individual or on its own initiative, that

17 any of the requirements or conditions for unreduced

18 additional optional insurance under subsection (c)(3)

19 are, at any time, no longer met.’’.

20 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendments made by

22 this section shall take effect on the date of the en23 actment of this Act.

24 (2) ELECTION FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS NOT

25 OTHERWISE ELIGIBLE.—The Office of Personnel
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1 Management shall prescribe regulations under which

2 an election under section 8714b(d)(3)(A) of title 5,

3 United States Code (as amended by this section)

4 may be made, within 1 year after the date of the en5 actment of this Act, by any individual not otherwise

6 eligible to make such an election, but only if such in7 dividual—

8 (A) separated from service on or after the

9 first day of the 50-month period ending on the

10 date of enactment of this Act; and

11 (B) would have been so eligible had the

12 amendments made by this section (and imple13 menting regulations) been in effect as of the in14 dividual’s separation date (or, if earlier, the last

15 day for making such an election based on that

16 separation).

17 (3) WITHHOLDINGS.—

18 (A) PROSPECTIVE EFFECT.—If an individ19 ual makes an election under paragraph (2),

20 withholdings under section 8714b(d)(3)(A) of

21 such title 5 shall thereafter be made from such

22 individual’s annuity or compensation, as the

23 case may be.

24 (B) EARLIER AMOUNTS.—If, pursuant to

25 such election, benefits are in fact paid in ac-
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1 cordance with section 8714b(c)(3) of such title

2 5 upon the death of the insured individual, an

3 appropriate reduction (computed under regula4 tions prescribed by the Office) shall be made in

5 such benefits to reflect the withholdings that—

6 (i) were not made (before the com7 mencement of withholdings under subpara8 graph (A)) by reason of the cessation of

9 withholdings under the second sentence of

10 section 8714b(d)(1) of such title; but

11 (ii) would have been made had the

12 amendments made by this section (and im13 plementing regulations) been in effect as of

14 the time described in paragraph (2)(B).

15 (4) NOTICE.—The Office shall, by publication

16 in the Federal Register and such other methods as

17 it considers appropriate, notify current and former

18 Federal employees as to the enactment of this sec19 tion and any benefits for which they might be eligi20 ble pursuant thereto. Included as part of such notifi21 cation shall be a brief description of the procedures

22 for making an election under paragraph (2) and any

23 other information that the Office considers appro24 priate.
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1 SEC. 403. TEMPORARY CONTINUATION OF FEDERAL EM2 PLOYEES’ LIFE INSURANCE.

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

4 amended by adding at the end the following:

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

6 this section, an employee whose coverage under this chap7 ter would otherwise terminate due to a separation de8 scribed in paragraph (3) shall be eligible to continue basic

9 insurance coverage described in section 8704 in accord10 ance with this subsection and regulations the Office may

11 prescribe, if the employee arranges to pay currently into

12 the Employees Life Insurance Fund, through the former

13 employing agency or, if an annuitant, through the respon14 sible retirement system, an amount equal to the sum of—

15 ‘‘(A) both employee and agency contributions

16 which would be payable if separation had not oc17 curred; plus

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

19 prescribed by the Office, to cover necessary adminis20 trative expenses, but not to exceed 2 percent of the

21 total amount under subparagraph (A).

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

23 not extend beyond the date which is 18 months after the

24 effective date of the separation which entitles a former em25 ployee to coverage under this subsection. Termination of

26 continued coverage under this subsection shall be subject
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1 to provision for temporary extension of life insurance cov2 erage and for conversion to an individual policy of life in3 surance as provided by subsection (a). If an eligible em4 ployee does not make an election for purposes of this sub5 section, the employee’s insurance will terminate as pro6 vided by subsection (a).

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

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

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

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

11 due to a reduction in force, or separates voluntarily

12 from a position the employing agency determines is

13 a ‘surplus position’ as defined by section

14 8905(d)(4)(C); and

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

16 chapter on the date of separation.

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

18 October 1, 1999, except that, for purposes of any involun19 tary separation referred to in subparagraph (A) with re20 spect to which appropriate specific notice is afforded to

21 the affected employee before October 1, 1999, the applica22 ble date under this subparagraph is February 1, 2000.’’.
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1 TITLE V—REORGANIZATION

2 FLEXIBILITY

3 SEC. 501. VOLUNTARY REDUCTIONS IN FORCE.

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

5 amended to read as follows:

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

7 department may—

8 ‘‘(A) separate from service any employee who

9 volunteers to be separated under this subparagraph

10 even though the employee is not otherwise subject to

11 separation due to a reduction in force; and

12 ‘‘(B) for each employee voluntarily separated

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

14 similar position who would otherwise be separated

15 due to a reduction in force.

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

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

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

19 placement programs and advance notice.

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

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

22 department concerned) may not participate in a voluntary

23 separation under paragraph (1)(A) if the agency or de24 partment head concerned determines that such participa-
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1 tion would impair the performance of the mission of the

2 agency or department (as applicable).

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

4 shall incorporate the authority provided in this subsection.

5 ‘‘(5) No authority under paragraph (1) may be exer6 cised after September 30, 2001.’’.

7 SEC. 502. NONREIMBURSABLE DETAILS TO FEDERAL AGEN8 CIES BEFORE A REDUCTION IN FORCE.

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

10 States Code, is amended to read as follows:

11 ‘‘§ 3341. Details; within Executive agencies and mili12 tary departments; employees affected by

13 reduction in force

14 ‘‘(a) The head of an Executive agency or military de15 partment may detail employees, except those required by

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

17 the bureaus and offices of the agency or department.

18 ‘‘(b) The head of an Executive agency or military de19 partment may detail to duties in the same or another

20 agency or department, on a nonreimbursable basis, an em21 ployee who has been identified by the employing agency

22 as likely to be separated from the Federal service by re23 duction in force or who has received a specific notice of

24 separation by reduction in force.

25 ‘‘(c)(1) Details under subsection (a)—
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1 ‘‘(A) may not be for periods exceeding 120

2 days; and

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

4 written order of the head of the agency or depart5 ment, in each particular case, for periods not exceed6 ing 120 days each.

7 ‘‘(2) Details under subsection (b)—

8 ‘‘(A) may not be for periods exceeding 90 days;

9 and

10 ‘‘(B) may not be renewed.

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

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

13 Department of Defense in the case of a detail—

14 ‘‘(1) made in connection with the closure or re15 alignment of a military installation pursuant to a

16 base closure law or an organizational restructuring

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

18 of the armed forces or the civilian workforce of the

19 Department; and

20 ‘‘(2) in which the position to which the em21 ployee is detailed is eliminated on or before the date

22 of the closure, realignment, or restructuring.

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

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

25 ‘‘(A) section 2687 of title 10;
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1 ‘‘(B) title II of the Defense Authorization

2 Amendments and Base Closure and Realign3 ment Act; and

4 ‘‘(C) the Defense Base Closure and Re5 alignment Act of 1990; and

6 ‘‘(2) the term ‘military installation’—

7 ‘‘(A) in the case of an installation covered

8 by section 2687 of title 10, has the meaning

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

10 section;

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

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

13 paragraph (1), has the meaning given such

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

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

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

17 paragraph (1), has the meaning given such

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

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

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

21 by striking the item relating to section 3341 and inserting

22 the following:

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

affected by reduction in force.’’.
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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

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

3 enactment of this Act.

4 TITLE VI—SOFT-LANDING

5 PROVISIONS

6 SEC. 601. CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY FOR LIFE INSURANCE.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 8706 of title 5, United

8 States Code, is amended by redesignating subsections (d)

9 through (f) as subsections (e) through (g), respectively,

10 and by inserting after subsection (c) the following:

11 ‘‘(d)(1) Notwithstanding subsection (b), any em12 ployee who, on or after the date of the enactment of this

13 subsection and before the applicable date under paragraph

14 (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, but does not satisfy the requirements

23 of subsection (b)(1), and

24 ‘‘(C) is insured on the date of separation,
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1 may, within 60 days after the date of separation, elect to

2 continue such employee’s insurance and arrange to pay

3 currently into the Employees’ Life Insurance Fund both

4 the employee and agency contributions therefor, in accord5 ance with procedures prescribed by the Office. If the em6 ployee does not so elect, such employee’s insurance will

7 terminate as provided by subsection (a).

8 ‘‘(2) The applicable date under this paragraph is Oc9 tober 1, 1999, except that, for purposes of any involuntary

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

11 to which appropriate specific notice is afforded to the af12 fected employee before October 1, 1999, the applicable

13 date under this paragraph is February 1, 2000.

14 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘sur15 plus position’, with respect to an agency, means any posi16 tion determined in accordance with regulations under sec17 tion 8905a(d)(4)(C) for such agency.’’.

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 8706(g) of

19 title 5, United States Code, as so redesignated by sub20 section (a), is amended by striking ‘‘subsection (e)’’ and

21 inserting ‘‘subsection (f)’’.
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1 SEC. 602. 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, 1999, 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, 1999, the applicable

6 date under this paragraph is February 1, 2000.

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. 603. PRIORITY PLACEMENT PROGRAMS FOR FEDERAL

2 EMPLOYEES AFFECTED BY A REDUCTION IN

3 FORCE.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 33 of title

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

6 the following:

7 ‘‘§ 3330a. Priority placement programs for employees

8 affected by a reduction in force

9 ‘‘(a) Not later than 3 months after the date of the

10 enactment of this section, each Executive agency shall es11 tablish an agencywide priority placement program, to fa12 cilitate employment placement for employees who—

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

14 due to a reduction in force under—

15 ‘‘(A) regulations prescribed under section

16 3502; or

17 ‘‘(B) procedures established under section

18 3595;

19 ‘‘(2) are separated from service due to such a

20 reduction in force; or

21 ‘‘(3) have received a rating of at least fully suc22 cessful (or the equivalent) as the last performance

23 rating of record used for retention purposes (except

24 for employees in positions excluded from a perform25 ance appraisal system by law, regulation, or admin-
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1 istrative action taken by the Office of Personnel

2 Management).

3 ‘‘(b)(1) Each agencywide priority placement program

4 under this section shall include provisions under which a

5 vacant position shall not (except as provided in this sub6 section) be filled by the appointment or transfer of any

7 individual from outside of that agency (other than an indi8 vidual described in paragraph (2)) if—

9 ‘‘(A) there is then available any individual de10 scribed in paragraph (2) who is qualified for the po11 sition; and

12 ‘‘(B) the position—

13 ‘‘(i) is at the same grade or pay level (or

14 the equivalent) or not more than 3 grades (or

15 grade intervals) below that of the position last

16 held by such individual before placement in the

17 new position;

18 ‘‘(ii) is within the same commuting area as

19 the individual’s last-held position (as referred to

20 in clause (i)) or residence; and

21 ‘‘(iii) has the same type of work schedule

22 (whether full-time, part-time, or intermittent)

23 as the position last held by the individual.
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1 ‘‘(2) For purposes of an agencywide priority place2 ment program, an individual shall be considered to be de3 scribed in this paragraph if such individual is—

4 ‘‘(A) an employee of such agency who is sched5 uled to be separated, as described in subsection

6 (a)(1); or

7 ‘‘(B) an individual who became a former em8 ployee of such agency as a result of a separation, as

9 described in subsection (a)(2).

10 ‘‘(c)(1) If after a reduction in force the agency has

11 no positions of any type within the local commuting areas

12 specified in this section, the individual may designate a

13 different local commuting area where the agency has con14 tinuing positions in order to exercise reemployment rights

15 under this section. An agency may determine that such

16 designations are not in the interest of the Government for

17 the purpose of paying relocation expenses under sub18 chapter II of chapter 57.

19 ‘‘(2) At its option, an agency may administratively

20 extend reemployment rights under this section to include

21 other local commuting areas.

22 ‘‘(d)(1) In selecting employees for positions under

23 this section, the agency shall place qualified present and

24 former employees in retention order by veterans’ pref25 erence subgroup and tenure group.
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1 ‘‘(2) An agency may not pass over a qualified present

2 or former employee to select an individual in a lower veter3 ans’ preference subgroup within the tenure group, or in

4 a lower tenure group.

5 ‘‘(3) Within a subgroup, the agency may select a

6 qualified present or former employee without regard to the

7 individual’s total creditable service.

8 ‘‘(e) An individual is eligible for reemployment prior9 ity under this section for 2 years from the effective date

10 of the reduction in force from which the individual will

11 be, or has been, separated under section 3502.

12 ‘‘(f) An individual qualified present or former em13 ployee loses eligibility for reemployment priority under this

14 section when the individual—

15 ‘‘(1) requests removal in writing;

16 ‘‘(2) accepts or declines a bona fide offer under

17 this section or fails to accept such an offer within

18 the period of time allowed for such acceptance, or

19 ‘‘(3) separates from the agency before being

20 separated under section 3502.

21 A present or former employee who declines a position with

22 a representative rate (or equivalent) that is less than the

23 rate of the position from which the individual was sepa24 rated under section 3502 retains eligibility for positions
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1 with a higher representative rate up to the rate of the indi2 vidual’s last position.

3 ‘‘(g) Whenever more than one individual is qualified

4 for a position under this section, the agency shall select

5 the most highly qualified individual, subject to subsection

6 (d).

7 ‘‘(h) The Office of Personnel Management shall issue

8 regulations to implement this section.’’.

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

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

11 by adding after the item relating to the section 3330 the

12 following:

‘‘3330a. Priority placement programs for employees affected by a reduction

in force.’’.

13 SEC. 604. JOB PLACEMENT AND COUNSELING SERVICES.

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

15 Executive agency may establish a program to provide job

16 placement and counseling services to current and former

17 employees.

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

19 established under this section may include such services

20 as—

21 (1) career and personal counseling;

22 (2) training in job search skills; and
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1 (3) job placement assistance, including assist2 ance provided through cooperative arrangements

3 with State and local employment service offices.

4 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICES.—Services authorized

5 by this section may be provided to—

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

7 approval of such other agency, any other agency;

8 and

9 (2) employees of the agency or, with the ap10 proval of such other agency, any other agency who

11 have been separated for less than 1 year, if the sepa12 ration was not a removal for cause on charges of

13 misconduct or delinquency.

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

15 services provided to current or former employees of an16 other agency shall be reimbursed by that agency.

17 SEC. 605. EDUCATION AND RETRAINING INCENTIVES.

18 (a) NON-FEDERAL EMPLOYMENT INCENTIVE PAY19 MENTS.—

20 (1) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub21 section—

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

23 employee who is involuntarily separated from a

24 position, or voluntarily separated from a sur25 plus position, in or under an Executive agency
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1 due to a reduction in force, except that such

2 term does not include an employee who, at the

3 time of separation, meets the age and service

4 requirements for an immediate annuity under

5 subchapter III of chapter 83 or chapter 84 of

6 title 5, United States Code, other than under

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

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

9 means an employer other than the Government

10 of the United States or any agency or other in11 strumentality thereof;

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

13 meaning given such term by section 105 of title

14 5, United States Code; and

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

16 meaning given such term by section

17 8905(d)(4)(C) of title 5, United States Code.

18 (2) AUTHORITY.—The head of an Executive

19 agency may pay retraining and relocation incentive

20 payments, in accordance with this subsection, in

21 order to facilitate the reemployment of eligible em22 ployees who are separated from such agency.

23 (3) RETRAINING INCENTIVE PAYMENT.—

24 (A) AGREEMENT.—The head of an Execu25 tive agency may enter into an agreement with
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1 a non-Federal employer under which the non2 Federal employer agrees—

3 (i) to employ an individual referred to

4 in paragraph (2) for at least 12 months

5 for a salary which is mutually agreeable to

6 the employer and such individual; and

7 (ii) to certify to the agency head any

8 costs incurred by the employer for any nec9 essary training provided to such individual

10 in connection with the employment by such

11 employer.

12 (B) PAYMENT OF RETRAINING INCENTIVE

13 PAYMENT.—The agency head shall pay a re14 training incentive payment to the non-Federal

15 employer upon the employee’s completion of 12

16 months of continuous employment by that em17 ployer. The agency head shall prescribe the

18 amount of the incentive payment.

19 (C) PRORATION RULE.—The agency head

20 shall pay a prorated amount of the full retrain21 ing incentive payment to the non-Federal em22 ployer for an employee who does not remain

23 employed by the non-Federal employer for at

24 least 12 months, but only if the employee re25 mains so employed for at least 6 months.
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1 (D) LIMITATION.—In no event may the

2 amount of the retraining incentive payment

3 paid for the training of any individual exceed

4 the amount certified for such individual under

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

6 (4) RELOCATION INCENTIVE PAYMENT.—The

7 head of an agency may pay a relocation incentive

8 payment to an eligible employee if it is necessary for

9 the employee to relocate in order to commence em10 ployment with a non-Federal employer. Subject to

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

12 shall not exceed the amount that would be payable

13 for travel, transportation, and subsistence expenses

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

15 States Code, including any reimbursement author16 ized under section 5724b of such title, to a Federal

17 employee who transfers between the same locations

18 as the individual to whom the incentive payment is

19 payable.

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

21 paid for training or relocation commencing after

22 June 30, 2000.

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

24 subsection shall be payable from appropriations or

25 other funds available to the agency for purposes of
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1 training (within the meaning of section 4101(4) of

2 title 5, United States Code).

3 (b) EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Under regulations prescribed

5 by the Office of Personnel Management, all or any

6 part of the amount described in subsection (c) may

7 be afforded to any employee described in paragraph

8 (2) in the form of educational assistance.

9 (2) ELIGIBLE EMPLOYEE.—An individual shall

10 not be eligible for educational assistance under this

11 subsection unless such individual—

12 (A) is an eligible employee, within the

13 meaning of subsection (a); and

14 (B) has completed at least 3 years of cur15 rent continuous service in any Executive agency

16 or agencies.

17 (c) AGGREGATE LIMITATION.—No incentive payment

18 or other amount may be paid under this section to or on

19 behalf of any individual to the extent that such amount

20 would cause the aggregate amount otherwise paid or pay21 able under this section, to or on behalf of such individual,

22 to exceed $10,000.
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1 TITLE VII—MISCELLANEOUS

2 SEC. 701. REIMBURSEMENTS RELATING TO PROFESSIONAL

3 LIABILITY INSURANCE.

4 (a) AUTHORITY.—Notwithstanding any other provi5 sion of law, any amounts appropriated, for fiscal year

6 1997 or any fiscal year thereafter, for salaries and ex7 penses of Government employees may be used to reim8 burse any qualified employee for not to exceed one-half

9 the costs incurred by such employee for professional liabil10 ity insurance. A payment under this section shall be con11 tingent upon the submission of such information or docu12 mentation as the employing agency may require.

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

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

15 (1) an agency employee whose position is that

16 of a law enforcement officer;

17 (2) an agency employee whose position is that

18 of a supervisor or management official; or

19 (3) such other employee as the head of the

20 agency considers appropriate

21 (c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—

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

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

24 States Code;
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1 (2) the term ‘‘law enforcement officer’’ means

2 an employee, the duties of whose position are pri3 marily the investigation, apprehension, prosecution,

4 or detention of individuals suspected or convicted of

5 offenses against the criminal laws of the United

6 States, including any law enforcement officer under

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

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

9 official’’ have the respective meanings given them by

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

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

12 means insurance which provides coverage for—

13 (A) legal liability for damages due to inju14 ries to other persons, damage to their property,

15 or other damage or loss to such other persons

16 (including the expenses of litigation and settle17 ment) resulting from or arising out of any

18 tortious act, error, or omission of the covered

19 individual (whether common law, statutory, or

20 constitutional) while in the performance of such

21 individual’s official duties as a qualified em22 ployee; and

23 (B) the cost of legal representation for the

24 covered individual in connection with any ad25 ministrative or judicial proceeding (including
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1 any investigation or disciplinary proceeding) re2 lating to any act, error, or omission of the cov3 ered individual while in the performance of such

4 individual’s official duties as a qualified em5 ployee, and other legal costs and fees relating

6 to any such administrative or judicial proceed7 ing.

8 SEC. 702. EMPLOYMENT RIGHTS FOLLOWING CONVERSION

9 TO CONTRACT.

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

11 abolished because an activity performed by an Executive

12 agency (within the meaning of section 105 of title 5, Unit13 ed States Code, is converted to contract shall receive from

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

15 refusal of employment under the contract for a position

16 for which the employee is deemed qualified based upon

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

18 contractor shall not offer employment under the contract

19 to any person prior to having complied fully with this obli20 gation, except as provided in subsection (b), or unless no

21 employee whose position is abolished because such activity

22 has been converted to contract can demonstrate appro23 priate qualifications for the position.

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

25 obligation under subsection (a), the contractor is not re-
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1 quired to offer a right of first refusal to any employee who,

2 in the 12 months preceding conversion to contract, has

3 been the subject of an adverse personnel action related to

4 misconduct or has received a less than fully successful per5 formance rating.

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

7 more than 1 offer under this section based on any particu8 lar separation due to the conversion of an activity to con9 tract.

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

11 section may be prescribed by the President.

12 SEC. 703. DEBARMENT OF HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS

13 FOUND TO HAVE ENGAGED IN FRAUDULENT

14 PRACTICES.

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

16 States Code, is amended—

17 (1) in subsection (a)(2)(A) by striking ‘‘sub18 section (b) or (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (b), (c),

19 or (d)’’;

20 (2) in subsection (b)—

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

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

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

24 follows:
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1 ‘‘(5) Any provider that is currently suspended

2 or excluded from participation under any program of

3 the Federal Government involving procurement or

4 nonprocurement activities.’’;

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

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

7 inserting after subsection (b) the following:

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

9 health care services from participating in the program

10 under this chapter:

11 ‘‘(1) Any provider—

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

13 services or supplies has been revoked, sus14 pended, restricted, or not renewed, by a State

15 licensing authority for reasons relating to the

16 provider’s professional competence, professional

17 performance, or financial integrity; or

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

19 a formal disciplinary proceeding was pending

20 before such an authority, if the proceeding con21 cerned the provider’s professional competence,

22 professional performance, or financial integrity.

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

24 indirectly owned, or with a 5 percent or more con25 trolling interest, by an individual who is convicted of
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1 any offense described in subsection (b), against

2 whom a civil monetary penalty has been assessed

3 under subsection (d), or who has been excluded from

4 participation under this chapter.

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

6 connection with claims presented under this chapter,

7 has charged for health care services or supplies in

8 an amount substantially in excess of such provider’s

9 customary charges for such services or supplies (un10 less the Office finds there is good cause for such

11 charge), or charged for health care services or sup12 plies which are substantially in excess of the needs

13 of the covered individual or which are of a quality

14 that fails to meet professionally recognized stand15 ards for such services or supplies.

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

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

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

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

20 as follows:

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

22 this chapter, that a provider has charged for a

23 health care service or supply which the provider

24 knows or should have known involves—
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1 ‘‘(A) an item or service not provided as

2 claimed;

3 ‘‘(B) charges in violation of applicable

4 charge limitations under section 8904(b); or

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

6 period in which the provider was excluded from

7 participation under this chapter pursuant to a

8 determination by the Office under this section,

9 other than as permitted under subsection

10 (g)(2)(B);’’;

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

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

13 is not mandatory),’’ after ‘‘under this section’’ the

14 first place it appears;

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

16 paragraph (3)—

17 (A) by striking ‘‘(g)(1)’’ and all that fol18 lows through the end of paragraph (1) and in19 serting the following:

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

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

22 be effective at such time and upon such reasonable notice

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

24 as shall be specified in regulations prescribed by the Of25 fice. Any such provider that is excluded from participation
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1 may request a hearing in accordance with subsection

2 (h)(1).

3 ‘‘(B) Unless the Office determines that the health or

4 safety of individuals receiving health care services war5 rants an earlier effective date, the Office shall not make

6 a determination adverse to a provider under subsection

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

8 notice and an opportunity for the determination to be

9 made after a hearing as provided in accordance with sub10 section (h)(1).’’;

11 (B) in paragraph (3)—

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

13 ‘‘notice’’; and

14 (ii) by adding at the end the follow15 ing: ‘‘In the case of a debarment under

16 paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection

17 (b), the minimum period of exclusion shall

18 not be less than 3 years, except as pro19 vided in paragraph (4)(B)(ii).’’; and

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

21 ‘‘subsection (b) or (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub22 section (b), (c), or (d)’’;

23 (7) in subsection (h)—
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1 (A) by striking ‘‘(h)(1)’’ and all that fol2 lows through the end of paragraph (2) and in3 serting the following:

4 ‘‘(h)(1) Any provider of health care services or sup5 plies that is the subject of an adverse determination by

6 the Office under this section shall be entitled to reasonable

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

8 and to judicial review as provided in this subsection after

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

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

11 rights have not previously been afforded with respect to

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

13 an adverse determination under this section. Such hearing

14 shall be conducted without regard to subchapter II of

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

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

17 who shall not otherwise have been involved in the adverse

18 determination being appealed. A request for a hearing

19 under this subsection must be filed within such period and

20 in accordance with such procedures as the Office shall pre21 scribe by regulation.

22 ‘‘(2) Any provider adversely affected by a final deci23 sion under paragraph (1) made after a hearing to which

24 such provider was a party may seek review of such deci25 sion in the United States District Court for the District
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1 of Columbia or for the district in which the plaintiff re2 sides or has his principal place of business by filing a no3 tice of appeal in such court within 60 days from the date

4 the decision is issued and simultaneously sending copies

5 of such notice by certified mail to the Director of the Of6 fice and to the Attorney General. In answer to the appeal,

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

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

9 conducted a hearing, and other evidence upon which the

10 findings and decision complained of are based. The court

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

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

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

14 or without remanding the cause for a rehearing. The dis15 trict court shall not set aside or remand the decision of

16 the Office unless there is not substantial evidence on the

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

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

19 action taken by the Office constitutes an abuse of discre20 tion.’’; and

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

22 paragraph (3)—

23 (A) by striking ‘‘subsection (c)’’ and in24 serting ‘‘subsection (d)’’; and
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1 (B) by adding at the end the following:

2 ‘‘The amount of a penalty or assessment as fi3 nally determined by the Office, or other amount

4 the Office may agree to in compromise, may be

5 deducted from any sum then or later owing by

6 the United States to the party against whom

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

8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para10 graph (2), this section shall take effect on the date

11 of the enactment of this Act.

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

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

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

15 extent that the misconduct which is the basis for de16 barment thereunder occurs after the date of the en17 actment of this Act.

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

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

20 apply only with respect to charges which violate sec21 tion 8904(b) of such title 5 for items and services

22 furnished after the date of the enactment of this

23 Act.

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

25 States Code, as amended by subsection (a), shall
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1 apply only with respect to debarments based on con2 victions occurring after the date of the enactment of

3 this Act.

4 SEC. 704. EXTENSION OF CERTAIN PROCEDURAL AND AP5 PEAL RIGHTS TO CERTAIN PERSONNEL OF

6 THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.

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

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

9 Bureau of Investigation,’’.

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

11 this section shall apply with respect to any personnel ac12 tion taking effect after the end of the 45-day period begin13 ning on the date of the enactment of this Act.

14 SEC. 705. CONVERSION OF CERTAIN EXCEPTED SERVICE

15 POSITIONS IN THE UNITED STATES FIRE AD16 MINISTRATION TO COMPETITIVE SERVICE

17 POSITIONS.

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—No later than the date described

19 under subsection (d)(1), the Director of the Federal

20 Emergency Management Agency and the Director of the

21 Office of Personnel Management shall take such actions

22 as necessary to convert each excepted service position es23 tablished before the date of the enactment of this Act

24 under section 7(c)(4) of the Federal Fire Prevention and
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1 Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2206(c)(4)) to a competi2 tive service position.

3 (b) EFFECT ON EMPLOYEES.—Any employee em4 ployed on the date of the enactment of this Act in an ex5 cepted service position converted under subsection (a)—

6 (1) shall remain employed in the competitive

7 service position so converted without a break in serv8 ice;

9 (2) by reason of such conversion, shall have

10 no—

11 (A) diminution of seniority;

12 (B) reduction of cumulative years of serv13 ice; and

14 (C) requirement to serve an additional pro15 bationary period applied; and

16 (3) shall retain their standing and participation

17 with respect to chapter 83 or 84 of title 5, United

18 States Code, relating to Federal retirement.

19 (c) PROSPECTIVE COMPETITIVE SERVICE POSI20 TIONS.—Section 7(c)(4) of the Federal Fire Prevention

21 and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2206(c)(4)) is amend22 ed to read as follows:

23 ‘‘(4) appoint faculty members to competitive

24 service positions and with respect to temporary and

25 intermittent services, to make appointments of con-
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1 sultants to the same extent as is authorized by sec2 tion 3109 of title 5, United States Code;’’.

3 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—(1) Except as provided

4 under paragraph (2), this section shall take effect on the

5 first day of the first pay period, applicable to the positions

6 described under subsection (a), beginning after the date

7 of the enactment of this Act.

8 (2)(A) The Director of the Federal Emergency Man9 agement Agency and the Director of the Office of Person10 nel Management shall take such actions as directed under

11 subsection (a) on and after the date of the enactment of

12 this Act.

13 (B) Subsection (c) shall take effect on the date of

14 the enactment of this Act.

15 SEC. 706. ELIGIBILITY FOR CERTAIN SURVIVOR ANNUITY

16 BENEFITS.

17 For the purpose of determining eligibility for survivor

18 annuity benefits for a former spouse under section 8341

19 of title 5, United States Code, an application of any

20 former spouse shall be approved if—

21 (1) the annuitant is deceased;

22 (2) the former spouse was living as of January

23 1, 1992;
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1 (3) the former spouse has not received Social

2 Security benefits based on eligibility as the spouse of

3 the annuitant;

4 (4) such application was filed on or after Janu5 ary 1, 1989;

6 (5) the annuitant rendered at least 25 years of

7 creditable service to the Federal Government;

8 (6) at the time of the annuitant’s retirement,

9 the annuitant and the former spouse had been mar10 ried at least 25 years;

11 (7) at the time of the annuitant’s retirement,

12 the annuitant designated the former spouse to re13 ceive survivor annuity benefits;

14 (8) the annuitant and the former spouse were

15 divorced prior to September 14, 1978, and after the

16 annuitant retired;

17 (9) neither at the time of the divorce nor at any

18 time thereafter was a joint waiver of survivor annu19 ity benefits executed between the annuitant and the

20 former spouse;

21 (10) the divorce decree was silent as to survivor

22 annuity benefits or designated the former spouse to

23 receive survivor annuity benefits;
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1 (11) subsequent to the divorce of the annuitant

2 and the former spouse, the annuitant advised the

3 Office of Personnel Management of the divorce;

4 (12) neither the annuitant nor the former

5 spouse married any other individual after their di6 vorce from each other;

7 (13) no direct notice outlining or defining the

8 former spouse’s survivor annuity benefits election

9 rights was delivered to the former spouse by the Of10 fice of Personnel Management; and

11 (14) the former spouse has exhausted all judi12 cial remedies up to and including remedies available

13 through the United States Court of Appeals.

Æ