Most federal employees pay seven percent of their salary into the federal benefits fund, but LEOs pay seven and a half percent. OPM's regulations provide that this additional withholding is not refundable in the event the LEO does not receive enhanced disability benefits. Congress passed the preferential retirement provisions to make the federal law enforcement corps a career service composed of young men and women capable of meeting the stringent physical requirements of law enforcement and performing at peak efficiency. See Felzien v. Office of Pers. 93d Cong., 2d Sess.
Enhanced benefits recognize the greater physical demands and dangers of law enforcement.
But the statutory language carries no such requirement. Section 8339 does not impose different criteria for retirement, but only describes how annuities are calculated. See Wassenaar v. Office of Pers. The history of section 8337 lends further support. Title 5 of the United States Code was codified in 1966 by Public Law Number 98-554.