[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1576 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

  2d Session
                                S. 1576

 To provide that Federal employees who are furloughed or are not paid 
    for performing essential services during a period of a lapse in 
  appropriations, may receive a loan, paid at their standard rate of 
  compensation, from the Thrift Savings Fund, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

            February 27 (legislative day, February 23), 1996

 Ms. Mikulski (for herself and Mr. Sarbanes) introduced the following 
      bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                          Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide that Federal employees who are furloughed or are not paid 
    for performing essential services during a period of a lapse in 
  appropriations, may receive a loan, paid at their standard rate of 
  compensation, from the Thrift Savings Fund, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. LOANS FROM THRIFT SAVINGS FUND TO FURLOUGHED FEDERAL 
              EMPLOYEES.

    (a) In General.--During any period of a lapse of appropriations in 
fiscal year 1996, an employee described under subsection (b) may borrow 
an amount from such employee's account in the Thrift Savings Fund 
established under section 8437 of title 5, United States Code.
    (b) Eligible Employees.--An employee referred to under subsection 
(a) is any Federal employee who--
            (1) is furloughed as a result of a lapse in appropriations; 
        or
            (2)(A) performs emergency services involving the safety of 
        human life or the protection of property during a period of a 
        lapse in appropriations; and
            (B) does not receive compensation for such services during 
        such period as a result of such lapse.
    (c) Loan Conditions.--A loan under this section--
            (1) may not exceed the amount in the account of an employee 
        in the Thrift Saving Fund attributable to contributions made by 
        such employee;
            (2) subject to paragraph (1), shall be paid at the rate of 
        the employee's standard rate of compensation in installments 
        applicable to each pay period of the employee; and
            (3) shall not be subject to any processing charge, 
        interest, or penalty.
    (d) Application and Approval of Loan.--(1) An employee may file a 
loan application under this section with the Federal Retirement Thrift 
Investment Board and shall simultaneously submit written notification 
to his employing agency of such application. The application shall be 
immediately approved.
    (2) The first loan installment shall be paid to the employee at the 
beginning of the earliest practical pay period following receipt of a 
loan application by the Board.
    (3) Subject to subsection (c)(1), loan installment payments shall 
terminate on the date that the period of the lapse of appropriations 
ends.
    (e) Loan Payback.--(1) Beginning with the first applicable pay 
period following the date on which the period of a lapse of 
appropriations ends, the employing agency of an employee who received a 
loan under this section shall withhold the full amount of the loan from 
the pay of the employee, after making other withholdings applicable to 
the employee. Such withholdings may continue for each pay period until 
the full amount of the loan is withheld.
    (2) The employing agency shall transmit all amounts withheld under 
this subsection to the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board for 
deposit in the employee's account in the Thrift Savings Fund.
    (f) Tax Treatment.--A loan under this section shall not be treated 
as a taxable distribution under section 72(p) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986.
    (g) Secretary of the Treasury.--Notwithstanding any other provision 
of law, the Secretary of the Treasury shall take such actions as 
necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
    (h) Regulations.--The Executive Director appointed by the Federal 
Retirement Thrift Investment Board shall prescribe regulations to 
implement the provisions of this section.
                                 <all>