[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3202 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3202

 To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to extend comparability pay 
adjustments to members of the Foreign Service assigned to posts abroad, 
 and to amend the provision relating to the death gratuity payable to 
 surviving dependents of Foreign Service employees who die as a result 
        of injuries sustained in the performance of duty abroad.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 27, 2007

Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. Payne, Mr. Scott of Georgia, 
Mr. Tom Davis of Virginia, Mr. Van Hollen, and Mr. Wolf) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, 
 and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, 
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
                        the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to extend comparability pay 
adjustments to members of the Foreign Service assigned to posts abroad, 
 and to amend the provision relating to the death gratuity payable to 
 surviving dependents of Foreign Service employees who die as a result 
        of injuries sustained in the performance of duty abroad.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Foreign Service Overseas Pay Equity 
Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. OVERSEAS COMPARABILITY PAY ADJUSTMENT.

    (a) Overseas Comparability Pay Adjustment.--Chapter 4 of the 
Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3961 and following) is amended 
by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 415. OVERSEAS COMPARABILITY PAY ADJUSTMENT.

    ``(a) In General.--A member of the Service who is designated class 
1 or below and whose official duty station is neither in the 
continental United States nor in a non-foreign area shall receive the 
same locality-based comparability payment under section 5304 of title 
5, United States Code (stated as a percentage) as would be payable to 
such member if such member's official duty station were in the District 
of Columbia.
    ``(b) Treatment as Basic Pay.--The amount of any locality-based 
comparability payment which is payable to a member by virtue of this 
section--
            ``(1) shall be considered to be part of the basic pay of 
        such member for the same purposes as provided for under section 
        5304(c)(2)(A) of title 5, United States Code; and
            ``(2) shall be subject to any applicable limitations on 
        pay.
    ``(c) Phase-In.--The locality-based comparability payment payable 
to a member under this section shall--
            ``(1) in fiscal year 2008, be equal to 33.33 percent of the 
        adjustment which would otherwise apply under subsection (a);
            ``(2) in fiscal year 2009, be equal to 66.67 percent of the 
        adjustment which would otherwise apply under subsection (a); 
        and
            ``(3) in fiscal year 2010 and each subsequent fiscal year, 
        be equal to the adjustment determined under subsection (a).
    ``(d) Non-Foreign Area Defined.--For purposes of this section, the 
term `non-foreign area' has the same meaning as is given such term in 
regulations carrying out section 5941 of title 5, United States 
Code.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents set forth in 
section 2 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to section 414 the following:

``Sec. 415. Overseas comparability pay adjustment.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to pay periods beginning on or after October 1, 
2007, or the date of the enactment of this Act, whichever is later.

SEC. 3. DEATH GRATUITY.

    (a) In General.--Section 413(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 
(22 U.S.C. 3973(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(a)'' and inserting ``(a)(1)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(2) For purposes of any computation under this section, the rate 
of basic salary payable to a Foreign Service employee at time of death 
shall--
            ``(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), be deemed to 
        have been equal to the rate that was then payable for level II 
        of the Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 5, United 
        States Code; or
            ``(B) if the decedent was subject to a local compensation 
        plan under section 408 at time of death, be deemed to have been 
        equal to the highest basic salary rate that was then payable 
        under such plan.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to deaths occurring on or after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
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