[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 370 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 370

 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

                            January 9, 2009

  Mr. Smith of New Jersey (for himself and Mr. Payne) 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 2009''.

SEC. 2. OVERSEAS COMPARABILITY PAY ADJUSTMENT.

    (a) Overseas Comparability Pay Adjustment.--
            (1) In general.--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 for purposes of section 403 and whose official duty station 
is neither in the continental United States nor in a non-foreign area 
shall receive, in accordance with the phase-in schedule set forth in 
subsection (c), 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 of the Service by 
virtue of this section--
            ``(1) shall be considered to be part of the basic pay of 
        such member--
                    ``(A) for the same purposes as provided for under 
                section 5304(c)(2)(A) of title 5, United States Code; 
                and
                    ``(B) for purposes of chapter 8; and
            ``(2) shall be subject to any limitations on pay applicable 
        to locality-based comparability payments under section 5304 of 
        title 5, United States Code.
    ``(c) Phase-In.--The locality-based comparability payment payable 
to a member of the Service under this section shall--
            ``(1) beginning on the first day of the first pay period 
        beginning on or after the date that fiscal year 2010 
        appropriations are made available by enactment of the 
        Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs 
        Appropriations Act, 2010, or April 1, 2010, whichever is 
        earlier, be equal to 33.33 percent of the payment which would 
        otherwise apply under subsection (a);
            ``(2) beginning on the first day of the first pay period in 
        fiscal year 2011, be equal to 66.67 percent of the payment 
        which would otherwise apply under subsection (a); and
            ``(3) beginning on the first day of the first pay period in 
        fiscal year 2012 and each subsequent fiscal year, be equal to 
        the payment 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.''.
            (2) 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.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments Relating to the Foreign Service 
Retirement Systems.--
            (1) Contributions to the fund.--Effective as of the first 
        pay period beginning on or after October 1, 2011, section 
        805(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4045(a)) 
        is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in the first sentence, by striking 
                        ``7.25 percent'' and inserting ``7 percent''; 
                        and
                            (ii) in the second sentence, by striking 
                        ``The contribution by the employing agency'' 
                        through ``and shall be made'' and inserting 
                        ``An equal amount shall be contributed by the 
                        employing agency'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``, 
                        plus an amount equal to .25 percent of basic 
                        pay''; and
                            (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``, 
                        plus an amount equal to .25 percent of basic 
                        pay''; and
                    (C) in paragraph (3), by striking all that follows 
                ``Code'' and inserting a period.
            (2) Computation of annuities.--Section 806(a)(9) of such 
        Act (22 U.S.C. 4046(a)(9)) is amended by striking ``is outside 
        the continental United States shall'' and inserting ``was 
        outside the continental United States during the period 
        beginning on December 29, 2002, and ending on the day before 
        the first day of the first pay period beginning on or after 
        October 1, 2011 (or during any portion thereof) shall, to the 
        extent that such computation is based on the salary or pay of 
        such member for such period (or portion thereof),''.
            (3) Entitlement to annuity.--Section 855(a)(3) of such Act 
        (22 U.S.C. 4071d(a)(3)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``section 8414'' and inserting 
                ``section 8415''; and
                    (B) by striking ``is outside the continental United 
                States shall'' and inserting ``was outside the 
                continental United States during the period beginning 
                on December 29, 2002, and ending on the day before the 
                first day of the first pay period beginning on or after 
                October 1, 2011 (or during any portion thereof) shall, 
                to the extent that such computation is based on the 
                salary of such member for such period (or portion 
                thereof),''.
            (4) Deductions and withholdings from pay.--Section 
        856(a)(2) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 4071e(a)(2)) is amended to 
        read as follows:
            ``(2) The applicable percentage under this subsection shall 
        be as follows:

 
   ``Percentage                          Time Period
 
              7.5   Before January 1, 1999.
             7.75   January 1, 1999, to December 31, 1999.
              7.9   January 1, 2000, to December 31, 2000.
             7.55   January 11, 2003, to the day before the first day of
                     the first pay period beginning on or after October
                     1, 2011.
              7.5   Beginning on the first day of the first pay period
                     beginning on or after October 1, 2011.''.
 

    (c) Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than October 1, 2011, the 
        Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
        congressional committees an assessment of all allowances 
        provided to members of the Foreign Service under the Foreign 
        Service Act of 1980 or under title 5, United States Code, and 
        in particular, how such allowances have been or will be 
        affected by the amendments to the Foreign Service Act of 1980 
        made by this Act.
            (2) Definition.--For purposes of this subsection, the term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on 
        Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 
        Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.

SEC. 3. DEATH GRATUITY.

    The first sentence of section 413(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 
1980 (22 U.S.C. 3973(a)) is amended by striking ``at the time of 
death'' and inserting ``at level II of the Executive Schedule under 
section 5313 of title 5, United States Code, at the time of death, 
except that for employees compensated under local compensation plans 
established under section 408, the amount shall be equal to the greater 
of 1 year's salary at the time of death or 1 year's salary at the 
highest step of the highest grade on the local compensation plan from 
which the employee was being paid at the time of death''.
                                 <all>