[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 41 (Tuesday, March 16, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H1281-H1285]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD RETIREMENT PORTABILITY ACT
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 807) to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide portability
of service credit for persons who leave employment with the Federal
Reserve Board to take positions with other Government agencies, as
amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 807
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 ``Federal Reserve Board
Retirement Portability Act''.
SEC. 2. PORTABILITY OF SERVICE CREDIT.
(a) Creditable Service.--
(1) In general.--Section 8411(b) of title 5, United States
Code, is amended--
(A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (3);
(B) in paragraph (4)--
(i) by striking ``of the preceding provisions'' and
inserting ``other paragraph''; and
(ii) by striking the period at the end and inserting ``;
and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) a period of service (other than any service under any
other paragraph of this subsection, any military service, and
any service performed in the employ of a Federal Reserve
Bank) that was creditable under the Bank Plan (as defined in
subsection (i)), if the employee waives credit for such
service under the Bank Plan and makes a payment to the Fund
equal to the amount that would have been deducted from pay
under section 8422(a) had the employee been subject to this
chapter during such period of service (together with interest
on such amount computed under paragraphs (2) and (3) of
section 8334(e)).
Paragraph (5) shall not apply in the case of any employee as
to whom subsection (g) (or, to the extent subchapter III of
chapter 83 is involved, section 8332(n)) otherwise
applies.''.
(2) Bank plan defined.--Section 8411 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(i) For purposes of subsection (b)(5), the term `Bank
Plan' means the benefit structure in which employees of the
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System appointed on
or after January 1, 1984, participate, which benefit
structure is a component of the Retirement Plan for Employees
of the Federal Reserve System, established under section 10
of the Federal Reserve Act (and any redesignated or successor
version of such benefit structure, if so identified in
writing by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System for purposes of this chapter).''.
(b) Exclusion From Chapter 84.--
(1) In general.--Paragraph (2) of section 8402(b) of title
5, United States Code, is amended by striking the matter
before subparagraph (B) and inserting the following:
``(2)(A) any employee or Member who has separated from the
service after--
``(i) having been subject to--
``(I) subchapter III of chapter 83 of this title;
``(II) subchapter I of chapter 8 of title I of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980; or
``(III) the benefit structure for employees of the Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve System appointed before
January 1, 1984, that is a component of the Retirement Plan
for Employees of the Federal Reserve System, established
under section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act; and
``(ii) having completed--
``(I) at least 5 years of civilian service creditable under
subchapter III of chapter 83 of this title;
``(II) at least 5 years of civilian service creditable
under subchapter I of chapter 8 of title I of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980; or
``(III) at least 5 years of civilian service (other than
any service performed in the employ of a Federal Reserve
Bank) creditable under the benefit structure for employees of
the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
appointed before January 1, 1984, that is a component of the
Retirement Plan for Employees of the Federal Reserve System,
established under section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act,
determined without regard to any deposit or redeposit
requirement under either such subchapter or under such
benefit structure, or any requirement that the individual
become subject to either such subchapter or to such benefit
structure after performing the service involved; or''.
(2) Exception.--Subsection (d) of section 8402 of title 5,
United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(d) Paragraph (2) of subsection (b) shall not apply to an
individual who--
``(1) becomes subject to--
``(A) subchapter II of chapter 8 of title I of the Foreign
Service Act of 1980 (relating to the Foreign Service Pension
System) pursuant to an election; or
``(B) the benefit structure in which employees of the Board
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System appointed on or
after January 1, 1984, participate, which benefit structure
is a component of the Retirement Plan for Employees of the
Federal Reserve System, established under section 10 of the
Federal Reserve Act (and any redesignated or successor
version of such benefit structure, if so identified in
writing by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System for purposes of this chapter); and
``(2) subsequently enters a position in which, but for
paragraph (2) of subsection (b), such individual would be
subject to this chapter.''.
(c) Provisions Relating to Certain Former Employees.--A
former employee of the Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System who--
(1) has at least 5 years of civilian service (other than
any service performed in the employ of a Federal Reserve
Bank) creditable under the benefit structure for employees of
the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
appointed before January 1,
[[Page H1282]]
1984, that is a component of the Retirement Plan for
Employees of the Federal Reserve System, established under
section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act;
(2) was subsequently employed subject to the benefit
structure in which employees of the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System appointed on or after January 1, 1984,
participate, which benefit structure is a component of the
Retirement Plan for Employees of the Federal Reserve System,
established under section 10 of the Federal Reserve Act (and
any redesignated or successor version of such benefit
structure, if so identified in writing by the Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve System for purposes of
chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code); and
(3) after service described in paragraph (2), becomes
subject to and thereafter entitled to benefits under chapter
84 of title 5, United States Code,
shall, for purposes of section 302 of the Federal Employees'
Retirement System Act of 1986 (100 Stat. 601; 5 U.S.C. 8331
note) be considered to have become subject to chapter 84 of
title 5, United States Code, pursuant to an election under
section 301 of such Act.
(d) Effective Date.--
(1) In general.--Subject to succeeding provisions of this
subsection, this section and the amendments made by this
section shall take effect on the date of enactment of this
Act.
(2) Provisions relating to creditability and certain former
employees.--The amendments made by subsection (a) and the
provisions of subsection (c) shall apply only to individuals
who separate from service subject to chapter 84 of title 5,
United States Code, on or after the date of enactment of this
Act.
(3) Provisions relating to exclusion from chapter.--The
amendments made by subsection (b) shall not apply to any
former employee of the Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System who, subsequent to his or her last period of
service as an employee of the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System and prior to the date of enactment of
this Act, became subject to subchapter III of chapter 83 or
chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code, under the law in
effect at the time of the individual's appointment.
SEC. 3. CERTAIN TRANSFERS TO BE TREATED AS A SEPARATION FROM
SERVICE FOR PURPOSES OF THE THRIFT SAVINGS
PLAN.
(a) Amendments to Chapter 84 of Title 5, United States
Code.--
(1) In general.--Subchapter III of chapter 84 of title 5,
United States Code, is amended by inserting before section
8432 the following:
``Sec. 8431. Certain transfers to be treated as a separation
``(a) For purposes of this subchapter, separation from
Government employment includes a transfer from a position
that is subject to one of the retirement systems described in
subsection (b) to a position that is not subject to any of
them.
``(b) The retirement systems described in this subsection
are--
``(1) the retirement system under this chapter;
``(2) the retirement system under subchapter III of chapter
83; and
``(3) any other retirement system under which individuals
may contribute to the Thrift Savings Fund through
withholdings from pay.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
84 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting
before the item relating to section 8432 the following:
``8431. Certain transfers to be treated as a separation.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--Subsection (b) of section 8351
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by redesignating
paragraph (11) as paragraph (8), and by adding at the end the
following:
``(9) For the purpose of this section, separation from
Government employment includes a transfer described in
section 8431.''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply with respect to transfers occurring before, on,
or after the date of enactment of this Act, except that, for
purposes of applying such amendments with respect to any
transfer occurring before such date of enactment, the date of
such transfer shall be considered to be the date of enactment
of this Act. The Executive Director (within the meaning of
section 8401(13) of title 5, United States Code) may
prescribe any regulations necessary to carry out this
subsection.
SEC. 4. CLARIFYING AMENDMENTS.
(a) In General.--Subsection (f) of section 3304 of title 5,
United States Code, as added by section 2 of Public Law 105-
339, is amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (4);
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs
(3) and (4), respectively; and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
``(2) If selected, a preference eligible or veteran
described in paragraph (1) shall acquire competitive status
and shall receive a career or career-conditional appointment,
as appropriate.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a)
shall take effect as if enacted on October 31, 1998.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Mica) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica).
General Leave
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on the bill, H.R. 807, as amended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, this morning I would like to take this opportunity to
commend the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough), the chairman of
the Subcommittee on Civil Services, for introducing this legislation. I
also would like to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from
Maryland (Mr. Cummings), the distinguished ranking member of the
Subcommittee on Civil Service, for his strong support for this
legislation.
I also want to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from
Indiana (Mr. Burton), the chairman of the Committee on Government
Reform, and the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the ranking
member, for their support on this bill and also moving it through the
committee process in an expedited fashion. I also wanted to take this
opportunity to extend my congratulations and thanks to the gentlewoman
from Maryland (Mrs. Morella) for her strong support, not only of this
legislation, but the gentlewoman is one of the most active individuals
in the Congress in support of our Federal employees, no matter what
capacity they serve our Federal Government in, and the citizens of
America.
Mr. Speaker, this bipartisan legislation today will provide
retirement portability for certain Federal Reserve Board employees who
take jobs in our executive branch of government. This legislation will
allow those employees who participate in the Board's FERS-like
retirement plan, and FERS is our Federal Employee Retirement System,
for those not familiar with the acronym, to obtain FERS credit for
their Federal Reserve years when they transfer to another Federal
agency.
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The Federal Reserve already provides such reciprocity for employees
who transfer to the Federal Reserve from other Federal agencies.
Without this corrective legislation today, former Board employees would
receive smaller annuities upon retirement than they otherwise should
and they otherwise deserve.
This is a simple bill that also corrects an inequity in current law
that prevents some Federal employees from withdrawing their funds from
their Thrift Savings Plan accounts.
Under current law, employees participating in the Thrift Savings Plan
who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board from other Federal agencies
are not permitted to withdraw funds from their Thrift Savings Plan
accounts.
Current law specifies that employees, and I will quote from the law,
``must separate from government employment,'' in order to be entitled
to withdraw funds. However, employment at the Board is considered to be
government employment. Therefore, employees who transfer to the Board
and commence participation in the Federal Reserves retirement plan may
not withdraw the funds in their Thrift Savings Plan accounts.
Section 3 of this legislation corrects that problem by allowing our
Federal employees who have transferred or will transfer to the Board to
move the funds in their Thrift Savings accounts to the Board's thrift
plan.
Mr. Speaker, sections 3's technical correction, along with the
portability language in section 2, are appropriate and necessary
remedies to ensure Board employees fair treatment under our current
law.
Section 4 of this bill is also critically important to the men and
women who have served our Nation under arms. It clarifies the Veterans
Employment Opportunities Act that we passed last year to ensure that
our veterans will receive their benefits that Congress intended when it
passed the Act again in the last session of Congress.
[[Page H1283]]
Mr. Speaker, with those opening comments, I reserve the balance of my
time.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I commend the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough)
for moving swiftly to bring this bipartisan bill to the floor.
Under current law, if an employee of the Federal Reserve Board leaves
to work for another Federal agency, the employee is required to join
FERS, the Federal Employees Retirement System. Under the current FERS
statute, time spent working at the Board after 1988 does not count as
credible service towards a FERS annuity. This is simply not fair. As a
result, these employees will receive smaller pensions upon retirement.
This outcome resulted from an oversight that occurred when the FERS
statute was written in late 1980s. It affects Federal Reserve Board
employees hired after 1983 who continued working at the Board after
1988.
In human terms, the problem affects approximately 50 employees who
have already left the Board for other agencies. But if not addressed,
it will potentially affect approximately 1,000 people, translating into
60 percent of the Board's current workforce should they move to other
agencies and then retire under FERS.
In the long run, if the problem is left unaddressed, an ever-larger
proportion of the Board's workforce will be potentially affected in the
same manner.
Last week, H.R. 807 was marked up by full committee, and two
amendments were offered and approved by the committee that further
enhanced the bill, and a bill that Congress passed last year, the
Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998.
Due to an amendment offered by the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Scarborough), the bill will also allow current and future Federal
employees who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board to transfer the
funds from their FERS Thrift Savings accounts to the Federal Reserve
through a savings plan.
At present, current law dictates that Federal employees who
participate in the TSP, then transfer to the Board, cannot withdraw
funds from their TSP account. The affected employees can no longer
contribute money to their TSP or transfer money from their TSP accounts
to the Board's thrift plan. They also lose the option to borrow money
from their TSP, which is an option that should be available to them as
Federal employees.
The Federal Reserve Board has requested this technical correction,
and I am pleased to support it. During the last Congress, the gentleman
from Florida (Mr. Mica), former chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil
Service, and myself, worked hard to see that the Veterans Employment
Opportunities Act of 1998 be enacted. I applaud him for all of his
efforts.
This Act improves the ability of veterans to compete during the
Federal hiring process, extends veterans' preference to all branches of
the Federal Government, and instructs the Secretary of Labor to
maintain a database of contractors who have filed reports on the number
of veterans they have hired.
Since the enactment of this legislation, concerns have arisen
regarding OPM's interpretation of a section of the Act providing for
the hiring of veterans by Federal agencies. OPM interpreted the
language in the act to mean that veterans could be hired for a Federal
job as schedule B appointees rather than as career status appointees.
Schedule B appointments are not afforded the same rights and privileges
as career status employees.
This issue was discussed with our counterparts in the Senate and with
OPM. All parties agreed that language was needed to clarify the
original intent of the Congress. This clarifying language is reflected
in the amendment of the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica). Again I
compliment him for that. The amendment will ensure American veterans
are hired.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the
distinguished gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Davis), chairman of the NRCC
and also chair of the Subcommittee on the District of Columbia, who has
brought the District of Columbia from the depths of disaster to fiscal
soundness.
Mr. DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from
Florida for yielding me this time. The introduction is longer than my
speech, I am afraid.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 807, the Federal Reserve
Board Retirement Portability Act introduced by the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Scarborough) and of which I am proud to be a cosponsor.
This bill correct two technical oversights that significantly harm
the ability of the 1,700 Reserve Board employees who work at the
facility's Washington headquarters to pursue career opportunities open
to all other Federal employees.
This legislation will accord Federal Reserve Board employees, many of
whom live in my District, some of the same privileges that other
Federal employees enjoy. The Board currently has its own retirement
plan covering employees hired prior to 1984 under the Civil Service
Retirement System as well as a bank plan for those hired after that
date.
Those covered under the CSRS plan have had the pension reciprocity
and enjoyed pension civil service portability. Unfortunately, due to a
technical oversight when the Federal retirement system, the FERS
system, was created, those employees covered solely by the bank plan
are not allowed to credit their service with the Federal Reserve to
FERS if they leave for another employment opportunity within the
Executive Branch. Conversely, under current Federal law, Federal
employees who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board are given
portability.
The result of this oversight is that Board employees may face a
reduced pension that does not accurately reflect their years of service
to the Federal Government. As a matter of fact, Federal Reserve Board
employees may collect a reduced pension from both the FERS and the
Board plan that does not equal a FERS pension corrected to reflect
continuous government service. This problem hinders the career
opportunities of Board employees and limits the ability of other
Federal Government agencies to recruit those individuals.
H.R. 807 also makes another technical correction to allow Federal
employees who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board from other Federal
agencies to have access to their Thrift Savings Plan. Presently,
Federal employees who transfer to the Board cannot access their TSP,
nor can they roll those TSP dollars over to the Board's thrift plan.
Again, this harms the employment opportunities of Federal employees and
limits some of the choices they might otherwise enjoy.
H.R. 807 will give the Federal Reserve Board the necessary tools to
attract the most qualified candidates from within the Executive Branch.
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Scarborough), chairman of the Subcommittee on Civil Service and his
pinch-hitter today, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica), former
chairman, who endorses this legislation. It is a worthwhile bill that
deserves the support of every Member.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 807, the Federal Reserve
Board Retirement Portability Act introduced by Representative
Scarborough and of which I am proud to be a cosponsor. This bill
corrects two technical oversights that significantly harm the ability
of the 1700 Federal Reserve Board employees who work at the facility's
Washington headquarters to pursue career opportunities open to other
federal employees.
This legislation will accord Federal Reserve Board employees--many of
whom live in my Congressional district--some of the same privileges
that other federal employees enjoy. The Federal Reserve Board currently
has its own retirement plan covering employees hired prior to 1984
under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) as well as a Bank plan
for those hired after that date. Those covered under the CSRS plan have
had pension reciprocity and enjoyed pension civil service portability.
Unfortunately, due to a technical oversight when the Federal Retirement
System (FERS) was created, those employees covered solely by the bank
plan are not allowed to credit their service with the Federal Reserve
to FERS if they leave for another employment opportunity within the
Executive branch. Conversely, under current law, Federal employees who
transfer to the Federal Reserve Board are given portability.
The result of this oversight is that Board employees may face a
reduced pension that
[[Page H1284]]
does not accurately reflect their years of service to the federal
government. As a matter of fact, Federal Reserve Board employees may
collect a reduced pension from both the FERS and the Board plan that
does not equal a FERS pension corrected to reflect continuous
government service. This problem hinders the career opportunities of
Federal Reserve employees and limits the ability of other federal
government agencies to recruit these individuals.
H.R. 807 also makes another technical correction to allow federal
employees who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board from other federal
agencies to have access to their Thrift Savings Plans (TSP). Presently,
federal employees who transfer to the Federal Reserve Board cannot
access their TSP, nor can they roll those TSP dollars over to the
Board's thrift plan. Again, this harms the employment opportunities of
federal employees and limits some of the choices they might otherwise
enjoy. H.R. 807 will give the Federal Reserve Board the necessary tools
to attract the most qualified candidates from within the Executive
Branch.
H.R. 807 substantially corrects these problems and it recognizes the
importance of treating all federal employees fairly. When we ignore
these technical oversights, we send our federal employees the wrong
message. By addressing the retirement program problems at the Federal
Reserve, we enhance that Agency's ability to attract and retain the
most qualified individuals.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to commend my colleague, Mr. Scarborough,
Chairman of the Civil Service Subcommittee for introducing this
legislation. H.R. 807 is a worthwhile bill that deserves the support of
every Member, and I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to
vote in favor of this legislation.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Davis)
for his comments. I agree with him. This legislation is extremely
important. Although it affects 50 people now and will eventually affect
1,000 people, this is a perfect example of the Congress working in a
bipartisan manner to put a face on legislation and to address the
problems that these Members of the Federal Reserve System are facing.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the
distinguished gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella).
Mrs. MORELLA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in very strong support of this
bill, H.R. 807. Through the portability, it provides equity for those
employees who so deserve it. It is indeed a bipartisan piece of
legislation.
I want to commend the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough) for
introducing it, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings), ranking
member of the Subcommittee on Civil Service, the gentleman from Florida
(Mr. Mica), the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Davis), and all of the
Members who have voted unanimously on a committee level in favor of
this bill which allows the Federal Reserve Board employees to count
their years of service there toward a civil service retirement plan if
they later work for another government agency.
It is the kind of equity that we must offer our employees to be able
to recruit and retain the very finest as we currently have. So I am
most supportive of this legislation; and, as the ranking minority
member mentioned, I hope that this is a hallmark and a prototype of
continued bipartisan legislation to help our civil service.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might
consume.
Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers, but I just want to
reemphasize the fact that this legislation is one that just shows how
fast this Congress can move. When we heard about the problems, when the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica), our former chairman, was chairman
heard about this problem during testimony, we immediately moved to
address it. We set deadlines that were met.
I think that that is the way Americans want their government to work.
This time we have gotten this legislation in early. We will do
everything in our power of course to make sure that it moves swiftly
through the other body.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this
legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. MICA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to focus some attention for a few moments
on section 4 of H.R. 807. This section is particularly important to our
Nation's veterans. I want to thank again the gentleman from Florida
(Mr. Scarborough), who is the chairman now of the Subcommittee on Civil
Service, and also thank again the gentleman from Maryland (Mr.
Cummings), the ranking member, for their strong support for this
section and revision that has been provided space in this bill.
When the Committee on Government Reform marked up H.R. 807, I was
able to add section 4 in order to perfect the language of Public Law
105-339, the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act, which passed in the
last session in 1998. That bill, which I had the pleasure of
introducing with others in the House, expanded veterans employment
opportunities and strengthened veterans preference in our civil service
system.
{time} 1200
It was an important bill to our Nation's veterans. In fact, it was
called the most significant veterans preference legislation since World
War II and was strongly supported by every one of our Nation's veterans
service organizations.
A key provision of that act allowed veterans to compete for civil
service jobs even if they did not have the status as Federal employees.
Before the act was passed, competition for many jobs was limited to
current Federal employees. However, after the act was passed, the
Office of Personnel Management raised an important technical issue. OPM
held that individuals who were selected under this provision could not
be appointed to competitive service unless they already had what is
known as competitive status. Instead, the Office of Personnel
Management instructed agencies to provide these individuals with
excepted service appointments.
As excepted service employees, these veterans would have, in fact,
fewer rights than their colleagues in the competitive service. Most
importantly, as excepted service employees, these veterans would not be
able to compete for other agency jobs under internal merit promotion
procedures. This was not what I intended; this was not what Congress
intended. Congress intended that veterans appointed under this
provision would have all of the rights of their fellow employees in a
particular agency.
Mr. Speaker, the majority and the minority staffs of the Subcommittee
on Civil Service and of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs met
with the Office of Personnel Management's experts to discuss this
problem. Section 4 enacts language suggested by the Office of Personnel
Management. Under this language, in fact, veterans who are selected
under the access provision of the Veterans Employment Opportunities Act
will receive competitive appointments and competitive status. That is
what we intended and that is what Congress wants. They will have the
same rights as their coworkers.
Mr. Speaker, we have discussed this situation extensively with
veterans' organizations and various service groups represented by
veterans. They are keenly interested in resolving this problem and have
urged Congress to act as quickly as possible to correct and clarify
this situation and cure this problem. They strongly support section 4,
and I urge all Members to support section 4 and also this legislation.
In closing, Mr. Speaker, this bill is really about fairness. The
Federal Reserve already allows Federal employees who transfer there to
receive credit for their years of service at other agencies. Congress
should provide reciprocal rights under the Federal employees'
retirement system for those Federal Reserve employees who transfer to
other agencies, particularly when the cost is negligible. Likewise,
there is no reason to deny individuals who transfer to the Federal
Reserve the right to withdraw their funds from their own thrift savings
plan accounts.
Section 4 of this bill, as I stated, is extremely important to our
Nation's veterans. It will, again, clarify the meaning of the Veterans
Employment Opportunities Act, which was passed in the last Congress.
Congress intended
[[Page H1285]]
that those veterans selected for Federal employment under the access
provisions of that act would have the very same rights as their
coworkers and compete for other jobs. Both Republicans and Democrats
support this legislation, as does the administration. We have worked
very closely with the Federal Reserve Board, the Office of Personnel
Management, the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, and others
in crafting the language before the House of Representatives this
morning.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 807, as amended, is a good piece of legislation, a
bipartisan piece of legislation, and a fair bill. It is important to
our Federal employees at the Federal Reserve Board, it is also
important to those who have served our Nation. I urge all Members to
vote for H.R. 807, as amended.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Linder). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 807, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
The title of the bill was amended so as to read:
``A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to provide portability
of service credit for persons who leave employment with the Federal
Reserve Board to take positions with other Government agencies, and for
other purposes.''.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________