[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 185 (Monday, September 26, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-23716]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: September 26, 1994]


                                                   VOL. 59, NO. 185

                                         Monday, September 26, 1994

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 213

RIN 3206-AF53

 

Temporary, Seasonal, and Intermittent Employment in the Excepted 
Service

agency: Office of Personnel Management.

action: Proposed rule.

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summary: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) proposes to revise 
its regulations to consolidate excepted service authorities for filling 
temporary, intermittent, and seasonal jobs, to remove coverage for 
appointments that no longer meet the criteria for exception, and to 
establish a new excepted service authority which could be used by 
agencies to meet urgent, short-term hiring needs.

dates: Comments must be received on or before November 25, 1994.

addresses: Send or deliver written comments to Leonard R. Klein, 
Associate Director for Career Entry, Office of Personnel Management, 
Room 6F08, 1900 E Street, NW., Washington, DC 20415.

for further information contact: Tracy E. Spencer, (202) 606-0830, or 
fax (202) 606-2329.

supplementary information: This proposal is the second step in OPM's 
program to simplify temporary hiring authorities and ensure their 
appropriate use. Regulations were proposed on February 1, 1994, (59 FR 
4601) to set a uniform service limit for temporary appointments in both 
the competitive and the excepted service at 1 year with no more than 
one 1-year extension. The regulations now proposed would revise and 
consolidate paragraphs (i) and (m) of Sec. 213.3102, which both cover 
temporary, intermittent, and seasonal employment in the excepted 
service. The revision would eliminate overlapping and obsolete 
appointing authorities.
    In July 1993, OPM advised all agencies that use Schedule A 
authorities which were established specifically for temporary or 
seasonal employment that, if they wished to retain the authorities, 
they would need to justify why examining for the positions is 
impracticable. Our intent was to identify the situations where excepted 
service hiring is appropriate and to replace individual agencies' 
authorities with a Governmentwide authority that could be used by any 
agency in those situations. However, agencies reported only one 
situation that would have general applicability and one that may have 
general applicability. The rest are so agency-specific that creation of 
a Governmentwide authority would serve no practical purpose.
    Temporary and less-than-full-time hiring in remote locations. 
Several agencies need to hire short-term or supplemental staff, often 
on short notice, in locations that are remote or isolated from a 
population center. Examining for these jobs is impracticable when: Only 
residents of the immediate area can be expected to reach the work site 
whenever they are needed; the amount of employment involved would not 
encourage outside applicants to move to the isolated area; and staff 
from an OPM or agency examining office could not readily reach the 
location to administer tests or conduct recruiting.
    We propose to establish a Schedule A authority that would define 
``remote/isolated location'' and would limit excepted employment to 
1,040 working hours in a service year. Any agency could use the 
authority, without prior OPM approval, for jobs that meet the 
conditions set out in the regulation.
    Urgent, short-term hiring needs. OPM is abolishing the Federal 
Personnel Manual (FPM), as recommended by the National Performance 
Review. OPM has granted certain authorities to agencies through the FPM 
that are not specifically reflected in regulations. One of those 
authorities (set out in section 2-9 of FPM Chapter 316) allows agencies 
to make temporary appointments not to exceed 30 days and to extend 
those appointments for no more than 30 additional days without regard 
to normal appointment procedures. Unless that authority is incorporated 
in a regulation, it will be lost when FPM Chapter 316 is abolished in 
December 1994.
    We believe the special need authority serves a valid purpose and 
should be continued as an excepted service appointing authority. 
(Competitive requirements have never applied to special need 
appointments.) Service limits and conditions for use of the current 
special need authority would remain the same. The new Schedule A 
authority would be available for use by any agency without prior OPM 
approval.
    Fellowships and related programs. Three agencies suggested creation 
of a Governmentwide authority covering post-doctoral fellowships, 
internships, and similar programs designed to increase the pool of 
candidates in a particular specialty for all employers, not just the 
Federal Government. On May 13, 1994, we published proposed regulations 
that would create a consolidated authority for employment of students. 
However, several agencies have internship or fellowship programs that 
provide professional experience to individuals who have completed their 
formal education.
    We agree that a consolidated authority for those appointments would 
be appropriate. We expect to consider consolidation of most Schedule A 
and B appointing authorities--not only those covering temporary 
hiring--and may propose creation of a fellowship authority. In the 
meantime, however, we are not sure that such an authority should be 
restricted to temporary employment. Many appointments under existing 
programs are made for periods longer than 1 year.
    Consequently, we have not included a specific provision for 
internship or fellowship appointments in the proposed authority for 
temporary Schedule A appointments. We welcome your comments on this 
issue, however, and will add such a provision if there is sufficient 
interest. If there is not enough interest to justify a Governmentwide 
authority, we would entertain requests for single-agency exceptions 
from agencies wishing to establish temporary fellowship programs.
    Other positions. Several agencies reported specific situations in 
which competitive hiring procedures would not be appropriate or 
effective. However, because each of these situations is unique to the 
agency involved, issuance of Governmentwide Schedule A authorities 
would serve no practical purpose. Therefore, the proposed regulation 
would provide for exception of additional positions with prior OPM 
approval.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    I certify that these regulations will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities (including 
small businesses, small organizational units, and small governmental 
jurisdictions) because they apply only to Federal employees.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 213

    Government employees, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Office of Personnel Management.
James B. King,
Director.

    Accordingly, OPM proposes to amend 5 CFR part 213 as follows:

PART 213--EXCEPTED SERVICE

    1. The authority citation for part 213 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 3301 and 3302, E.O. 10577, 3 CFR 1954-1958 
Comp., p. 218; Sec. 213.101 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 2103; 
Sec. 213.3102 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302 (E.O. 12364, 47 
FR 22931), 3307, 8337(h), and 8456.

    2. In Sec. 213.3102, paragraph (i) is revised and paragraph (m) is 
removed and reserved, as follows:


Sec. 213.3102  Entire executive civil service.

* * * * *
    (i) Temporary and less-than-full-time positions, as follows:
    (1) Positions in remote/isolated locations where examination is 
impracticable. A remote/isolated location is outside the local 
commuting area of a population center from which an employee can 
reasonably be expected to travel on short notice under adverse weather 
and/or road conditions which are normal for the area. For this purpose, 
a population center is a town with housing, schools, health care, 
stores and other businesses in which the servicing examining office can 
schedule tests and/or reasonably expect to attract applicants. An 
individual appointed under this authority may not be employed in the 
same agency under a combination of this and any other appointment for 
more than 1,040 working hours in a service year. Temporary appointments 
under this authority may be extended in 1-year increments, with no 
limit on the number of such extensions, as an exception to the service 
limits in Sec. 213.104.
    (2) Positions for which a critical hiring need exists. This 
includes both short-term positions and continuing positions that an 
agency must fill on an interim basis pending completion of competitive 
examining, clearances, or other procedures required for a longer 
appointment. Appointments under this authority may not exceed 30 days 
and may be extended for up to an additional 30 days if continued 
employment is essential to the agency's operations. The appointments 
may not be used to extend the service limit of any other appointing 
authority. An agency may not employ the same individual under this 
authority for more than 60 days in any 12-month period.
    (3) Other positions for which OPM determines that examining is 
impracticable.
* * * * *
    (m) [Reserved]
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 94-23716 Filed 9-23-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-01-M