[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 163 (Wednesday, August 23, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 43724-43726]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-20881]



 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 163 / Wednesday, August 23, 1995 / 
Proposed Rules  


[[Page 43724]]


OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 315

RIN 3206-AG81


Career and Career-Conditional Employment; Noncompetitive 
Appointment of Certain Former Overseas Employees

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Proposed rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) proposes to issue 
regulations implementing Executive Order 12721. That order authorizes 
OPM to set the conditions under which Federal agencies can 
noncompetitively appoint certain former overseas employees, i.e., 
family members who accompanied their sponsors on official assignment 
overseas. Among the conditions for noncompetitive appointment in the 
United States is the requirement that the former overseas employee have 
52 weeks of service. Under the current regulations, up to 26 weeks of 
the 52-week service requirement can be waived for a family member whose 
expected 52 weeks of employment were cut short because of an emergency 
situation which necessitated the family member's relocation to the 
United States. An emergency situation includes conflict, terrorism, or 
the threat of terrorism but does not include a personal situation such 
as ill health.
    This proposal would permit the agency that employed the individual 
overseas to waive a portion of the 52-week overseas service requirement 
for family members forced to return to the United States because of 
military drawdowns or other management-initiated decisions not personal 
to the individual. In addition, the proposal would streamline the 
entire regulation by removing duplication and adding clarifying 
information.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before October 23, 1995.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Russell on 202-606-0830, FAX 
202-606-2329, or TDD 202-606-0023.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Executive Order 12362, dated May 12, 1982, 
first demonstrated the U.S. Government's interest in enhancing the 
well-being of U.S. Government families by improving career employment 
opportunities for family members of civilian and military employees 
assigned abroad. By providing family members with access to career 
positions in the United States based on their nonpermanent service 
overseas, the Executive order helped Government families cope with the 
disruption resulting from assignments to overseas locations where 
career jobs for family members typically do not exist. Executive Order 
12362 permitted these family members to qualify for noncompetitive 
appointment in the United States after 24 months of overseas service 
under nonpermanent appointment. Executive Order 12585 of March 3, 1987, 
reduced the 24-month service requirement to 18 months. Executive Order 
12721, dated July 30, 1990, revoked the two previous Orders and 
authorized the Office of Personnel Management to establish requirements 
under which family members could qualify for noncompetitive 
appointment. OPM regulations issued on April 3, 1991 (56 FR 13575) then 
reduced the service requirement to 52 weeks and also permitted OPM or 
agencies under delegated agreement to waive up to 26 weeks of the 
service requirement in emergency situations as defined in the 
regulations, for example, conflict or terrorism.
    Since 1991, many changes have occurred in the United States 
military presence overseas.
    As a result of the end of the Cold War, the U.S. Government is 
reducing (drawing down) the number of personnel (civilian and military) 
assigned overseas. As a result, family members of these returning 
personnel are relocating to the United States before they have worked 
the full 52 weeks, the amount of time necessary to qualify for 
noncompetitive appointment. The Department of Defense recommends, and 
we concur, that these family members should not be penalized by the 
service drawdowns. Consequently, the proposed regulation would delegate 
to agencies the authority to waive up to 26 weeks of service in 
nonpersonal situations that necessitate the relocation of family 
members out of the overseas area.

Section Analysis

    Following is a summary of the changes we would make; section 
numbers refer to the proposed regulation.
    A. Sec. 315.608(a)(1): Clarifies that an appointee under this 
section receives a career rather than a career-conditional appointment 
when the individual has already satisfied requirements for career 
tenure or is appointed to a position that requires career tenure upon 
appointment.
    B. Sec. 315.608(a): Clarifies that the United States includes Guam, 
Puerto Rico, and Virgin Islands for purpose of Stateside appointment.
    C. Sec. 315.608(b)(1): Drops the requirement that an individual 
meet the overseas service requirement in a 10-year period beginning 
after January 1, 1980. We see no need for this requirement.
    D. Sec. 315.608(b)(2): Drops the reference to performance ratings 
earned after January 1, 1984. We see no need for this requirement.
    E. Sec. 315.608(c): To include military drawdowns, broadens the 
conditions under which agencies are allowed to waive up to 26 weeks of 
the 52-week overseas service requirement. (We explained our rationale 
for this change in the Supplementary Information.) Also, delegates the 
waiver authority to agencies in keeping with the National Performance 
Review (NPR) recommendation to give agencies more flexibility.
    F. Sec. 315.608(d): Clarifies when the 3-year period of eligibility 
begins, i.e., when a family member returns to the United States to 
resume residence as opposed to returning for vacation, training, etc.
    G. Sec. 315.608(d): Removes reference to Stateside appointment 
before January 1, 1994. Changes the authority to extend an individual's 
period of employment eligibility beyond the 3-year period in two 
specific circumstances from the 

[[Page 43725]]
Office of Personnel Management to the hiring agency.
    H. Sec. 315.608(e)(4)(ii): Defines local hire appointments to 
include overseas limited appointments when made on a temporary or term 
basis.
    I. Sec. 315.608(e)(4)(v): Removes reference to the Federal 
Personnel Manual. That document was abolished on December 31, 1994.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    I certify that these regulations will not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because the 
regulation pertains only to Federal employees and agencies.

Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Review

    This rule has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget 
in accordance with Executive Order 12866.
List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 315

    Government employees.

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

    Accordingly, OPM proposes to amend part 315 of title 5, Code of 
Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 315--CAREER AND CAREER-CONDITIONAL APPOINTMENT

    1. The authority citation for part 315 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 1302, 3301, 3302; E.O. 10577, 3 CFR 1954-
1958 Comp., page 218, unless otherwise noted.

    Secs. 315.601 and 315.609 also issued under 22 U.S.C. 3651 and 
3652.
    Secs. 315.602 and 315.604 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 1104.
    Sec. 315.603 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8151.
    Sec. 315.605 also issued under E.O. 12034, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 
111.
    Sec. 315.606 also issued under E.O. 11219, 3 CFR, 1964-1965 
Comp., p. 303.
    Sec. 315.607 also issued under 22 U.S.C. 2506.
    Sec. 315.608 also issued under E.O. 12721, 3 CFR, 1990 Comp., p. 
293.
    Sec. 315.610 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3304(d).
    Sec. 315.710 also issued under E.O. 12596, 3 CFR, 1987 Comp., p. 
229.
    Subpart I also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3321, E.O. 12107, 3 CFR, 
1978 Comp., p. 264.

    2. Section 315.608 is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 315.608  Noncompetitive appointment of certain former overseas 
employees.

    (a) An executive branch agency may noncompetitively appoint, to a 
competitive service position within the United States (including Guam, 
Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) an individual who has completed 52 
weeks of creditable overseas service as defined in paragraph (b) of 
this section and is appointed within the time limits in paragraph (d) 
of this section. Any law, Executive order, or regulation that 
disqualifies an applicant for appointment, such as the citizenship 
requirement, also disqualifies the applicant for appointment under this 
section.
    (1) Tenure. A person appointed under this section becomes a career-
conditional employee unless he or she has already satisfied the 
requirements for career tenure or is exempt from the service 
requirements in 5 CFR 315.201.
    (2) Competitive status. A person appointed under this section 
acquires competitive status automatically upon completion of probation.
    (b) Creditable overseas service for purposes of this section only, 
is service in an appropriated fund position(s) performed by a family 
member under a local hire appointment(s) overseas:
    (1) During the time the family member was accompanying a sponsor 
officially assigned to an overseas area; and
    (2) For which the family member received a fully successful or 
better (or equivalent) performance rating.
    (3) Computation of creditable overseas service is in accordance 
with the service computation procedures in the Guide to Processing 
Personnel Actions. Leave without pay (LWOP) taken during the time an 
individual is in the overseas area is credited on the same basis as 
time worked.
    (c) Exception. Up to 26 weeks of the 52-week service requirement is 
waived when the head of an agency (or designee) that employed the 
family member overseas certifies that the family member's expected 52 
weeks of employment were cut short because of a nonpersonal situation 
that necessitated the relocation of the family member from the overseas 
area. For this purpose, a nonpersonal situation includes disaster, 
conflict, terrorism or the threat of terrorism, and the deployment of 
the family member's sponsor from the overseas area. A nonpersonal 
situation does not include circumstances that specifically relate to a 
particular individual, for example, ill health or personal interest in 
relocating.
    (d) An individual is eligible for appointment(s) under this 
authority only within 3 years of returning from overseas to the United 
States to resume residence. The hiring agency may extend an 
individual's appointment eligibility beyond 3 years for periods 
equivalent to--
    (1) The time the individual was accompanying a sponsor on official 
assignment to an area of the United States with no significant 
opportunities for Federal employment as determined by the hiring 
agency; or
    (2) The time the hiring agency determines an eligible individual 
was incapacitated for employment.
    (e) Definitions. In this section--
    (1) Family member. An unmarried child under age 23 or a spouse.
    (2) Sponsor. A Federal civilian employee, a Federal nonappropriated 
fund employee, or a member of a uniformed service who is officially 
assigned to an overseas area.
    (i) Officially assigned. Under active orders issued by the United 
States Government.
    (ii) Federal civilian employee. An employee of the executive, 
judicial, or legislative branch of the United States Government who 
serves in an appropriated fund position.
    (iii) Nonappropriated fund employee. An employee paid from 
nonappropriated funds of the Army and Air Force Exchange Service, Navy 
Ship's Stores Ashore, Navy Exchanges, Marine Corps Exchanges, Coast 
Guard Exchanges, or other instrumentalities of the United States.
    (iv) Member of a uniformed service. Personnel of the U.S. Armed 
Forces (including the Coast Guard), the commissioned corps of the 
Public Health Service, and the commissioned corps of the National 
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
    (3) Accompanying. The family member resided in the overseas area 
while the sponsor was officially assigned to an overseas post of duty. 
The family member need not have physically resided with the sponsor at 
all times or have traveled with the sponsor to or from the overseas 
area.
    (4) Local hire appointment. An appointment that is not actually or 
potentially permanent and that is made from among individuals residing 
in the overseas area. In this section only, a local hire appointment 
includes nonpermanent employment under:
    (i) Overseas limited appointment under 5 CFR 301.203(b) or (c);
    (ii) Excepted appointment under Schedule A 213.3106(b)(1), 
213.3106(b)(6), or 213.3106(d)(1)) when the duration of the appointment 
is tied to the sponsor's rotation date or when the appointment is made 
on a not-to-exceed (NTE) basis;
    (iii) An ``American family member'' or ``part-time intermittent 
temporary (PIT)'' appointment in U.S. diplomatic establishments;

[[Page 43726]]

    (iv) 50 U.S.C. 403j; Public Law 86-36 (50 U.S.C. 403, note); the 
Berlin Tariff Agreement; or as a local national employee paid from 
appropriated funds; or
    (v) Any other nonpermanent appointment in the competitive or 
excepted service approved by OPM.
    (5) Overseas. A location outside: the 50 States of the United 
States, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin 
Islands.
    (6) Qualified. Meeting all qualification requirements for a 
position in the United States, except that an agency may waive any 
requirement for a written test after determining that the duties and 
responsibilities of the applicant's overseas position were similar 
enough to make the written test unnecessary.

[FR Doc. 95-20881 Filed 8-22-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-01-M