[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 77 (Thursday, April 20, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 21119-21120]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-9853]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 77 / Thursday, April 20, 2000 / Rules 
and Regulations  

[[Page 21119]]



OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 841

RIN 3206-AI83


Retirement and Insurance--Automation and Simplification of FERS 
Employee Record Keeping During an Intra-Agency Transfer

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Interim rule.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing interim 
regulations to allow the automated transfer of Federal Employees' 
Retirement System (FERS) employee payroll account information from one 
payroll office to another, within the same agency, eliminating the 
requirement of creating and forwarding a hard copy Individual 
Retirement Record (IRR) to OPM for each intra-agency transfer. When an 
employee is no longer employed by the agency or is no longer covered 
under FERS, a comprehensive IRR will then be forwarded to OPM.

DATES: Interim rules effective April 20, 2000; comments must be 
received on or before July 19, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Mary Ellen Wilson, Retirement Policy 
Division, Office of Personnel Management, P.O. Box 57, Washington, DC 
20044; or deliver to OPM, Room 4351, 1900 E Street, NW., Washington DC. 
Comments may also be submitted by electronic mail to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For Part 841: John Panagakos, (202) 
606-0299.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 5 CFR 841.504(d) directs an agency payroll 
office to close a FERS employee's IRR and forward it to OPM when the 
employee separates, transfers to another agency or to a position 
serviced by another payroll office, or transfers to a position in which 
he or she is not covered by FERS. This means that even when an employee 
transfers within an agency, but is subject to a different payroll 
office, a hard copy IRR must be created from the payroll information 
and forwarded to OPM. There are compelling reasons to retain the 
requirement to create a hard copy IRR each time an employee (1) moves 
from one agency to another; (2) separates from Federal service; or (3) 
changes retirement coverage. However, recent automated advances obviate 
the need to immediately create and forward an IRR to OPM for every 
intra-agency transfer that only involves different payroll offices 
under the same system of automated records.
    As a result of modernization efforts in automated record keeping 
software, early in the year 2000 the Defense Finance and Accounting 
Service (DFAS) plans to implement the automated transfer of large 
numbers of payroll accounts from one payroll office to another within 
their agency. This software also has the capability to electronically 
transfer retirement information as well as payroll information, thus 
securing an accurate record of retirement information for hard copy 
certification and transmittal to OPM when the employee falls into one 
of the three retained categories listed above (e.g., separates from 
Federal service).
    For these reasons, the Office of Personnel Management is proposing 
to amend 5 CFR 841.504(d) to allow agencies this flexibility in intra-
agency record keeping. OPM's authority to make this amendment is in 
section 8461(g) of title 5, United States Code.

Waiver of General Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

    Under section 553(b)(3)(B) and (d)(3) of title 5, United States 
Code, I find that good cause exists for waiving the general notice of 
proposed rulemaking and for making these rules effective in less than 
30 days. These regulations will affect the operation of all Federal 
payroll offices on and after May 1, 2000. Publication of a general 
notice of proposed rulemaking would be contrary to the public interest 
because it would delay the implementation of cost saving automated 
record keeping measures that are non-controversial in nature.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    I certify that this amendment to the regulation will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities 
because the amendment provides a cost-saving option previously 
unavailable to those agencies but does not require that they obtain the 
necessary software to implement that option.

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 841

    Administrative practice and procedure, Air traffic controllers, 
Claims, Disability benefits, Firefighters, Government employees, Income 
taxes, Intergovernmental relations, Law enforcement officers, Pensions.

Office of Personnel Management
Janice R. Lachance,
Director.

    Accordingly, OPM amends part 841 of title 5 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations as follows:

PART 841--FEDERAL EMPLOYEES RETIREMENT SYSTEM--GENERAL 
ADMINISTRATION

    1. The authority citation for part 841 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 8461; Sec. 841.108 also issued under 5 
U.S.C. 552a; subpart D also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8423; Sec. 841.504 
also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8422; Sec. 841.507 also issued under 
section 505 of Pub. L. 99-335, 100 Stat. 514; subpart J also issued 
under 5 U.S.C. 8469; Sec. 841.506 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 
7701(b)(2); Sec. 841.508 also issued under section 505 of Pub. L. 
99-335, 100 Stat. 514.

Subpart E--Employee Deductions and Government Contributions

    2. In Sec. 841.504 paragraph (d) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 841.504  Agency responsibilities.

* * * * *
    (d) When an employee separates from Federal service or transfers to 
another agency, or transfers to a position in which he or she is not 
covered by FERS, the agency must close the employee's

[[Page 21120]]

Individual Retirement Record (IRR) and forward it to OPM within the 
time standards prescribed by OPM. However, if an employee transfers to 
another position covered under FERS--
    (1) Within the same agency, and
    (2) To a position serviced by another payroll office, the agency 
may, in lieu of forwarding an IRR to OPM at the time of the intra-
agency transfer, record the transfer for future IRR certification in an 
internal automated system of records.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 00-9853 Filed 4-19-00; 8:45 am]
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