[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 145 (Tuesday, July 29, 2003)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 44489-44490]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-19088]


 ========================================================================
 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. 68, No. 145 / Tuesday, July 29, 2003 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 44489]]



OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR PART 595

RIN 3206-AJ96


Physicians' Comparability Allowances

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is proposing to 
revise the regulations governing the physicians' comparability 
allowance program. The proposed regulations have been converted to a 
question-and-answer format and rewritten to ease reader understanding 
and improve administration of this program.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 29, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Send or deliver comments to Donald J. Winstead, Deputy 
Associate Director for Pay and Performance Policy, Strategic Human 
Resources Policy Division, Office of Personnel Management, Room 7H31, 
1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415-8200, FAX: (202) 606-0824, or 
email them to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Vicki Draper by telephone at (202) 
606-2858; by fax at (202) 606-0824; or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is 
issuing proposed regulations to revise 5 CFR part 595, Physicians' 
Comparability Allowances. Unless otherwise stated, the purpose of this 
revision to part 595 is to make part 595 more readable, not to make 
substantive changes. OPM has replaced the verb ``shall'' with ``must'' 
in this part for added clarity and readability. OPM intends that any 
provision in this part using the verb ``must'' has the same meaning and 
effect as previous provisions in this part using ``shall.''
    Finally, OPM is removing Sec.  595.108, Reports. Section 5948(j) of 
title 5, United States Code, requires an annual Presidential report to 
Congress on the operation of the PCA program and specifies what 
information must be included in the report. The regulations in Sec.  
595.108 repeat what information must be included in the annual report. 
Since the regulations are redundant, we are proposing to remove Sec.  
595.108. In addition, since the PCA program was made permanent in 2000, 
the necessity for an annual report is clearly diminished. OPM plans to 
propose legislation to repeal 5 U.S.C. 5948(j) to delete the annual 
reporting requirement.

E.O. 12866, Regulatory Review

    This rule has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget 
in accordance with E.O. 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    I certify that these regulations would not have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because they 
would apply only to Federal agencies and employees.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 595

    Government employees, Health professions, Wages.

U.S. Office of Personnel Management.
Kay Coles James,
Director.
    Accordingly, OPM is proposing to amend part 595 of title 5 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 595--PHYSICIANS' COMPARABILITY ALLOWANCES

    1. The authority citation for part 595 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5948; E.O. 12109, 44 FR 1067, Jan. 3, 1979.

    2. Section 595.101 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.101  Purpose.

    Section 5948 of title 5, United States Code, authorizes the payment 
of allowances to certain eligible Federal physicians who enter into 
service agreements with their agencies. These allowances are paid only 
to categories of physicians for which the agency is experiencing 
recruitment and retention problems and are fixed at the minimum amounts 
necessary to deal with such problems. The President has delegated 
regulatory responsibility for this program to the Director of OPM, 
acting in consultation with the Office of Management and Budget. This 
part contains the regulations, criteria and conditions which the 
Director of OPM, in consultation with the Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget, has prescribed for the administration of the 
physicians' comparability allowance program. This part supplements and 
implements 5 U.S.C. 5948 and should be read together with that section 
of law.
    3. In Sec.  595.102, the section heading and paragraphs (a) and (b) 
are revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.102  Who is covered by this program?

    (a) This program covers individuals employed as physicians under 
the Federal pay systems listed in 5 U.S.C. 5948(g)(1), except as 
provided in 5 U.S.C. 5948(b). For the purposes of this part, an 
individual is ``employed as a physician'' only if he or she is serving 
in a position the duties and responsibilities of which could not be 
satisfactorily performed by an incumbent who is not a physician.
    (b) Section 5948(b) of title 5, United States Code, prohibits the 
payment of physicians' comparability allowances to certain physicians, 
including physicians who are reemployed annuitants. For the purpose of 
applying this prohibition, ``reemployed annuitant'' means an individual 
who is receiving or has title to and has applied for an annuity under 
any retirement program of the Government of the United States, or the 
government of the District of Columbia, on the basis of service as a 
civilian employee.
* * * * *
    4. In Sec.  595.103, the section heading and paragraph (a) are 
revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.103  What requirements must agencies establish for 
determining which physician positions are covered?

    (a) The head of each agency must determine categories of physician 
positions for which there is a significant recruitment and retention 
problem, and physicians' comparability allowances may be paid only to 
physicians serving in positions in such categories.
* * * * *
    5. In Sec.  595.104, the section heading and the introductory text 
are revised to read as follows:

[[Page 44490]]

Sec.  595.104  What criteria are used to identify a recruitment and 
retention problem?

    The head of each agency may determine that a significant 
recruitment and retention problem exists for each category of physician 
position established under Sec.  595.103 only if the following 
conditions are met with respect to the category:
* * * * *
    6. In Sec.  595.105, the section heading and paragraphs (a), (b), 
(d), and (e) are revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.105  What criteria must be used to determine the amount of a 
physicians' comparability allowance?

    (a) The amount of the comparability allowance payable for each 
category of physician positions established under Sec.  595.103 must be 
the minimum amount necessary to deal with the recruitment and retention 
problem identified under Sec.  595.104 for that category of positions. 
In determining this amount, the agency head must consider the relative 
earnings, responsibilities, expenses, workload, working conditions, 
conditions of employment, and personnel benefits for physicians in each 
category and for comparable physicians inside and outside the Federal 
Government.
    (b) Agencies may not pay a physicians' comparability allowance in 
excess of $14,000 annually to a physician with 24 months or less of 
service as a Government physician. Agencies may not pay a physicians' 
comparability allowance in excess of $30,000 annually to a physician 
with more than 24 months of service as a Government physician.
* * * * *
    (d) A physician who is employed on a regularly scheduled part-time 
basis of half-time or more is eligible to receive a physicians' 
comparability allowance, but any such allowance must be prorated 
according to the proportion of the physicians' work schedule to full-
time employment.
    (e) A physician who is serving with the Government under a loan 
repayment program must have the amount of any loan being repaid 
deducted from any physicians' comparability allowance for which he or 
she is eligible and may receive only that portion of such allowance 
which exceeds the amount of the loan being repaid during the period of 
employment required by the service agreement under the student loan 
repayment program.
    7. Section 595.106 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.106  What termination and refund provisions are required?

    Each service agreement entered into by an agency and a physician 
under the comparability allowance program must prescribe the terms 
under which the agreement may be terminated and the amount of 
allowance, if any, required to be refunded by the physician for each 
reason for termination. In the case of each service agreement covering 
a period of service of more than 1 year, the service agreement must 
include a provision that, if the physician completes more than 1 year 
of service pursuant to the agreement, but fails to complete the full 
period of service specified in the agreement either voluntarily or 
because of misconduct by the physician, the physician must refund the 
amount of allowance he or she has received under the agreement for the 
26 weeks of service immediately preceding the termination (or for a 
longer period, if specified in the agreement).
    8. In Sec.  595.107, the section heading and paragraphs (b) and (c) 
are revised to read as follows:


Sec.  595.107  What are the requirements for implementing a physicians' 
comparability allowance program?

* * * * *
    (b) The agency must submit to the Office of Management and Budget a 
complete description of its plan for implementing the physicians' 
comparability allowance program, including the following:
    (1) An identification of the categories of physician positions the 
agency has established under Sec.  595.103, and of the basis for such 
categories;
    (2) An explanation of the determination that a recruitment and 
retention problem exists for each such category, in accordance with the 
criteria in Sec.  595.104; and
    (3) An explanation of the basis for the amount of comparability 
allowance determined necessary for each category of physician position 
under Sec.  595.105.
    (c) The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will review each 
agency's plan for implementing the physicians' comparability allowance 
program and determine whether the plan is consistent with 5 U.S.C. 5948 
and the requirements of this part. OMB will advise the agency within 45 
calendar days after receipt of the plan as to whether the plan is 
consistent with 5 U.S.C. 5948 and this part or what changes need to be 
made.
    9. Section Sec.  595.108 is removed.


Sec.  595.108 Reports.  [Removed]

[FR Doc. 03-19088 Filed 7-28-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-39-P