[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 250 (Tuesday, December 31, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 72250-72251]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-28007]


 ========================================================================
 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. 84, No. 250 / Tuesday, December 31, 2019 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 72250]]



OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 532

RIN 3206-AN94


Prevailing Rate Systems; Definition of Pitt County, North 
Carolina, to a Nonappropriated Fund Federal Wage System Wage Area

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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

SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing a proposed 
rule that would define Pitt County, North Carolina, as an area of 
application county to the Wayne, NC, nonappropriated fund (NAF) Federal 
Wage System (FWS) wage area. This change is necessary because there is 
one NAF FWS employee working in Pitt County, and the county is not 
currently defined to a NAF wage area.

DATES: Send comments on or before January 30, 2020.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number and/or 
Regulatory Information Number (RIN) and title, by the following method:
     Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
    All submissions received must include the agency name and docket 
number or RIN for this document. The general policy for comments and 
other submissions from members of the public is to make these 
submissions available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov 
as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers 
or contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madeline Gonzalez, by telephone at 
(202) 606-2858 or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  OPM is issuing a proposed rule that would 
define Pitt County, NC, as an area of application to the Wayne, NC, NAF 
FWS wage area. The Department of Veterans Affairs notified OPM that the 
Veterans Canteen Service now has one NAF FWS employee in Pitt County.
    Under section 532.219 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, each 
NAF wage area ``shall consist of one or more survey areas, along with 
nonsurvey areas, if any, having nonappropriated fund employees.'' Pitt 
County does not meet the regulatory criteria under 5 CFR 532.219 to be 
established as a separate NAF wage area; however, nonsurvey counties 
may be combined with a survey area to form a wage area. Section 532.219 
lists the regulatory criteria that OPM considers when defining FWS wage 
area boundaries. This regulation allows consideration of the following 
criteria: Proximity of largest activity in each county, transportation 
facilities and commuting patterns, and similarities of the counties in 
overall population, private employment in major industry categories, 
and kinds and sizes of private industrial establishments.
    Pitt County, NC, would be defined as an area of application to the 
Wayne, NC, NAF FWS wage area. The proximity criterion favors the Wayne 
wage area. The transportation facilities and commuting patterns 
criterion does not favor one wage area more than another. The overall 
population, employment sizes, and kinds and sizes of private industrial 
establishments criterion does not favor one wage area more than 
another. While a standard review of regulatory criteria shows mixed 
results, the proximity criterion favors the Wayne wage area. Based on 
this analysis, we propose that Pitt County be defined to the Wayne NAF 
wage area.
    With the definition of Pitt County to the Wayne NAF wage area, the 
Wayne wage area would consist of one survey county (Wayne County, NC) 
and two area of application counties (Halifax and Pitt Counties, NC). 
The Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee, the national labor-
management committee responsible for advising OPM on matters concerning 
the pay of FWS employees, made a majority recommendation to define Pitt 
County to the Wayne NAF wage area. This change would be effective on 
the first day of the first applicable pay period beginning on or after 
30 days following publication of the final regulations.

Regulatory Impact Analysis

    This action is not a ``significant regulatory action'' under the 
terms of Executive Order (E.O.) 12866 (58 FR 51735, October 4, 1993) 
and is therefore not subject to review under E.O. 12866 and 13563 (76 
FR 3821, January 21, 2011).

Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs

    This rule is not an Executive Order 13771 regulatory action because 
this rule is not significant under E.O. 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    OPM certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.

Federalism

    We have examined this rule in accordance with Executive Order 
13132, Federalism, and have determined that this rule will not have any 
negative impact on the rights, roles and responsibilities of State, 
local, or tribal governments.

Civil Justice Reform

    This regulation meets the applicable standard set forth in 
Executive Order 12988.

Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995

    This rule will not result in the expenditure by State, local, and 
tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 
million or more in any year and it will not significantly or uniquely 
affect small governments. Therefore, no actions were deemed necessary 
under the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995.

Congressional Review Act

    This action pertains to agency management, personnel, and 
organization and does not substantially affect the rights or 
obligations of nonagency parties and, accordingly, is not a ``rule'' as 
that term is used by the Congressional Review Act (Subtitle E of the 
Small Business ``Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA)). 
Therefore, the reporting requirement of 5 U.S.C. 801 does not apply.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule does not impose any new reporting or record-keeping

[[Page 72251]]

requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 532

    Administrative practice and procedure, Freedom of information, 
Government employees, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Wages.

Office of Personnel Management.
Alexys Stanley,
Regulatory Affairs.

    Accordingly, OPM is proposing to amend 5 CFR part 532 as follows:

PART 532--PREVAILING RATE SYSTEMS

0
1. The authority citation for part 532 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  5 U.S.C. 5343, 5346; Sec.  532.707 also issued under 
5 U.S.C. 552.

0
2. In Appendix D to subpart B amend the table by revising the wage area 
listing for the State of North Carolina to read as follows:

Appendix D to Subpart B of Part 532--Nonappropriated Fund Wage and 
Survey Areas

          Definitions of Wage Areas and Wage Area Survey Areas
 
 
 
 
                                * * * * *
                             NORTH CAROLINA
                                 Craven
                               Survey Area
North Carolina:
  Craven
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                 Area of Application. Survey area plus:
North Carolina:
  Carteret
  Dare
                               Cumberland
                               Survey Area
North Carolina:
  Cumberland
                 Area of Application. Survey area plus:
North Carolina:
  Durham
  Forsyth
  Rowan
                                 Onslow
                               Survey area
North Carolina:
  Onslow
                 Area of Application. Survey area plus:
North Carolina:
  New Hanover
                                  Wayne
                               Survey area
North Carolina:
  Wayne
                 Area of Application. Survey area plus:
North Carolina:
  Halifax
  Pitt
 
                                * * * * *
 

[FR Doc. 2019-28007 Filed 12-30-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-39-P