Absence and Leave; Use of Restored Annual Leave

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR PART 630

RIN: 3206-AI71

Absence and Leave; Use of Restored Annual Leave

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Proposed rule with request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management is issuing proposed

regulations to aid agencies and employees involved inYear 2000 (Y2K)

computer conversion efforts. The regulations provide that excess annual

leave forfeited by employees who are unable to schedule and use their

leave as a result of Y2K computer conversion efforts will be deemed to

have been scheduled in advance and therefore eligible for restoration.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before July 14, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be sent or delivered to Donald J. Winstead,

Assistant Director for Compensation Administration, Office of Personnel

Management, Room 7H31, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415-8200,

FAX (202) 606-0824, or email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sharon Herzberg, (202) 606-2858, FAX

(202) 606-0824, or email to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 6304 of title 5, United States Code,

establishes limitations on the amount of annual leave that an employee

may carry over from one leave year to the next. Most employees can

carry over no more than 240 hours of annual leave to the next leave

year. However, 5 U.S.C. 6304(d)(1)(b) also provides that excess annual

leave lost as a result of ``exigencies of the public business when the

annual leave was scheduled in advance'' may be restored to the affected

employee.

For the purpose of Federal leave administration, an exigency of the

public business occurs when there is a pressing need for an employee's

service and his or her pre-approved annual leave must be canceled

because there are no other practical alternatives available to

accomplish the work by a given deadline. This situation may present

itself later this year for Federal employees who are carrying out their

agencies' efforts to address Year 2000 (Y2K) computer conversion

problems. Many of these employees will be faced with the possible

forfeiture of ``use or lose'' annual leave because they must remain on

the job until the Y2K computer conversions have been implemented and

thoroughly tested. Under the normal rules, agencies would be faced with

the administrative burden of scheduling, canceling, and restoring such

leave for these employees at a time when all available attention and

energy should be focused on Y2K conversion efforts.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) believes the Government's

efforts to address Y2K computer conversion problems constitute an

exigency of the public business under 5 U.S.C. 6304(d)(1)(b), which

justifies the restoration of any forfeited annual leave in excess of

the maximum allowable limits. Since it is known in advance that it is

not possible for employees affected by the Y2K exigency to be absent on

leave, the scheduling and canceling of such leave places an unnecessary

administrative burden on the employees and agencies involved.

Consistent with OPM's commitment to provide agencies with the human

resources management tools they need to address Y2K computer conversion

problems, we propose to simplify the procedures for restoring annual

leave forfeited as a result of the Y2K exigency. Section 630.310(a) of

title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, would deem the Y2K computer

conversion project an exigency of the public business and establish

January 31, 2000, as the Governmentwide termination date for the Y2K

exigency. In addition, under Sec. 630.310(b), annual leave forfeited as

a result of the Y2K exigency would be deemed to have been scheduled in

advance for the purpose of satisfying the requirements in 5 U.S.C.

6304(d) and 5 CFR 630.308. Therefore, annual leave forfeited as a

result of the Y2K exigency would be restored under 5 U.S.C. 6304 and

placed in a separate restored leave account. The procedures established

by these proposed regulations are similar to those established for

employees of Department of Defense installations undergoing closure or

realignment.

Time Limit for Use of Restored Leave

The existing regulations at Sec. 630.306 provide that annual leave

restored as a result of an exigency of public business must be

scheduled and used not later than the end of the leave year ending 2

years after the termination date of the exigency. The Governmentwide

termination date for the Y2K exigency would be January 31, 2000.

Therefore, consistent with the current regulations, Sec. 630.310(c)

would provide that annual leave restored because of the Y2K computer

conversion exigency must be scheduled and used not later than the end

of leave year 2002.

Treatment of Current Restored Leave Accounts

Many employees currently involved in Y2K computer conversion

efforts have an ``active'' restored leave account--i.e., an account of

restored annual leave that was established under other conditions

permitting restoration of annual leave under 5 U.S.C. 6304(d). Since

there is no authority to restore previously restored annual leave,

employees (and agencies) have little option but to use (or permit the

use of) the leave in the ``active'' restored leave account to avoid the

forfeiture of annual leave, even though the employees are needed to

work on Y2K conversions. The proposed regulations at Sec. 630.310(d)

would alleviate this problem because the time limitation for using

active restored annual leave would be canceled for the entire period

during which employees' services are determined to be necessary for the

completion of Y2K computer conversion efforts. As of January 31, 2000,

a new time limit would be established under Sec. 630.310(b) for using

all restored leave available to the employee under 5 U.S.C. 6304(d).

The new time limit for using restored annual leave would be not later

than the end of leave year 2002.

Employees Who Transfer to Another Position

As noted earlier, Sec. 630.308 currently requires that before

forfeited annual

[[Page 31736]]

leave may be considered for restoration, it must have been scheduled in

writing before the start of the third biweekly pay period prior to the

end of the leave year. We are concerned about the possible consequences

of requiring advance scheduling for an employee who transfers from a

position deemed necessary for Y2K conversion efforts to another

position during the latter portion of leave year 1999. It is possible

that such employees would have leave in excess of the maximum

limitation, but would still be unable to schedule it. Therefore,

Sec. 630.310(e) would allow an agency to consider restoration of annual

leave forfeited at the end of leave year 1999 to an employee whose

involvement in Y2K conversion efforts ends during the leave year if the

agency determines that there is a correlation between the lack of

advance scheduling and the employee's Y2K conversion efforts.

OPM believes such annual leave may be considered for restoration.

Section 630.310(e) would require affected employees to make a

reasonable effort to comply with the advance scheduling requirement in

Sec. 630.308(a). However, the head of an agency could exempt an

employee from the advance scheduling requirement if the employee could

show that he or she was involved in Y2K conversion efforts during the

leave year and was unable to comply with the scheduling requirement due

to circumstances beyond his or her control. Since the agency may

determine that there was sufficient time for the employee to schedule

and use annual leave before the end of leave year 1999, this provision

would not guarantee that excess annual leave would be restored.

Annual leave restored to an employee in leave year 2000 as a result

of the Y2K conversion exigency, but unused by the end of leave year

2002, will be forfeited, with no possibility of further restoration.

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 affect only Federal agencies and employees.

E.O. 12866, Regulatory Review

This rule has been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget

in accordance with Executive Order 12866.

List of Subjects 5 in CFR Part 630

Government employees.

Office of Personnel Management.

Janice Lachance,

Director.

Accordingly, OPM is proposing to amend part 630 of title 5 of the

Code of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 630--ABSENCE AND LEAVE

1. The authority citation for part 630 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 6311; Sec. 630.301 also issued under Pub. L.

103-356, 108 Stat. 3410; Sec. 630.303 also issued under 5 U.S.C.

6133(a); Secs. 630.306 and 630.308 also issued under 5 U.S.C.

6304(d)(3), Pub. L. 102-484, 106 Stat. 2722, and Pub. L. 103-337,

108 Stat. 2663; subpart D also issued under Pub. L. 103-329, 108

Stat. 2423; Sec. 630.501 and subpart F also issued under E.O. 11228,

30 FR 7739, 3 CFR, 1974 Comp., p. 163; subpart G also issued under 5

U.S.C. 6305; subpart H also issued under 5 U.S.C. 6326; subpart I

also issued under 5 U.S.C. 6332, Pub. L. 100-566, 102 Stat. 2834,

and Pub. L. 103-103, 107 Stat. 1022; subpart J also issued under 5

U.S.C. 6362, Pub. L. 100-566, and Pub. L. 103-103; subpart K also

issued under Pub. L. 102-25, 105 Stat. 92; and subpart L also issued

under 5 U.S.C. 6387 and Pub. L. 103-3, 107 Stat. 23.

Subpart C--Annual Leave

2. In Sec. 630.308, paragraph (a) is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 630.308 Scheduling of annual leave.

(a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section and

Sec. 630.310, before annual leave forfeited under section 6304 of title

5, United States Code, may be considered for restoration under that

section, use of the annual leave must have been scheduled in writing

before the start of the third biweekly pay period prior to the end of

the leave year.

* * * * *

3. A new Sec. 630.310 is added to read as follows:

Sec. 630.310 Scheduling of annual leave by employees determined

necessary for Year 2000 computer conversion efforts.

(a) Year 2000 computer conversion efforts are deemed to be an

exigency of the public business for the purpose of restoring annual

leave forfeited under 5 U.S.C. 6304. This exigency terminates on

January 31, 2000.

(b) For any employee who forfeits annual leave under 5 U.S.C. 6304

at the beginning of leave year 2000 because the agency determined the

employee's services were required during the Year 2000 computer

conversion exigency, the forfeited annual leave is deemed to have been

scheduled in advance for the purpose of 5 U.S.C. 6304(d)(1)(B) and

Sec. 630.208.

(c) Annual leave restored under 5 U.S.C. 6304(d) because of the

Year 2000 computer conversion exigency must be scheduled and used not

later than the end of leave year 2002.

(d) The time limits established under paragraphs (a) and (b) of

Sec. 630.308 for using previously restored annual leave do not apply

for the period during which an employee's services were determined

necessary for the completion of Year 2000 computer conversion efforts.

On January 31, 2000, a new time limit will be established under

paragraph (c) of this section for all annual leave restored to such an

employee.

(e) An employee whose services were determined necessary during the

Year 2000 computer conversion exigency for a portion of leave year

1999, but who subsequently moves to a position not involving Year 2000

computer conversion efforts, must make a reasonable effort to comply

with the scheduling requirement in Sec. 630.308(a). The head of the

agency or his or her designee may exempt such an employee from the

advance scheduling requirement in Sec. 630.308(a) if coverage under

paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section terminated during leave year

1999 and the employee can demonstrate that he or she was unable to

comply with the advance scheduling requirement due to circumstances

beyond his or her control.

[FR Doc. 99-14999 Filed 6-11-99; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6325-01-U