Prevailing Rate Systems; Abolishment of the Dubuque, IA Appropriated Fund Wage Area

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 532

RIN 3206-AI90

Prevailing Rate Systems; Abolishment of the Dubuque, IA

Appropriated Fund Wage Area

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Interim rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management is issuing an interim rule

that will remove the requirement that a full-scale wage survey be

conducted in the Dubuque, Iowa, Federal Wage System (FWS) wage area. It

will also abolish the Dubuque, IA, FWS wage area and redefine the

counties of Clinton, Dubuque, and Jackson, IA, and Carroll, Jo Daviess,

and Whiteside, Illinois, to the area of application of the Davenport-

Rock Island-Moline, IA, FWS wage area. The interim rule is necessary

because of the pending closure of the Dubuque wage area's host

installation, the Savannah Army Depot, which is no longer capable of

hosting annual wage surveys.

DATES: Effective date: This interim rule is effective on October 31,

1999. Applicability date: Employees in the Dubuque wage area will be

transferred to the Davenport wage area on the first day of the first

applicable pay period beginning on or after December 19, 1999. Comments

must be received by December 6, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Send or deliver comments to Donald J. Winstead, Assistant

Director for Compensation Administration, Workforce Compensation and

Performance Service, Office of Personnel Management, Room 7H31, 1900 E

Street NW., Washington, DC 20415-8200, or FAX: (202) 606-4264.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennifer Hopkins by phone at (202)

606-2848, by FAX at (202) 606-0824, or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Because of the pending closure of the

Savannah Army Depot, the Department of Defense (DOD) has requested that

the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) abolish the requirement to

conduct a full-scale wage survey in the Dubuque wage area. DOD has also

requested that OPM abolish the Dubuque wage area and redefine its

counties to the Davenport, IA, FWS wage area. The Dubuque wage area is

presently composed of six survey counties: Clinton, Dubuque, and

Jackson, IA, and Carroll, Jo Daviess, and Whiteside, IL.

The Dubuque wage area's host installation, the Savannah Army Depot,

is preparing to close in March 2000. This closure will leave the lead

agency, DOD, without an installation in the survey area capable of

hosting annual local wage surveys. A full-scale wage survey is

scheduled to begin in the Dubuque wage area in October 1999. Since the

host installation is preparing to close and is downsizing its

operations, it no longer has the capacity to host the annual local

full-scale wage survey.

Under section 5343 of title 5, United States Code, OPM is

responsible for defining wage areas and follows regulatory criteria

under section 532.211 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations. Under

the regulatory criteria, OPM considers the following factors when

defining wage areas:

(i) Distance, transportation facilities, and geographical features;

(ii) Commuting patterns; and

(iii) Similarities in overall population, employment, and the kinds

and sizes of private industrial establishments.

Based on an analysis of these regulatory criteria, OPM is defining

the Dubuque wage area to the area of application of the Davenport wage

area. The closest major Federal installation to the Savannah Army Depot

is the Rock Island Arsenal in the Davenport survey area, which is

approximately 113 km (70 miles) away. Transportation facilities,

geographic features, and commuting patterns do not favor one wage area

more than another. A review of overall population, employment, and

kinds and sizes of private industrial establishment shows that the

Dubuque wage area has a population and workforce that most closely

resemble the population and workforce of the Davenport survey area. The

Dubuque survey area is similar to the Davenport survey area in terms of

the distribution of employment in surveyable industries, with a high

proportion of employment in the manufacturing sector.

The Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee, the national labor-

management committee responsible for advising OPM on matters concerning

the pay of FWS employees, reviewed these recommendations and by

consensus recommended approval of these changes.

Waiver of Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

Pursuant to section 553(b)(3)(B) of title 5, United States Code, I

find good cause exists for waiving the general notice of proposed

rulemaking. Also, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d)(3) I find that good cause

exists for making this rule effective in less than 30 days. The notice

is being waived and the regulation is being made effective in less than

30 days because the Dubuque wage survey would otherwise be ordered in

October 1999 and preparations for the wage survey must begin

immediately.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

I certify that these regulations will not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because they

will affect only Federal agencies and employees.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 532

Administrative practice and procedure, Freedom of information,

Government employees, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Wages.

U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Janice R. Lachance

Director.

Accordingly, the Office of Personnel Management is amending 5 CFR

part 532 as follows:

PART 532--PREVAILING RATE SYSTEMS

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.

[[Page 60088]]

Appendix A to Subpart B--[Amended]

2. Appendix A to subpart B of part 532 is amended for the State of

Iowa by removing the entry for Dubuque.

3. Appendix C to subpart B is amended by removing the wage area

listing for Dubuque, Iowa, and revising the Davenport-Rock Island-

Moline, IA, listing to read as follows:

Appendix C to Subpart B of Part 532--Appropriated Fund Wage and

Survey Areas

* * * * *

Iowa

* * * * *

Davenport-Rock Island-Moline

Survey Area

Iowa:

Scott

Illinois:

Henry

Rock Island

Area of Application. Survey Area Plus

Iowa:

Clinton

Des Moines

Dubuque

Jackson

Lee

Louisa

Muscatine

Illinois:

Adams

Brown

Bureau

Carroll

Cass

Fulton

Hancock

Henderson

Jo Daviess

Knox

McDonough

Marshall

Mason

Mercer

Peoria

Putnam

Schuyler

Stark

Tazewell

Warren

Whiteside

Woodford

[FR Doc. 99-28875 Filed 11-3-99; 8:45 am]

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