Prevailing Rate Systems; Abolishment of the King, Washington, Nonappropriated Fund Wage Area

OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Part 532

RIN 3206-AI75

Prevailing Rate Systems; Abolishment of the King, Washington,

Nonappropriated Fund Wage Area

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Proposed rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management is issuing a proposed rule

that would abolish the King, Washington, nonappropriated fund (NAF)

Federal Wage System (FWS) wage area, establish a new Snohomish, WA, NAF

FWS wage area, and remove Whatcom County, WA, as an area of

application. The abolishment of the King wage area and the

establishment of a new Snohomish wage area is necessary because of the

closure of the King wage area's host installation, Naval Station Puget

Sound. This closure has left the Department of Defense without an

installation in the survey area capable of hosting annual local wage

surveys. The removal of Whatcom County is necessary because there are

no longer any NAF FWS employees stationed in the county.

DATES: Comments must be received by December 15, 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 e-mail at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Because of the closure of the King,

Washington, nonappropriated fund (NAF) wage area's host activity, Naval

Station Puget Sound (NSPS), the Department of Defense (DOD) no longer

has an activity in the survey area with the capability to conduct

annual local NAF wage surveys. DOD recommended that the Office of

Personnel Management (OPM) abolish the King, WA, NAF wage area and

establish a new Snohomish, WA, NAF wage area. DOD also recommended that

Whatcom County be removed from an NAF wage area definition because

Blaine Air Force Station has closed, and there are no longer any NAF

FWS employees stationed in Whatcom County. Under section

5343(a)(1)(B)(i) of title 5, United States Code, NAF wage areas ``shall

not extend beyond the immediate locality in which the particular

prevailing rate employees are employed.'' Therefore, Whatcom County

should not be defined as part of an NAF wage area. The King wage area

is presently composed of one survey county, King County, and four area

of application counties, Island, Snohomish, Whatcom, and Yakima

Counties, WA. The new Snohomish, WA, NAF wage area would be composed of

one survey county, Snohomish County, and three area of application

counties, Island, King, and Yakima Counties, WA.

Under section 532.219(b) of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations,

NAF wage areas are established when there are a minimum of 26 NAF wage

employees in the survey area, the local activity has the capability to

host annual local wage surveys, and there are within the survey area a

minimum of 1,800 private enterprise employees in establishments within

survey specifications. NSPS ceased operations in the summer of 1996 and

relocated to Naval Station Everett in Snohomish County, WA. During this

time, a full-scale wage survey was scheduled to begin in the King NAF

wage area in July 1996. Because the host installation relocated, the

local wage survey committee had to conduct the King survey from Naval

Station Everett in Snohomish County. King County does not have another

activity in the King survey area to host annual local wage surveys.

However, Snohomish County meets the regulatory requirements to be

established as a separate NAF survey area. There are approximately 103

NAF FWS employees stationed at Naval Station Everett, and the base has

the capability to host annual local wage surveys. Also, Snohomish

County has more than the required minimum number of private enterprise

employees in establishments within survey specifications.

Section 532.219 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, lists the

following criteria that OPM considers when defining FWS wage area

boundaries:

(i) Proximity of largest activity in each county;

(ii) Transportation facilities and commuting patterns; and

(iii) Similarities of the counties in:

(A) Overall population;

(B) Private employment in major industry categories; and

(C) Kinds and sizes of private industrial establishments.

The closest major Federal installation to NSPS is Naval Station

Everett. NSPS is approximately 45 km (28 miles) from Naval Station

Everett. Commuting patterns indicate that 4 percent of the King County

resident workforce commutes to Everett County. Transportation

facilities consist of major interstate and highways and do not favor

one county more than another. Also, a review of the similarities of the

counties does not favor one county more than another. Based on an

analysis of these regulatory criteria, OPM proposes to establish

Snohomish, WA, as a new NAF wage area and define Island, King, and

Yakima Counties, WA, as areas of application.

Full-scale wage surveys would be ordered in the Snohomish, WA, NAF

wage area in July of even fiscal years, with the first full-scale wage

survey for the Snohomish wage area beginning in July 2000. The Federal

Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee, the national labor-management

committee responsible for advising OPM on matters concerning the pay of

FWS employees, has reviewed and concurred by consensus with these

changes.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

I certify that this regulation would not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because it

would 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.

[[Page 61794]]

Office of Personnel Management.

Janice R. Lachance,

Director.

Accordingly, the Office of Personnel Management proposes to amend 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.

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

Washington by removing the entry for ``King'' and by adding

alphabetically a new entry for ``Snohomish'' with a beginning survey

month of ``July'' and a fiscal year of full-scale survey of ``Even'.

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

listing for King, Washington, and by adding alphabetically a new entry

for Snohomish, Washington, to read as follows:

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

Survey Areas

* * * * *

WASHINGTON

* * * * *

SNOHOMISH

Survey Area

Washington:

Snohomish

Area of Application. Survey area plus:

Washington:

Island

King

Yakima

* * * * *

[FR Doc. 99-29685 Filed 11-12-99; 8:45 am]

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