[Federal Register: August 28, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 166)]
[Notices]
[Page 50950-50952]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr28au06-77]
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OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT
Personnel Demonstration Project; Alternative Personnel Management
System for the U.S. Department of Commerce
AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.
ACTION: Notice of Expansion of the Department of Commerce Personnel
Management Demonstration Project.
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SUMMARY: Title VI of the Civil Service Reform Act, now codified in 5
U.S.C. 4703, authorizes the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to
conduct demonstration projects that experiment with new and different
human resources management concepts to determine whether changes in
policies and procedures result in improved Federal human resources
management. OPM approved a demonstration project covering several
operating units of the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC). OPM has
authority to implement new legislation affecting demonstration projects
(5 U.S.C. 4703 and 5 CFR 470.101(b) and 470.103). Modifications to the
demonstration project plan also require OPM approval (5 CFR 470.315).
As provided for in title II of Public Law 109-108, Department of
Commerce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2006, signed
November 22, 2005, this notice expands the coverage of the DOC
Demonstration Project to include up to 3,500 additional employees in
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) increasing
the total number of employees in NOAA to 6,925, as well as additional
NOAA organizations and locations. This expansion results in the total
number of employees covered by the DOC Demonstration Project to 8,500
individuals. This notice also serves to make changes to the plan to
accommodate the expansion. These changes include the addition of
specific occupational series, Departmental Personnel Management Board
composition, and pre-project cost formulas for the NOAA organizations
new to the demonstration project as part of the expansion.
DATES: This notice expanding the DOC Demonstration Project is effective
August 28, 2006.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Department of Commerce: Joan
Jorgenson, U.S. Department of Commerce, 14th and Constitution Avenue
NW., Room 5004, Washington, DC 20230, (202) 482-4233. Office of
Personnel Management: Jill Rajaee, U.S. Office of Personnel Management,
1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415, (202) 606-0836.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Background
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approved the DOC
Demonstration Project and published the final plan in the Federal
Register Volume 62, Number 247, Part II, on Wednesday, December 24,
1997. The project was implemented on March 29, 1998, and modified in
the Federal Register on Thursday, September 30, 1999, Volume 64, Number
189 [Notices] [Pages 52810-52812] and on Tuesday, August 12, 2003,
Volume 68, Number 155 [Notices] [Pages 47948-47949]. OPM approved a
request to extend the DOC Demonstration Project for 5 years as stated
in an administrative letter from OPM, dated February 14, 2003. The
project was approved for expansion in the Federal Register Volume 68,
Number 180 [Notices] [Pages 54505-54507], on Wednesday, September 17,
2003, to include an addition 1,505 employees. The demonstration project
was again modified on Tuesday, July 5, 2005, Volume 70, Number 127
[Notices] [Pages 38732-38733]. The demonstration project was again
modified on Monday, May 1, 2006, Volume 71, Number 83, [Notices] [Pages
25615-25616] to revise existing authorities for retention, recruitment
and relocation allowances.
The key features of the project involve increased delegation of
authority and accountability to line managers, simplified
classification and broad banding, pay for performance, hiring and pay-
setting flexibility, and modified reduction-in-force procedures.
2. Overview
This notice serves to list all NOAA organizations and their
locations that will be included in the DOC Demonstration Project. This
notice also lists additional occupational series that will be included
in the DOC Demonstration Project. Additional changes to the plan are
made to accommodate the expansion. These changes include composition of
the Departmental Personnel Management Board, pre-project cost formulas
for new organizations entering the demonstration project during this
expansion phase, and edits to the pay administration provisions to
reflect the use of law enforcement officer special base rates under
section 403 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990
(Pub. L. 101-509) for certain law enforcement officers that will be
added to the project through this expansion. This notice also
incorporates minor changes to the pay administration provisions for
consistency with the amendments made to the General Schedule pay-
setting rules by the Federal Workforce Flexibility Act of 2004 (Pub. L.
108-411) and OPM's implementing regulations. The Department of Commerce
will follow the project plan as published in the Federal Register dated
December 24, 1997, and subsequent modifications as listed in the
Background Section of this notice.
Office of Personnel Management.
Linda M. Springer,
Director.
Table of Contents
I. Executive Summary
II. Basis of Project Plan Expansion
III. Changes to the Project Plan
I. Executive Summary
The Department of Commerce (DOC) Demonstration Project utilizes
many features similar to those implemented by the National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST) Demonstration Project in 1988. The DOC
Demonstration Project supports several key objectives: to simplify the
classification system for greater flexibility in classifying work and
paying employees; to establish a performance management and rewards
system for improving individual and organizational performance; and to
improve recruiting and examining to attract highly qualified candidates
and hire them more quickly. The DOC Demonstration Project is designed
to test whether the interventions of the NIST project, which is now a
permanent alternative system, could be successful in other DOC
environments. The current participating organizations include six
offices of the Chief Financial Officer/Assistant Secretary of
Administration in the Office of the Secretary, Technology
Administration, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the Institute for
Telecommunication Sciences, and five units of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration: Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research,
National Marine Fisheries Service, the National Environmental
Satellite, Data,
[[Page 50951]]
and Information Service, the National Weather Service and the NOAA
Office of Program Planning and Integration.
II. Basis of Project Plan Expansion
A. Purpose
The DOC Demonstration Project is designed to provide managers at
the lowest organizational level, the authority, control and flexibility
needed to recruit, retain, develop, recognize and motivate its
workforce, while ensuring adequate accountability and oversight.
Expansion of the DOC Demonstration Project will allow the Department to
broaden the scope of this test to additional organizations with
different missions. This should improve the Department assessment of
the effectiveness of its interventions in its efforts to compete more
effectively for high quality personnel while strengthening the
manager's role in human resources management. All provisions of the DOC
Demonstration Project plan, as published in the Federal Register, dated
December 24, 1997, and subsequent published modifications, will apply.
B. Participating Employees
Employee notification of this expansion proposal is being
accomplished by providing a full set of briefings to employees and
managers and providing electronic access to all DOC Demonstration
Project policies, procedures, evaluations and published Federal
Register notices on the project plan and subsequent modifications. We
will also provide employees with a copy of this proposed Federal
Register notice upon approval. Subsequent supervisor training and
informational briefings for all employees will be accomplished prior to
the implementation of the expansion.
C. Labor Participation
Labor organizations are being separately notified about the
project's expansion pertaining to their bargaining unit membership. DOC
is proceeding to fulfill its obligation in accordance with 5 U.S.C.
4703(f).
III. Changes to the Project Plan
A. Section VII. Project Management
The Departmental Personnel Management Board (DPMB) will expand to
include additional board DPMB members representing the new major
operating units included in the project. It is the intent of the DOC to
ensure the composition of the board DPMB reflects the diversity of
employee groups to ensure the objectives of the demonstration project
are achieved in an equitable and consistent manner.
B. Section V B. Base Cost Assessment
The current plan identifies Fiscal Years (FY) 1994, 1995, and 1996
as the basis of analysis of pre-project costs to determine whether
project costs are being maintained at acceptable levels. For those
organizations that have never participated in the demonstration
project, costs will be computed as annual averages over the past three
pre-project fiscal years immediately preceding implementation. For
those NOAA organizations that are already part of the demonstration
project, costs will continue to be computed using FY 1994--1996.
C. Section II D. Participating Organizations
The following organizations will be added to the project plan,
Section II D Participating Organizations:
Within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, up to
3,500 new GS/GM employees from the following offices and locations will
be added to the DOC Demonstration Project as part of the expansion:
Office of the Under Secretary, non-bargaining unit employees, all
locations
Office of Program Analysis and Evaluation, all locations
Office of Human Resources, all locations
Office of Chief Financial Officer, all locations
Office of Chief Administrative Officer, non-bargaining unit employees,
all locations
Office of Sustainable Development, all locations
National Ocean Service, non-bargaining unit employees, all locations
NOAA Marine and Aviation Office, all locations
Within the Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research:
Climate Program Office, Silver Spring, MD
Within the National Marine Fisheries Service:
Office of Seafood Inspection, non-bargaining unit employees, all
locations
Office of Law Enforcement, all locations
Additional employees in the following organizations:
Southeast Fisheries Science Center, all locations
Northwest Fisheries Science Center, all locations
Alaska Fisheries Science Center, all locations
D. Section II F. Labor Participation
The following bargaining units are added to Table 4--Bargaining
Unit Coverage.
NMAO............................ Norfolk, VA....... IBEW Local 80
CFO............................. Boulder, CO....... AFGE Local 2186
NMFS-SEFSC...................... Miami, FL......... AFGE Local 2875
Panama City, FL... NAGE R--106
NMFS-NWFSC...................... All Locations..... IFPTE Local 8A
NMFS-AKFSC...................... Seattle, WA....... IFPTE Local 8A
E. Section II E. Participating Employees
The following series are added to Table 2:
Scientific and Engineering (ZP) Career Path
0415, Toxicology Series
0199, Social Science Student Trainee Series
Administrative (ZA) Career Path
0028, Environmental Protection Specialist Series
0199, Social Science Student Trainee Series
0399, Administrative Trainee Series
0511, Auditing Series
1601, General Facilities and Equipment Series
1071, Audiovisual Production Series
1710, Education and Vocational Training Series
1801, General Inspection, Investigation and Compliance Series
1811, Criminal Investigating Series
1812, Game Law Enforcement Series
2003, Supply Program Management Series
Support (ZS) Career Path
1603, Equipment, Facilities and Services Assistant Series
1001, General Arts and Information Series
0119, Economics Assistant Series
F. This section provides changes to the project plan to accommodate
law enforcement officer special base rates and the recent changes to
the General Schedule pay administration rules. The following page
numbers refer to the pages of the project plan, published December 24,
1997, in the Federal Register.
(1) Page 67448: Section III.A.3. In third sentence, insert ``under
5 U.S.C. 5305'' after first ``special rate''. After third sentence,
insert ``For a law enforcement officer (LEO) covered by special base
rates under section 403 of the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act
of 1990 (section 529 of Public Law 101-509, November 5, 1990, as
amended), when the minimum or maximum grade in the LEO's band is any
one of grades GS-3 through GS-10 (e.g., ZA Bands I and II), the band's
minimum and maximum rate of pay will be set for that LEO using
applicable
[[Page 50952]]
LEO special base rates, as adjusted by the applicable locality
payment.''
(2) Page 67452: Section III.D.5.--In the first sentence, insert
``LEO special base rate,'' after ``GS rate,''.
(3) Page 67452. Section III.D.6. In the second sentence, insert
``GS base'' after ``maximum'' and ``or LEO special base rates'' before
``of each band''. In the third sentence, insert ``under 5 U.S.C. 5305''
after ``special rates''.
(4) Page 67452: Section III.D.7. Replace ``special salary rate''
with ``special rate'' throughout paragraph 7. In the first sentence,
insert ``under 5 U.S.C. 5305'' before ``will be used''. In the second
sentence, replace ``5 CFR 530.303'' with ``5 CFR 530.304''.
(5) Page 67453: Section III.D.13. In the second sentence, insert
``GS base rate, LEO special base rate,'' before ``locality rate'' in
the parenthetical.
(6) Page 67453: Section III.D. 14. In the second sentence, insert
``GS base rate, LEO special base rate,'' before ``locality rate'' in
the parenthetical.
(7) Page 67455: Section IV.A.1. In the first sentence, insert ``or
LEO special base schedule'' after ``GS base schedule'' in the
parenthetical.
(8) Page 67455: Section IV.B.2. In the first sentence, insert ``or
LEO special base schedule'' after ``GS base schedule'' in the
parenthetical.
(9) Page 67455: Section IV.B.3. In the third sentence, insert ``or
LEO special base rate'' after ``GS base rate''. Delete the last
parenthetical.
(10) Page 67455--67456: Section IV.B.5. Delete all text in
paragraph 5. after the first sentence.
(11) Page 67456; Section IV.B.6. In the second sentence, replace
``GS rate'' with ``GS rates'' and delete ``of basic pay (or converted
special rate, if applicable)''.
(12) Page 67456. Section IV.C. Replace last sentence with ``(See 5
CFR 531.407(b) for additional information on equivalent increase
determinations.)''
[FR Doc. 06-7210 Filed 8-24-06; 11:07 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-43-P