Pub. L. 105-55, tit. III, sec. 310

Sec. 310. (a) Severance Pay.—Section 5595 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (a)(1)— (A) in subparagraph (D) by striking “and” after the semicolon; and (B) by adding after subparagraph (E) the following new subparagraph: “(F) the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, but only with respect to the United States Senate Restaurants; and”; (2) in subsection (a)(2)— (A) in clause (vii) by striking “or” after the semicolon; (B) by redesignating clause (viii) as clause (ix) and inserting after clause (vii) the following: “(viii) an employee of the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, who is employed on a temporary when actually employed basis; or”; and (3) in subsection (b) by adding at the end the following: “The Architect of the Capitol may prescribe regulations to effect the application and operation of this section to the agency specified in subsection (a)(1)(F) of this section.”. (b) Early Retirement.—(1) This subsection applies to an employee of the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol who— (A) voluntarily separates from service on or after the date of enactment of this Act and before October 1, 1999; and (B) on such date of separation— (i) has completed 25 years of service as defined under section 8331(12) or 8401(26) of title 5, United States Code; or (ii) has completed 20 years of such service and is at least 50 years of age. (2) Notwithstanding any provision of chapter 83 or 84 of title 5, United States Code, an employee described under paragraph (1) is entitled to an annuity which shall be computed consistent with the provisions of law applicable to annuities under section 8336(d) or 8414(b) of title 5, United States Code. (c) Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments.—(1) In this subsection, the term “employee” means an employee of the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, serving without limitation, who has been currently employed for a continuous period of at least 12 months, except that such term shall not include— (A) a reemployed annuitant under subchapter III of chapter 83 or chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code, or another retirement system for employees of the Government; (B) an employee having a disability on the basis of which such employee is or would be eligible for disability retirement under any of the retirement systems referred to in subparagraph (A); or (C) an employee who is employed on a temporary when actually employed basis. (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in order to avoid or minimize the need for involuntary separations due to a reduction in force, reorganization, transfer of function, or other similar action affecting the agency, the Architect of the Capitol 111 STAT. 1200shall establish a program under which voluntary separation incentive payments may be offered to encourage not more than 50 eligible employees to separate from service voluntarily (whether by retirement or resignation) during the period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act through September 30, 1999. (3) Such voluntary separation incentive payments shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of section 5597(d) of title 5, United States Code. Any such payment shall not be a basis of payment, and shall not be included in the computation, of any other type of Government benefit. (4)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), an employee who has received a voluntary separation incentive payment under this section and accepts employment with the Government of the United States within 5 years after the date of the separation on which the payment is based shall be required to repay the entire amount of the incentive payment to the agency that paid the incentive payment. (B)(i) If the employment is with an executive agency (as defined by section 105 of title 5, United States Code), the Director of the Office of Personnel Management may, at the request of the head of the agency, waive the repayment if the individual involved possesses unique abilities and is the only qualified applicant available for the position. (ii) If the employment is with an entity in the legislative branch, the head of the entity or the appointing official may waive the repayment if the individual involved possesses unique abilities and is the only qualified applicant available for the position. (iii) If the employment is with the judicial branch, the Director of the Administrative Office of the United States Courts may waive the repayment if the individual involved possesses unique abilities and is the only qualified applicant available for the position. (C) For purposes of subparagraph (A) (but not subparagraph (B)), the term “employment” includes employment under a personal services contract with the United States. (5) The Architect of the Capitol may prescribe regulations to carry out this subsection. (d) Competitive Service Treatment for Certain Employees.—(1) This subsection applies to any employee of the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol who— (A) is involuntarily separated from service on or after the date of the enactment of this Act and before October 1, 1999 (except by removal for cause on charges of misconduct or delinquency); and (B) has performed any period of service employed in the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (including the United States Senate Restaurants) in a position in the excepted service as defined under section 2103 of title 5, United States Code. (2) For purposes of applying for employment for any position in the executive branch (including for purposes of the administration of chapter 33 of title 5, United States Code, with respect to such employment application), any period of service described under paragraph (1KB) of this subsection shall be deemed a period of service in the competitive service as defined under section 2102 of title 5, United States Code. (3) This subsection shall— (A) take effect on the date of enactment of this Act; and111 STAT. 1201 (B) apply only to an employment application submitted by an employee during the 2-year period beginning on the date of such employee’s separation from service described under paragraph (1)(A). (e) Retraining, Job Placement, and Counseling Services.— (1) In this subsection, the term “employee”— (A) means an employee of the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol; and (B) shall not include— (i) a reemployed annuitant under subchapter III of chapter 83 or chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code, or another retirement system for employees of the Government; or (ii) an employee who is employed on a temporary when actually employed basis. (2) The Architect of the Capitol may establish a program to provide retraining, job placement, and counseling services to employees and former employees. (3) A former employee may not participate in a program established under this subsection, if— (A) the former employee was separated from service with the United States Senate Restaurants of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol for more than 1 year; or (B) the separation was by removal for cause on charges of misconduct or delinquency. (4) Retraining costs for the program established under this subsection may not exceed $5,000 for each employee or former employee. (f) Administrative Provisions.—(1) The Architect of the Capitol— (A) may use employees of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol to establish and administer programs and carry out the provisions of this section; and (B) may procure temporary and intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, to carry out such provisions— (i) not subject to the 1 year of service limitation under such section 3109(b); and (ii) at rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such title. (2) Funds to carry out subsections (a) and (c) may be expended only from funds available for the basic pay of the employee who is receiving the applicable payment. (3) Funds to carry out subsection (e) may be expended from any funds made available to the Architect of the Capitol.