5 U.S.C. § 5754 — Retention bonuses

Page 758 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 5754 [Pub. L. 117–328, div. K, title VII, § 7034(l)(1), Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5032, provided that: ‘‘The authority con- tained in section 1115(d) of the Supplemental Appro- priations Act, 2009 (Public Law 111–32) [set out above] shall remain in effect through September 30, 2023.’’] § 5754. Retention bonuses (a)(1) This section may be applied to— (A) employees covered by the General Sched- ule pay system established under subchapter III of chapter 53; and (B) employees in a category approved by the Office of Personnel Management at the re- quest of the head of an Executive agency. (2) A bonus may not be paid under this section to an individual who is appointed to or who holds— (A) a position to which an individual is ap- pointed by the President, by and with the ad- vice and consent of the Senate, excluding members of the Foreign Service other than chiefs of mission and ambassadors at large; (B) a position in the Senior Executive Serv- ice as a noncareer appointee (as such term is defined under section 3132(a)); or (C) a position which has been excepted from the competitive service by reason of its con- fidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character. (3) In this section, the term ‘‘employee’’ has the meaning given that term in section 2105, ex- cept that such term also includes an employee described in subsection (c) of that section. (b) The Office of Personnel Management may authorize the head of an agency to pay a reten- tion bonus to an employee if— (1) the unusually high or unique qualifica- tions of the employee or a special need of the agency for the employee’s services makes it essential to retain the employee; and (2) the agency determines that, in the ab- sence of a retention bonus, the employee would be likely to leave— (A) the Federal service; or (B) for a different position in the Federal service under conditions described in regula- tions of the Office. (c) The Office may authorize the head of an agency to pay retention bonuses to a group of employees in 1 or more categories of positions in 1 or more geographic areas, subject to the re- quirements of subsection (b)(1) and regulations prescribed by the Office, if there is a high risk that a significant portion of employees in the group would be likely to leave in the absence of retention bonuses. (d)(1) Payment of a retention bonus is contin- gent upon the employee entering into a written service agreement with the agency to complete a period of employment with the agency. (2)(A) The agreement shall include— (i) the length of the required service period; (ii) the amount of the bonus; (iii) the method of payment; and (iv) other terms and conditions under which the bonus is payable, subject to the require- ments of this section and regulations of the Office. (B) The terms and conditions for paying a bonus, as specified in the service agreement, shall include— (i) the conditions under which the agree- ment may be terminated before the agreed- upon service period has been completed; and (ii) the effect of the termination. (3)(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a writ- ten service agreement is not required if the agency pays a retention bonus in biweekly in- stallments and sets the installment payment at the full bonus percentage rate established for the employee with no portion of the bonus de- ferred. (B) If an agency pays a retention bonus in ac- cordance with subparagraph (A) and makes a de- termination to terminate the payments, the agency shall provide written notice to the em- ployee of that determination. Except as pro- vided in regulations of the Office, the employee shall continue to be paid the retention bonus through the end of the pay period in which such written notice is provided. (4) A retention bonus for an employee may not be based on any period of such service which is the basis for a recruitment or relocation bonus under section 5753. (e)(1) Except as provided in subsection (f), a re- tention bonus, which shall be stated as a per- centage of the employee’s basic pay for the serv- ice period associated with the bonus, may not exceed— (A) 25 percent of the employee’s basic pay if paid under subsection (b); or (B) 10 percent of an employee’s basic pay if paid under subsection (c). (2)(A) A retention bonus may be paid to an em- ployee in installments after completion of speci- fied periods of service or in a single lump sum at the end of the full period of service required by the agreement. (B) An installment payment is derived by mul- tiplying the amount of basic pay earned in the installment period by a percentage not to exceed the bonus percentage rate established for the employee. (C) If the installment payment percentage es- tablished for the employee is less than the bonus percentage rate established for the employee, the accrued but unpaid portion of the bonus is payable as part of the final installment payment to the employee after completion of the full service period under the terms of the service agreement. (D) For purposes of this paragraph, the bonus percentage rate established for an employee means the bonus percentage rate established for such employee in accordance with paragraph (1) or subsection (f), as the case may be. (3) A retention bonus is not part of the basic pay of an employee for any purpose. (f) Upon the request of the head of an agency, the Office may waive the limit established under subsection (e)(1) and permit the agency head to pay an otherwise eligible employee or category of employees retention bonuses of up to 50 per- cent of basic pay, based on a critical agency need. (g) The Office shall require that, before paying any bonuses under this section, an agency shall establish a plan for the payment of any such bo- nuses, subject to regulations prescribed by the Office. Page 759 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 5756 (h) The Office may prescribe regulations to carry out this section. (Added Pub. L. 108–411, title I, § 101(a)(1), Oct. 30, 2004, 118 Stat. 2307; amended Pub. L. 114–323, title IV, § 412(2), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1932.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The General Schedule, referred to in subsec. (a)(1)(A), is set out under section 5332 of this title. PRIOR PROVISIONS A prior section 5754, added Pub. L. 101–509, title V, § 529 [title II, § 208(a)], Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1427, 1459, which related to retention allowances, was repealed by Pub. L. 108–411, title I, § 101(a)(1), Oct. 30, 2004, 118 Stat. 2305. AMENDMENTS 2016—Subsec. (a)(2)(A). Pub. L. 114–323 inserted ‘‘, excluding members of the Foreign Service other than chiefs of mission and ambassadors at large’’ before semicolon at end. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the first day of the first applica- ble pay period beginning on or after the 180th day after Oct. 30, 2004, with exception for payment of certain re- tention allowances, see section 101(d) of Pub. L. 108–411, set out as a note under section 5753 of this title. § 5755. Supervisory differentials (a)(1) The Office of Personnel Management may authorize the head of an agency to pay a differential to an employee under the General Schedule who has supervisory responsibility for 1 or more employees not under the General Schedule, if 1 or more of the subordinate em- ployees would, in the absence of such a differen- tial, be paid more than the supervisory em- ployee. (2) For the purposes of comparing the pay of a supervisory employee under the General Sched- ule with the pay of a subordinate employee not under the General Schedule, comparability pay- ments under section 5304, differentials, and al- lowances that are not a part of basic pay may be taken into consideration, as provided by regula- tions of the Office. (b)(1) A supervisory differential, which shall be stated as a percentage of the supervisory em- ployee’s rate of basic pay (excluding any com- parability payments under section 5304) or as a dollar amount, may not cause the supervisory employee’s pay to exceed the pay of the highest paid subordinate employee by more than 3 per- cent. (2) A supervisory differential may not be con- sidered to be part of the basic pay of an em- ployee, and the reduction or elimination of a su- pervisory differential may not be appealed. The preceding sentence shall not be construed to ex- tinguish or lessen any right or remedy under subchapter II of chapter 12 or under any of the laws referred to in section 2302(d). (3) A supervisory differential shall be paid in the same manner and at the same time as the employee’s basic pay is paid. (c) For the purpose of this section— (1) the terms ‘‘agency’’ and ‘‘employee’’ have the meanings given them by section 5102; and (2) any reference to ‘‘an employee under the General Schedule’’ shall be considered to be a reference to any employee holding a position to which subchapter III of chapter 53 applies. (d) The Office shall prescribe such regulations as it considers necessary for the administration of this section. (Added Pub. L. 101–509, title V, § 529 [title II, § 211(a)], Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1427, 1461; amend- ed Pub. L. 115–73, title I, § 107(a)(2)(B), Oct. 26, 2017, 131 Stat. 1239; Pub. L. 115–91, div. A, title X, § 1097(b)(3)(B), Dec. 12, 2017, 131 Stat. 1617.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The General Schedule, referred to in subsecs. (a)(1), (2) and (c)(2), is set out under section 5332 of this title. AMENDMENTS 2017—Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 115–91 substituted ‘‘sec- tion 2302(d)’’ for ‘‘section 2302(c)’’. Pub. L. 115–73 substituted ‘‘section 2302(c)’’ for ‘‘sec- tion 2302(d)’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on such date as the President shall determine, but not earlier than 90 days, and not later than 180 days, after Nov. 5, 1990, see section 529 [title III, § 305] of Pub. L. 101–509, set out as an Effective Date of 1990 Amendment note under section 5301 of this title. § 5756. Home marketing incentive payment (a) Under regulations prescribed under sub- section (b), an agency may pay to an employee who transfers in the interest of the Government an amount to encourage the employee to aggres- sively market the employee’s residence at the official station from which transferred when— (1) the residence is entered into a relocation services program established under a contract in accordance with section 5724c of this title to arrange for the purchase of the residence; (2) the employee finds a buyer who com- pletes the purchase of the residence through the program; and (3) the sale of the residence results in a re- duced cost to the Government. (b)(1) The Administrator of General Services shall prescribe regulations to carry out this sec- tion. (2) The regulations shall include a limitation on the maximum amount payable with respect to an employee’s residence. The Administrator shall establish the limitation in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. For fiscal years 1997 and 1998, the maximum amount shall be the amount equal to five percent of the sale price of the residence. (Added Pub. L. 104–201, div. A, title XVII, § 1717, Sept. 23, 1996, 110 Stat. 2757.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective 180 days after Sept. 23, 1996, see sec- tion 1725(a) of Pub. L. 104–201, set out as an Effective