5 U.S.C. § 1211 — Establishment

Page 275 TITLE 5—GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES § 1212 Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF REPEAL Repeal of sections effective 90 days following Apr. 10, 1989, see section 11 of Pub. L. 101–12, set out as an Effec- tive Date of 1989 Amendment note under section 1201 of this title. [§ 1209. Renumbered §§ 1205 and 1206] Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Subsecs. (a) and (b) of this section were renumbered as sections 1205 and 1206, respectively, of this title by Pub. L. 101–12, § 3(a)(9), (10). Pub. L. 102–378, § 2(2), Oct. 2, 1992, 106 Stat. 1346, struck out section catchline of prior section 1209. SUBCHAPTER II—OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL § 1211. Establishment (a) There is established the Office of Special Counsel, which shall be headed by the Special Counsel. The Office shall have an official seal which shall be judicially noticed. The Office shall have its principal office in the District of Columbia and shall have field offices in other appropriate locations. (b) The Special Counsel shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and con- sent of the Senate, for a term of 5 years. The Special Counsel may continue to serve beyond the expiration of the term until a successor is appointed and has qualified, except that the Special Counsel may not continue to serve for more than one year after the date on which the term of the Special Counsel would otherwise ex- pire under this subsection. The Special Counsel shall be an attorney who, by demonstrated abil- ity, background, training, or experience, is espe- cially qualified to carry out the functions of the position. A Special Counsel appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the end of a term of of- fice of the Special Counsel’s predecessor serves for the remainder of the term. The Special Counsel may be removed by the President only for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office. The Special Counsel may not hold an- other office or position in the Government of the United States, except as otherwise provided by law or at the direction of the President. (Added Pub. L. 101–12, § 3(a)(11), Apr. 10, 1989, 103 Stat. 19, § 1211(a), and Pub. L. 95–454, title II, § 202(a), Oct. 13, 1978, 92 Stat. 1122, § 1204; renum- bered § 1211(b) and amended Pub. L. 101–12, § 3(a)(6), (12), Apr. 10, 1989, 103 Stat. 17, 19; Pub. L. 103–424, § 3(a), Oct. 29, 1994, 108 Stat. 4361.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–424 inserted after first sentence ‘‘The Special Counsel may continue to serve beyond the expiration of the term until a successor is appointed and has qualified, except that the Special Counsel may not continue to serve for more than one year after the date on which the term of the Special Counsel would otherwise expire under this subsection.’’ 1989—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 101–12, § 3(a)(6), (12), renum- bered section 1204 of this title as subsec. (b) of this sec- tion, substituted ‘‘Special Counsel shall be appointed by the President’’ for ‘‘Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board shall be appointed by the President from attorneys’’, substituted ‘‘The Special Counsel shall be an attorney who, by demonstrated ability, background, training, or experience, is espe- cially qualified to carry out the functions of the posi- tion. A Special Counsel appointed to fill a vacancy oc- curring before the end of a term of office of the Special Counsel’s predecessor serves for the remainder of the term.’’ for ‘‘A Special Counsel appointed to fill a va- cancy occurring before the end of a term of office of his predecessor serves for the remainder of the term.’’, and inserted at end ‘‘The Special Counsel may not hold an- other office or position in the Government of the United States, except as otherwise provided by law or at the direction of the President.’’ Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Subchapter effective 90 days following Apr. 10, 1989, see section 11 of Pub. L. 101–12, set out as a note under section 1201 of this title. ALLEGATIONS OF WRONGDOING AGAINST SPECIAL COUNSEL OR DEPUTY SPECIAL COUNSEL Pub. L. 110–409, § 7(b), Oct. 14, 2008, 122 Stat. 4312, which provided for review by the Integrity Committee of allegations of wrongdoing against the Special Coun- sel or the Deputy Special Counsel, was repealed by Pub. L. 114–317, § 7(a)(1), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1605. See sec- tion 424(d)(12) of this title. TRANSFER OF FUNDS Pub. L. 101–12, § 8(c), Apr. 10, 1989, 103 Stat. 34, pro- vided that: ‘‘The personnel, assets, liabilities, con- tracts, property, records, and unexpended balances of appropriations, authorizations, allocations, and other funds employed, held, used, arising from, available or to be made available to the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board are, subject to section 1531 of title 31, United States Code, transferred to the Special Counsel referred to in section 1211 of title 5, United States Code (as added by section 3(a) of this Act), for appropriate allocation.’’ § 1212. Powers and functions of the Office of Spe- cial Counsel (a) The Office of Special Counsel shall— (1) in accordance with section 1214(a) and other applicable provisions of this subchapter, protect employees, former employees, and ap- plicants for employment from prohibited per- sonnel practices; (2) receive and investigate allegations of pro- hibited personnel practices, and, where appro- priate— (A) bring petitions for stays, and petitions for corrective action, under section 1214; and (B) file a complaint or make recommenda- tions for disciplinary action under section 1215; (3) receive, review, and, where appropriate, forward to the Attorney General or an agency head under section 1213, disclosures of viola- tions of any law, rule, or regulation, or gross mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial and spe- cific danger to public health or safety; (4) review rules and regulations issued by the Director of the Office of Personnel Manage- ment in carrying out functions under section 1103 and, where the Special Counsel finds that any such rule or regulation would, on its face