[House Report 114-163]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
114TH Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 114-163
======================================================================
DHS PAID ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2015
_______
June 17 2015.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. McCaul, from the Committee on Homeland Security, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1633]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Homeland Security, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 1633) to provide for certain improvements
relating to the tracking and reporting of employees of the
Department of Homeland Security placed on administrative leave,
or any other type of paid non-duty status without charge to
leave, for personnel matters, and for other purposes, having
considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment
and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary.............................................. 3
Background and Need for Legislation.............................. 3
Hearings......................................................... 4
Committee Consideration.......................................... 4
Committee Votes.................................................. 5
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 5
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures 5
Congressional Budget Office Estimate............................. 5
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............ 6
Duplicative Federal Programs..................................... 6
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff
Benefits....................................................... 6
Federal Mandates Statement....................................... 7
Preemption Clarification......................................... 7
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings.............................. 7
Advisory Committee Statement..................................... 7
Applicability to Legislative Branch.............................. 7
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation................... 7
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............ 9
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``DHS Paid Administrative Leave
Accountability Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY IMPROVED INTERNAL TRACKING AND
REPORTING OF ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOR PERSONNEL
MATTERS.
(a) In General.--Title I of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public
Law 107-296; 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following new section:
``SEC. 104. INTERNAL TRACKING AND REPORTING OF ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOR
PERSONNEL MATTERS.
``(a) Internal Reporting.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of the DHS Paid Administrative Leave Accountability Act
of 2015, and quarterly thereafter, the head of each component of the
Department shall submit to the Chief Human Capital Officer of the
Department--
``(1) the number of employees of the component who had been
on administrative leave, or any other type of paid non-duty
status without charge to leave, for personnel matters for a
period of six consecutive months or longer as of the last day
of the period covered by the report;
``(2) the total cost to the component associated with such
administrative leave and such paid non-duty status (including
salary and benefits) for the period covered by the report; and
``(3) the average duration that employees are placed on
administrative leave, or any other type of paid non-duty status
without charge to leave, for personnel matters for a period of
six consecutive months or longer, as of the last day of the
period covered by the report for the component.
``(b) CHCO Tracking.--The Chief Human Capital Officer shall--
``(1) maintain records of the number of employees of the
Department who are placed on administrative leave or paid non-
duty status without charge to leave for personnel matters and
the costs (including salary and benefits) associated with such
leave or non-duty status; and
``(2) in consultation with the head of each of the components
of the Department, determine any appropriate actions to be
taken by the Department to resolve any personnel matter
objectively, appropriately, and expeditiously or to reduce the
use of administrative leave and paid non-duty status without
charge to leave in addressing any personnel matter.
``(c) Personnel Matters Defined.--In this section, the term
`personnel matters' means, with respect to an employee, any personnel
investigation (including any investigation into misconduct and any
national security or suitability investigation), any criminal matter,
or any adverse action proposed or taken by the Department, including
any action under chapter 75 of title 5, United States Code.
``(d) Leverage of Existing Systems.--In carrying out this section,
the Secretary is encouraged to leverage systems and operations in use
on the date of enactment of the DHS Paid Administrative Leave
Accountability Act of 2015 to implement the requirements of this
section.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 1(b) of
such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 103
the following new item:
``Sec. 104. Internal tracking and reporting of administrative leave for
personnel matters.''.
SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY POLICY RELATING TO EMPLOYEES ON
ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE.
By not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Department of Homeland
Security shall develop and implement a Department-wide policy in
accordance with existing Federal guidance specifically related to the
use of administrative leave, or any other type of paid non-duty status
without charge to leave, for personnel matters. Such policy shall
include the responsibilities of the components of the Department for
reporting information relating to such administrative leave and such
paid non-duty status to the Chief Human Capital Officer, as required
under section 104(a) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law
107-296), as added by section 2. Such policy shall provide guidance on
expediting the resolution of a personnel matter for which an employee
has been on administrative leave or any other type of paid non-duty
status without charge to leave for a period of six consecutive months
or longer in an objective and appropriate manner.
SEC. 4. REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
EMPLOYEES ON ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOR PERSONNEL
MATTERS.
(a) Quarterly Reports.--Not later than 30 days after the last day of
each calendar quarter of 2016, 2017, and 2018, the Chief Human Capital
Officer of the Department of Homeland Security shall submit to the
Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a
report on the number of Department employees on administrative leave,
and any other type of paid non-duty status without charge to leave, for
personnel matters for a period of six consecutive months or longer as
of the last day of the quarter covered by the report. Each such report
shall include--
(1) the costs to the Department associated with the placement
of such employees on administrative leave or such paid non-duty
status (including salary and benefits) for the period covered
by the report; and
(2) a description of any actions taken by the Department to
resolve any personnel matter for which an employee has been
placed on administrative leave or paid non-duty status without
charge to leave.
(b) Personnel Matters.--In this section, the term ``personnel
matters'' has the meaning given such term in section 104(c) of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-296), as added by section
2.
Purpose and Summary
The purpose of H.R. 1633 is to provide for certain
improvements relating to the tracking and reporting of
employees of the Department of Homeland Security placed on
administrative leave, or any other type of paid non-duty status
without charge to leave, for personnel matters, and for other
purposes.
Background and Need for Legislation
Federal agencies have the discretion to authorize paid
administrative leave, which is an excused absence without loss
of pay or charge to leave. However, if it is used for extended
periods of time, such as when an employee is placed on paid
administrative leave for several months pending a conduct-
related investigation, the cost to taxpayers could be
substantial.
Existing guidance from the Office of Personnel Management
(OPM) sets forth that, in rare circumstances, an employee may
be placed in a paid, non-duty status for a period when a
Federal agency determines that the employee's continued
presence on the job during the period may: (1) pose a threat to
the employee or others; (2) result in a loss or damage to
Government property; or (3) jeopardize legitimate Government
interests. According to the Government Accountability Office
(GAO), Federal agencies expended $3.1 billion between Fiscal
Year 2011 and Fiscal Year 2014 on salaries for employees on
administrative leave, including for employees who were awaiting
the resolution of a conduct-related investigation. (Federal
Paid Administrative Leave: Additional Guidance Needed to
Improve OPM Data, [GAO-15-79], Oct. 20, 2014). GAO found that
during this three-year period, within the Department of
Homeland Security (DHS), over $380 million was expended on 1.5
million days of paid administrative leave for excused absences,
a subset of which are attributable to conduct-related
investigations. In part, DHS' paid leave expenditure is
attributable to about 200 DHS employees who had been placed on
paid administrative leave, pending a conduct-related
investigation, for periods totaling six or more months.
Given the cost to taxpayers, the Department should have
policies and procedures in place to ensure proper management of
paid administrative leave, particularly administrative leave
provided when an employee undergoes investigation for
misconduct or criminal matters. However, DHS does not have such
a policy and, consequently, does not have assurance of
consistent administration of this category of leave throughout
the Department.
The Department should track the number of employees placed
on paid administrative leave for personnel matters for six
months or longer and the costs associated with such periods of
leave to ensure that it is providing effective oversight of
both DHS' employees and taxpayer dollars. Additionally, the
Department's Chief Human Capital Officer should provide
sufficient oversight to better safeguard taxpayer resources.
Such action is in line with the memorandum issued by OPM on May
29, 2015 that announced a Government-wide effort to improve the
quality and accuracy of data maintained by Federal agencies
pertaining to administrative leave. The Committee would
emphasize that the focus of this legislation is oversight of
employees paid salaries and benefits for long periods of time
when under investigation for personnel matters, such as
misconduct issues and criminal matters. This measure does not
seek to address the Department's use of paid administrative
leave for other purposes, such as for civic-related duties
(e.g. voting and blood donation) or severe weather events that
prohibit safe operations.
Hearings
No hearings were held on H.R. 1633.
Committee Consideration
The Committee met on May 20, 2015, to consider H.R. 1633,
and ordered the measure to be reported to the House with a
favorable recommendation, amended, by voice vote. The Committee
took the following actions:
The following amendments were offered:
An Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute offered by Mr.
Loudermilk (#1); was AGREED TO, as amended, by voice vote.
An Amendment by Mrs. Torres to the Amendment in the Nature of
a Substitute (#1A); was AGREED TO by voice vote.
Page 2, line 8, strike ``and''.
Page 2, line 12, strike the period and insert ``; and'.
Page 2, after line 12, insert the following: ``(3) the average
duration that employees are placed on administrative leave, or any
other type of paid non-duty status without charge to leave, for
personnel matters for a period of six consecutive months or longer, as
of the last day of the period covered by the report for the
component.''.
An Amendment by Mrs. Watson Coleman to the Amendment in the
Nature of a Substitute (#1B); was AGREED TO by voice vote.
Page 3, after line 11, insert a new subsection entitled ``(d)
Leverage of Existing Systems''.
An Amendment by Mrs. Watson Coleman to the Amendment in the
Nature of a Substitute (#1C); was WITHDRAWN by unanimous
consent.
Page 5, after line 17, insert a new section entitled ``Sec. 5.
Additional Resources.''
The Subcommittee on Oversight and Management Efficiency met
on May 13, 2015, to consider H.R. 1633, and ordered the measure
forwarded to the Full Committee with a favorable
recommendation, amended, by voice vote. The Subcommittee took
the following actions:
The following amendment was offered:
An amendment offered by Mrs. Watson Coleman (#1); was AGREED
TO by voice vote.
Page 3, line 3, strike ``monitor'' and insert ``maintain records
of''.
Page 3, line 12, insert ``objectively, appropriately, and'' before
``expeditiously''.
Page 3, line 13, strike ``eliminate or''.
Page 4, line 19, after the period insert the following:
``Such policy shall provide guidance on expediting the resolution
of a personnel matter for which an employee has been on administrative
leave or any other type of paid non-duty status without charge to leave
for a period of six consecutive months or longer in an objective and
appropriate manner.''
Committee Votes
Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives requires the Committee to list the recorded
votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments
thereto.
No recorded votes were requested during consideration of
H.R. 1633.
Committee Oversight Findings
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee has held oversight
hearings and made findings that are reflected in this report.
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures
In compliance with clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee finds that H.R.
1633, the DHS Paid Administrative Leave Accountability Act of
2015, would result in no new or increased budget authority,
entitlement authority, or tax expenditures or revenues.
Congressional Budget Office Estimate
The Committee adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared
by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to
section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, June 15, 2015.
Hon. Michael McCaul,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1633, the DHS Paid
Administrative Leave Accountability Act of 2015.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Mark
Grabowicz.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall.
Enclosure.
H.R. 1633--DHS Paid Administrative Leave Accountability Act of 2015
H.R. 1633 would require the Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) to develop and implement a policy for the use of certain
types of administrative leave and paid non-duty status for
instances where DHS employees are paid and not charged for such
leave; the department would also have to maintain records on
the use of such leave or non-duty status. Finally, the bill
would require the department to submit quarterly reports over
the 2016-2018 period on the number of DHS employees who have
spent at least six consecutive months on certain types of paid
non-duty status.
Based on information from DHS, CBO estimates that
implementing H.R. 1633 would cost less than $500,000 annually
over the 2016-2018 period; any spending would be subject to the
availability of appropriated funds. Much of the data needed for
the required reports and records is currently collected by the
department. Because enacting the legislation would not affect
direct spending or revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures do not
apply.
H.R. 1633 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Mark Grabowicz.
The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, H.R. 1633 contains the following
general performance goals and objectives, including outcome
related goals and objectives authorized.
The performance goals and objectives of H.R. 1633 include
the development and implementation of a Department-wide policy
regarding paid administrative leave for personnel matters. The
Department shall also improve the internal tracking and
reporting of the number of employees placed on administrative
leave for personnel matters for longer than a period of six
months and the total costs associated with such leave. The
Department shall report to Congress on these issues to increase
transparency and accountability.
Duplicative Federal Programs
Pursuant to clause 3(c) of rule XIII, the Committee finds
that H.R. 1633 does not contain any provision that establishes
or reauthorizes a program known to be duplicative of another
Federal program.
Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff
Benefits
In compliance with rule XXI of the Rules of the House of
Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no
congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff
benefits as defined in clause 9(e), 9(f), or 9(g) of the rule
XXI.
Federal Mandates Statement
The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform
Act.
Preemption Clarification
In compliance with section 423 of the Congressional Budget
Act of 1974, requiring the report of any Committee on a bill or
joint resolution to include a statement on the extent to which
the bill or joint resolution is intended to preempt State,
local, or Tribal law, the Committee finds that H.R. 1633 does
not preempt any State, local, or Tribal law.
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings
The Committee estimates that H.R. 1633 would require no
directed rule makings.
Advisory Committee Statement
No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b)
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this
legislation.
Applicability to Legislative Branch
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation
Section 1. Short title
This section provides that bill may be cited as the ``DHS
Paid Administrative Leave Accountability Act of 2015''.
Section 2. Improved internal tracking and reporting
This section amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002
(Public Law 107-296; 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq.) to require heads of
DHS components to provide the Department's Chief Human Capital
Officer data related to paid administrative leave within 90
days of the Act's enactment. DHS components are required to
provide each quarter the (1) number of employees placed on
administrative leave for personnel matters for longer than a
period of 6 months; (2) total cost to the component associated
with paying administrative leave for such employees, including
salaries and benefits; and (3) the average length of time that
employees (those placed on paid administrative leave for
personnel matters for longer than 6 months) have been on such
leave. To determine the actual costs associated with these
employees, DHS should include the cost of both employees'
salaries and the benefits provided while on paid administrative
leave for longer than six months to the extent that the
information is available. In the event that calculating the
cost of benefits provided to these employees is prohibitively
burdensome, the Department may use generally accepted
estimates, provided that there is a sufficient, detailed
explanation of the methodology used. If this approach is taken,
the Committee encourages the Department to receive prior input
from the Government Accountability Office on the methodology.
Section 2 also requires the Department's Chief Human Capital
Officer to maintain records on this data and work with
components to determine the appropriate actions to take to
resolve these personnel matters objectively, appropriately, and
expeditiously. Section 2 defines personnel matters as relating
to ``any personnel investigation (including any investigation
into misconduct and any national security or suitability
investigation), any criminal matter, or any adverse action
proposed or taken by the Department.'' Section 2 encourages the
Secretary to leverage existing systems and operations to
fulfill the requirements of this section of the Act.
The Committee notes that the Department's Office of the
Chief Human Capital Officer received almost $22 million in
fiscal year 2014 to carry out its duties for providing overall
management and administration for the human capital policies,
programs, and practices for its workforce. The Committee did
not authorize additional appropriations for the Chief Human
Capital Officer to provide greater Departmental oversight of
the approximately 200 employees within the Department's
workforce of 240,000 employees that have been placed on
administrative leave pending resolution of personnel matters
for six or more months. The Committee expects the Department to
integrate this activity into what the Department identified in
its fiscal year 2016 budget justification as one of its key
human capital priority areas-developing human capital policies
and guidance in order to ensure alignment of priorities with
compliance with laws and regulations. This section directs the
Department to use existing systems and resources to better
track and monitor costs associated with administrative leave
for personnel matters extending longer than six months.
In the event that, after enactment of this Act, the
Secretary determines that implementation of this law will
require reallocation of existing resources or new resources,
the Committee expects the Secretary or designee, to provide
timely notification and a detailed explanation for such a
determination to the Committee.
Section 3. Development and implementation of policy
This section requires DHS's Chief Human Capital Officer to
develop and implement a Department-wide policy specifically
related to the use of paid administrative leave for personnel
matters, completing implementation within 90 days of the Act's
enactment. The policy should include the responsibilities of
components for reporting information on paid administrative
leave to the Chief Human Capital Officer. Section 3 requires
that the policy provide guidance on how to expedite the
resolution of matters involving employees on paid
administrative leave for personnel matters for a period of six
consecutive months or longer.
Section 4. Reports to Congress on Department of Homeland Security
employees on administrative leave for personnel matters
This section requires DHS's Chief Human Capital Officer to
submit to the House and Senate Homeland Security Committees a
report each quarter on the number of employees placed on
administrative leave for personnel matters for a period of six
consecutive months or longer. The reports should include (1)
the costs associated with employees placed on administrative
leave and (2) actions taken by DHS to resolve personnel matters
for such employees.
Section 4 requires that the policy should provide guidance
on how to objectively and appropriately expedite the resolution
of personnel matters resulting in the placement of an employee
on paid administrative leave for a period longer than 6 months.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is
printed in italic and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Homeland
Security Act of 2002''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is
as follows:
* * * * * * *
TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
* * * * * * *
Sec. 104. Internal tracking and reporting of administrative leave for
personnel matters.
* * * * * * *
TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
* * * * * * *
SEC. 104. INTERNAL TRACKING AND REPORTING OF ADMINISTRATIVE LEAVE FOR
PERSONNEL MATTERS.
(a) Internal Reporting.--Not later than 90 days after the
date of the enactment of the DHS Paid Administrative Leave
Accountability Act of 2015, and quarterly thereafter, the head
of each component of the Department shall submit to the Chief
Human Capital Officer of the Department--
(1) the number of employees of the component who had
been on administrative leave, or any other type of paid
non-duty status without charge to leave, for personnel
matters for a period of six consecutive months or
longer as of the last day of the period covered by the
report;
(2) the total cost to the component associated with
such administrative leave and such paid non-duty status
(including salary and benefits) for the period covered
by the report; and
(3) the average duration that employees are placed on
administrative leave, or any other type of paid non-
duty status without charge to leave, for personnel
matters for a period of six consecutive months or
longer, as of the last day of the period covered by the
report for the component.
(b) CHCO Tracking.--The Chief Human Capital Officer shall--
(1) maintain records of the number of employees of
the Department who are placed on administrative leave
or paid non-duty status without charge to leave for
personnel matters and the costs (including salary and
benefits) associated with such leave or non-duty
status; and
(2) in consultation with the head of each of the
components of the Department, determine any appropriate
actions to be taken by the Department to resolve any
personnel matter objectively, appropriately, and
expeditiously or to reduce the use of administrative
leave and paid non-duty status without charge to leave
in addressing any personnel matter.
(c) Personnel Matters Defined.--In this section, the term
``personnel matters'' means, with respect to an employee, any
personnel investigation (including any investigation into
misconduct and any national security or suitability
investigation), any criminal matter, or any adverse action
proposed or taken by the Department, including any action under
chapter 75 of title 5, United States Code.
(d) Leverage of Existing Systems.--In carrying out this
section, the Secretary is encouraged to leverage systems and
operations in use on the date of enactment of the DHS Paid
Administrative Leave Accountability Act of 2015 to implement
the requirements of this section.
* * * * * * *