TEMPORARY APPROPRIATIONS

AUGUST 15, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. CANNON, from the Committee on Appropriations, submitted the

following

REPORT

To accompany H. J. Res. 339

The Committee on Appropriations, to which was referred House Joint Resolution 339, amending an act making temporary appropriations for the fiscal year 1950, and for other purposes, as amended (Public Laws 154 and 196), reports the same to the House without amendment and with the recommendation that the joint resolution be passed.

On June 30, 1949, the Congress enacted Public Law 154 (H. J. Res. 284), providing temporary appropriations for the month of July for those agencies whose appropriations for the fiscal year 1950 were carried in bills not yet enacted into law. On July 28, 1949, the House passed House Joint Resolution No. 329 (Public Law 196), continuing this authority until August 31, 1949, inasmuch as there were then remaining a number of major appropriation bills which had not yet passed the Senate or cleared conference. The status of the pending bills at that time was as follows ·

The Senate amended the joint resolution to change the terminal date to August 15, 1949, instead of August 31, 1949, and the House agreed to the amendment. On August 15, 1949, there are still remaining five bills. the status of which is as follows:

It is necessary that the resolution be passed immediately in order that the functions of the agencies involved will not be interrupted.

REVISION OF CLASSIFICATION ACT OF 1923, AS AMENDED

AUGUST 15, 1949.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed

Mr. MURRAY of Tennessee, from the Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H. R. 5931]

The Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 5931) to establish a standard schedule of rates of basic compensation for certain employees of the Federal Government; to provide an equitable system for fixing and adjusting the rates of basic compensation of individual employees; to repeal the Classification Act of 1923, as amended; and for other purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments and recommend that the bill, as amended, do pass.

The amendments are as follows:

(a) Page 3, line 17, insert after the semicolon the following:

and positions in or under the Department of State which are (A) connected with the representation of the United States to international organizations, and (B) specifically exempted by law from the Classification Act of 1923, as amended, or any other classification or compensation law;.

(b) Page 33, line 9, strike out "(2) and (10)" and insert in lieu thereof "(2), (10), and (11)”.

(c) Page 34, line 2, strike out "sixth", where it appears the second time, and insert in lieu thereof "seventh".

(d) Page 36, line 3, insert "and paragraph (11)," before "may". (e) Page 36, after line 7, insert the following:

(11) Employees in grade 1 of the subprofessional service immediately prior to the effective date of this title, at the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh rate shall have the first, first, second, third, fourth, fifth, and sixth rate, respectively, of grade 1 of the General Schedule.

PURPOSE OF AMENDMENTS

Amendment (a) exempts from the provisions of the bill positions in or under the Department of State whose incumbents are repre

sentatives to international organizations and those positions in or under the Department which are now exempt from the Federal classification and salary laws, including the Classification Act of 1923, as amended.

Amendments (b), (c), (d), and (e) are perfecting amendments to the bill which are necessary to provide for the initial adjustment to general schedule grade 1 of positions in present grade 1 of the subprofessional service.

STATEMENT

The purpose of the bill is to simplify and to modernize the Classification Act of 1923, as amended, which governs the pay rates and classifications of more than one-third of the employees in the Federal service.

The bill will cover 885,000 positions. The 31 grades in the existing professional and scientific service, the subprofessional service, and the clerical, administrative, and fiscal service will be merged into a new general schedule consisting of 18 grades. The comparison of proposed general schedule rates and existing professional, subprofessional, and clerical, administrative, and fiscal pay scales is shown in appendix A, page 46.

As shown in appendix A, the annual pay rates for the new general schedule are from $2,186 per annum at the beginning of grade 1 to a ceiling of $15,000 per annum at grade 18. The present crafts, protective, and custodial service has been revised into 10 grades providing salaries from $2,120 annually ($1,510 annually for boy and girl messengers) to $4,900 per annum in the top rate of grade 10. The comparison of proposed crafts, protective, and custodial schedule and the existing crafts, protective, and custodial pay scales is shown in appendix B, page48.

The administrative procedure for classifying the 885,000 positions covered by the bill is made simpler and more uniform, and a better relationship is established between the classification functions of the Civil Service Commission and such functions in other departments and agencies of the Government.

Authority for classifying or allocating the positions covered by the bill is vested in the Civil Service Commission. However, in the interest of efficiency and to improve existing operations, the departments and agencies are authorized to allocate positions in the various grades established by the bill in accordance with published standards promulgated by the Civil Service Commission after consultation with the departments and agencies.

In conformity with these standards the departments will classify positions in their appropriate classes and grades. Such actions will be official for pay and personnel purposes without prior approval of the Commission except in grades 16, 17, and 18. No position may be placed in or removed from grade 18 ($15,000 annually) except by the President upon recommendation of the Commission. No position may be placed in grade 16 ($11,500 to $12,500 annually) or in grade 17 ($13,000 to $14,000 annually) except by action of or after prior approval by the Commission.

Reviewing authority is given to the Commission to determine the degree to which classification standards are being observed. The Commission is given enforcement power (1) to correct erroneous

actions upon appeal either by an individual employee or by the department or agency concerned, or on the Commission's own initiative; and (2) to withdraw or suspend the department's authority to take action without prior approval by the Commission when such department is not adhering to the standards provided for.

The legislation will cover about 25,000 more employees than are now subject to the Classification Act of 1923, as amended. Certain wholly owned Government corporations now exempt would be covered, such as the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Export-Import Bank of Washington, certain corporations under the Department of Agriculture, the Displaced Persons Commission, and the Philippine War Damage Commission. The bill will also include the positions of certain customs clerks and immigration inspectors who are now exempt from the Classification Act.

Those groups of employees which are exempt from the provisions of the bill consist almost entirely of groups which are now exempt, among which are 516,000 employees in the postal field service, 489,000 crafts, trades, and labor employees whose wages are fixed by so-called wage boards in accordance with prevailing rates in the communities in which they are employed, the Foreign Service of the United States, and professional and other employees of the Department of Medicine and Surgery in the Veterans' Administration.

The bill contains new definitions of the 18 GS grades and 10 CPC grades. Compared with existing grade definitions in the Classification Act of 1923, the language defines a better progression of difficulty and responsibility factors from grade to grade, and eliminates existing clauses and phrases which emphasize size of unit or number of persons supervised. Also, the bill provides substantive law wnich is now contained in appropriation laws, setting forth congressional policy to the effect that no appropriated funds shall be used to pay the salaries of Federal employees who are placed in supervisory positions solely on the basis of the size of the group or the number of employees supervised. This is in accordance with the recommendations of the Commission on Organization of the Executive Branch of the Government which has made recommendations to the Congress in connection with personnel management.

The legislation repeats with minor modifications the language of existing law with respect to step increases within the various grades known as periodic increases and rewards for superior accomplishment.

A new provision grants longevity increases to employees in all the CPC grades and in the grades GS-1 to GS-10, inclusive. Employees in such grades will be entitled to a longevity increase for each 3 years they serve after reaching the top of their grade, but not more than three such longevity increases will be granted any one employee in any single grade In order to be entitled to such longevity increase, the employee must have served in the same grade at the maximum scheduled rate (or at a higher rate) for 3 years. He must have an efficiency rating of "good" or better, and his service and conduct must be satisfactory. In the aggregate he must have rendered 10 years of service in his position or in positions of equivalent or higher class or grade.

Adequate provision is made to assure that every employee will receive an increase in compensation through the initial adjustment to the new grades, and, further, that when an employee is promoted to a