[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 742 Reported in Senate (RS)]

<DOC>





                                                       Calendar No. 386
114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                 S. 742

                          [Report No. 114-226]

  To appropriately limit the authority to award bonuses to employees.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 16, 2015

 Ms. Ayotte (for herself, Mrs. McCaskill, and Mrs. Fischer) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
             on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

                             March 14, 2016

               Reported by Mr. Johnson, with an amendment
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To appropriately limit the authority to award bonuses to employees.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Stop Wasteful Federal 
Bonuses Act of 2015''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. BONUSES.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Adverse Findings and Employees Under Investigation.--
Chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following:</DELETED>

   <DELETED>``Subchapter IV--Limitations on Bonus Authority</DELETED>

<DELETED>``Sec. 4531. Certain forms of misconduct</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) the term `adverse finding' relating to an 
        employee means a determination that the conduct of the 
        employee--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) violated a policy of the agency for 
                which the employee may be removed or suspended; 
                or</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) violated a law for which the 
                employee may be imprisoned of more than 1 
                year;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) the term `agency' has the meaning given that 
        term under section 551; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(3) the term `bonus' means any bonus or cash 
        award, including--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) an award under this 
                chapter;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) an award under section 5384; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) a retention bonus under section 
                5754.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(b) Adverse Findings.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) In general.--The head of an agency shall not 
        award a bonus to an employee of the agency until 5 years after 
        the end of the fiscal year in which the Inspector General or 
        another senior ethics official of the agency or the Comptroller 
        General of the United States makes an adverse finding relating 
        to the employee.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Previously awarded bonuses.--If the 
        Inspector General or another senior ethics official of the 
        agency or the Comptroller General of the United States makes an 
        adverse finding relating to an employee, the head of the agency 
        employing the employee, after notice and an opportunity for a 
        hearing, shall issue an order directing the employee to repay 
        the amount of any bonus awarded to the employee during the year 
        during which the adverse finding is made.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of 
sections for chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following:</DELETED>

       <DELETED> ``subchapter iv--limitations on bonus authority

<DELETED>``4531. Certain forms of misconduct.''.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Stop Wasteful Federal Bonuses Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. BONUSES.

    (a) Adverse Findings and Employees Under Investigation.--Chapter 45 
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

            ``Subchapter IV--Limitations on Bonus Authority

``Sec. 4531. Certain forms of misconduct
    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Adverse finding.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `adverse finding' means 
                a determination by the head of the agency employing an 
                employee that the conduct of the employee--
                            ``(i) violated a policy of the agency for 
                        which the employee may be removed or suspended 
                        for a period of not less than 14 days; or
                            ``(ii) violated a law for which the 
                        employee may be imprisoned for more than 1 
                        year.
                    ``(B) Basis.--A determination described in 
                subparagraph (A) may be based on an investigation by, 
                determination of, or information provided by the 
                Inspector General or another senior ethics official of 
                an agency or the Comptroller General of the United 
                States, as part of carrying out an activity, authority, 
                or function of the Inspector General, senior ethics 
                official, or Comptroller General, respectively, under a 
                provision of law other than this section.
            ``(2) Agency.--The term `agency' has the meaning given that 
        term under section 551.
            ``(3) Bonus.--The term `bonus' means any performance award 
        or cash award under--
                    ``(A) section 4505a;
                    ``(B) section 5384; or
                    ``(C) section 5754.
    ``(b) Prohibition.--The head of an agency shall not award a bonus 
to an employee of the agency until 5 years after the end of the fiscal 
year during which the head of an agency makes an adverse finding 
relating to the employee.
    ``(c) After Bonus Awarded.--
            ``(1) In general.--For a bonus awarded to an employee after 
        the date of enactment of this section, if the head of the 
        agency employing the employee makes an adverse finding relating 
        to the employee during the year during which the bonus is 
        awarded, the head of the agency, after notice and an 
        opportunity for a hearing, shall issue an order directing the 
        employee to repay the amount of the bonus.
            ``(2) Hearings.--A hearing under this paragraph shall be 
        conducted in accordance with regulations relating to hearings 
        promulgated by the head of the agency under chapter 75.
    ``(d) Condition of Receipt.--As a condition of receiving a bonus 
awarded after the date of enactment of this section, an employee of an 
agency shall sign a certification stating that the employee shall repay 
the bonus in accordance with a final order issued in accordance with 
subsection (c).
    ``(e) Appeal.--An employee determined to be ineligible for a bonus 
under subsection (b) or against whom an order is issued under 
subsection (c) may appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board under 
section 7701.''.
    (b) Rulemaking.--The head of each agency (as defined under title 
551 of title 5, United States Code) may promulgate rules to carry out 
section 4531 of title 5, United States Code, as added by subsection 
(a).
    (c) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections for 
chapter 45 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following:

             ``subchapter iv--limitations on bonus authority

``4531. Certain forms of misconduct.''.
                                                       Calendar No. 386

114th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                 S. 742

                          [Report No. 114-226]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

  To appropriately limit the authority to award bonuses to employees.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             March 14, 2016

                       Reported with an amendment