What This Bill Does
This bill corrects retirement and annuity benefits for certain U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers who were hired in a specific way. These officers received job offers before a certain date but did not start work until after that date, and the bill aims to fix unfair treatment they received regarding their retirement benefits.
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Who It Affects
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers who got a job offer before July 6, 2008 but started work on or after July 6, 2008
- The Secretary of Homeland Security
- The Director of the Office of Personnel Management
- The Comptroller General of the United States
- Congressional committees
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Key Provisions
- Officers who received job offers before July 6, 2008 and started work after that date are treated as if they were already working on July 6, 2008 for retirement benefit purposes (Sec. 2(b)(1))
- These officers receive the minimum annuity amount required by previous law and an exemption from mandatory retirement rules (Sec. 2(b)(2))
- The Secretary of Homeland Security must create a list of eligible officers and notify them within 120 days of this law passing (Sec. 2(c)(1))
- The Director of the Office of Personnel Management must make retirement benefit corrections for eligible officers, including adjustments for those who already retired (Sec. 2(c)(2))
- A government review must examine U.S. Customs and Border Protection hiring practices related to retirement benefits and a report must be submitted within 18 months (Sec. 2(e))
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What Changes
If this law passes, certain U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers will receive corrected retirement benefits based on when they received their job offers rather than when they started work. Officers who already retired will receive retroactive adjustments to their annuities (payments made regularly after retirement). Some officers may also become eligible for immediate retirement.
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Important Definitions
"Eligible Individual" means someone who got a tentative job offer as a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer before July 6, 2008 and started work on or after July 6, 2008 as a result of that offer (Sec. 2(a))
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 311
AN ACT
To correct the inequitable denial of enhanced retirement and
annuity benefits to certain U.S. Customs and Border
Protection Officers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
2
† S 311 ES
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
1
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘U.S. Customs and Bor-
2
der Protection Officer Retirement Technical Corrections
3
Act’’.
4
SEC. 2. ADJUSTMENT RELATED TO TRANSITION RULES.
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(a) DEFINED TERM.—In this section the term ‘‘Eligi-
6
ble Individual’’ means any individual who—
7
(1) received a tentative offer of employment as
8
a U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officer be-
9
fore July 6, 2008; and
10
(2) entered into duty as a U.S. Customs and
11
Border Protection officer on or after July 6, 2008,
12
as a result of an offer described in paragraph (1).
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(b) TREATMENT OF ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—Eligi-
14
ble Individuals—
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(1) are considered to be individuals serving as
16
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers on
17
July 6, 2008, for purposes of section 535(e) of the
18
Department of Homeland Security Appropriations
19
Act, 2008 (division E of Public Law 110–161; 121
20
Stat. 1844); and
21
(2) are entitled to—
22
(A) the minimum annuity amount required
23
under section 535(e)(2)(C) of such Act; and
24
3
† S 311 ES
(B) an exemption from mandatory retire-
1
ment
otherwise
required
under
section
2
8425(b)(1) of title 5, United States Code.
3
(c) IMPLEMENTATION.—
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(1) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—Not later
5
than 120 days after the date of the enactment of
6
this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall—
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(A) create a list of all Eligible Individuals;
8
(B) notify each Eligible Individual of the
9
annuity correction described in subsection (b);
10
and
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(C) provide the Director of the Office of
12
Personnel Management with all of the informa-
13
tion that is necessary for making annuity cor-
14
rections with respect to Eligible Individuals.
15
(2) COMPLETION OF ANNUITY CORRECTION.—
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After receiving the information described in para-
17
graph (1)(C), the Director of the Office of Personnel
18
Management shall make the annuity correction de-
19
scribed in subsection (b) with respect to each Eligi-
20
ble Individual, including a retroactive annuity ad-
21
justment for Eligible Individuals who retired before
22
the date of the enactment of this Act.
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(d) WAIVERS AND GUIDANCE.—
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4
† S 311 ES
(1) WAIVERS.—The Secretary of Homeland Se-
1
curity may retroactively waive the maximum entry
2
age requirement under 3307(g) of title 5, United
3
States Code, to the extent necessary, to ensure that
4
each Eligible Individual is eligible for immediate re-
5
tirement with the annuity correction described in
6
subsection (b).
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(2) GUIDANCE.—The Director of the Office of
8
Personnel Management, in consultation with the
9
Secretary of Homeland Security, shall issue appro-
10
priate guidance to assist in the implementation of
11
the annuity correction described in subsection (b).
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(e) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE.—The
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Comptroller General of the United States—
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(1) shall review U.S. Customs and Border Pro-
15
tection (referred to in this subsection as ‘‘CBP’’)
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hiring practices, policies, and procedures related to
17
eligibility for enhanced retirement benefits referred
18
to in this section by assessing—
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(A) the process for determining whether an
20
employee qualifies for such benefits, including
21
considering any potential factors that would
22
make an employee ineligible for such enhanced
23
retirement benefits;
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† S 311 ES
(B) the internal controls used by CBP to
1
ensure that all eligible employees, and only eli-
2
gible employees, receive such enhanced retire-
3
ment benefits;
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(C) the policies regarding the use of em-
5
ployees’ personnel files to ensure compliance
6
with current laws governing retirement benefits;
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and
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(D) the adequacy of the training provided
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to CBP senior executives regarding human re-
10
sources and hiring practices at CBP; and
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(2) not later than 18 months after the date of
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the enactment of this Act, shall submit a report to
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the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern-
14
mental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on
15
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives
16
that describes the results of the review conducted
17
pursuant to paragraph (1).
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Passed the Senate November 8, 2023.
Attest:
Secretary.
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 311
AN ACT
To correct the inequitable denial of enhanced retire-
ment and annuity benefits to certain U.S. Cus-
toms and Border Protection Officers.