5 U.S.C. § 9802 — Planning, notification, and reporting requirements

(a) At least 90 days before using any workforce authority available under this chapter, the Administrator^* must submit a written plan to the appropriate congressional committees. The Office of Personnel Management must approve the plan.

(b) The workforce plan^* must describe: (1) each critical need^* of the Administration^* and the criteria used to identify it; (2)(A) the functions, approximate number, and classes or other categories of positions or employees that (i) address critical needs and (ii) would qualify for each proposed authority; and (B) how using those authorities for those positions or employees would address each critical need identified under paragraph (1); (3)(A) each identified critical need that the authorities under this chapter would not address and (B) why the authorities would not address it; (4) the exact criteria for deciding who may receive benefits under sections 9804 and 9805, including criteria for bonuses when there is no critical need, and how benefit levels will be set; (5) safeguards and other measures to carry out this chapter consistently with merit-system principles; (6) how employees will receive the notices required by subsections (c) and (d)(1)(B); (7) how the Administration will decide whether the authorities successfully addressed each critical need; (8)(A) the recruitment methods the Administration used before this chapter was enacted to recruit highly qualified people and (B) the changes it will make afterward to improve recruitment, including how it will use (i) nongovernmental recruitment or placement agencies and (ii) Internet technologies; and (9) workforce reforms needed to resolve the findings and recommendations of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board, how much of those recommendations were accepted, and, if needed, why any were not accepted.

(c) At least 60 days before first using any workforce authority under this chapter, the Administrator must give all employees the workforce plan and any additional information the Administrator considers appropriate.

(d)(1)(A) The Administrator may modify the workforce plan from time to time. The modification must be submitted to the Office of Personnel Management and approved before it is implemented. (B) At least 60 days before implementing a modification, the Administrator must give an appropriately modified plan to all Administration employees and the appropriate congressional committees. (2) Whenever this chapter or another law refers to the workforce plan, that reference includes any modification made under this subsection.

(e) Before submitting a plan under subsection (a), or a modification under subsection (d), to the Office of Personnel Management, the Administrator must: (1) give each employee^* representative for employees who might be affected a copy of the proposed plan or modification; (2) give each representative 30 calendar days to review it and make recommendations, unless extraordinary circumstances require earlier action; and (3) give any recommendations received full and fair consideration when deciding whether or how to proceed.

(f) The workforce authorities available under this chapter may not be used inconsistently with the workforce plan.

(g) Whenever the Administration submits its performance plan under section 1115 of title 31 to the Office of Management and Budget for a year, it must also submit a copy to the appropriate congressional committees.

(h) Within 6 years after this chapter was enacted, the Administrator must submit to the appropriate congressional committees an evaluation and analysis of the Administration’s actions under this chapter. It must include: (1) an evaluation, using the methods in subsection (b)(7), of whether the authorities successfully addressed each critical need identified under subsection (b)(1); (2) if they did not, an explanation of why any critical need other than one under subsection (b)(3) was not successfully addressed; and (3) recommendations for addressing remaining critical needs and preventing addressed needs from returning.

(i) The Administration’s budget request for the first fiscal year beginning after this chapter was enacted and every later fiscal year must state the total appropriations requested for that year to carry out this chapter.