3 FAH-1 H-2870
SENIOR FOREIGN SERVICE PERFORMANCE PAY
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Office of Origin: HR/PE)
3 FAH-1 H-2871 CONFERRAL OF DEPARTMENT
AWARDS
3 FAH-1 H-2871.1 Competition Groups
3 FAH-1 H-2871.1-1 Boards Senior
Foreign Service (SFS)-I and II
(TL:POH-085;; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The competition groups for Boards Senior Foreign Service
(SFS) I and II include the following:
(1) Those members serving in Presidential appointments
at any time during the most recently concluded rating period, who have made the
required SFS pay and leave election, and who were in classes of career
ambassador, career minister, and minister counselor;
(2) Those members not serving in Presidential
appointments who were in classes of career ambassador, career minister, and
minister counselor, at the end of the most recently concluded rating periods;
and
(3) In years when Board SFS-I is not convened, Board
SFS-II will also consider any officer who would have been considered for
performance pay by that board for performance pay.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.1-2 Board Senior
Foreign Service (SFS)-III
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The competition groups for Board SFS III include the
following:
(1) Those members serving in Presidential appointments
at any time during the most recently concluded rating period who have made the
required SFS pay and leave election, and who were in the class of counselor;
and
(2) Those members with generalist primary skill codes
not serving in Presidential appointments who were in the class of counselor at
the end of the most recently concluded rating period.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.1-3 Board Senior
Foreign Service (SFS)-IV
(TL:POH-085;; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The competition groups for Board SFS-IV include the
following:
(1) Those members with specialist primary skill codes
serving in Presidential appointments at any time during the most recently
concluded rating period, who have made the required SFS pay and leave election,
who were in the class of counselor; and
(2) Those members with specialist primary skill codes
not serving in Presidential appointments, regardless of SFS class, at the end
of the most recently concluded rating period.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.2 Boards
Recommendations
(TL:POH-085; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. The Secretary will determine before the boards meet,
the number and amounts of performance awards authorized for each competition
group. The awards will be distributed among the competition groups in
proportion to each groups share of the total eligible SFS population. There
is an exception to this however. Up to 10 percent of the total awards
authorized may be allocated by the Secretary among the individual competition
groups as a matter of discretion.
b. The boards will be advised, in advance, of the
maximum number and amounts of performance awards authorized for each competition
group. The boards will review the official performance folders (OPFs) of the
candidates in each competition group and, on the basis of the evaluation
material in their official performance files, for the most recently concluded
rating period only. The boards will recommend those whom they deem deserving of
performance pay awards, taking account of the number of awards authorized. The
boards will rank those recommended in order of merit. The full number of
awards authorized for each category will be paid in the order recommended, at
the amounts authorized, unless the boards have recommended a lesser amount for
the award.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.3 Directives to the
Boards
3 FAH-1 H-2871.3-1 Criteria
(TL:POH-085; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. In making recommendations, the boards shall be
guided entirely by the criteria in 3 FAM 2872.3-1.
In applying these criteria, the boards should recognize that not all SFS
members under consideration will have had the opportunity to demonstrate
achievement in all of the areas cited. Members should not assess performance
on the basis of the number of criteria met, but rather in terms of the
demonstrated contributions and accomplishments achieved. Officers with
functional and specialist expertise are as essential to the SFS as those are
with more generalized work experience.
b. In comparing the performance and accomplishment of
its members, the boards will be called upon to make extremely difficult
judgments in the following instances:
(1) Outstanding achievement may be found in the cool
and courageous handling of emergency situations;
(2) In other areas, significant accomplishments may
come through the resourceful completion of specific projects or negotiations;
and
(3) Major benefits may result from the thoughtful and
efficient management of important programs or missions or from imaginative and
sensitive policy initiatives.
(4) There is no formula by which varying records of
performance may be measured and weighed with mathematical accuracy.
c. Board members must apply the relevant criteria as
realistically and fairly as possible, discuss their views where meaningful
differences exist, and exercise their judgment to the fullest extent of their
wisdom and experience. The boards should also be alert to evidence in the
file, either through evaluation reports or letters of criticism, of an
officers indifference or lateness in completing evaluation reports on
subordinates. This represents failure in supervisory responsibilities, which
can lead to disadvantaging the rated employee. Such failures should be given
due weight by the boards in comparing that officers performance against others
for award of performance pay.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.3-2 Other Factors
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. Inadmissible Comments: The boards should ignore any
information in the file, which is currently inadmissible in the regulations
(see 3 FAM 2815).
Such information should not be subject to discussion or a basis for the boards
decisions.
b. Personal Qualities: Medical problems and personal
and physical characteristics should not be considered unless they affect the
performance of essential functions of the job.
3 FAH-1 H-2871.3-3 Submission of
Findings and Recommendations
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The boards findings will be forwarded to the Director
General under cover of a transmittal letter signed by the members. The boards
reports will include rank order lists of all officers in each of the four
competition groups recommended for Department performance pay awards, annotated
to indicate the amounts of performance pay recommended for each officer, up to
the maximum number and amount of awards authorized.
3 FAH-1 H-2872 NOMINATIONS FOR
PRESIDENTIAL RANK AWARDS
3 FAH-1 H-2872.1 Department Senior
Review Board (DSRB)
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The Foreign Service Act authorizes the Secretary to
recommend to the President, on the basis of recommendations by an interagency
selection board, those members who merit conferral of Presidential awards for
distinguished or meritorious service. Special Presidential recognition should
be limited to only the most capable, deserving and accomplished members of the
Foreign Service who warrant this singular honor because of exceptional
contributions, and because their integrity and worthiness of public trust are
beyond question. Department nominations for this high honor will be entrusted
to a Department Senior Review Board (DSRB), appointed by the Secretary to act on
the Secretary's behalf. The DSRB will be composed at the discretion of the
Secretary but will include at least one career SFS member in the active service
and one distinguished public member.
3 FAH-1 H-2872.2 Recommendations
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
To facilitate the role of the DSRB, the selection boards
may recommend SFS members for Presidential awards. The selection boards may
recommend up to 10 percent of the career SFS corps for consideration for Presidential
awards. The selection boards will review the records of all eligible SFS
members together, without regard to the competition group or its previous
recommendations for Department awards. Applying the criteria for Presidential
awards, the selection boards will recommend and list in alphabetical order six
percent of the career SFS corps. The alphabetical list of officers recommended
for Presidential awards will be included in the selection boards report to the
Director General and will be made available to the DSRB.
3 FAH-1 H-2872.3 Department Senior
Review Board (DSRB) Procedures
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The DSRB will be informed in advance of the number of
members it may nominate for the Presidential Distinguished and Meritorious
Service Awards. It will be guided by the applicable criteria (see 3 FAM 2872.3-2)
and the number of awards authorized and will nominate members from the list of
those recommended by the selection boards. The DSRB will decide the
appropriate award level and the rank order of those nominated. The Board will
prepare a statement of justification for each officer nominated of no more than
two pages in length.
3 FAH-1 H-2872.4 Report of
Nominations
(TL:POH-085; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The DSRB will submit its report of Presidential award
nominations accompanied by the statements of justification to the Secretary.
The nominees for Presidential awards will be submitted to the Interagency Selection
Board (IASB) for consideration in accordance with agreed interagency procedures
as specified in 3 FAH-1 H-2876.
3 FAH-1 H-2873 SAFEGUARD ARRANGEMENTS
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
Before the selection boards meet, the Department shall
inform the appropriate officials of the exclusive employee representative on a
confidential basis of the maximum number of performance pay awards and
Presidential award nominations authorized in each award category for each
competition group. The employee representative will safeguard the
confidentiality of this information until after the results of the performance
pay process have been made public by the Department. Any revisions in the
numbers or amounts of awards subsequently made by management will be disclosed
and explained to the employee representative.
3 FAH-1 H-2874 REMOVAL OF NAME
RECOMMENDED FOR PERFORMANCE PAY
(TL:POH-085; 08-27-2002)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
The Director General may remove a name from the list of
officers recommended for performance pay awards under the same circumstances
and requirements as apply to the removal of names from promotion lists as set
forth in 3 FAM
2320.
3 FAH-1 H-2875 PAYMENT OF PERFORMANCE
PAY
(TL:POH-077; 12-07-2001)
(State Only)
(Applies to Foreign Services Only)
a. A member of the SFS may be nominated both for a
Department performance pay award and a Presidential award. Department awards
will be paid to the members nominated by the selection boards in accordance
with the boards annual rank order at the amounts and in the numbers authorized
by management and designated by the selection boards. Payment will be make as
soon as practicable without regard to possible subsequent conferral of Presidential
awards.
b. Presidential awards will be paid to all recipients
named by the President in the amounts indicated as soon as feasible, subject to
the applicable legal limitations.
3 FAH-1 H-2876 INTERAGENCY PROCESS FOR
PRESIDENTIAL AWARDS
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. A special Interagency Selection Board (IASB)
established by the Secretary of State as provided in 3 FAH-1
H-2876.2 shall review and evaluate the nominations from the agencies and
make recommendations to the Secretary of State. Such recommendations shall be
made from among members of the SFS who are nominated by their agencies as
having performed especially meritorious or distinguished service.
b. Not later than March 1 of each year, each agency
shall submit its nominations to the IASB, Attention: Director of Performance
Evaluation, HR/PE, Department of State. The number of nominations which each
agency may submit shall be in accordance with 3 FAH-1
H-2872.2.
c. Agency nominations will be submitted under the
signature of the agency head who will certify:
(1) All nominations have been made in accordance with
procedures negotiated with the exclusive bargaining representative, if any;
(2) All candidates meet the eligibility requirements;
and
(3) The record and character of each nominee merit a
high degree of public confidence and trust and warrant recognition by the
President should the nominee be selected for an award.
d. Nominations shall indicate the award for which the
officer is recommended. If an agency recommends more than one officer for an
award, the agencys nominees will be listed in accordance with procedures
negotiated with the exclusive bargaining representative, if any. Nominations
shall consist of a justification statement of not more than two pages in
length, consistent with the criteria described in 3 FAM 2872.3-2.
A brief summary of the officers Federal employment history, provided by the
appropriate agency, shall also be appended.
e. A member of the SFS is eligible to receive only one
Presidential award within a three-year period.
f. The IASB will base its recommendations solely on
the justification statements and summaries of Federal employment history
submitted.
g. In reviewing the achievements of these criteria, the
IASB will also satisfy itself, based on the justification statement, that the
nominee has consistently demonstrated qualities of integrity and creativity
that warrant a high degree of public confidence and trust.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.1 Responsibilities
of the Interagency Selection Board (IASB)
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. The IASB has the following responsibilities:
(1) To evaluate the agencies nominations and
determine whether they meet the appropriate agency regulatory provisions. The
IASB may concur with an agency nomination, may decide to recommend for a
Meritorious Service Award a candidate who has been nominated for the
Distinguished Service Award, or may determine that a nomination does not merit
recommendation to the President; and
(2) In accordance with 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4 and subject to the agreement of the agency to free its unused
opportunities, the IASB may determine that unused opportunities for
Presidential awards should be utilized by nominees from any of the
participating agencies. Unused opportunities can occur when an agency chooses
not to utilize its full pro rata share of the awards or when the IASB
determines that fewer than an agencys pro rata share of the nominees merit a
Presidential award. In making this determination, the IASB will also consider
the agencys nominations contained in its supplemental list, as provided for in
3 FAH-1
H-2876.4. That list will be given to the Board only after it has
considered the agencys principal list (limited to its pro rata share) and
decided that one or more nominees do not merit a Presidential award.
b. The IASB will consider persons nominated to it on
supplementary rank order lists as candidates for any unused opportunities for
awards. These nominees will be evaluated by the IASB on the basis of the
criteria specified in 3 FAM 2872.3
and will be considered on a senior Foreign Service-wide basis based on the
relative merits of the nominees without reference to the pro-rated distribution
of awards specified in 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4:
(1) To make recommendations to the Secretary of State
for each category of award ranked in recommended order of merit; and
(2) To make recommendations to the Secretary of State
regarding the award procedure and the functions of the IASB. The Secretary
shall provide the exclusive bargaining representative of the participating
agencies, if any, copies of such recommendations.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.2 Composition of
the Interagency Selection Board (IASB)
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only
a. The IASB shall be composed of seven members, at
least four of whom shall be career SFS members (one may be retired), and one of
whom may be a public member. No member may serve on two consecutive Boards.
In their designation of agency representatives and recommendations for public
members, agency heads will bear in mind the requirement of section 602(b) of
the Foreign Service Act concerning selection board membership of women and
minorities. No individual nominated to receive an award may serve on the
Board. The public members of the IASB will be named by the Secretary of State
from the nominees of the agency heads. The chairperson of the IASB, selected
by the Under Secretary for Management, will be a career SFS officer on active
duty, and the position will rotate among the Departments of Agriculture, USAID,
Commerce, and State.
b. As soon as practicable but not less than 10 days
prior to the convening of the IASB, each participating agency will transmit to
its exclusive bargaining representative, if any, a list of the agencys
nominees (agency-specific and public) for membership on the IASB. This
information will be held in confidence. The exclusive bargaining
representative will furnish the agency any comments it might have concerning
the nominees. These comments will be held in confidence.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.3 Recommendations
by the Secretary
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. The Secretary of State must be satisfied that each
nominee recommended for a Presidential award by the IASB has consistently
maintained a record of performance warranting a high degree of public
confidence and trust. Should the Secretary determine that an IASB nominee does
not warrant recommendation to the President, the Director of the Office of
Performance Evaluation of the Department of State shall notify each of the
exclusive bargaining representatives (if any) of all of the participating
agencies of the number of such deletions (without specifying the names deleted
or the agency which nominated the member) and shall certify that the deletions
were made only for reasons of loyalty, security, misconduct, suitability, or
malfeasance.
b. The Secretary of State shall recommend to the
President those officers nominated by the IASB for Presidential awards whom the
Secretary has determined satisfy the requirements of 3 FAH-1
H-2876.3, paragraph a.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.4 Presidential
Awards Limits
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. The total number of SFS members, based on the
percentage limits of 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4 paragraph b, shall be determined by adding together the number of
SFS members in each agency who were serving in the appointment categories
specified in 3
FAM 2872.2-1 as of the last day of the competition year, which is the last
day of the appraisal period for that agency.
b. Except as noted in 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4, paragraph c, the number of Presidential awards granted to the
members of the SFS, in any agency, may not exceed six percent of the total
number of SFS members serving in the appointment categories specified in 3 FAM 2872.2-1
who were serving in such appointments as of the last day of the annual
performance appraisal period of that agency. The number of Distinguished
Service Awards granted to the SFS members of an agency may not exceed one
percent of that total. However, where the number of SFS members in an agencys
total is too few to permit at least one Distinguished and one Meritorious
Service Award within the percentage limits established, the SFS members of that
agency may be granted one Distinguished Service Award and one Meritorious
Service Award. Agencies may forward to the IASB up to the maximum number of
nominees permitted by this paragraph, except as authorized in 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4, paragraph c.
c. Notwithstanding the limits of 3 FAH-1
H-2876.4, paragraph b, an agency may exceed its pro rata share of
Presidential Awards if the IASB selects the nominee(s) from that agencys
supplemental rank order lists to utilize unused award opportunities. Each
agency may nominate an additional 10 percent of its pro rata share of
candidates to constitute its supplemental list. Such nominations will be for
the Meritorious Service Award. In no case will an agencys supplemental list
be limited to less than two nominees.
d. The total amount of basic salary plus performance
pay (including a Presidential Award) received in any calendar year by a member
of the SFS may not exceed the salary payable in Level 1 of the Executive
Schedule under 5 U.S.C. 5312 in effect at the end of the calendar year. Any
amount which is not paid to an employee in a calendar year because of this
statutory limitation shall be paid in a lump sum to the employee at the
beginning of the following calendar year, in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 5307.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.5 Payment of
Presidential Awards
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
a. Presidential awards shall be paid in lump sum and
shall be in addition to basic salary and any other award. The fact that a
member of the SFS would, as a result of payment of the award, receive
compensation exceeding the compensation of any other member of the Service
shall not preclude the award or its payment.
b. Each agency shall pay the amounts due to recipients of
Presidential awards in its employ. Awards shall be announced as soon as
possible, and payment shall be made as soon thereafter as practicable.
3 FAH-1 H-2876.6 Interagency
Review
(CT:POH-218; 05-17-2019)
(Uniformed State/Agriculture/USAGM/Commerce/USAID)
(Applies to Foreign Service Only)
Annually, following the completion of the performance pay
and IASB awards cycle, representatives of each of the foreign affairs agencies
will review the operation of the Presidential awards program to assure that the
objectives of the Act and governing regulations have been fully and efficiently
achieved.
3 FAH-1 H-2877 THROUGH H-2879
unassigned