[Federal Register: December 19, 1995 (Volume 60, Number 243)] [Proposed Rules] [Page 65245-65249] From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov] [DOCID:fr19de95-12] ======================================================================== Proposed Rules Federal Register ________________________________________________________________________ This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules. ======================================================================== [[Page 65245]] OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT 5 CFR Part 532 RIN 3206-AH27 Prevailing Rate Systems; Redefinition of Certain Federal Wage System Wage Areas AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management. ACTION: Proposed rule with request for comments. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing a proposed rule that would redefine several Federal Wage System (FWS) wage areas for pay-setting purposes. OPM is engaged in an ongoing project to review the geographic definitions of selected FWS wage areas. Based on recent reviews of wage and survey area boundaries in a number of wage areas, OPM proposes redefinitions and/or renamings affecting the following FWS wage areas: Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg, MD; Biloxi, MS; Columbus-Aberdeen, MS; Jackson, MS; Meridian, MS; Great Falls, MT; Pittsburgh, PA; Eastern Tennessee; Corpus Christi, TX; San Antonio, TX; and West Virginia. DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 18, 1996. ADDRESSES: Send or deliver comments to Donald J. Winstead, Assistant Director for Compensation Policy, Human Resources Systems Service, Office of Personnel Management, Room 6H31, 1900 E Street NW., Washington, DC 20415, or FAX: (202) 606-0824. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Allen, (202) 606-2848. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: OPM is engaged in an ongoing project to review the geographic definitions of selected FWS appropriated fund wage areas. Section 532.211 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, lists the following criteria for consideration when OPM defines FWS wage area boundaries: (i) Distance, transportation facilities, and geographic features; (ii) Commuting patterns; and (iii) Similarities in overall population, employment, and the kinds and sizes of private industrial establishments. As part of the system-wide review of wage area boundaries, OPM is also considering whether the survey areas within each wage area should be expanded or reduced in size. OPM recently completed reviews of the definitions of several FWS wage areas and, based on analyses of the regulatory criteria for defining wage areas, is proposing the changes described below. The Federal Prevailing Rate Advisory Committee, the statutory national- level labor-management committee responsible for advising OPM on matters concerning the pay of FWS employees, has reviewed and concurred by consensus with all of the changes described in this proposed rule. Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg, MD: OPM proposes to remove Fulton County, PA, from the Pittsburgh, PA, area of application and redefine the county to the Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg, MD, area of application. An analysis of the regulatory criteria for defining FWS wage areas shows that, while other regulatory criteria are indeterminate, distance and commuting pattern criteria strongly favor definition of Fulton County to the Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg wage area instead of to the Pittsburgh wage area. For example, an analysis of the distances between Fulton County and the Hagerstown- Martinsburg-Chambersburg and Pittsburgh survey areas shows that Fulton County is about 232 km (144 miles) away from Pittsburgh, but is only about 37 km (23 miles) away from Chambersburg, PA, the closest of the three main population centers in the Hagerstown-Martinsburg- Chambersburg survey area. Also, an analysis of the commuting patterns of Fulton County's resident workforce shows that about 55 percent of Fulton County's resident workforce commutes to work in the Hagerstown- Martinsburg-Chambersburg survey area, and less than 1 percent of Fulton County's resident workforce commutes to work in the Pittsburgh survey area. This change would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg wage area, which is scheduled to begin in January 1996. There are currently no FWS employees stationed in Fulton County. No other changes are proposed for the Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg wage area. Biloxi, MS: For the following reasons, OPM proposes that Stone County, MS, be removed from the Biloxi survey area: No FWS employees are stationed in Stone County; the county is no longer defined as part of a Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA); and the wage survey data yield from private industrial establishments located in Stone County accounted for less than 1 percent of the Biloxi wage area's survey data during the last full-scale wage survey in the wage area. This change would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the Biloxi wage area, which is scheduled to begin in November 1997. Stone County would remain in the Biloxi area of application. No other changes are proposed for the Biloxi wage area. Columbus-Aberdeen, MS: Based on current FWS employment patterns in the Columbus-Aberdeen wage area, OPM proposes to add Grenada and Leflore Counties, MS, to the Columbus-Aberdeen survey area. Grenada and Leflore Counties are currently defined to the Columbus-Aberdeen area of application. A majority of the FWS employees currently stationed in the Columbus-Aberdeen wage area--about 70 percent--work in the Columbus- Aberdeen wage area's area of application rather than its survey area. Grenada and Leflore Counties are located in the central and western portions of the Columbus-Aberdeen wage area and are the only non- surveyed counties in the wage area with substantial FWS employment. With the addition of Grenada and Leflore Counties to the Columbus- Aberdeen survey area, about 82 percent of wage area employees would be included within the survey area. This proposed survey area expansion would not create an undue survey burden on the lead agency for the wage area (the Department of Defense) and is strongly justified by the geographic distribution of local FWS employment. To more accurately reflect the broader geographic coverage of the expanded survey area, OPM proposes to rename the Columbus--Aberdeen wage area ``Northern Mississippi.'' These changes [[Page 65246]] would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the wage area, which is scheduled to begin in February 1996. No other changes are proposed for this wage area. Jackson, MS: OPM proposes to remove Adams, Claiborne, and Jefferson Counties, MS, from the Jackson survey area. In 1973, the Civil Service Commission, based on the consensus recommendation of FPRAC, added Adams, Claiborne, and Jefferson Counties to the Jackson survey area. FPRAC recommended this change to allow the inclusion in local wage surveys of counties along the Mississippi River that had experienced recent industrial growth. Regional commuting patterns and transportation facilities were also cited as factors favoring expansion of the survey area. Based on current FWS employment patterns in the Jackson wage area and the large size of the current Jackson survey area, OPM considers it unnecessary to continue surveying Adams, Claiborne, and Jefferson Counties. Only about nine FWS employees, or less than 2 percent of the Jackson wage area total, are currently stationed in the three counties considered for removal from the survey area. The wage survey data yield from Adams, Claiborne, and Jefferson Counties has been relatively low in past surveys; only about 11 percent of the Jackson survey data during the last full-scale wage survey came from private industrial establishments located in these three counties. Also, the three counties considered for removal from the survey area are inconveniently located for survey purposes. For example, the surveyable private industrial establishments in Adams County are located approximately 185 km (115 miles) away from the city of Jackson, the main population center and the main FWS employment location in the Jackson wage area. This change in the Jackson survey area would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the Jackson wage area, which is scheduled to begin In February 1997. As explained below for the Meridian, MS, wage area, OPM also proposes to remove Lamar County, MS, from the Jackson area of application and redefine the county to the Meridian survey area. No other changes are proposed for the Jackson wage area. Meridian, MS: OPM proposes to remove Lamar County, MS, from the Jackson, MS, area of application and redefine the county to the Meridian FWS survey area. An analysis of the regulatory criteria for defining FWS wage areas shows that, while other regulatory criteria are indeterminate, distance and commuting pattern criteria strongly favor definition of Lamar County to the Meridian wage area instead of the Jackson wage area. For example, an analysis of the distances between Lamar County and the Meridian and Jackson survey areas shows that Lamar County is about 179 km (111 miles) away from Jackson, but is only about 27 km (17 miles) away from Hattiesburg, MS, the closest of the two main population centers in the Meridian survey area. Also, an analysis of the commuting patterns of Lamar County's resident workforce shows that about 50 percent of Lamar County's resident workforce commutes to work in the Meridian survey area, but less than 1 percent of Lamar County's resident workforce commutes to work in the Jackson survey area. While there are currently no FWS employees stationed in Lamar County, the addition of Lamar County to the Meridian survey area would provide a desirable increase in the number of surveyable private sector industrial establishments in the Meridian survey area--about 14 percent more than in the current Meridian survey area. Also, Lamar County is one of the two counties of the Hattiesburg, MS MSA. The other county of the Hattiesburg MSA, Forrest County, is already defined to the Meridian survey area. This change would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the Meridian wage area, which is scheduled to begin in February 1997. No other changes are proposed for the Meridian wage area. Great Falls, MT: The survey area of the Great Falls wage area explained in 1973 with the addition of Yellowstone County, MT, and again expanded in 1981 with the addition of Lewis and Clark County, MT. Because the Great Falls survey area currently includes both the Great Falls, MT MSA and the Billings, MT MSA, OPM proposes to rename the wage area ``Montana'' to better reflect the broader geographic coverage of the current survey area than is suggested by the current wage area name. This change would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the wage area,which is scheduled to begin in July 1996. No other changes are proposed for this wage area. Pittsburgh, PA: Based on current FWS employment patterns in the Pittsburgh wage area, OPM proposes to add Butler County, PA, to the Pittsburgh survey area. Butler County is currently defined to the Pittsburgh area of application. There are currently about 170 FWS employees--about 8 percent of the Pittsburgh wage area total--stationed in Butler County. Butler County is currently a non-surveyed part of the Pittsburgh, PA MSA. Three of the counties of the Pittsburgh MSA (Beaver, Washington, and Westmoreland) are currently included in the Pittsburgh survey area, but far fewer FWS employees are stationed in those three counties than in Butler County. This proposed survey area expansion would not create an undue survey burden on the lead agency for the Pittsburgh wage area (the Department of Veterans Affairs) and is strongly justified by the geographic distribution of local FWS employment. This change in the Pittsburgh survey area definition would be effective for the next full- scale wage survey in the wage area, which is scheduled to begin in August 1997. Also, as explained above for the Hagerstown-Martinsburg- Chambersburg, MD, wage area, OPM proposes to remove Fulton County, PA, from the Pittsburgh area of application and redefine the county to the Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg, MD, area of application. No other changes are proposed for the Pittsburgh wage area. Eastern Tennessee: As explained below for the West Virginia wage area, OPM proposes to remove Norton city from the Eastern Tennessee area of application and redefine the city to the West Virginia area of application. No other changes are proposed for the Eastern Tennessee wage area. Corpus Christi, TX: OPM proposes to remove Brooks, Cameron, Hidalgo, Kenedy, Starr, and Willacy Counties, TX, from the San Antonio, TX, area of application and define these six counties to the Corpus Christi area of application. An analysis of the regulatory criteria for defining FWS wage areas shows that the distance criterion favors the definition of these counties to the Corpus Christi wage area much more than to the San Antonio wage area. Also, because the most favorable routes by road from the counties go through the present Corpus Christi wage area before reaching the San Antonio survey area, transportation facilities and geographic features criteria strongly favor the Corpus Christi wage more than the San Antonio wage area. Although all the other regulatory criteria are indeterminate, the redefinition of Brooks, Cameron, Hidalgo, Kenedy, Starr, and Willacy Counties to the Corpus Christi area of application is strongly justified by the extent to which the distance, transportation facilities, and geographic features criteria favor the Corpus Christi wage area. The following agencies currently have FWS employees stationed in the six Texas counties proposed for redefinition [[Page 65247]] to the Corpus Christi area of application: The Department of Agriculture; the Department of the Army; the General Services Administration; the Department of the Interior; the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico; and the Department of Justice. These changes would become effective when the final rule following this proposed rule becomes effective. No other changes are proposed for the Corpus Christi wage area. West Virginia: OPM proposes to remove Norton city, an independent Virginia city, from the Eastern Tennessee area of application and redefine the city to the West Virginia area of application. Although Norton city is currently defined to the Eastern Tennessee area of application, the city is completely surrounded by Wise County, which is defined to the West Virginia area of application. Because of their special geographic relationship, Wise County and North city should be defined to the same area of application. This change would be effective for the next full-scale wage survey in the West Virginia wage area, which is scheduled to begin in March 1997. There are no FWS employees currently stationed in North city. No other changes are proposed for the West Virginia wage area. Regulatory Flexibility Act I certify that these regulations would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because they would affect only Federal agencies and employees. List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 532 Administrative practice and procedure, Freedom of information, Government employees, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Wages. Office of Personnel Management. Lorraine A. Green, Deputy Director. Accordingly, OPM proposes to amend 5 CFR part 532 as follows: PART 532--PREVAILING RATE SYSTEMS 1. The authority citation for part 532 continues to read as follows: Authority: 5 U.S.C. 5343, 5346; Sec. 532.707 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 552. 2. Appendix C to subpart B is amended by revising the wage area listings for Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg, MD; Biloxi, MS; Columbus-Aberdeen, MS; Jackson, MS; Meridian, MS; Great Falls, MT; Pittsburgh, PA; Eastern Tennessee; Corpus Christi, TX; San Antonio, TX; and West Virginia to read as follows: Appendix C to Subpart B of Part 532--Appropriated Fund Wage and Survey Areas. * * * * * Maryland * * * * * Hagerstown-Martinsburg-Chambersburg Survey Area Maryland: Washington Pennsylvania: Franklin West Virginia: Berkeley Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Maryland: Allegany Garrett Pennsylvania: Fulton Virginia (cities): Harrisonburg Winchester Virginia (counties): Clarke Culpeper Frederick Greene Madison Page Rappahannock Rockingham Shenandoah Warren West Virginia: Hampshire Hardy Jefferson Mineral Morgan * * * * * Mississippi Biloxi Survey Area Mississippi: Hancock Harrison Jackson Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Mississippi: George Pearl River Stone Jackson Survey Area Mississippi: Hinds Rankin Warren Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Mississippi: Adams Amite Attala Claiborne Copiah Covington Franklin Holmes Humphreys Issaquena Jefferson Jefferson Davis Lawrence Lincoln Madison Marion Pike Scott Sharkey Simpson Smith Walthall Wilkinson Yazoo Meridian Survey Area Mississippi: Forrest Lamar Lauderdale Alabama: Choctaw Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Mississippi: Clarke Greene Jasper Jones Kemper Leake Neshoba Newton Perry Wayne Alabama: Sumter Northern Mississippi Survey Area Mississippi: Clay Grenada Leflore Lee Lowndes Monroe Oktibbeha Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Mississippi: Alcorn Bolivar Calhoun Carroll Chickasaw Choctaw Coahoma Itawamba Lafayette \15\ Montgomery Noxubee Panola Pontotoc \15\ Prentiss Quitman Sunflower Tallahatchie [[Page 65248]] Tishomingo Union \15\ \15\ Excluding Holly Springs National Forest. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Washington Webster Winston Yalobusha * * * * * Montana Montana Survey Area Montana: Cascade Lewis and Clark Yellowstone Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Montana: Beaverhead Big Horn Blaine Broadwater Carbon Carter Chouteau Custer Daniels Dawson Deer Lodge Fallon Fergus Flathead Gallatin Garfield Glacier Golden Valley Granite Hill Jefferson Judith Basin Lake Liberty Lincoln McCone Madison Meagher Mineral Missoula Musselshell Park Petroleum Phillips Pondera Powder River Powell Prairie Ravalli Richland Roosevelt Rosebud Sanders Sheridan Silver Bow Stillwater Sweet Grass Teton Toole Treasure Valley Wheatland Wibaux Wyoming: Big Horn Park * * * * * Pennsylvania * * * * * Pittsburgh Survey Area Pennsylvania: Allegheny Beaver Butler Washington Westmoreland Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Pennsylvania: Armstrong Bedford Blair Cambria Cameron Centre Clarion Clearfield Clinton Crawford Elk Erie Fayette Forest Greene Huntingdon Indiana Jefferson Lawrence McKean Mercer Potter Somerset Venango Warren Ohio: Belmont Carroll Harrison Jefferson Tuscarawas West Virginia: Brooke Hancock Marshall Ohio * * * * * Tennessee Eastern Tennessee Survey Area Tennessee: Carter Hawkins Sullivan Unicoi Washington Virginia (city): Bristol Virginia (counties): Scott Washington Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Tennessee: Cocke Greene Hancock Johnson Virginia: Buchanan Grayson Lee Russell Smyth Tazewell North Carolina: Alleghany Ashe Watauga Kentucky: Harlan Letcher * * * * * Texas * * * * * Corpus Christi Survey Area Texas: Nueces San Patricio Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Texas: Aransas Bee Brooks Calhoun Cameron Goliad Hidalgo Jim Wells Kenedy Kleberg Live Oak Refugio Starr Victoria Willacy * * * * * San Antonio Survey Area Texas: Bexar Comal Guadalupe Area of Application. Survey Area Plus Texas: Atascosa Bandera De Witt Dimmit Duval Edwards Frio Gillespie Gonzales Jim Hogg Karnes Kendall Kerr Kinney La Salle McMullen Maverick Medina Real Uvalde Val Verde Webb [[Page 65249]] Wilson Zapata Zavala * * * * * West Virginia West Virginia Survey Area West Virginia: Cabell Harrison Kanawha Marion Monongalia Putnam Wayne Ohio: Lawrence Kentucky: Boyd Greenup Area of Application. Survey Area Plus West Virginia: Barbour Boone Braxton Calhoun Clay Doddridge Fayette Gilmer Grant Greenbrier Jackson Lewis Lincoln Logan McDowell Mason Mercer Mingo Monroe Nicholas Pendleton Pleasants Pocahontas Preston Raleigh Randolph Ritchie Roane Summers Taylor Tucker Tyler Upshur Webster Wetzel Wirt Wood Wyoming Ohio: Athens Gallia Jackson Meigs Monroe Morgan Noble Pike Scioto Vinton Washington Kentucky: Carter Elliott Floyd Johnson Lawrence Lewis Magoffin Martin Pike Virginia (city): Norton Virginia (counties): Dickenson Wise * * * * * [FR Doc. 95-30737 Filed 12-18-95; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6325-01-M