2008 FECA Bulletins which have previously been issued by the DFEC but have since expired or been superseded by another Bulletin, Circular or inclusion in the FECA Procedure Manual.
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FECA Bulletin No. |
Subject |
|---|---|
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Compensation Pay - Compensation Rate Changes Effective January 2008 |
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Compensation Pay - Consumer Price Index (CPI) Cost-of-Living Adjustments for March 1, 2008 |
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Compensation Payment – Segregation of Duties for Change of Address in the Integrated Federal Employees' Compensation System (iFECS) |
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Bill Pay - Revision in the Reimbursement Rates Payable for the Use of Privately Owned Automobiles Necessary to Secure Medical Examination and Treatment |
Attention: This bulletin has been superseded and is inactive.
FECA BULLETIN NO. 08-01
Issue Date: February 29, 2008
Expiration Date: January 1, 2009
Subject: Compensation Pay - Compensation Rate Changes Effective January 2008.
Background: On January 4, 2008, the President signed Executive Order 13454 implementing a salary increase of 2.50 percent in the General Schedule basic pay. The applicability under 5 U.S.C. 8112 only includes the 2.50 percent increase in the basic General Schedule. Any additional increase for locality-based pay is excluded. The adjustment becomes effective at the start of the first full pay period after January 1, 2008.
Purpose: To inform the appropriate personnel of the increased minimum/maximum rates of compensation, and the adjustment procedures for affected cases on the periodic disability and death payrolls.
The new rates were effective with the first compensation payroll period beginning on or after January 1, 2008. Thus, for daily roll supplemental payments, January 6, 2008, is the specific effective date of the increase. The effective date for the increase of periodic and death roll payments will be January 20, 2008. The new maximum compensation rate payable is based on the scheduled salary of a GS-15, step 10, which is now $124,010 per annum. The basis for the minimum compensation rate is the salary of a GS-2, Step 1 which is $19,165 per annum.
The minimum increase specified in this Bulletin is applicable to employees of the U.S. Postal Service.
The effect on 5 U.S.C. 8112 is to increase the payment of compensation for disability claims to:
|
Effective January 6, 2008 |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|---|---|---|
|
28-Day Cycle |
$1,105.67 |
$7,154.42 |
The effect on 5 U.S.C. 8133(e) is to increase the monthly pay on which compensation for death is computed to:
|
Effective January 6, 2008 |
Minimum |
Maximum |
|---|---|---|
|
Monthly |
$1,597.08 |
$7,750.62 |
Applicability: Appropriate National and District Office personnel
Reference: Memorandum for Executive Heads of Departments and Agencies dated January 4, 2008; and the attachment for the 2008 General Schedule.
Action: The Integrated Federal Employees' Compensation System (iFECS) will update the periodic disability and death payrolls. It should be noted that this adjustment process re-calculates EVERY compensation record from its very beginning to the current date. Thus, it may be that minor changes in the gross compensation are noted; this is not necessarily incorrect.
Any cases keyed as "Gross Overrides without CPI" in iFECS will not have a supplemental record or make a separate calculation of additional entitlement. Thus, these gross override cases must be reviewed to determine if adjustments are necessary. If adjustment is necessary, a manual calculation will be required and the case record documented. A notice should be sent to the payee by the District Office, detailing the change in the rate of compensation. All cases keyed as "Gross Overrides with CPI" will be adjusted in the usual manner.
1. Adjustments Dates.
a. As the effective date of the adjustment was January 20, 2008, for the periodic disability and death rolls, there was no supplemental payroll needed. The February 16, 2007 death and disability payments will include any necessary minimum/maximum compensation adjustments.
b. The new minimum/maximum compensation rates were available in iFECS on February 4, 2008.
2. Adjustment of Daily Roll Payments. The salary adjustments are not retroactive, so it is assumed that all Federal agencies have ample time to receive and report the new pay rates on claims for compensation filed on or after January 1, 2008. Therefore, it is not necessary to review any of these payments.
However, if an inquiry is received, then verification of the pay rate must be secured from the employing agency and the necessary adjustment applied.
Disposition: This bulletin should be retained in Part 5, Benefit Payments, Federal (FECA) Procedure Manual, until the indicated expiration date.
DOUGLAS C. FITZGERALD
Director for
Federal Employees' Compensation
Distribution: List No. 2 – Folioviews Groups A, B and D (Claims Examiners, All Supervisors, District Medical Advisors, Fiscal Personnel, Systems Managers, Technical Assistants, Rehabilitation Specialists and Staff Nurses)
Back to Top of FECA Bulletin No. 08-01
Attention: This bulletin has been superseded and is inactive.
FECA BULLETIN NO. 08-02
Issue Date: March 1, 2008
Expiration Date: February 28, 2009
Subject: Compensation Pay - Consumer Price Index (CPI) Cost-of-Living Adjustments for March 1, 2008.
Purpose: To furnish instructions on CPI adjustment implementation of March 1, 2008.
1. The new CPI increase, adjusted to the nearest one-tenth of one percent, is 4.3 percent.
2. The increase is effective March 1, 2008, and is applicable where disability or death occurred before March 1, 2007.
3. The new base month is December 2007.
4. The maximum compensation rates, which must not be exceeded, are the following:
| Amount | Time |
|---|---|
|
$ 7,750.62 |
per month |
Applicability: Appropriate National Office and District Office personnel.
Reference: FECA Consumer Price Index (CPI) Amendment, dated January 6, 1981.
Action: National Office Production staff will update the Integrated Federal Employees' Compensation System (iFECS) CPI tables, and have all payment records re-calculated, on or about April 3, 2008, when the iFECS system is not in use by District Office personnel. If there are any cases with fixed gross overrides there will be no supplemental record created. These cases must be reviewed to determine if CPI adjustments are necessary and, if so, a manual calculation will be required. If the gross override payment is, in fact, eligible for annual CPI increases, the payment plate should be adjusted in the iFECS system to pay as a "Gross Override with CPI".
1. Adjustment Dates.
a. The effective date of the CPI is March 1, 2008, and the period of the first adjusted periodic and death payroll cycles is February 17, 2008 to March 15, 2008. As a result, there will be a supplemental record created for the period of March 1 through March 15, 2008 to account for the increases due after March 1. Payment of this supplemental record will be combined with the April 12, 2008 periodic and death payrolls. A separate payment will not be issued for the March 1 through March 15, 2008 increase amount. Effective May 10, 2008, the periodic and death payrolls will reflect the increased amount of the regular death and periodic payrolls.
b. All tables in the iFECS system will be updated with the new CPI percentage. This update will be performed for all district offices by the iFECS Production staff in the National Office.
2. CPI, Minimum and Maximum Adjustments Listings. Form CA-841, Cost-of-Living Adjustments; Form CA-842, Minimum Compensation Rates; and Form CA-843, Maximum Compensation Rates, should be updated with the new information. Attached to this directive is a complete list of all the CPI increases and effective dates from October 1, 1966 through March 1, 2008.
3. Forms.
a. All claimants will be provided a notice with the Benefit Statement dated April 14, 2007, indicating that a CPI of 4.3% will be applied to all eligible cases. The notice will also advise the claimant of upcoming increases in their compensation pay, including the supplemental CPI payment and the new periodic payment beginning on May 10, 2008. The Treasury will include this notice as a "stuffer card" with every Benefit Statement issued for the April 12, 2008 rolls.
b. Beginning with the compensation payment cycle that covers April 13, 2008 to May 10, 2008, the Office will issue an updated monthly Benefit Statement to each individual receiving benefits on the 28-day periodic roll cycle. This Benefit Statement will indicate the gross amount of compensation, period of compensation covered by the statement and the pertinent deductions made from the gross compensation. For compensation payments made via paper checks, the Benefit Statement will accompany the check. For compensation payments made through Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT), the Benefit Statement will be mailed separately.
c. If claimants write or call for verification of the amount of compensation paid (possibly for mortgage verification; insurance verification; loan application; etc.), please provide this data in letter form from the district office. Sometimes a Benefit Statement may not reach the addressee and regeneration of the form is not possible. A letter indicating the amount of compensation paid every four weeks will be an adequate substitute for this purpose.
Disposition: This Bulletin is to be retained in Part 5, Benefit Payments, Federal (FECA) Procedure Manual, until further notice or the indicated expiration date.
DOUGLAS C. FITZGERALD
Director for
Federal Employees' Compensation
Attachment
Distribution: List No. 2 - Folioviews Groups A, B and D (Claims Examiners, All Supervisors, District Medical Advisors, Fiscal Personnel, Systems Managers, Technical Assistants, Rehabilitation Specialists and Staff Nurses)
|
EFFECTIVE DATE |
RATE |
EFFECTIVE DATE |
RATE |
|---|---|---|---|
|
10/01/66 |
12.5% |
03/01/87 |
0.7% |
Prior to September 7, 1974, the new compensation after adding the CPI is rounded to the nearest $1.00 on a monthly basis or the nearest multiple of $.23 on a weekly basis ($.23, $.46, $.69, or $.92). After September 7, 1974, the new compensation after adding the CPI is rounded to the nearest $1.00 on a monthly basis or the nearest $.25 on a weekly basis ($.25, $.50, $.75, or $1.00).
| Date | Amount | Date | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Prior to 09/07/74 |
.08-.34 = .23 |
Eff. 09/07/74 |
.13-.37 = .25 |
Back to Top of FECA Bulletin No. 08-02
Attention: This bulletin has been superseded and is inactive.
FECA BULLETIN NO. 08-03
Issue Date: April 30, 2008
Expiration Date: April 29, 2009
Subject: Compensation Payment – Segregation of Duties for Change of Address in the Integrated Federal Employees' Compensation System (iFECS)
Background: From its inception, security and access control have been an integral part of iFECS. A critical component of iFECS is its ability to ensure the proper segregation of staff duties, including the processing of claimant/payee changes of address. Such segregation of duties is necessary to ensure the integrity of system data and the security of all monies disbursed under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA). FECA Bulletin No. 00-14, issued on April 12, 2000, discussed the segregation of duties in the Automated Compensation Payment System (ACPS) and the Case Management File (CMF) subsystems of the Federal Employees' Compensation System (FECS). However, while iFECS implements the proper segregation of duties functions, the necessary documentation detailing these processes has been missing. This bulletin updates the process for segregation of duties in the iFECS Case Management and Compensation Management subsystems.
Purpose: To provide procedural guidance for all Federal Employees' Compensation (FEC) offices concerning segregation of duties for processing a change of address request.
Applicability: Regional Directors, District Directors, Fiscal Officers, Bill Payment Supervisors, Claims personnel, and appropriate National Office personnel.
Reference: FECA Bulletin No. 00-14 issued April 12, 2000.
Action: Satisfactory procedures for handling changes of address in the iFECS Case Management and Compensation Management subsystems include several elements described as follows:
1. Documentation. The action to change an address must be initiated by the claimant/payee or authorized representative in written form. A telephone contact is not sufficient for the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) to change an address. The source document for the address change must be signed and dated by the claimant/payee or the authorized representative. A typical example of a source document would be a letter from the claimant/payee or representative. Another acceptable document for an address change is the SF-1199a used to elect receipt of compensation payments by electronic funds transfer (EFT). An existing EFT address (bank account number and routing number) should be changed in iFECS with a signed SF-1199a form or a similar form generated by the financial institution. While use of the SF-1199a is strongly encouraged, any bank documentation is acceptable so long as it is accompanied by the original signature of the claimant. Documentation should be retained electronically in the case record (Imaging).
2. Personnel. No person with access to the iFECS Compensation Management subsystem will be involved in the certification process of changing addresses for directing compensation payments. This includes address changes for checks and EFT account information. The person certifying the change of address will be non-claims personnel. That is, they are not to have access to any other claims payment options in the iFECS Compensation Management menu. This access level control is achieved through the use of secure logins, secure application programming interfaces, managed client applications and user role definitions—which ultimately restrict each iFECS user's access level to only those functions authorized by his or her supervisor.
Each district office will designate appropriate staff person(s) who will be responsible for certifying changes of address, and the list of such persons will be maintained in the District Director's office. The District Director's list will be updated immediately as changes in this responsibility occur.
3. Process. The staff initiating the change of address will record the new information in the "Update Payee" screen of the Case Admin Tool within the iFECS Case Management subsystem. Once the address information is saved, iFECS will prompt the keyer to send a referral to an authorized certifier via the Case Referral screen. The new address will remain in a pending status until the referral is certified. In Case Referral, the keyer should select "Certify Data Changes" under the "Make Referral" tab, and then select the appropriate option under the "Referral Reason" drop-down box. The keyer should also reference the specific source document in the Referral Instructions text field so the certifier can quickly verify the information. When a certifier receives an address change referral, s/he should review the case file materials referenced and approve or deny the referral based on the accuracy of the updates keyed by the referrer. If the referral is denied, the referring staff should make the necessary corrections and re-refer the changes for certification. Once the new address is certified, the claims staff may continue processing compensation through normal channels.
For cases involving physical address changes only (as opposed to EFT updates) the responsible claims staff will also need to update the iFECS record for directing correspondence. These changes are made separately in the Case Maintenance screen within Case Management. Changes are completed by selecting the "Edit Case Information" option then completing the appropriate text fields in the Employee Data tab. Changes in correspondence address only do not require certification. However, if a claimant/payee is receiving compensation at the time of the address change request, changes to both the correspondence and compensation records should be made at the same time. If the correspondence and compensation addresses do not match when a compensation payment is processed, iFECS will display a pop-up notice advising the keyer of the mismatch. The keyer will need to review the file and decide if additional changes are necessary before proceeding with the payment.
4. Accountability. District office managers must ensure that all affected personnel are aware of this process and recognize its importance. Adherence to these procedures will be monitored biannually in the accountability review process and annually during the Office of Inspector General's (OIG) Consolidated Financial Statement Audit.
Disposition: Retain until incorporated in the FECA Procedure Manual or until further notice.
DOUGLAS C. FITZGERALD
Director for
Federal Employees' Compensation
Distribution: List No. 2 - Folioviews Groups A and D (Claims Examiners, All Supervisors, District Medical Advisors, Fiscal Personnel, Systems Managers, Technical Assistants, Systems Managers, Rehabilitation Specialists and Staff Nurses)
Back to Top of FECA Bulletin No. 08-03
Attention: This bulletin has been superseded and is inactive.
FECA BULLETIN NO. 08-04
Issue Date: April 30, 2008
Expiration Date: December 31, 2008
Subject: Bill Pay - Revision in the Reimbursement Rates Payable for the Use of Privately Owned Automobiles Necessary to Secure Medical Examination and Treatment.
Background: Effective March 19, 2008, the mileage rate for reimbursement to Federal employees traveling by privately-owned automobile (POV) was increased to 50.5 cents per mile by the General Services Administration (GSA). No restriction is made as to the number of miles that can be traveled. As in the past, this rate will also apply to disabled Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA) beneficiaries traveling to secure necessary medical examination and treatment.
Applicability: Appropriate National Office and District Office personnel.
Reference: Federal (FECA) Procedure Manual Part 5, Benefit Payments, Chapter 204, Principles of Bill Adjudication and 5 U.S.C. § 8103.
Action: The Central Bill Processing (CBP) facility has updated their system to reflect the new rates. Since there is no action required at the District Office level, the rates are being provided for informational purposes only.
The following is a list of the historical mileage rates used to reimburse claimant travel expense:
| Date | Rate |
|---|---|
|
01/01/1995 – 06/06/1996 |
30.0 cents per mile |
|
01/14/2000 – 01/21/2001 |
32.5 cents per mile |
|
01/01/2006 – 01/31/2007 |
44.5 cents per mile |
Disposition: This Bulletin should be retained in Chapter 5-0204, Principles of Bill Adjudication, Federal (FECA) Procedure Manual.
DOUGLAS C. FITZGERALD
Director for
Federal Employees' Compensation
Distribution: List No. 2 -- Folioviews Groups A, B and D
(Claims Examiners, All Supervisors, District Medical Advisors, Technical Assistants, Staff Nurses, Rehabilitation Specialists and Fiscal Personnel).
Back to Top of FECA Bulletin No. 08-04