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The Honorable Ron Packard

January 5, 1996

Page 3

regarding the alleged violation and advise the employee of his or her rights and responsibilities under the CAA. The counselor will evaluate the matter and help the employee to resolve the problem, if possible.

Mediation

Mediation gives the employee a second opportunity for early dispute resolution, before a formal complaint is filed. If the counseling period does not resolve the employee's concems, the employee may make a timely request for mediation. The employing office will be notified of the request and will have the opportunity to participate in the mediation. The Office will provide neutral, trained mediators to assist the parties in resolving the dispute. The period for mediation will generally be 30 days, but may be extended at the request of the parties.

Adjudication

If after counseling and mediation the dispute remains unresolved, the employee may choose to pursue the claim through the adjudicative hearing process under the auspices of the Office, or file suit in Federal District Court. If the employee elects the hearing procedures of the Office, the employee will file a formal complaint with the Office. The procedural rules describe in detail what must be included in a complaint and the timetable for filing. The executive director appoints an independent Hearing Officer to conduct reasonable discovery, consider the case and render a decision. The Hearing Officer's decision may be appealed to the Office's Board of Directors. The decisions of Hearing Officers and the Board of Directors will be in the form of written opinions. The administrative hearing process will offer speedier resolution and confidentiality, while offering the same remedies as civil action.

Inspections and Investigations

Occupational Safety and Health

The General Counsel will conduct periodic inspections of all facilities of the House of Representatives, the Senate, the Capitol Guide Service, the Capitol Police, the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Office of the Attending Physician, the Office of Compliance, the Office of Technology Assessment, the Library of Congress, and the General Accounting Office, to report on compliance with the provisions of section 5 of the Occupational and Safety Health Act of 1970, as applied by section 215 of the CAA. The General Counsel is required to complete the initial inspection of these facilities prior to July 1, 1996 and to submit a report for the 104th Congress. Thereafter, the General Counsel will conduct the inspections on a regular basis, and at least once each Congress. The Office is also required to assist the Office of the Architect of the

The Honorable Ron Packard

January 5, 1996
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Capitol and other covered entities until December 31, 1996, by arranging for inspections and other technical assistance at their request. Effective January 1, 1997, the General Counsel will be responsible for receiving and processing requests for inspections and for inspecting and investigating facilities and issuing citations regarding violations of occupational safety and health standards.

Public Accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act

The General Counsel will conduct periodic inspections of facilities of the House of Representatives, the Senate, the Capitol Guide Service, the Capitol Police, the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol (including the Senate Restaurant and the Botanic Garden), the Office of the Attending Physician, the Office of Compliance, and the Office of Technology Assessment, to report on compliance with the rights and protections against discrimination in the provision of public services and accommodations established by the Americans with Disabilities Act, as applied to covered facilities by section 210 of the CAA. The General Counsel is required to complete the initial inspection of these facilities prior to July 1, 1996 and to submit a report to the 104th Congress. Thereafter, the General Counsel is required to conduct the inspections on a regular basis, and at least once each Congress. The Office is also required to assist the Office of the Architect of the Capitol and other covered entities until December 31, 1996, by arranging for inspections and other technical assistance at their request. Effective January 1, 1997, the General Counsel will be authorized to receive complaints of alleged violations of the public accommodation provisions and is responsible for investigation of such charges and, if warranted, issuing and prosecuting complaints against any entity responsible for correcting the alleged violation.

Labor-Management Relations

Effective October 1, 1996, the General Counsel is responsible for receiving and investigating allegations of unfair labor practices filed under section 220 of the CAA, and for filing and prosecuting complaints of unfair labor practices with the Office. The Office will also be required to carry out the Board's investigative authorities under section 220(c)(1) of the CAA, involving issues concerning the appropriateness of units for labor organization representation, the duty to bargain in good faith, and exceptions to arbitrators' awards.

Education and Information

The CAA requires the Office to provide education and information to Congress, other employing offices of the legislative branch, and covered employees on the laws applied by the CAA. To accomplish this task, the law requires the Office to distribute information about the Office of Compliance and the Office's procedures for dispute resolution and adjudication of

The Honorable Ron Packard

January 5, 1996

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claims, and any other information the Office deems necessary. The law further requires the Office to publish statistics on the use of the Office by covered employees.

To these ends, and in the short time the Office has been in existence, we have developed a comprehensive and extensive education and information plan designed to meet the needs of the legislative branch. The initial education plan is already completed. Additional components will be implemented during FY 1996, and on a continuing basis thereafter.

The following is a list of the education and information activities currently underway and projected through FY 1997.

Current projects and activities

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design of an informational poster presenting the eleven laws applied by the CAA, the Office's address, phone numbers; distribution to all employing offices by January 23, 1996;

direct residential mailing to 26,000 covered employees of an informational brochure containing brief summaries of the eleven laws applied by the CAA, employee rights and protections, and the procedures of the Office; mailing to be completed by January 23, 1996;

briefings by the Office for employing office staff to provide information and guidance on the CAA; sessions will be videotaped for use in district offices and for loan to new employing offices;

introductory briefings on the CAA for covered employees;

distribution of a reference manual to all employing offices containing: an introduction, a legislative history of the CAA, summaries of the eleven laws applied by the CAA, a question and answer section, a complete set of the Office's procedural and substantive rules, and other useful information;

development of a telephone information line designed to direct callers to recorded information, or to an Office staff member who can discuss claims and provide resource referrals; the line will also be equipped to keep statistics on how many calls are received by category; an officer of the day will always be available to provide

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January 5, 1996

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development of a system for disseminating Office of Compliance information via the Internet.

Continuing projects and activities:

On-going liaison with employing offices and employees to identify information and education needs;

brochures mailed to residences of, and periodic briefings for new employees;

distribution of information and education materials to new employing offices;

preparation of poster, mailing, and updates to the manual for Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (January 1997); the Occupational Safety and Health Act (January, 1997), and the Federal Service Labor-Management Relations statute (October, 1996);

updates to the Internet database;

establishment and maintenance of a resource library in the Office;

dissemination of new information, or reinforcement of prior information through flyers, newsletters, etc.;

analysis of information and counseling requests, and revision of education and information services as needed.

The process of educating and informing the employing offices and employees of the legislative branch will continue on a daily basis. In the meantime, the Office has begun establishing contacts throughout the legislative branch and the executive branch to make our presence known and to obtain and provide guidance when necessary. Outreach efforts thus far include the Senate Legal Counsel for Employment, the Senate Office Managers Group, the Senate Disbursing Office, individual Senate staff, the Senate Office of Fair Employment Practices, the House Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, the House Training Office, the House Office of Fair Employment Practices, the House Office of the General Counsel, individual House staff, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Capitol Police, the Office of the Attending Physician, the Congressional Budget Office, the Equal Employment

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January 5, 1996
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Regulation Writing

The CAA requires the executive director, subject to Board approval, to adopt rules governing the procedure of the Office. The CAA further requires the Board to adopt, subject to congressional action, substantive regulations implementing the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Occupational Safety and Hazard Act, and the Labor-Management Relations statute.

Comprehensive procedural rules for the Office were developed, published for comment, and ultimately adopted and issued on December 22, 1995. The regulations for the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, and the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, which are scheduled to take effect January 23, 1996, will be submitted for congressional consideration before January 23, 1996. The regulations for the implementation of the three remaining laws will be developed and completed between February and December 1996. Furthermore, the Office will, on a continuing basis, review its program and the implementing rules and regulations in order to update and amend both the procedural rules and the substantive regulations, in order to reflect changes in the law, or as necessary.

Studies and Reports

The CAA mandates several studies to be completed during FY 1996 and 1997.

Section 230 of the CAA (2 U.S.C. § 1371) requires the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) to undertake a study on the application of the employment and labor laws in the CAA to the General Accounting Office, the Government Printing Office, and the Library of Congress. Specifically, the study is to address whether the rights, protections and procedures currently applicable to the three entities in question and their employees are "comprehensive and effective," and must make recommendations for improvements in those processes and regulations. Pursuant to section 309 of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act for FY 1996, the Board will be responsible for this study, which is due no later than December 31, 1996.

Section 102(b)(2) of the CAA requires that, beginning on December 31, 1996, and every two years thereafter, the Board must submit a report to Congress on the applicability of any employment laws not contained in the CAA to the legislative branch. This requires a survey of all new and existing legislation, including

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