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NAO
202-299
Issued: 5/5/94; Effective: 4/22/94
CLEARANCE OF EMPLOYEE ACCOUNTABILITY
SECTION 1. PURPOSE.
.01
This order establishes policy and supplemental instructions
regarding employee accountability for
property, records, funds, and, other matters before
separating or transferring from any National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) organizational
element.
.02 This Order shall be used in conjunction with Department
Administrative Order (DAO) 202-299, Clearance of Employee
Accountability.
.03 This Order shall alert employees to post-employment
restrictions on activities and guide employees and
the Clearance officials through the clearance process
in order that departing employees may complete the
entire process and clear all debts due to the Government
before final clearance can be granted.
SECTION 2. POLICY.
.01 All NOAA employees who separate from the Federal
service, transfer to another Federal agency, or are
permanently promoted or reassigned to another geographic
location of NOAA or operating unit of the Department
of Commerce (DOC) shall follow the provisions of this
order in order that Government funds, property, and
records be adequately protected.
.02 Supervisors shall be the primary focus for initiating
the clearance process.
.03 Employees leaving NOAA must repay all money owed
to the Government and return or account for all Government
information and property. In addition, employees leaving
Federal service by resignation, retirement, or termination
must repay all advanced leave owed to the Government.
Unliquidated, unearned, or advanced annual and sick
leave shall not constitute a valid indebtedness in
the event that the employee is separated by death,
retire under disability, or when the employee is unable
to return to duty because of a disability evidenced
by an acceptable medical certificate.
.04 A separating employee's monetary indebtedness
accruing to the Government shall be withheld from the
employee's final pay check or other monies due in accordance
with applicable regulations in the absence of a payment
agreement approved by the DOC.
.05
Employees leaving NOAA may keep or discard non-record
official materials which they have accumulated with
certain exceptions. See DAO 205-3, Removal of Records
and Other Documents.
.06 All ADP systems access shall be terminated.
SECTION 3. REFERENCE.
This Section shall serve as a ready reference of forms
required to clear an employee leaving NOAA.
.01 For an employee leaving by retirement, resignation,
death, or termination:
a. Form CD-126, Separation Clearance Certificate
b. Form SF-52, Request for Personnel Action
c. Form AD-581, Lump Sum Leave Payment (if required)
d. Form AD-717, Leave Audit (if required)
.02 For an employee transferring to an agency outside
the DOC:
a. Form CD-126, Separation Clearance
b. Form SF-52, Request for Personnel Action
c. Form AD-581, Lump Sum Leave Payment (if payment
for compensatory time is needed)
d. Form AD-717, Leave Audit (if required)
e. Form CD-396, Performance Plan, Progress Review
and Appraisal Record (Interim Performance Rating)
.03 For an employee transferring within the DOC:
a. Form CD-126, Separation Clearance Certificate
b. Form SF-52, Request for Personnel Action (not required
for losing office)
c. Form AD-581, Lump Sum Leave Payment (if payment
for compensatory time is needed)
d. Form CD-396, Performance Plan, Progress Review
and Appraisal Record (Interim Performance Rating)
.04 If an employee wants final monies sent to any
address other than where pay is currently being sent,
the employee shall complete Form AD-349, Declaration
Sheet (input) and attach it to the Form CD-126, Separation
Clearance Certificate.
.05 The supervisor should begin to initiate clearance
procedures as soon as practicable and preferably at
least two weeks prior to separation. To obtain Form
CD-126, Separation Clearance Certificate, a request
for it may be faxed to (202)273-3344, or sent to the
address listed below using Form CD-52OLF, Request for
CD Forms and Office of the Secretary Stationery/Envelopes:
U.S. Department of Commerce
Executive Services Division, (H2858)
Washington, DC 20230
See the Attachment to this Order for a sample of Forms
CD-126, and CD-52OLF.
SECTION 4. RESPONSIBILITIES/PROCEDURES.
01. The Director, Human Resources Management Office
(OA2) has the overall responsibility for accountability
procedures and guidelines and ensuring that they are
in place and operating properly.
02. The Chief, Human Resource Services Division, Human
Resources Management office, and the Chiefs, Human
Resources Divisions, Administrative Support Centers
(ASCs), Office of Administration, are responsible for
implementing DOC and NOAA procedures and guidelines
pertaining to accountability in their areas of jurisdiction
and must:
a. establish specific clearance procedures as dictated
by their unique service area and internal organizational
structure;
b. ensure that all employees leaving the rolls of
NOAA by resignation, termination, retirement, discharge,
or removal are provided information about eligibility
for various benefits and entitlements including unemployment
compensation; and
c. ensure that all separation documents are completed
and processed in a timely manner.
03. An employee leaving NOAA or transferring to a
different geographic area must:
a. inform their supervisor of their departure date
immediately;
b. repay all money owed to the Government and return
all Government property and information prior to leaving;
c. obtain a signature, date, and telephone number
of the clearance official for each item to be cleared
on Form CD-126;
d. sign and date Section IV of Form CD-126 regarding
removal of non-record documents, prepare a separate
memorandum listing documents to be removed, if any;
and
e. return Form CD-126 to the supervisor by the established
due date.
If the employee's home duty station is different from
their current local duty station, the employee shall
clear through the local administrative officer or administrative
personnel liaison who shall call the various clearance
officials and receive clearances telephonically. Items
collected such as credit cards and official identification
shall be mailed to the home duty station supervisor
or the home duty station supervisor may make arrangements
for someone else to receive these items. Based on a
telephone call from the administrative officer or administrative
personnel liaison, the local supervisor may sign the
clearance blocks. The package must still reach the
servicing human resources office by the separation
date. See Section 4.04c. of this Order.
.04 The supervisor must:
a. complete Section I of Form CD-126 regarding employee
information and identify and initiate the preparation
of other forms that are needed; (See Section 3. of
this Order.)
b. identify items in Section III of
Form CD-126 which require clearance. Add the "AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD" as
a specific item to be cleared as well as any other
clearances required including the credit union, personal
computer, diagnostic tools, passwords, imprest fund
close-out, wage marine identification cards, health
unit, etc. The administrative officer can assist the
supervisor in identifying appropriate clearance points;
c. complete the Supplement in Attachment 1; contact
the offices listed for the servicing ASC/OA and record
the name of the person providing the clearance and
the date and,, when complete, sign and date the Supplement;
d. provide Form CD-126 along with the General Counsel
memorandum regarding post-employment restrictions to
the employee (see Exhibit I to DAO 202-299, Clearance
of Employee Accountability);
e. have the employee complete the clearance process
using Form CD-126 by a specific due date allowing the
forms to arrive in the servicing human resources office
no later than the date that the employee separates;
f. have the employee obtain an approving signature,
date, and telephone number for each item to be cleared
on Form CD-126;
g. have the employee's timekeeper prepare Form AD-581,
Lump Sum Leave or Compensatory Time Payments (if required
to pay lump sum annual leave and/or compensatory time)
and Form AD-717, Leave Audit; (Assistance may be obtained
from the appropriate Time and Attendance contact point
in your organization or servicing human resources office.)
h. submit Form SF-52, Request for Personnel Action,
as soon as the employee gives notice that they are
leaving the DOC, if appropriate;
i. complete an interim performance rating if the employee
is not separating from the Government and has been
under a performance plan for 120 days or more;
j. sign and date the Form CD-126 in Section I once
all signatures are obtained and all required paperwork
has been completed and attached to the Form CD-126;
k. notify servicing human resources office of clearance
or indebtedness by telephone if not located at the
same site by the close of business on the last working
day; (Expedite routing of document package to servicing
human resources office so that it arrives no later
than the employee's separation date. Immediately facsimile
a copy of the Form CD-126 to the servicing human resources
office in order to avoid adverse impact on employee.
If the separation package is late, the supervisor must
let the human resources office know whether or not
the employee is indebted. If the employee is indebted,
final payments can be withheld.)
l. call the servicing human resources office as soon
as they are aware the clearance package will be late
because the employee resigns without any warning or
becomes ill;
m. complete the process for the employee in the event
that the employee is unavailable for signature and
indicate that the employee was unavailable;
n. ensure that all access rights for the employee
to ADP systems are terminated; and
o. ensure that all hardware, software, peripherals,
tools, etc. have been returned by the employee.
.05 In the event that an employee has not adequately
accounted for an item(s) on the Form CD-126, the supervisor
or clearance official responsible for the item(s) shall
sign the form and:
a. notify the employee that they are indebted to the
Government for the property and/or money or for an
obligation not fulfilled; and
b. note the missing property or dollar value of the
debt/item on the Form CD-126 above their signature.
The supervisor or clearance official shall not personally
accept the repayment of any debt. The Finance Services
Division (FSD) and servicing ASC/Finance Divisions
shall accept repayment only after reviewing the Form
CD-126 and other finance records.
.06 The Finance Services Division and the Servicing
ASC Finance Divisions shall:
a. review the accounting records for outstanding travel
advances, GTR's, or other debts of record on receipt
of the Form CD-126, or a telephone inquiry from the
administrative-officer or employee supervisor; (If
the employee is indebted to the Government, Form AD-343
and documentation of the debt shall be forwarded to
the Human Resources Division accompanied by Form CD-126
or a memorandum when a telephone inquiry is involved.
The Human Resources Division forwards the information
to the National Finance Center (NFC) in order that
the NFC can deduct any debts from the employee's final
payment or can bill the employee, as appropriate.)
b. review the Form CD-126 and clear the employee;
(If the Form CD-126 indicates a debt for items other
than negative leave or salary overpayment, the servicing
FSD and ASC/Finance Divisions shall apply appropriate
collection procedures and notify the Human Resources
Division to hold final payments in-,an amount equal
to the debt.)
c. upon receipt of documentation of an obligation
not recorded in the accounting records prepare the
proper billing documents in order to:
1. record the debt in the accounting records; and
2. serve as the official notification to the departed
employee and to the Human Resources Division on the
existence of the debt;
d. accept repayment from the departed employee for
any debt identified in Sections 4.05 and 4.06 of this
Order; and
e. apply appropriate collection procedures in accordance
with applicable regulations;
03. The National Finance Center (NFC), for the types
of debts it is responsible for through its payroll
section, shall:
a. withhold any money owed by the departing employee;
b. issue billing documents to the indebted departing
employee; and
c. collect any money owed to the Government in accordance
with applicable regulations.
SECTION 5. EFFECT ON OTHER ISSUANCES.
This Order supersedes NOAA Administrative Order (NAO)
202-299, Clearance of Employee Accountability, dated
March 8, 1990.
Signed
Director, Office of Administration
Attachment: Form CD 126 - Use the current form CD-126
available at the DOC
Forms Website NOAA Supplement
to the CD-126 [page
1; page
2] Form CD 520LF - Use
the current form CD-520LF available at the DOC Forms
Website
Office of Primary Interest:
Office of Administration
Human Resources Management Office
Human Resource Programs and Organization Analysis
Division
(OA22)
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