used to purchase only such types of annuity as are specifically defined by the act of May 29, 1930, as amended.

(b) Any employee retiring under the provisions of section 1 of the act of May 29, 1930 (age or option), who has made voluntary deposits in the retirement fund may purchase therewith at the time of his retirement only the type of annuity elected for regular annuity, namely:

(1) Life annuity providing for return of unexpended principal; or,

(2) Increased annuity with forfeiture of unexpended principal; or,

(3) Reduced annuity of equivalent actuarial value with forfeiture of unexpended principal, payable during the life of the employee and after his death annuity in equal amount to be payable to the duly designated survivor annuitant during the life of said survivor. No election as provided by this subparagraph shall be effective in case an employee dies within thirty days after the effective date of retirement; or,

(4) Reduced annuity of equivalent actuarial value with forfeiture of unexpended principal, payable during the life of the employee and after his death onehalf of such reduced annuity to be payable to his duly designated survivor annuitant during the life of said survivor. No election as provided by this subparagraph shall be effective in case an employee dies within thirty days after the effective date of retirement.

(c) Any employee retiring by reason of disability under the terms of section 6 of the Retirement Act of May 29, 1930, as amended, or on account of separation under the terms of section 7 of the said act, who has made voluntary deposits in the retirement fund to purchase additional annuity shall be limited to his election of annuity to the type of annuity elected for regular annuity, that is, a life annuity or increased annuity with forfeiture.

(d) The mortality tables submitted by the Board of Actuaries and applied to regular annuities will be used in computing annuities based on voluntary deposits in the same way and manner as they are used for computing regular annuities.

NOTE: Information concerning the mortality tables referred to in paragraph (d) of this section may be obtained from the Retirement Division, Civil Service Commission, Washington, D. C.

§ 53.15 Appeals. (a) An appeal may be taken to the Civil Service Commission, from the final action or order of the Retirement Division affecting the rights or interest of any person or of the United States under the civil-service retirement law, except as provided in this section.

(b) Appeals must be filed by a claimant or a duly accredited representative, but no appeal shall lie to the Commission's Board of Appeals and Review until action has been completed by the Retirement Division. An appeal taken in behalf of a claimant by or through a representative who is not recognized by the Commission, or whose recognition has been canceled, shall not be entertained.

(c) (1) Except as hereinafter ordered, the time for filing an appeal shall be not later than six months from the date of mailing notice of the final action or order of which complaint is made.

(2) In applications for disability retirement made by a department or establishment of the Government the time for filing an appeal shall be not later than 30 days from date of receipt of notice of final action or order.

(3) In cases of disability annuitants who are found upon medical examination to have recovered, the time allowed for filing an appeal shall be no later than 90 days from the date of final notice of proposed discontinuance of annuity.

(4) In simultaneously contested claims, where one is allowed and one rejected, the time allowed for the filing of an appeal shall be not later than 60 days from the date of receipt of the notice of the Commission's action by the claimant to whom the action is adverse. Upon the filing of an appeal all parties, other than the appellant, whose interests may be adversely affected by the decision shall be notified by registered letter of the filing of the appeal and of the substance thereof and allowed 30 days from the date of the receipt of such notice within which to file brief or argument in answer thereto before the papers are forwarded to the Board of Appeals and Review. The return of a registered letter unclaimed, containing notice, addressed to the last known post-office address, shall constitute sufficient evidence of notice.

(d) Each appeal shall show the name and post-office address of appellant, his retirement claim number, the date and substance of the action from which the

appeal is taken, and full reasons for the appeal.

(e) In proceedings before the Commission in which it shall be decided that a party has no right to appeal or that said appeal may not be entertained under the provisions of this section, such party may apply to the Commissioners for an order directing the Retirement Division to forward the record to the Board of Appeals and Review. Such application shall be in writing and shall fully and specifically set forth the grounds upon which the request is based. If upon consideration the application is granted, jurisdiction shall vest in the Board of Appeals and Review to dispose properly of the case.

(f) The mandate of the decision by the Board of Appeals and Review shall be carried into effect within 60 days from the date of the receipt of notice of the decision by the Retirement Division (except as hereinafter provided), unless the decision shall sooner be recalled. A proper explanation of the decision rendered shall be mailed to the appellant and/or his duly authorized representative by the Board of Appeals and Review.

(g) In any case involving conflicting claims of two or more parties wherein the time allowed for appeal is limited to 60 days, there shall be a stay of execution of the decision of the Board of Appeals and Review until the expiration of the period of 30 days within which a motion for reconsideration may be filed.

(h) No appeal will be considered by the Civil Service Commission to review the decisions of the Secretary of the Interior prior to July 21, 1930, or of the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs prior to September 1, 1934, on civil-service retirement cases except where upon the basis of newly discovered material evidence, the case has been reconsidered by the Retirement Division. In the latter event, the provisions of this section shall apply.

§ 53.101 Basic records-(a) Records to be kept. The administrative offices of the departments and independent agencies shall initiate and maintain as hereinafter provided a retirement record system which will furnish all required information for each employee subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Retirement Act, and which shall form the basic record for all retirement purposes. The basic record shall consist of an indi

vidual retirement account for each employee and an annual summary of retirement fund transactions. (Supported by an adjustment register when necessary.)

(b) Individual account. The individual retirement account, Civil Service Commission Form 2806, shall be established for each employee in the Government service who is subject to the provisions of the Civil Service Retirement Act, and shall be maintained by the employing department or agency. The retirement account (supplemented by the designation of beneficiary, Form 2806-1, maintained in the Retirement Division of the Civil Service Commission) shall be the basic record from which the rights of individuals under the Retirement Act shall be determined, and shall be used to support all payments from the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund. Each retirement account shall contain the following detailed information and such other data as may from time to time be deemed essential by the Civil Service Commission to a proper determination of rights under the Retirement Act:

(1) Present name of employee and reference to any other name under which service was rendered.

(2) Date of birth. (3) Sex.

(4) Race. "W"-white, "C"-colored and "O"-other) (If available.)

(For

(5) All periods of employment. the duration of the present emergency, due to the inability of most war agencies to maintain currently, and to supply completed retirement account cards (Form 2806), all known periods of Federal employment will be posted. Prior government employment may be noted as "Not Verified". Employment within the agency shall be certified as to completeness and accuracy.)

(6) Reference to all periods of military or naval service claimed.

(7) All periods of leave in excess of six months in the aggregate in any calendar year-in computing excess leave, all periods of annual and sick leave, leave without pay and furloughs shall be included.

(8) A complete accumulative record of retirement deductions covering service in the agency by fiscal years, including deposits and redeposits for service credit.

(9) Citation as to vouchers and appropriations involved in any adjustment of illegal dual service.

§ 53.102 Maintenance of individual retirement account-(a) Standard abbreviations. All appointments, separations and changes in status, etc., shall be recorded on the retirement account in accordance with the standard abbreviations for personnel changes as outlined in Civil Service Form No. 2822, Revised.

(b) Posting retirement deductions, deposits and redeposits. At the end of each fiscal year the total retirement deductions taken from the salary or compensation, the amount of tontine included therein (see § 53.105), and the resulting net credit for the year, shall be posted from the payroll posting media for each employee to the appropriate columns on the fiscal side of his retirement account, the previous year's balance brought forward and the total credit entered.

In like manner there shall be entered on a separate line any deposit or redeposit made for the purchase of service credit or any collection of retirement deductions not currently withheld in prior fiscal years. Where the collection for service credit is made through the Civil Service Commission notice thereof on Form No. 3055 will be furnished to the department or agency concerned, which shall record the collection in accordance with the instructions contained in the notice.

The begininng date of deductions for each period of service shall be shown in the "remarks" column on the fiscal side of the retirement account card. Example: "Ded. began 9-1-38."

In no case shall voluntary deposits made under the provisions of section 4 of the Act of August 4, 1939, be entered on Form 2806. The record and account of voluntary deposits under that Act shall be maintained by the Retirement Division of the Civil Service Commission.

(c) Posting service record. Those agencies which maintain the service history side of the retirement account shall record all appointments, changes in status, changes in salary or rate of pay, and any other pertinent information on the service history side of the card in the appropriate columns. Those agencies which maintain only the fiscal record will record the date and kind of appointment, the designation and office of employment in the space provided in the

upper right hand corner on the fiscal side of the card. In either type of record there shall also be shown any leave of absence in excess of six months in the aggregate in any calendar year, it being borne in mind that the provisions of section 5 of the Retirement Act with regard to exclusion of leave in excess of six months in computing annuitable service applies to the calendar year and not to the fiscal year. Example: "Excess leave 1938; annual 26 days, sick 30 days, without pay 150 days."

When establishing a record the agency shall also enter on the card whatever information is available within the agency-for example, information in the employee's application for employmentas to prior unverified service in other agencies. This statement of prior service in other agencies shall be noted "not verified".

When furnishing the record of an employee compensated on a w. a. e. (when actually employed) basis, the total number of days on which he was in a pay status shall be clearly indicated by calendar years. Where employment was on a regular per diem or per hour basis it shall be shown whether the service was on the basis of a 365-day year; 313-day year; 261-day year, or other period.

(d) Use of margins. All entries shall be kept within the lines ruled on the card if possible, and nothing written in the margins, particularly the right and left margins. If necessary a second line shall be used instead of the margins. (In using the record it is frequently perforated in the margin to be bound in the file, which may obliterate any entry in the margin or cause it to be obscured from view.)

(e) Changes and erasures. Any change or erasure of date, salary or cause of separation on the service history side of Form 2806, or any change or erasure of date in column 1 or of amount in columns 2 or 3 on the fiscal side shall be noted and initialed by the countersigning or certifying officer, or person designated by him, as near as possible to the item corrected. Certification shall occupy as little space as possible, and shall show the date, salary, amount, or cause of separation to which changed. Small rubber stamps are desirable. The following or similar forms shall be used: "Date changed to 4-16-38." "Amt. changed to $1860." "Cause of separation changed to Res."

(f) (1) Completion and furnishing of record upon separation. Immediately upon the separation of an employee from the service of any department or agency the retirement account shall be completed to date, and the cause and date of separation recorded. The account shall then be certified as to its correctness, proper entry therefrom made on the register of separations as provided in paragraph (c) of § 53.107, and forwarded at once to the Civil Service Commission, together with any claim that may be on file at that time. In no case shall the retirement account be held in a department or agency awaiting the receipt of a claim.

(2) In recording a separation the facts in each individual case shall be given briefly, but in sufficient detail for the Commission to determine whether the separation was voluntary or involuntary, and if involuntary, whether for misconduct or delinquency within the meaning and intent of the Retirement Act. In any case where separation occurs for reasons other than voluntary (resignation) a brief but clear statement of the facts shall be recorded on the retirement account, or a written statement in appropriate form attached thereto when forwarded to the Commission. (It is necessary to consider not merely the form in which the separation was accomplished, but the conditions which induced the result. As generally used for retirement purposes the term "voluntary" denotes a separation from the service at the desire and for the convenience of the employee, while the term "involuntary" contemplates a separation for administrative reasons, such as lack of work, reduction of force, or a separation against the will or without the consent of the employee.)

(3) Not less than six months preceding eligibility for retirement (age), or whenever an employee requests optional retirement, a letter shall be directed to the Civil Service Commission, Retirement Division, listing the employee's unverified prior service in other agencies. The Commission will then obtain verification of this service and forward it to the requesting agency. An application for disability retirement, when submitted to the Retirement Division of the Civil Service Commission, must be accompanied by a letter listing the employee's unverified prior service in other agencies.

(4) When an employee is dropped for retirement on account of disability the

date on which pay ceased shall be shown under "remarks" on the fiscal side of his retirement account card.

(5) When an employee is separated by death the 5% of salary to date of death shall be included in his retirement account in accordance with General Accounting Office Regulation No. 54, Supplement No. 9, dated May 27, 1936. No retirement deductions shall be withheld from lump sum payments in lieu of accumulated or accrued annual leave under the act of December 21, 1944 (Public Law 525). If the employee was in a non-pay status at the time of death the period involved shall be stated. The claim for refundment of retirement deductions is separate and distinct from the claim for residue of salary, and shall not be held pending settlement of the claim for residue of salary unless there is some question as to the amount due.

(g) Certification of record. Certification shall be made on the line next following the last entry on the fiscal side of the card, but it shall also cover the data shown on the service history side as indicated in the following form of certification:

Deductions and service certified correct. (Signature and title of designated official. Date) (See § 53.103.)

(h) Accounts with various funds maintained separately. Accounts for the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund, the Canal Zone Retirement and Disability Fund and the Alaska Railroad Retirement and Disability Fund are maintained separately. Amounts deducted for the different funds shall not be consolidated on the employee's retirement account. When an employee goes from a position within the purview of one law to a position within the purview of another law the second office shall not take up in its accounts the amount of retirement deductions to the employee's credit when he left the former position. In such cases the employee concerned should obtain a refund of the retirement deductions taken while in the first position, and if he so desires, he may make application for the purchase of service credit under the act covering his new position.

§ 53.103 Certifying officers; signature cards. Certification as to the correctness of retirement records shall be made by officials regularly designated by

the head of the department or agency. The Retirement Division of the Civil Service Commission shall be furnished with duly authenticated signature cards in triplicate on Retirement Form 3420 for each designated official. The heads of the various departments and agencies shall promptly advise the Commission of any change in certifying officers.

§ 53.104 Retirement deductions—(a) Coverage. The Retirement Act requires that retirement deductions shall be taken currently from the compensation of each employee coming within the purview thereof.

Retirement deductions shall be taken from the basic salary, pay or compensation of all appointive officers and employees in or under the executive, judicial, and legislative1 branches of the United States Government who are not subject to another retirement system for such personnel, except heads of executive departments and agencies and employees excluded by Executive order. The same is true with respect to all officers and employees of the municipal government of the District of Columbia not subject to another retirement system for such persons.

(b) Employees excluded by Executive Order 9154 with certain exceptions. Employees given temporary appointments for 1 year or less, certain employees paid on a when-actually-employed basis without regular tour of duty, contract and fee-basis employees, etc., were excluded by Executive Order 9154 dated May 1, 1942. This order reads as follows:

(1) Employees in the following classifications of Federal personnel in the Executive branch of the Government are hereby excluded from the operation of the said Retirement Act, unless eligible for retirement benefits by continuity of service, by reinstatement, or otherwise:

(a) Employees whose expected service will be for brief periods but not to exceed one year.

(b) Employees paid by the hour, day, month, or year when actually employed, whose employment is periodic, part-time, or recurrent and for whom a regular tour of duty is not contemplated.

(c) Employees and consultants paid on a contract or fee basis.

(d) Employees paid on a piece-work basis, except when serving under regular or permanent appointment.

1 Certain legislative employees have the right of election to come under the system. (50 Stat. 512; 56 Stat. 13)

(e) Cooperative employees not wholly under the control of the Federal Government and not otherwise subject to the Civil Service Retirement Act.

(f) Officers and employees without compensation or with nominal compensation of $12.00 or less per annum.

(g) Intermittent alien employees engaged on work outside the continental limits of the United States.

(h) Member and patient employees in Government hospitals or homes.

(1) Employees serving under temporary appointments pending final determination of their eligibility for permanent or indefinite appointment.

(j) Acting postmasters, clerks in fourthclass post offices, substitute rural carriers, and special-delivery messengers at second-, third-, and fourth-class post offices.

(2) The Civil Service Commission is authorized to determine the applicability of the above classifications to specific officers and employees or groups of officers and employees in the Executive branch of the Government.

(3) This order shall be effective as of January 24, 1942, except that it shall not be so construed as to defeat any retirement rights of officers and employees acquired before the date of this order.

By the terms of the order, employees in any of the categories listed therein have a retirement status if they are eligible for retirement benefits by continuity of service, by reinstatement, or otherwise. Such employees continue under the system until they become absolutely separated from the Government service or are transferred to a position under another Federal retirement system.

§ 53.105 Tontine; based on pay status in calendar month. The phrase "major fraction thereof" as used in section 12 (a) of the Retirement Act has reference to the major fraction of the calendar month. The retention of $1 is predicated upon the receipt of salary, pay or compensation, from which retirement deductions have been withheld, and tontine during a calendar month is determined on a pay status when making and accounting for retirement deductions.

There is no separate tontine fund. The total deductions for the calendar month less the sum of $1 shall be credited to the employee's individual account whenever the employee is in a pay status for more than one-half of such month. If an employee is in a pay status for the major fraction of a calendar month and the total retirement deductions covering such month amount to less than $1, the total amount deducted shall be recorded