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MAXIMUM GENERAL SCHEDULE PAY LIMITATIONS

NOTES

1. Under 5 U.S.C. 5547(a) and 5 CFR 550.105, GS employees may receive certain types of premium pay in a pay period only to the extent that the aggregate of basic pay and premium pay for the pay period does not exceed the greater of the biweekly rate payable for (1) GS-15, step 10 (including any applicable locality payment or special rate supplement), or (2) level V of the Executive Schedule. (See notes 2 and 4 for exceptions to this rule.)

2. Under 5 U.S.C. 5547(b) and 5 CFR 550.106 and 5 CFR 550.107, the head of an agency may apply an annual pay cap to certain types of premium pay for any pay period for (1) employees performing work in connection with an emergency, including work performed in the aftermath of such an emergency, or (2) employees performing work critical to the mission of the agency. Such employees may receive certain types of premium pay only to the extent that the aggregate of basic pay and premium pay for the calendar year does not exceed the greater of the annualized rate payable at the end of the calendar year for (1) GS-15, step 10 (including any applicable locality payment or special rate supplement), or (2) level V of the Executive Schedule. (See 5 CFR 550.107(d) regarding method of computing this annualized rate.)

3. A GS employee may not receive any portion of any allowance, differential, bonus, award, or other similar payment under title 5, United States Code, in any calendar year, which when combined with the employee's basic pay would cause the employee's aggregate compensation (including premium pay) to exceed the rate for level I of the Executive Schedule at the end of the calendar year. See 5 CFR 530.202 for definitions of "basic pay" and "aggregate compensation."

4. Effective January 1, 2011, section 1103 of Public Law 111-383 (Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2011) extends to calendar year 2011 the authority provided in section 1101(a) of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110-417, October 14, 2008), as amended by section 1106 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (Public Law 111-84, October 28, 2009), for the head of an agency to waive the premium pay cap provisions under 5 U.S.C. 5547.

   This waiver authority applies to certain civilian employees who perform work while in an overseas location that (1) is in the area of responsibility of the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) or (2) was formerly in the CENTCOM area of responsibility but has been moved to the area of responsibility of the Commander of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM). The overseas work must meet one of two additional qualifying conditions: (1) performance of work in direct support of or directly related to a military operation (including a contingency operation as defined in 10 U.S.C. 101(a)(13)), or (2) performance of work in direct support of or directly related to an operation in response to an emergency declared by the President.

   The annual limitation on basic pay and premium pay allowed under the waiver authority is $230,700 in calendar year 2011 (the annual rate of salary payable to the Vice President under 3 U.S.C. 104). Subsection 1101(b) also provides the aggregate limitation on pay under 5 U.S.C. 5307 will not apply to an employee in calendar year 2011 if the employee is granted a waiver under subsection 1101(a) of the normally applicable premium pay limitations.

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