60103620

Office of the General Counsel

OPM Ref. # 1996-01036

Dear Mr. [xxx]:

This replies to your January 27, 1997 letter appealing our settlement dismissing your request to restore 11 days in which you were in a nonwork status during 1977 and 1978. We dismissed your claim on the grounds that we may not settle claims that have not been presented to our office within six years of the date the claim accrued. In your appeal, you note that, if your service computation date is adjusted to credit you for those 11 days, you would have moved from the 6-hour leave category to the 8-hour category one pay period earlier than you actually did in May, 1991. You assert that your claim for those two hours is not time barred.

We agree that your claim for two additional hours of annual leave that you allege accrued in May, 1991 is not time barred. However, that does not mean it is payable. The underlying issue in your claim is whether your service in 1977 and 1978, when you served under an intermittent appointment, should be credited as full-time employment. The record is not sufficient for us to make that determination. Therefore, you must first submit your claim to the agency for their review and determination. If the agency denies your claim, you then may appeal to this office. Your appeal should include the agency's report and any records that substantiate your claim.

Very truly yours,

Paul Britner
Senior Attorney