The Department's Offices, Boards & Divisions (OBD) Voluntary Leave Transfer Program (VLTP) assists employees who have a medical emergency that requires a prolonged absence from work which would result in a substantial loss of income. The program covers employees who experience medical emergencies, as well as employees who are caring for family members who are experiencing medical emergencies.

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The VLTP Process

To become an approved participant in the VLTP, an employee must meet all three of the following conditions:

1. Have a medical emergency--i.e., a medical condition (including a medical emergency affecting a family member) that is likely to require prolonged absence from work and to result in a substantial loss of income because of the unavailability of paid leave; and



2. Have exhausted all available sick and annual leave and be facing at least three days without available paid leave due to medical emergency; and



3. Provide medical documentation to substantiate the medical emergency.

Employees who wish to become leave recipients should complete the Voluntary Leave Transfer Recipient Application (in WordPerfect�7/8/9 format), and forward it to their Organization Leave Coordinator, along with the required medical documentation. If you wish to have information about your medical condition made available to help donors choose a recipient, provide a brief description in block 14 of the application form. The Organization Leave Coordinator will forward the package, along with a current Time & Attendance report, to the OBD Leave Coordinator. The OBD Leave Coordinator is available to answer any questions on the program or on the completion of the form.

Applications must be received by the OBD Leave Coordinator by close of business on the preceding Friday to be considered at a leave transfer board meeting.

Leave Transfer Board Meeting Dates for 2008

• January 2, January 16, January 30
• February 13, February 27
• March 12, March 26
• April 9, April 23
• May 7, May 21
• June 4, June 18
• July 2, July 16, July 30
• August 13, August 27
• September 10, September 24
• October 8, October 22
• November 5, November 19
• December 3

The OBD Leave Coordinator will prepare a case file, review the application for completeness, and check the applicant's leave status in the National Finance Center (NFC) records. If the applicant meets the criteria in 5 CFR 630.901, a summary is prepared and sent to the members of the Voluntary Leave Transfer Board (Board). (The Board consists of four Department employees selected by the Director of the JMD Personnel Staff. The Board's task is to review and approve or disapprove employees' applications to become leave recipients.) The summary includes: the applicant's name, grade, series title, component, a description of the medical emergency and the applicant's leave status. The Board will review each application and advise the OBD Leave Coordinator of their decision.

As provided in 5 CFR 630.905, an applicant must be given an answer of acceptance or denial within 10 days of receipt of the application. If an applicant submits an application too early (before they meet the leave balance requirements), the application will be held until the requirements are met. To fulfill the response requirement, an interim response will be sent to the applicant informing him or her that the application has been received and is being held. If Board members need additional information, they may ask the OBD Leave Coordinator to clarify or further research the case before making their decision. The applicant and his or her Organization Leave Coordinator will be notified of the Board's decision.

Approved recipients must provide monthly updated medical documentation in order to remain in the program. An approved recipient may wish to provide potential donors who are JMD or OBD employees with a copy of the Authorization to Transfer Leave (in WordPerfect�7/8/9 format). Potential donors in other Justice agencies or other Federal agencies would use the OPM 630-B - Request to Donate Annual Leave to Leave Recipient Under the Voluntary Leave Transfer Program (Outside Agency).

Set-Aside Accounts

The OBD Leave Coordinator will work with the recipient's Organization Leave Coordinator and the recipient's timekeeper to go into the National Finance Center (NFC) system to suspend the approved recipient's unlimited accrual of annual and sick leave. As described in 5 CFR 630.907, while using donated leave, a leave recipient is permitted to accrue no more than 40 hours of annual leave and 40 hours of sick leave in "set-aside accounts." The leave in the "set-aside accounts" will be transferred to the employee's regular leave accounts when the medical emergency ends or if the employee exhausts all donated leave.

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Leave Donations

An employee may donate annual leave directly to another Federal employee who is an approved leave recipient. Except for an employee with "use or lose" annual leave, an employee may donate no more than one-half of the annual leave that he or she will accrue in the leave year. (Employees with "use or lose" annual leave may donate the lesser of one-half of the annual leave he or she would accrue in the leave year or the number of hours remaining in the leave year for which he or she is scheduled to work and receive pay.) Leave must be donated in whole hours. The minimum amount an employee may donate is 4 hours.

An employee who wishes to donate an amount of leave in excess of the amount stated above, must submit a request in writing and provide a justification for the excess donation. Only an exceptional circumstance will be grounds for approval. Donations to a family member as defined in 5 CFR 630.902 will be considered to be an exceptional circumstance.

A leave recipient may receive up to the number of hours approved by the Board. Any unused donated leave is returned to the leave donor(s) when the medical emergency ends.

Leave donations may be received from or made to two areas:

• Inside the Department:
  
  To donate to another Justice Management Division (JMD) or OBD employee, a JMD or OBD donor must submit the Authorization to Transfer Leave, to their timekeeper, who will deduct the donated hours from the donor's annual leave balance and forward the form, along with a copy of the Time & Attendance Report showing the donation, to the Organization Leave Coordinator. The Organization Leave Coordinator will forward the information to the OBD Leave Coordinator. The Organization Leave Coordinator will credit the donated hours to the recipient's account. The recipient's Organization Leave Coordinator will be notified in writing of this transaction.
  
  To donate to an employee of another Department of Justice component (FBI, USMS, ATFE, BOP, EOUSA, DEA, EOIR or OIG) , a JMD or OBD employee must use Form OPM 630-B and follow the steps in the preceding paragraph.
  
  Employees may donate restored annual leave. To donate restored leave, an employee must check the appropriate box in Item 16 of the Authorization to Transfer Leave.



• Outside the Department:
  
  Donations from an agency outside of the Department are submitted to the OBD Leave Coordinator on Form OPM 630-B. After the donating agency verifies the donation on the form, the OBD Leave Coordinator will arrange to have the hours credited to the recipient's account. The recipient's Organization Leave Coordinator will be notified in writing of this transaction.
  
  Donations to an agency outside of the Department are submitted on Form OPM 630-B to the donor's timekeeper, who will deduct the donated hours from the donor's annual leave balance and forward the form, along with a copy of the STAR Time & Attendance Report showing the donation, to the OBD Leave Coordinator. The OBD Leave Coordinator will inform the recipient's agency of the donation.

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List of Approved Recipients

Updated October 15, 2008

The following recipients have elected to post their need for leave donations. If you wish to donate to anyone on this list, please follow the directions above.

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How to Contact the OBD Leave Coordinator

By mail:
Blaine C. Jackson, Jr.
Leave Share Coordinator
Suite 1175, National Place Building
1331 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20530

By phone:  (202) 514-7772

By FAX:  (202) 616-3724

By E-mail:   blaine.jackson@usdoj.gov

Hours:  7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

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How to Contact Your Organization Leave Coordinator

References and Forms