(a)

(1) An employee may appeal the occupation series, grade or title of the job to the appropriate office of the Office of Personnel Management only (i) after the agency has issued a decision under the system established under §532.703; and (ii) if the employee files the appeal with the Office of Personnel Management within 15 calendar days after receipt of the decision of the agency.

(2) The Office of Personnel Management may extend this time limit if it is shown that the employee was not notified of the applicable time limit and was not otherwise aware of the limit, or that circumstances beyond the employee's control prevented filing an appeal within the prescribed time limit.

(b) An employee shall make the appeal in writing and shall identify specifically the portions of the decision or job analysis of the agency with which the employee disagrees.

(c) The Office of Personnel Management shall base its decision on the record established in the agency, except that when the Office of Personnel Management investigates or audits the job it may take the results of the investigation or audit into consideration. In the event the Office of Personnel Management audits the job, the employee's representative may not be present.

(d) The Office of Personnel Management shall notify the employee and the agency in writing of its decision. The effective date of a change in the series, title and grade of a job directed by the Office of Personnel Management shall be specified in the decision of the Office of Personnel Management, computed from the date the employee filed the application with the agency, and determined under §532.703(b)(10). However, when the decision will result in a downgrading or other job-grading action that will reduce the pay of the incumbent of the job, the effective date may not be set earlier than the date on which the decision can be effected in accordance with procedures required by applicable law and regulation.

(e) The appeal of an employee shall be canceled and the employee so notified in the following circumstances:

(1) On receipt of the employee's written request;

(2) On failure to prosecute, when the employee does not furnish requested information and duly proceed with the advancement of the appeal; however, instead of cancellation for failure to prosecute, an appeal may be adjudicated if the information is sufficient for that purpose. The Office of Personnel Management may reopen a canceled appeal on a showing that circumstances beyond the control of the employee prevented the employee from prosecuting the appeal; or

(3) On notice that the employee has left the job, except when entitled to retroactive benefits, including benefits allowable after the death of an appellant.

(f) The Office of Personnel Management may, at its discretion, reopen and reconsider any job-grading decision made by the Office when requested by an employee or an agency. This authority may be used under circumstances such as the following:

(1) An employee or an agency presents material facts not previously considered by the Office;

(2) There is room for reasonable doubt as to the appropriateness of the decision; or

(3) The potential impact of a decision on similar jobs is sufficiently significant to make further review of the decision desirable.

(g) The Director of the Office of Personnel Management may, at his or her discretion, reopen and reconsider any previous decision when the party requesting reopening submits written argument or evidence which tends to establish that:

(1) New and material evidence is available that was not readily available when the previous decision was issued;

(2) The previous decision involves an erroneous interpretation of law or regulation or a misapplication of established policy; or

(3) The previous decision is of a precedential nature involving a new or unreviewed policy consideration that may have effects beyond the actual case at hand, or is otherwise of such an exceptional nature as to merit the personal attention of the Director of the Office of Personnel Management.

(h) A final decision by the Office of Personnel Management constitutes a certificate which is mandatory and binding on all administrative, certifying, payroll, disbursing, and accounting officials of the Government.

[46 FR 21344, Apr. 10, 1981, as amended at 51 FR 18561, May 21, 1986; 71 FR 37490, June 30, 2006]