
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 5USC8343a]

 
             TITLE 5--GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION AND EMPLOYEES
 
                           PART III--EMPLOYEES
 
                   Subpart G--Insurance and Annuities
 
                         CHAPTER 83--RETIREMENT
 
                SUBCHAPTER III--CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT
 
Sec. 8343a. Alternative forms of annuities

    (a) The Office of Personnel Management shall prescribe regulations 
under which any employee or Member who has a life-threatening affliction 
or other critical medical condition may, at the time of retiring under 
this subchapter (other than under section 8337 of this title), elect 
annuity benefits under this section instead of any other benefits under 
this subchapter (including any benefits under section 8341 of this 
title) based on the service of the employee or Member.
    (b) Subject to subsection (c), the Office shall by regulation 
provide for such alternative forms of annuities as the Office considers 
appropriate, except that among the alternatives offered shall be--
        (1) an alternative which provides for--
            (A) payment of the lump-sum credit to the employee or 
        Member; and
            (B) payment of an annuity to the employee or Member for 
        life; and

        (2) in the case of an employee or Member who is married at the 
    time of retirement, an alternative which provides for--
            (A) payment of the lump-sum credit to the employee or 
        Member; and
            (B) payment of an annuity to the employee or Member for 
        life, with a survivor annuity payable for the life of a 
        surviving spouse.

    (c) Each alternative provided for under subsection (b) shall, to the 
extent practicable, be designed such that the present value of the 
benefits provided under such alternative (including any lump-sum credit) 
is actuarially equivalent to the present value of the annuity which 
would otherwise be provided the employee or Member under this 
subchapter, as computed under subsections (a)-(i), (n), (q), (r), and 
(s) of section 8339.
    (d) An employee or Member who, at the time of retiring under this 
subchapter--
        (1) is married, shall be ineligible to make an election under 
    this section unless a waiver is made under section 8339(j)(1) of 
    this title; or
        (2) has a former spouse, shall be ineligible to make an election 
    under this section if the former spouse is entitled to benefits 
    under section 8341(h) or 8345(j) of this title (based on the service 
    of the employee or Member) under the terms of a decree of divorce or 
    annulment, or a court order or court-approved property settlement 
    incident to any such decree, with respect to which the Office has 
    been duly notified.

    (e) An employee or Member who is married at the time of retiring 
under this subchapter and who makes an election under this section may, 
during the 18-month period beginning on the date of retirement, make the 
election provided for under section 8339(o) of this title, subject to 
the deposit requirement thereunder.

(Added Pub. L. 99-335, title II, Sec. 204(a), June 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 
591; amended Pub. L. 101-428, Sec. 2(d)(5), Oct. 15, 1990, 104 Stat. 
929; Pub. L. 101-508, title VII, Sec. 7001(a)(1), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 
Stat. 1388-327; Pub. L. 103-66, title XI, Sec. 11002(a), Aug. 10, 1993, 
107 Stat. 409; Pub. L. 105-61, title V, Sec. 516(a)(5), Oct. 10, 1997, 
111 Stat. 1306; Pub. L. 106-553, Sec. 1(a)(2) [title III, 
Sec. 308(h)(5)], Dec. 21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2762, 2762A-89.)


                               Amendments

    2000--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 106-553 substituted ``(a)-(i), (n), (q), 
(r), and (s)'' for ``(a)-(i), (n), (q), and (r)''.
    1997--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 105-61, which directed the substitution 
of ``(q), and (r) of section 8339'' for ``and (q) of section 8339 of 
this title'' in section 8334a(c), was executed by making the 
substitution in subsec. (c) of this section to reflect the probable 
intent of Congress, because there is no section 8334a in this title.
    1993--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-66, Sec. 11002(a)(1), substituted 
``any employee or Member who has a life-threatening affliction or other 
critical medical condition'' for ``an employee or Member''.
    Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 103-66, Sec. 11002(a)(2), struck out subsec. 
(f) which prohibited election of alternative form of annuity where 
commencement date would be after Dec. 1, 1990, with certain exceptions.
    1990--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 101-428 substituted ``(a)-(i), (n), and 
(q)'' for ``(a)-(i) and (n)''.
    Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 101-508 added subsec. (f).


                    Effective Date of 2000 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 106-553 effective on the first day of the first 
applicable pay period that begins on Dec. 21, 2000, and applicable only 
to an individual who is employed as a member of the Supreme Court Police 
after Dec. 21, 2000, see section 1(a)(2) [title III, Sec. 308(i), (j)] 
of Pub. L. 106-553, set out in a Supreme Court Police Retirement note 
under section 8331 of this title.


                    Effective Date of 1997 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 105-61 applicable to any annuity commencing 
before, on, or after Oct. 10, 1997, and effective with regard to any 
payment made after the first month following Oct. 10, 1997, see section 
516(b) of Pub. L. 105-61, set out as a note under section 8334 of this 
title.


                    Effective Date of 1993 Amendment

    Section 11002(d) of Pub. L. 103-66 provided that: ``The amendments 
made by this section [amending this section and section 8420a of this 
title, section 4047 of Title 22, Foreign Relations and Intercourse, and 
section 2143 of Title 50, War and National Defense] shall become 
effective on October 1, 1994, and shall apply with respect to any 
annuity commencing on or after that date.''


                             Effective Date

    Section effective June 6, 1986, see section 702(b)(3) of Pub. L. 99-
335, set out as a note under section 8401 of this title.


Applicability of Sections 8343a(f) and 8420a(f) to Individuals Called to 
      or Performing Duty in Connection With Operation Desert Shield

    Section 7001(a)(4) of Pub. L. 101-508 provided that:
    ``(A) In applying the provisions of section 8343a(f) or 8420a(f) of 
title 5, United States Code (as amended by paragraph (1)) to any 
individual described in subparagraph (B), the reference in such 
provisions to `December 1, 1990' shall be deemed to read `December 1, 
1991'.
    ``(B) This paragraph applies with respect to any individual who--
        ``(i)(I) is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States 
    who, before December 1, 1990, was called or ordered to active duty 
    (other than for training) pursuant to section 672 [now 12301], 673 
    [now 12302], 673b [now 12304], 674 [now 12306], 675 [now 12307], or 
    688 of title 10, United States Code, in connection with Operation 
    Desert Shield; or
        ``(II) is an employee of the Department of Defense who is 
    certified by the Secretary of Defense to have performed, after 
    November 30, 1990, duties essential for the support of Operation 
    Desert Shield; and
        ``(ii) would have been eligible to make an election under 
    section 8343a or 8420a of title 5, United States Code (as amended by 
    paragraph (1)) as of November 30, 1990.
    ``(C) The Office of Personnel Management may prescribe such 
regulations as may be necessary to carry out this paragraph.''


  Partial Deferred Payment of Lump-Sum Credit for Certain Individuals 
                 Electing Alternative Forms of Annuities

    Pub. L. 101-239, title IV, Sec. 4005, Dec. 19, 1989, 103 Stat. 2135, 
as amended by Pub. L. 101-508, title VII, Sec. 7001(a)(2)(A)-(C)(i), 
Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1388-328, provided that:
    ``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and 
except as provided in subsection (c), any lump-sum credit payable to an 
employee or Member pursuant to the election of an alternative form of 
annuity by such employee or Member under section 8343a or section 8420a 
of title 5, United States Code, shall be paid in accordance with the 
schedule under subsection (b) (instead of the schedule which would 
otherwise apply), if the commencement date of the annuity payable to 
such employee or Member occurs after December 2, 1989, and before 
December 2, 1990.
    ``(b) Schedule of Payments.--The schedule of payment of any lump-sum 
credit subject to this section is as follows:
        ``(1) 50 percent of the lump-sum credit shall be payable on the 
    date on which, but for the enactment of this section, the full 
    amount of the lump-sum credit would otherwise be payable.
        ``(2) The remainder of the lump-sum credit shall be payable on 
    the date which occurs 12 months after the date on which the payment 
    described in paragraph (1) is paid.
An amount payable in accordance with paragraph (2) shall be payable with 
interest, computed using the rate under section 8334(e)(3) of title 5, 
United States Code.
    ``(c) Exceptions.--The Office of Personnel Management shall 
prescribe regulations to provide that, unless the individual involved 
indicates otherwise by written notice to the Office (submitted at such 
time and in such manner as the regulations may require), this section 
shall not apply--
        ``(1) in the case of any individual who is separated from 
    Government service involuntarily, other than for cause on charges of 
    misconduct or delinquency; and
        ``(2) in the case of any individual as to whom the application 
    of this section would be against equity and good conscience, due to 
    a life-threatening affliction or other critical medical condition 
    affecting such individual.
    ``(d) Annuity Benefits Not Affected.--Nothing in this section shall 
affect the commencement date, the amount, or any other aspect of any 
annuity benefits payable under section 8343a or section 8420a of title 
5, United States Code.
    ``(e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section, the terms `lump-
sum credit', `employee', and `Member' each has the meaning given such 
term by section 8331 or section 8401 of title 5, United States Code, as 
appropriate.
    ``(f) Continued Applicability.--The preceding provisions of this 
section (disregarding the provision in subsection (a) limiting this 
section's applicability to annuities commencing before the date 
specified in such provision) shall also apply in the case of any 
employee or Member whose election of an alternative form of annuity 
would not have been allowable under section 8343a(f) or 8420a(f) of 
title 5, United States Code (as the case may be), but for--
        ``(1) paragraph (2)(A) thereof; or
        ``(2) section 7001(a)(4) of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation 
    Act of 1990 [Pub. L. 101-508, set out as a note above].''
    [Section 7001(a)(2)(C)(ii) of Pub. L. 101-508 provided that: ``The 
amendments made by clause (i) [amending section 4005 of Pub. L. 101-239 
and section 6001 of Pub. L. 100-203, set out as notes above and below] 
shall not apply in any case in which the first half of the lump-sum 
payment involved was paid before the beginning of the 11-month period 
which ends on the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov. 5, 1990].'']
    Similar provisions were contained in the following acts:
    Pub. L. 101-227, Sec. 2, Dec. 12, 1989, 103 Stat. 1943, which was 
repealed by Pub. L. 101-508, title VII, Sec. 7001(a)(2)(D), Nov. 5, 
1990, 104 Stat. 1388-328.
    Pub. L. 100-203, title VI, Sec. 6001, Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1330-
275, as amended by Pub. L. 101-103, Sec. 6, Sept. 30, 1989, 103 Stat. 
672; Pub. L. 101-508, title VII, Sec. 7001(a)(2)(C)(i), Nov. 5, 1990, 
104 Stat. 1388-328.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 8342, 8348 of this title; 
title 50 section 2143.
