klunney@govexec.com
Every Friday on GovExec.com, Legal Briefs reviews cases that involve, or provide valuable lessons to, federal managers. We report on the decisions of a wide range of review panels, including the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Federal Labor Relations Authority and federal courts.
William Yellowtail quit his job as a regional administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency in March 1996 in order to pursue his political dreams. But after an unsuccessful bid for Congress, Yellowtail was reappointed to his federal job in the fall of 1997.
A year later, Yellowtail allegedly met with a new candidate for the Montana congressional seat, Robert Deschamps, to discuss endorsing Deschamps. After the meeting, Yellowtail signed a letter indicating his support for Deschamps. The letter was distributed to potential Deschamps supporters.
Unfortunately for Yellowtail, the letter also said "contributing to [Deschamps'] campaign is absolutely critical," and urged recipients to "make a contribution today." Soliciting campaign contributions is a no-no for federal employees under the Hatch Act.
The U.S. Office of Special Counsel caught wind of the case and promptly filed a petition for disciplinary action against Yellowtail. The case is still pending.
Lesson: Follow the Hatch Act right down to the letter.
In the matter of Mr. William Yellowtail, U.S. Office of Special Counsel, April 11, 2000.
Cross-Country Calamities
Tanya Cantrell, an Interior Department employee, was transferred from Menlo Park, Calif., to Reston, Va., when her agency closed its Western Region Office of Equal Opportunity in July 1999.
After the relocation, Cantrell asked the General Services Board of Contract Appeals to review two expense claims she filed that were denied by the agency.
The first dealt with the cost of a rental car and the second concerned the amount of her daily allowance for temporary quarters expenses.
To bolster her argument, Cantrell described at length the ordeal she suffered while moving from California to Virginia, saying that lack of advice and poor communication became the "hallmark" of her move.
For starters, the agency mailed her relocation information to her office after the office had closed. The information she was given was out of date and contradicted the regulations her relocation officials were using at the time. In addition, the car that she shipped was seriously damaged in transit and her charge card was canceled instead of transferred.
As bad as those experiences were, said appeals board judge Edwin B. Neill, they did not refute the agency's argument that it followed the regulations when denying Cantrell's claims for the rental car and temporary quarters expenses. "Ms. Cantrell herself appears to realize that these regulatory barriers stand in the way of her being paid," he said.
The agency's denials were upheld.
Lesson: Just because you had the move from hell doesn't mean you get all your expense claims.
In the matter of Tanya Cantrell, General Services Board of Contract Appeals (GSBCA 15191-RELO), April 7, 2000.
For the Record
Looking for a tape recording or written transcript of a Merit Systems Protection Board hearing? MSPB recently revised its rules on how to obtain these items, particularly for people who aren't involved in the case.
Under the new rules, a word-for-word record of the hearing is kept in the board's "copy of the appeal" file and is the official record of the hearing. To get a copy of the official hearing, parties involved in the case must contact the adjudicating regional or field office, or the Clerk of the Board, and pay for the copy. Other interested people have to make a request for a tape recording or written transcript under the Freedom of Information Act.
Such requests should be sent to either the appropriate regional director, the chief administrative judge of the MSPB field office, or to the clerk of the board at MSPB headquarters in Washington, D.C. See the MSPB regs for more details: www.mspb.gov/whatsnew/1201-53.pdf.