(b) The personnel management system shall
(1) include the principles of section
2301 (b) of title
5;
(2) prohibit personnel practices prohibited under section
2302 (b) of title
5;
(3) prohibit political activities prohibited under subchapter III of chapter
73 of title
5;
(4) ensure that officers and employees of the Office are appointed, promoted, and assigned only on the basis of merit and fitness, but without regard to those provisions of title 5 governing appointments and other personnel actions in the competitive service;
(5) give a preference to an individual eligible for a preference in the executive branch of the United States Government in a way and to an extent consistent with a preference given an individual in the executive branch; and
(6) provide that the Comptroller General shall fix the basic pay of officers and employees of the Office not fixed by law, consistent with section
5301 of title
5, except as provided under subsection (c)(3) of this section and section
733 (a)(3)(B) of this title.
(c) Under the personnel management system
(1) the Comptroller General shall publish a schedule of basic pay rates for officers and employees of the Office;
(2) except as provided in clause (4) of this subsection and section
733 (a)(3)(A) of this title, the highest basic pay rate under the pay schedule may not be more than the highest basic rate for GS15;
(3) except as provided under section
733 (a)(3)(B) of this title, basic rates of officers and employees of the Office shall be adjusted annually to such extent as determined by the Comptroller General, and in making that determination the Comptroller General shall consider
(A) the principle that equal pay should be provided for work of equal value within each local pay area;
(B) the need to protect the purchasing power of officers and employees of the Office, taking into consideration the Consumer Price Index or other appropriate indices;
(C) any existing pay disparities between officers and employees of the Office and non-Federal employees in each local pay area;
(D) the pay rates for the same levels of work for officers and employees of the Office and non-Federal employees in each local pay area;
(E) the appropriate distribution of agency funds between annual adjustments under this section and performance-based compensation; and
(F) such other criteria as the Comptroller General considers appropriate, including, but not limited to, the funding level for the Office, amounts allocated for performance-based compensation, and the extent to which the Office is succeeding in fulfilling its mission and accomplishing its strategic plan;
notwithstanding any other provision of this paragraph, an adjustment under this paragraph shall not be applied in the case of any officer or employee whose performance is not at a satisfactory level, as determined by the Comptroller General for purposes of such adjustment;
(4) the pay schedule for officers and employees of the Office may provide that the basic pay rates for not more than 129 positions (including senior-level positions under section
732a of this title) may be at rates not more than the rate of basic pay payable for grade GS18 of the General Schedule, less the number of positions in the General Accounting Office Senior Executive Service
under section
733 of this title (except positions included in the Service under section
733 (c) of this title and senior-level positions described in section
732a (b) of this title); and
(5) the Comptroller General shall prescribe regulations under which an officer or employee of the Office shall be entitled to pay retention if, as a result of any reduction-in-force or other workforce adjustment procedure, position reclassification, or other appropriate circumstances as determined by the Comptroller General, such officer or employee is placed in or holds a position in a lower grade or band with a maximum rate of basic pay that is less than the rate of basic pay payable to the officer or employee immediately before the reduction in grade or band; such regulations
(A) shall provide that the officer or employee shall be entitled to continue receiving the rate of basic pay that was payable to the officer or employee immediately before the reduction in grade or band until such time as the retained rate becomes less than the maximum rate for the grade or band of the position held by such officer or employee; and
(B) shall include provisions relating to the minimum period of time for which an officer or employee must have served or for which the position must have been classified at the higher grade or band in order for pay retention to apply, the events that terminate the right to pay retention (apart from the one described in subparagraph (A)), and exclusions based on the nature of an appointment; in prescribing regulations under this subparagraph, the Comptroller General shall be guided by the provisions of sections
5362 and
5363 of title
5.
(d) The personnel management system shall provide
(1) for a system to appraise the performance of officers and employees of the General Accounting Office
that meets the requirements of section
4302 of title
5 and in addition includes
(A) a link between the performance management system and the agencys strategic plan;
(B) adequate training and retraining for supervisors, managers, and employees in the implementation and operation of the performance management system;
(C) a process for ensuring ongoing performance feedback and dialogue between supervisors, managers, and employees throughout the appraisal period and setting timetables for review;
(D) effective transparency and accountability measures to ensure that the management of the system is fair, credible, and equitable, including appropriate independent reasonableness, reviews, internal assessments, and employee surveys; and
(E) a means to ensure that adequate agency resources are allocated for the design, implementation, and administration of the performance management system;
(2) that the Comptroller General has the same responsibility for performance appraisals under this subsection as the Director of the Office of Personnel Management has under section
4302 of title
5;
(3) for a reduction in grade or removal of an officer or employee because of unacceptable performance consistent with section
4303 of title
5;
(4) for other personnel actions consistent with chapter
75 of title
5; and
(5) a procedure for processing complaints and grievances not otherwise provided for under clauses (3) and (4) of this subsection or subsection (e) or (f)(1) of this section.
(e) The personnel management system shall provide
(1) a procedure that ensures that each officer and employee of the Government Accountability Office may form, join, or assist, or not form, join, or assist, an employee organization freely and without fear of penalty or reprisal; and
(2) for a labor-management relations program consistent with chapter
71 of title
5.
(f)
(1) The personnel management system shall
(A) provide that all personnel actions affecting an officer, employee, or applicant for employment be taken without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, or handicapping condition; and
(B) include a minority recruitment program consistent with section
7201 of title
5.
(2) This subchapter and subchapter IV of this chapter do not affect a right or remedy of an officer, employee, or applicant for employment under a law prohibiting discrimination in employment in the Government on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, political affiliation, marital status, or handicapping condition. However, for officers, employees, or applicants in the Government Accountability Office
(A) the General Accounting Office Personnel Appeals Board has the same authority over oversight and appeals matters as an executive agency has over oversight and appeals matters; and
(B) the Comptroller General has the same authority over matters (except oversight and appeals) as an executive agency has over matters (except oversight and appeals).
(3) This section does not affect a lawful effort to achieve equal employment opportunity through affirmative action.
(i) The regulations under subsection (h) shall include provisions under which, at the discretion of the Comptroller General, the opportunity to separate voluntarily (in order to permit the retention of an individual occupying a similar position) shall, with respect to the Government Accountability Office, be available to the same extent and in the same manner as described in subsection (f)(1)(4) of section
3502 of title
5 (with respect to the Department of Defense or a military department).