§ 3198. Local hire
(a)
Program
After consultation with the Office of Personnel Management, the Secretary shall establish a program under which any individual who, by reason of having lived or worked in or near public lands, has special knowledge or expertise concerning the natural or cultural resources of public lands and the management thereof (as determined by the Secretary) shall be considered for selection for any position within public lands without regard to—
(1)
any provision of the civil service laws or regulations thereunder which require minimum periods of formal training or experience,
(2)
any such provision which provides an employment preference to any other class of applicant is such selection, and
Individuals appointed under this subsection shall not be taken into account in applying any personnel limitation described in paragraph (3).
(b)
Preference eligibles within local hire
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, any individual who is eligible to be selected for a position under the provisions of subsection (a) of this section and is a preference eligible as defined in section
2108
(3) of title
5 shall be given an employment preference, consistent with the preference in the competitive service as defined in section 2102 of such title for which such person is eligible under subchapter I of chapter 33 of such title, in selection to such position.
(c)
Payment of expenses after death of an employee
(1)
Definition of immediate family member
In this subsection, the term “immediate family member” means a person related to a deceased employee that was a member of the household of the deceased employee at the time of death.
(2)
Payments
If an employee appointed under the program established by subsection (a) of this section dies in the performance of any assigned duties on or after October 1, 2002, the Secretary may—
(A)
pay or reimburse reasonable expenses, regardless of when those expenses are incurred, for the preparation and transportation of the remains of the deceased employee to a location in the State of Alaska which is selected by the surviving head of household of the deceased employee;
(B)
pay or reimburse reasonable expenses, regardless of when those expenses are incurred, for transporting immediate family members and the baggage and household goods of the deceased employee and immediate family members to a community in the State of Alaska which is selected by the surviving head of household of the deceased employee.
(d)
Reports
The Secretary shall from time to time prepare and submit to the Congress reports indicating the actions taken in carrying out the provisions of subsection (a) of this section together with any recommendations for legislation in furtherance of the purposes of this section.
(e)
Competitive status
(1)
In general
Nothing in subsection (a) provides that any person hired pursuant to the program established under that subsection is not eligible for competitive status in the same manner as any other employee hired as part of the competitive service.
(2)
Redesignation of certain positions
(A)
Persons serving in original positions
Not later than 60 days after March 30, 2009, with respect to any person hired into a permanent position pursuant to the program established under subsection (a) who is serving in that position as of March 30, 2009, the Secretary shall redesignate that position and the person serving in that position as having been part of the competitive service as of the date that the person was hired into that position.
(B)
Persons no longer serving in original positions
With respect to any person who was hired pursuant to the program established under subsection (a) that is no longer serving in that position as of March 30, 2009—