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Form 3368. . . i -V- 1. i 
 
 Dec, 1921. \J\ , >j. IquoJS , .•■i,tt»XMAl.i , xTt, 
 
 UNITBO STATES CIVIIi SERVICE COMMISSION. 
 
 "Wasnington, ». C. 
 
 RETIREMENT ACT OF MAY 22, 1920, WITH NOTES. 
 
 It is reasonable to assume that every employee in the classified civil service 
 is more or less interested in the operation of the civil service retirement act. 
 Many important questions have naturally arisen under a law of such a novel 
 and extensive character, which have called for opinions by legal officers and for 
 decisions by officers charged with its administration. This pamphlet is an 
 attempt to compile a reference book of the most important of these opinions and 
 decisions without giving more than a brief statement of their general effect. 
 Decisions which can necessarily apply to a very limited number of cases, those 
 comparatively unimportant, and some not differing greatly from others in effect 
 have been omitted. This pamphlet is. not a manual for adjudication of claims. 
 Of course, the proper administrative officers consider cases in the light of com- 
 plete opinions or decisions. Suggestions and criticisms are invited, with a view 
 to making future editions more valuable. 
 
 The following information may be helpful as indicating the course of pro- 
 cedure necessary in filing claims under the act: 
 
 1. Retirement by reason of age is automatic, and an employee can not be 
 retained beyond the retirement age against his wUl, but all he can do is to 
 express to his superior officer his willingness to remain in the service. Should 
 his retention be desired, the officer under whom he serves should recommend his 
 retention in time for the head of the department, branch, or office to request the 
 commission's approval of his retention at least 30 days before he reaches retire- 
 ment age. 
 
 2. Claims for annuity by reason of age or disability are addressed to the 
 Commissioner of Pensions, on forms provided for the purpose, copies of which 
 are distributed among administrative officers. These forms contain full instruc- 
 tions and should be forwarded in accordance with the instructions. 
 
 3. Application for refund of deductions made from the salary of employees 
 separated from the classified civil service is addressed to the Commissioner of 
 Pensions, through the Civil Service Commission. Copies of the application form 
 are distributed to administrative officers. 
 
 4. There are special forms for application for refund of deductions in the 
 case of deceased persons. 
 
 5. The Civil Service Commission distributes no forms for the use of applicants 
 for any of the benefits under the Retirement Act, but it furnishes forms, on 
 request, upon which officers request continuance of employees in the service 
 beyond the retirement age, and for report of dates of separation from the 
 service and other information necessary for use by the Bureau of Pensions in 
 adjudicating claims. 
 
 Z'2^-'^ t Z' 5~ 4p section I. 
 
 1. Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
 States of A^merica in Congress assembled, That beginning at the expiration of 
 ninety days next following the passage of this act, all employees in the classi- 
 fied civil service of the United States who have on that date, or shall have 
 on any date thereafter, reached the age of seventy years and rendered at least 
 fifteen years of service computed as prescribed in section 3 of this act, shall be 
 eligible for retirement on an annuity as provided in section 2 hereof : Provided, 
 79454°— 22 1 
 
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That mectianics, city and rural letter carriers, and i)ost-office clerks shall be 
 eligible for retirement at sixty-five years of age, and railway postal clerks at 
 sixty-two years of age, if said mechanics, city and rural letter carriers, post- 
 office clerks, and railway postal clerks shall have rendered at least fifteen years 
 of service computed as prescribed in section 3 of this act. 
 
 Date of Retirement. — In accordance with the practice of excluding one 
 terminal date an employee is regarded as reaching age of retirement at the 
 close of business on the day preceding his birthday anniversary. 
 
 The rule is not inexoi'able or without its exceptions. Like all fictions of the 
 law it is for the promotion of justice and is not to be invoked to work an in- 
 jury. (Secretary of the Interior, July 21, 1921.) 
 
 STATUS OF EMPLOYEES ON LEAVE WITHOUT PAY EOK MOEE THAN A YEAR PEIOE TO 
 
 AUGUST 21, 1920. 
 
 The exact question with which the commission is confronted is as to whether 
 or not an employee rendering no service but excused from actual service under 
 " leave without pay " is an " employee in the classified civil service of the 
 United States " within the meaning of that expression as used in the retirement 
 act. 
 
 The commission does not find the status of such person clearly defined by 
 statute or by the civil service rules established by the President under the 
 powers conferred upon him by statute. 
 
 Section 7 of the act of March 15, 1898 (30 Stat., 816) provides for "leave 
 with pay," in the discretion of the head of a department, for not more than 
 thirty days in one calendar year to any or all employees. A proviso of the 
 same section vests in the head of a department the further discretionary power 
 to grant an employee, under certain conditions, an additional leave of absence 
 with pay for a second period of not more than thirty days in any calendar year. 
 
 It is to be noted that the periods above provided for are both " leaves with 
 pay." No leave icitJiout pay is expressly provided for or defined. The only 
 reference to such a status is the negative provision that an employee borne on 
 the rolls of the department after the expiration of such leave with pay shall 
 not be entitled to pay " during the period of such excessive absence." 
 
 The case of an employee who desires to be absent from actual service and 
 who is not cared for by the statute above referred to providing for leave with 
 pay is expressly provided for under Rule IX of the President's rules governing 
 the classified civil service, under which such employee, assuming separation 
 from the service without delinquency or misconduct, may be reinstated by the 
 department within one year from the date of such separation. This gives to 
 the employee a status for reinstatement and to the department the discretionary 
 power to reinstate, the initiative resting solely with the department. Both 
 status and right are limited to one year from date of separation, actual rein- 
 statement requiring a precedent ascertainment and certification by the Civil 
 Service Commission that the employee is eligible for reinstatement under the 
 rule. 
 
 Cases arose in which the employee did not desire to accept a status in which 
 restoration to the service was to be dependent on the affirmative exercise of a 
 purely discretronary power at a future time by the then head of the depart- 
 ment, and in which the head of the department was willing at the time of the 
 contemplated separation to exercise his discretionary power in the present 
 to become effective at a fixed time in the future. This was contrived as a 
 means of creating a distinct status of nonservice and nonpay to be terminated 
 within the time limit by the mere return of the employee to actual service. 
 So long as leave without service or pay was limited to one year from date of 
 separation from service, it constituted an anticipatory exercise of a right that 
 would in every case be approved by the Civil Service Commission and was 
 deemed to be no substantial variance from the rule. The departments desired 
 in many cases to give to employees about to leave the service the sense of 
 security that was carried by " leave without pay " as distinguished from formal 
 separation from the service and formal reinstatement on the initiative of the 
 department at a future time. 
 
 The practice was resorted to from time to time in the several departments; 
 By common consent it was limited to a maximum period of one year so as 
 to respect the limitation irr-H3fe-i'ei-»8tatem«ftt-Pule-.^..By like common consent 
 in case the employee faile^ toljif8fWifiYtOFaCSji(Bii^3gE a(^ual service within a 
 
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 DOCUMENTS DIVISION 
 
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 period of one year from such separation from pay and duty, the anticipatory 
 reinstatement was deemed to have been ineffectual and the separation was 
 regarded as absolute. It was the universal practice, after the expiration of one 
 year without return to actual service, and upon a desire by the department to 
 make a formal reinstatement, to send the case to the Civil Service Commis- 
 sion to ascertain and certify the employee's status for reinstatement. This 
 practice did in a sense respect the reinstatement rule, while in practical effect 
 it enabled a department to give to an employee a full year of absence in addi- 
 tion to the year provided for by Rule IX. It doubled the period of absence 
 and reinstatement by departmental practice and common consent. This was 
 deemed to be the utmost limit of liberality possible under the law. 
 
 On July 28, 1916, the Congress enacted a statute in relation to employees of 
 the Post Office Department, which is a legislative recognition of the depart- 
 mental practice of "leave without pay." Since it carries the same limit of 
 one year from separation, this act merely gave express direction for the main- 
 tenance in one department of a practice long continued in all departments, 
 and did not modify the attitude or practice of the Civil Service Commission 
 in any case. 
 
 In so far as the rights of employees absent on " leave without pay " rest on 
 a departmental practice, they are confined within the limitations of the prac- 
 tice, which make the separation absolute at the end of one year. Rights of 
 postal employees created by the act above referred to are expressly limited to the 
 period of one year. Before and at the time when the retirement act was 
 passed the most liberal possible view of the status of employees on "leave 
 without pay " under existing law and practice was : 
 
 (1) That an employee separated from actual service on " leave without pay " 
 was constructively in the civil service, to wit : In a status of nonservice and non- 
 pay to be terminated by return to actual service within the year, or to become 
 absolute by failure to return to actual service within the year. 
 
 (2) That an employee separated from actual service, without delinquency 
 or misconduct, to whom " leave without pay " was not granted or whose period 
 of permissible leave without pay had expired, was not in the civil service, and 
 retained only a status for reinstatement to the service, on the initiative of the 
 department within one year from the date on which such separation became 
 absolute. 
 
 The exact question remaining is as to whether there is anything in the 
 retirement act to warrant a modification of the views above expressed as ap- 
 plied to the rights under that act of employees absent from actual service on 
 " leave without pay," and whose full year from date of actual service has 
 expired. 
 
 The primary and principal purpose of the retirement act was to separate 
 from the Federal service on partial pay Federal employees who were on full 
 pay but who, by reason of advanced years, were capable of rendering but par- 
 tial or no service. 
 
 No proposed amendment to make the provisions of the retirement act ap- 
 plicable to former employees who had been separated from the Federal service 
 within a limited time before the passage was accepted by the Congress. On the 
 contrary the act is expressly limited to " employees in the classified' civil service 
 of the United States " " beginning at the expiration of 90 days next following 
 the passage " of the act. 
 
 Under all other law and practice, a former employee who is granted one 
 year's leave without pay and who fails to return to a status of actual service 
 within the year, is fully separated from the service and, unless and until re- 
 instated, is not " in the service " of the United States. The primary purpose 
 of the act can not well be said to be effectuated by changing a former employee's 
 status of nonservice and nonpay to a status of nonservice and partial pay. 
 One no longer in the service can not well be separated from the service. Nor 
 can such former employee be said to "be automatically separated from the 
 service " as provided in section 6 of the act by the mere change of his nonservice 
 status without pay to a status of nonservice with partial pay. 
 
 The only reference to leave without pay is in the last sentence of section 3, 
 and it is consistent with the views above expressed. 
 
 The power of a department to grant leave without pay was subject to certain 
 limitations inherent in the general law of the case. For example, in case an 
 employee holding a statutory position was granted leave of absence from service 
 other than leave toith pay it was necessary to deem such status a separation 
 from the service to the extent at least of creating a vacancy in the position. 
 
otherwise, the department would not be authorized to appoint a successor even 
 temporarily and would lose the benefit of the appropriation available for the 
 position. 
 
 While the commission is committed to the theory that an employee on leave 
 without pay for a period of not more than one year is constructively in the 
 Federal service, unless and until the time limit shall expire without the em- 
 ployee's return to actual service, there is found no basis for an extension of 
 the period of such constructive service. 
 
 The commission is of the opinion, therefore, that under the retirement act 
 a former employee who was granted one year's leave without pay a full year 
 before August 21, 1920, and who did not return to a status of actual service, is 
 not within the provisions of the retirement act, (Minute 4, Dec. 23, 1920.) 
 
 (The commission believes the foregoing views to be correct and just and 
 equitable alike to employees and the Government, but calls attention to decisions 
 which follow with which it does not agree. ) 
 
 An Employee on Indefinite leave at the time the retirement act of May 22, 
 1920, became effective was at that time " in the classified civil service of the 
 United States " within the meaning of those words as used in the retirement act. 
 (Attorney General, Feb. 25, 1921.) 
 
 leave Without Pay Exceeding One Year. — Departments are not restricted in 
 allowance of leave without pay to a period of one year, but an employee remains 
 in the service so long as his name is properly borne on the rolls of his department, 
 and not contrary to specific directions. (No. 16, Secretary of the Interior, Mar. 
 11, 1921.) 
 
 Status of Employees on "Furlough" or "Laid Off." — ^Employees in the engi- 
 neer department at large of the War Department who are on " furlough " are 
 in the service within the meaning of the retirement act during the life of the 
 furlough as provided for in the regulations for that service. Employees in said 
 service who have been " laid off " also have a like status so long as they are 
 eligible to resume active duty without taking a new oath, vnthout a new ap- 
 pointment and without any form of approval by the Civil Service Commission. 
 
 " This appears to be not only the reasonable and logical effect of the law, regu- 
 lations, and practice, but it is also highly desirable from an administrative point 
 of view, forming a rule applicable alike throughout the service so that the 
 benefits of the retirement act may be uniformly applied to different employees 
 having the same status, except perhaps only in a merely technical sense, without 
 unjust discrimination against employees in a particular department." (No. 17, 
 Secretary of the Interior, May 16, 1921.) 
 
 Employees in Positions Excepted by law from the requirements of the civil 
 service act and rules are not " employees in the classified civil service " within 
 the meaning of those words as used in the retirement act. (Attorney General, 
 July 19, 1920.) 
 
 Mechanics. — ^A mechanic who has ceased to do work of a mechanic and is on 
 the rolls as a desk clerk is not subject to retirement until he has reached the 
 age of 70. Retirement age is to be determined by years of life and character 
 of present work of employee. (Solicitor, Interior Department, July 2, 1920.) 
 
 The duties of an employee are to determine in each case whether he is a 
 mechanic retirable at 65, or other than a mechanic, retirable at 70. (Minute 
 June 19, 1920, Minute Oct. 4, 1920.) 
 
 2. The provisions of this act shall include superintendents of United States 
 national cemeteries, employees of the Superintendent of the United States 
 Capitol Buildings and Grounds, the Library of Congress, and the Botanic 
 Gardens, excepting persons appointed by the President and confirmed by the 
 Senate, and may be extended by Executive order, upon recommendation of the 
 Civil Service Commission, to include any employee or group of employees in the 
 civil service of the United States not classified at the time of the passage of this 
 act. The President shall have power, in his discretion, to exclude from the 
 operation of this act any employee or group of employees in the classified civil 
 service whose tenure of office or employment is intermittent or of uncertain 
 duration. 
 
 Superintendent, TTnited States Capitol Building and Grounds — Employees. — Un- 
 skilled laborers and employees paid from an appropriation spent under the 
 supervision and control of the Senate Committee on Rules are subject to the 
 retirement act. (Attorney General, Sept. 29, 1920.) 
 
Extension of Act to Executive Office. — Employees of the Executive office were 
 made subject to the retirement act by Executive order of August 3, 1920. 
 
 Extension to Unskilled Laborers. — " I think the provisions under consideration 
 confer upon the President authority to extend the act to individuals occupying 
 unclassified positions." (Attorney General, June 14, 1920.) 
 
 Retirement Act Applies to Certain Classified Excepted Employees. — " The 
 provisions of said act [Retirement Act] are hereby extended to include em- 
 ployees appointed to positions named in Schedules A and B of the Civil Service 
 Rules through open competitive examination, and all former competitive classi- 
 fied employees serving in such positions to which they were or could have 
 been promoted or transferred in accordance with the principles laid down in 
 section 3 of Civil Service Rule II, that ' the proper appointing officer may fill 
 an excepted jwsition as competitive positions are filled, in which case the 
 person appointed will receive all the rights of a competitive employee.' " (Ex- 
 ecutive order of Dec. 24, 1920.) 
 
 Exclusion. — Alaskan Engineering Commission are excluded from the pro- 
 visions of the act. (Executive order of September 24, 1920.) 
 
 Exclusions. — There are hereby excluded from the operation of the retirement 
 act noneducational employees in the Reclamation Service intermittently and 
 irregularly employed, and educational employees on daily rates similarly em- 
 ployed. (Order of Mar. 1, 1921.) 
 
 3. All regular annual employees of the municipal government of the District 
 of Columbia, appointed directly by the commissioners, or by other competent 
 authority, including those receiving per diem compensation paid out of general 
 appropriations, but whose services are continuous, and including public-school 
 employees, excepting school officers and teachers, shall be included in the pro- 
 visions of this act, but members of the police and fire departments shall be ex- 
 cluded therefrom. 
 
 Police Court Employees. — ^The retirement act applies to employees of the police 
 court of the District of Columbia. (Minutes, Sept. 9, 1920.) 
 
 Employees of Probation Oificer. — The retirement act does not apply to em- 
 ployees of the office of the probation officer, supreme court of the District of 
 Columbia. (Minutes, Nov. 15, 1920.) 
 
 4. Postmasters, and such employees of the Lighthouse Service as come within 
 the provisions of section 6 of the act of June 20, 1918, entitled, "An Act to au- 
 thorize aids to navigation and for other works in the Lighthouse Service, and 
 for other purposes," shall not be included in the provisions of this act. 
 
 Acting Postmasters. — The retirement act does not apply to acting postmasters 
 and deduction should not be made from the salary of an acting postmaster. 
 Should a classified employee be transferred to the position of acting postmaster, 
 he may, upon retransfer to a classified position, by making proper deposit of 
 funds, receive the benefits of the retirement act. (Minutes, Apr. 21, 1921.) 
 
 SECTION II. 
 
 1. That for the purpose of determining the amount of annuity which retired em- 
 ployees shall receive, the following classifications and rates shall be established : 
 
 Class A shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall have 
 served the United States for a total period of 30 years or more. The annuity to 
 a retired employee in this class shall equal 60 per centum of such employee's 
 average annual basic salary, pay, or compensation from the United States for 
 the 10 years next preceding the date on which he or she shall retire : Provided, 
 That in nc case shall an annuity in this class exceed $720 per annum or be less 
 than $360 per annum. 
 
 Class B shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall 
 have served the United States for a total period of twenty-seven years or more, 
 but less than thirty years. The annuity to a retired employee in this class 
 
shall equal 54 per centum of such employee's average annual basic salary, pay, 
 or compensation from the United States for the ten years next preceding the 
 date on which he or she shall retire : Provided, That in no case shall an annuity 
 in this class exceed $648 per annum, or be less than $324 per annum. 
 
 Class C shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall 
 have served the United States for a total period of twenty-four years or more, 
 but less than twenty-seven years. The annuity to a retired employee in this 
 class shall equal 48 per centum of such employee's average annual basic salary, 
 pay, or compensation from the United States for the ten years next preceding 
 the date on which he or she shall retire : Provided, That in no case shall an 
 annuity in this class exceed $576 per annum, or be less than $288 per annum. 
 
 Class D shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall 
 have served the United States for a total period of twenty-one years or more, 
 but less than twenty-four years. The annuity to a retired employee in this class 
 shall equal 42 per centum of such employee's average annual basic salary, pay, 
 or compensation from the United States for the ten years next preceding the 
 date on which he or she shall retire : Provided, That in no case shall an annuity 
 in this class exceed $504 per annum, or be less than $252 per annum. 
 
 Class E shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall 
 have served the United States for a total period of eighteen years or more, 
 but less than twenty-one years. The annuity to a retired employee in this 
 class shall equal 36 per centum of such employee's average annual basic salary, 
 pay, or compensation from the United States for the ten years next preceding 
 the date on which he or she shall retire: Provided, That in no case shall an 
 annuity in this class exceed $432 per annum, or be less than $216 per annum. 
 
 Class F shall include all employees to whom this act applies who shall have 
 served the United States for a total period of fifteen years or more, but less 
 than eighteen years. The annuity to a retired employee in this class shall equal 
 30 per centum of such employee's average annual basic salary, pay, or com- 
 pensation from the United States for the ten years next preceding the date on 
 which he or she shall retire: Provided, That in no case shall an annuity la 
 this class exceed $360 per annum, or be less than $180 per annum. 
 
 Ten- Year Period. — " The ' 10 j^ears next preceding the date of retirement,' for 
 the purpose of computing average salary, etc., relates to the 10 years of service 
 immediately preceding retirement. * * * As the enactment requires that 
 the varying periods of service be counted in determining the length of service, 
 the proper average of salary, etc., must be obtained from the last 10 years of 
 such service." (Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 1920.) 
 
 Determining Average Salary of Injured Employee. — For that part of the 10- 
 year period during which an injured employee received no pay except under 
 an injured Federal employees' compensation act, the employee.'s basic pay 
 on the basis of which the injuries compensation was allowed should be taken 
 as the basic pay for the period involved and be included in ascertaining the 
 average for the 10 years. (Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 1920.) 
 
 2. The term " basic salary, pay, or compensation " wherever used in this 
 act shall be so construed as to exclude from the operation of the act all 
 bonuses, allowances, overtime pay, or salary, pay, or compensation given in 
 addition to the base pay of the positions as fixed by law or regulation. 
 
 Basic Pay of Post Office Clerks, Carriers, and Special Clerks. — Basic pay does 
 not include increase of compensation generally provided annually for several 
 years in addition to otherwise fixed compensation. (Comptroller of the Treas- 
 ury, Aug. 12, 1920.) 
 
 SECTION III. 
 
 1. That for the purposes of this act and subject to the provisions of section 10 
 hereof, the period of service shall be computed from the date of original em- 
 ployment, whether as a classified or unclassified employee in the civil service 
 
of the United States, and sliall include periods of service at different times 
 and services in one or more departments, branclies, or independent offices of 
 tlie Government, and shall also include service performed under authority of 
 the United States beyond seas, and honorable service in the Army, Navy, Marine 
 Corps, or Coast Guard of the United States : Provided, That in the case of an 
 employee who is eligible for and elects to receive a pension under any law, 
 or compensation under the war risk insurance act, the period of his or her 
 military or naval service upon which such pension or compensation is based 
 shall not be included for the purpose of assignment to classes defined in section 
 2 hereof, but nothing contained in this act shall be so construed as to affect 
 in any manner his or her right to a pension, or to compensation under the war- 
 risk insurance act, in addition to the annuity herein provided. 
 
 Service in the Philippines is Included in computing length of service. (Min- 
 utes, Oct. 5, 1920.) 
 
 Credit for Service as Postmaster. — A postal clerk automatically retired is 
 entitled to credit in computing period of service, for service performed as post- 
 master. (No. 3, Secretary of the Interior, Sept. 11, 1920.) 
 
 Credit not Allowed for Service in the Legislative Branch. — A skilled laborer 
 under the clerk to the House of Representatives is not in the civil service but 
 in the legislative branch of the service. (No. 4, Secretary of the Interior, Sept. 
 14, 1920.) 
 
 Evidence of Service. — When official records of alleged service for which crec^t 
 is claimed have been destroyed or lost, inferior or secondary evidence is then 
 admissible. (No. 9, Secretary of the Interior, Jan. 22, 1921.) 
 
 2., It is further provided that in computing length of service for the purposes 
 of this act all periods of separation from the service and so much of any period 
 of leave of absence as may exceed six months shall be excluded, and that in 
 the case of substitutes in the Postal Service only periods of active employment 
 shall be included. 
 
 Leave with Pay Excluded in Certain Cases. — ^Where an excess of six months' 
 absence is a combined pay and nonpay absence, the whole of such absence must 
 be excluded in computing service. (Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 1920.) 
 
 Period of Unused Leave. — The period of unused leave for which compensation 
 was received can not be included in determining length of service. (No. 22, 
 Secretary of the Interior, June 6, 1921.) 
 
 SECTION IV. 
 
 Sec. 4. That for the purpose of administration, except as otherwise provided 
 herein, the Commissioner of Pensions, under the direction of the Secretary of 
 the Interior, be, and is hereby, authorized and directed to perform, or cause to 
 be performed, any and all acts and to make such rules and regulations as may 
 be necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying the provisions of this act 
 into full force and effect. An appeal to the Secretary of the Interior shall lie 
 from the final action or order of the Commissioner of Pensions affecting the 
 rights or interests of any person or of the United States under this act, the 
 procedure on appeal to be as prescribed by the Commissioner of Pensions, with 
 the approval of the Secretary of the Interior. 
 
 SECTION V. 
 
 1. That any employee to whom this act applies who shall have served for a 
 total period of not less than fifteen years, and who, before reaching the retire- 
 ment age as fixed in section 1 hereof, becomes totally disabled for useful and 
 efficient service by reason of disease or injury not due to vicious habits, intem- 
 perance, or willful misconduct on the part of the employee, shall upon his or her 
 
8 
 
 own application or upon tlie request or order of the head of the department, 
 branch, or independent office concerned, be retired on an annuity under the 
 provisions of section 2 hereof: Provided, Jiowever, That no employee shall be 
 retired under the provisions of this section until examined by a medical officer 
 of the United States or a duly qualified physician or surgeon or board of physi- 
 cians or surgeons designated by the Commissioner of Pensions for that purpose 
 and found to be disabled in the degree and in the manner specified herein. 
 
 Date of Beginning of Annuity. — Annuity begins from the date that the 
 claimant is found to have been totally disabled for useful and efficient service 
 and not from the date on which the claimant was found to be totally disabled. 
 (No. 20, Secretary Interior, June 3, 1921.) 
 
 Application for Disability Annuity Need not Precede Separation. — Failure of 
 an applicant for annuity under section 5 of the act to execute his application 
 prior to separation from the service does not work forfeiture of title to annuity, 
 but right to annuity is to be determined as of the date of separation from the 
 service rather than from the date of application in such cases, if total disability 
 be established as of that date. (Secretary Interior, Aug. 17, 1921.) 
 
 Evidence of Total Disability. — Report of medical examiners is not necessarily 
 final, but the Commissioner of Pensions and the Secretary of the Interior are 
 to arrive at their conclusions from the entire record. (No. 19, Secretary In- 
 terior, Feb. 21, 1921.) 
 
 "^ 2. Every annuitant retired under the provisions of this section, unless the dis- 
 ability for which retired is permanent in character, shall, at the expiration of 
 one year from the date of such retirement and annually thereafter until reach- 
 ing the retirement age as defined in section 1 hereof, be examined under direc- 
 tion of the Commissioner of Pensions by a medical officer of the United States, 
 or a duly qualified physician or surgeon or board of physicians or surgeons 
 designated by the Commissioner of Pensions for that purpose, in order to ascer- 
 tain the nature and degree of the annuitant's disability, if any ; if the annuitant 
 recovers and is restored to his or her former earning capacity before reaching 
 the retirement age, payment of the annuity shall be discontinued from the date 
 of the medical examination showing such recovery; if the annuitant fails to 
 appear for examination as required under this section, payment of the annuity 
 shall be suspended until continuance of the disability has been satisfactorily 
 established. The Commissioner of Pensions is hereby authorized to order or 
 direct at any time such medical or other examination as he shall deem neces- 
 sary to determine the facts relative to the nature and degree of disability of 
 any employee retired on an annuity under this section. 
 
 Reinstatement, Disability Having Ceased. — A person retired on annuity for 
 total disability will be regarded as eligible for reinstatement to an appropriate 
 position upon certificate of the commission requested by his department within 
 one year of the date that annuity ceases on the ground that total disability no 
 longer exists. (Minutes, May 24, 1921.) 
 
 3. Fees for examinations made under the provisions of this section by physi- 
 cians or surgeons who are not medical officers of the United States shall be 
 fixed by the Commissioner of Pensions, and such fees, together with the em- 
 ployee's reasonable traveling and other expenses incurred in order to submit to 
 such examinations, shall be paid out of the appropriations for the cost of admin- 
 istering this act. 
 
 4. In all cases where the annuity is discontinued under the provisions of this 
 section before the annuitant has received a sum equal to the total amount of 
 his or her contributions with accrued interest, the difference shall be paid to 
 the retired employee, or to his or her estate, upon application therefor in such 
 form and manner as the Commissioner of Pensions may direct. 
 
5. No person shall be entitled to receive an annuity under the provisions of 
 this act, and compensation under the provisions of the act of September 7, 1916, 
 entitled "An act to provide compensation tor employees of the United States 
 suffering injuries while in the performance of their duties, and for other' pur- 
 poses," covering the same period of time ; but this provision shall not be so 
 construed as to bar the right of any claimant to the greater benefit conferred by 
 either act for any part of the same period of time. 
 
 SECTION VI. 
 
 Sec. 6. That all employees to whom this act applies shall, upon the expira- 
 tion of ninety days next succeeding its passage, if of retirement age, or there- 
 after on arriving at retirement age as defined in section 1 hereof, be automat- 
 ically separated from the service, and all salary, pay, or compensation shall 
 cease from that date, and it shall be the duty of the head of each department, 
 branch, or independent office of the Government to notify such employees under 
 his direction of the date of such separation from the service at least sixty days 
 in advance thereof : Provided, That no person employed in the executive depart- 
 ments within the District of Columbia, retired under the provisions of this act 
 during the fiscal year ending June 30, 1921, shall be replaced by additional em- 
 ployees, but if the exigencies of the service so require, places made vacant by 
 such retirement may be filled by promotion or transfer of eligible employees 
 already in the service: Provided, That if within sixty days after the passage 
 of this act or not less than thirty days before the arrival of an employee at the 
 age of retirement, the head of the department, branch, or independent office of 
 the Government in which he or she is employed certifies to the Civil Service 
 Commission that by reason of his or her efficiency and willingness to remain in 
 the civil service of the United States the continuance of such employee therein 
 would be advantageous to the public service, such employee may be retained for 
 a term not exceeding two years upon approval and certification by the Civil 
 Service Commission, and at the end of the two years he or she may, by similar 
 approval and certification, be continued for an additional term not exceeding two 
 years, and so on : Provided, however, That at the end of ten years after this 
 act becomes effective no employee shall be continued in the civil service of the 
 United States beyond the age of retirement defined in section 1 hereof for more 
 than four years. 
 
 Automatic Separation. — Under section 6 every employee of the classes enu- 
 merated in section 1 is automatically separated from the service upon arriving 
 at the age of retirement regardless of his length of service unless by certification 
 of the head of his department and the approval of the Civil Service Commission 
 he is continued in the service as provided in said section 6. Those who have 
 rendered 15 years or more of service are entitled to an annuity under section 
 1, and those who have rendered less service are not. (Attorney General, June 
 14, 1920.) 
 
 Automatic Retirement. — An employee whose continuance has not been re- 
 quested at least 30 days prior to his reaching retirement age is automatically 
 separated as a classified employee upon reaching age of retirement. If he con- 
 tinues to serve he serves merely as a temporary employee. (Minutes, Dec. 6, 
 1920.) 
 
 Failure to Give 60 Days' Notice of Retirement. — Failure to give the notice 
 specified by the act can not continue the employee in the service or in a pay 
 status. (Comptroller of the Treasury, .June 30, 1920.) 
 
 No Replacement by Additional Employees,— Section 6 prohibiting retired em- 
 ployees to be " replaced by additional employees " in effect prevents appointing 
 by reason of retirement anyone from outside the Government service. The law 
 contemplates a vacancy somewhere among those actually in the service, and 
 
10 
 
 wherever it may fall by reason of promotions or transfer there it must finally 
 rest. (Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 1920.) 
 
 Filling After July 1, 1921, a Vacancy Occasioned hy Retirement Before that 
 Date. — The Comptroller of the Treasury decided that a vacancy caused by 
 retirement from a departmental position during the fiscal year ended June 30, 
 1921, could not be filled after July 1. (May 25, 1921.) 
 
 The commission is of the opinion that the qualified inhibition against filling 
 a position resulting from the retirement of an employee ceases to be operative 
 on June 30, 1921; and therefore holds that its own office, at least (not being 
 an executive department), will be free from such inhibition after June 30. 
 (Minutes, June 21, 1921.) 
 
 Certification for Continuance.— " The object of the 30-day provision appar- 
 ently was to afford the Civil Service Commission that length of time for con- 
 sideration of the proposed retention of an employee. But if the commission 
 in fact takes favorable action it will be sufficient even though within less than 
 30 days, if prior to the date when the employee would otherwise be retired. 
 (Solicitor, Interior Department, July 2, 1920.) 
 
 The commission has held that a request for continuance made less than 30 
 days before the employee reached retirement age was contrary to the statutory 
 requirement and that approval of continuance was not warranted. (Minutes, 
 Dec. 4, 1920.) 
 
 Continuance at a Lesser Salary.— The Comptroller of the Treasury inclines 
 to the view that the retention of an employee at a lesser salary, based upon 
 certification, is not authorized, the fact of such reduction being an implication 
 of inefficiency. (May 25, 1921.) 
 
 The commission is of opinion that an employee in a higher grade, for ex- 
 ample, may be considered inefficient as compared with employees in the same 
 class and line of work, but that compared with clerks of a lower grade he may 
 be found to equal or surpass the standard of such lower grade employees — 
 the term efficiency being relative and not absolute. (Minutes, June 17, 1921.) 
 
 Promotion of Continued Employee. — The promotion of an employee retained 
 beyond retirement age is possible with the prior approval of the commission. 
 (Minutes, Dec. 29, 1920.) 
 
 Uncertainty Regarding Retirement Age. — Supervisor of telephone lines. Coast 
 Guard Service, was regarded by department as retirable at 70'. " His position 
 having now been definitely fixed as in the class retirable at 65, it is as though 
 the act would begin to run when the decision is communicated to the depart- 
 ment. (Minutes, Mar. 7, 1921.) 
 
 SECTION VII. 
 
 1. That every employee who is or hereafter becomes eligible for retirement 
 because of age as provided in this act, shall, within sixty days after its passage 
 or thirty days before reaching the retirement age, or at any time thereafter, 
 file with the Commissioner of Pensions, in such form as he may prescribe, an 
 application for an annuity, supported by a certificate from the head of the 
 department, branch, or independent office of the Government in which the ap- 
 plicant has been employed, stating the age and period or periods of service of 
 the applicant and salary, pay, or compensation received during such periods, 
 as shown by the official records : Provided, however, That in the case of an em- 
 ployee who is to be continued in the civil service of the United States beyond 
 the retirement age as provided in section 6 hereof, he or she may make appli- 
 cation for retirement at any time within such period of continuance in the serv- 
 ice; but nothing contained in this act shall be construed to prevent the com- 
 pulsory retirement of such employee when in the judgment of the head of the 
 department, branch, or independent office in which he or she is employed such 
 * retirement would promote the best interests of the service. 
 
 Separation of a Continued Employee. — " * * * It is not believed that any- 
 thing in the retirement act requires 60 days' notice in advance of the removal 
 of an employee who has been continued for a term not exceeding two years. A 
 contrary interpretation would work to the detriment of the service in case it 
 was desired to remove such an employee on charges at the earliest possible 
 
11 
 
 date. As the continuance of an employee beyond retirement age rests upon tlie 
 reciprocal agreement of the department, the employee, and the commission, and 
 as his tenure is terminable at any time if either he or the department chooses, 
 it is not believed that the provisions of civil service Rule XII as to removal 
 should be applied in his case. * * * The department will be further in- 
 formed that a reasonable notice — say ten days or two weeks — to a continued 
 employee whose separation is desired, with the advice that he may apply for 
 retirement, will be sufficient, and that it is optional with the department 
 whether any statement of reasons be furnished him." (Minutes, May 24, 1921.) 
 
 2. Upon receipt of satisfactory evidence the Commissioner of Pensions shall 
 forthwith adjudicate the claim of the applicant, and if title to annuity be estab- 
 lished, a proper certificate shall be issued to the annuitant under the seal of 
 the Department of the Interior. 
 
 Determination of Annuity or Refund. — " * * * It is the duty of the Com- 
 missioner of Pensions under section 13 of the act to determine the annuity pay- 
 able or the refund to be made. * * * " (Comptroller of the Treasury, July 
 2, 1920.) 
 
 3. Annuities granted under this act for retirement on account of age shall 
 commence from the date of separation from the service on or after the date 
 this act shall take effect, and shall continue during the life of the annuitant. 
 Annuities granted for disability under the provisions of section 5 hereof shall 
 be subject to the limitations specified in said section. 
 
 SECTION VIII. 
 
 1. That beginning on the first day of the third month next following the pas- 
 sage of this act and monthly thereafter there shall be deducted and withheld 
 from the basic salary, pay, or compensation of each employee to whom this act 
 applies a sum equal to 2^ per cent of such employee's basic salary, pay;, or 
 compensation. The Secretary of the Treasury shall cause the said deductions 
 to be withheld from all specific appropriations for the particular salaries or 
 compensation from which the deductions are made and from all allotments 
 out of lump-sum appropriations for payments of such salaries or compensation 
 for each fiscal year, and said sums shall be transferred on the books of the 
 Treasury Department to the credit of a special fund to be known as " the civil- 
 service retirement and disability fund," and said fund is hereby appropriated 
 for the payment of annuities, refunds, and allowances as provided in this act. 
 
 No Deductions from Pay for Temporary Services. — Retirement deductions are 
 not required to be made from pay received by a permanent einployee for per- 
 formance at the same time of the duties of a temporary position. (Comptroller 
 of the Treasury, June 30, 1920.) 
 
 Deductions to Be Made from Combined Salaries. — Where the employee has 
 more than one permanent position * * * retirement deductions should be 
 made from the compensation of each. (Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 
 1920.) 
 
 Deductions from Salaries Paid by States. — Deductions are to be made from 
 salaries of employees paid by States while they are on furlough from the Geo- 
 logical Survey doing work paid for jointly by the Survey and the States. (Comp- 
 troller of the Treasury, July 20, 1920.) 
 
 Disbursing Officers May Not Withdraw Retirement Deductions from the Appro- 
 priations. — " * * * The enactment specifically imposes upon the Secretary 
 of the Treasury the duty of transferring retirement deductions from appropri- 
 ations to the civil-service retirement and disability fund, and no disbursing 
 officer is authorized to withdraw such deductions from the appropriations. 
 * * *." (Op., Comptroller of the Treasury, June 25, 1920.) 
 
 Disbursing Officers May Pay Only 97^ per cent of Basic Salary. — " * * * The 
 disbursmg officers are authorized to pay only 97^ per cent of basic salary, pay, or 
 compensation earned beginning August 1, 1920, whenever the employee is paid, 
 
12 
 
 the monthly requirement not being such as to restrict such action to one month 
 only. * * * (Op., Comptroller of the Treasury, June 30, 192,0.) 
 
 2. The Secretary of the Treasury is hereby directed to invest from time to 
 time, in interest-bearing securities of the United States, such portions of the 
 " civil-service retirement and disability fund " hereby created as in his judgment 
 may not be immediately required for the payment of annuities, refunds, and 
 allowances as herein provided, and the income derived from such investments 
 shall constitute a part of said fund for the purpose of paying annuities and 
 of carrying out the provisions of section 11 of this act. 
 
 3. The Secretary of the Treasury is hereby authorized and empowered in 
 carrying out the provisions of this act to supplement the individual contributions 
 of employees with moneys received in the form of donations, gifts, legacies, 
 bequests, or otherwise, and to receive, invest, and disburse for the purpose of 
 this act all moneys which may be contributed by private individuals or corpo- 
 rations or organizations for the benefit of civil-service employees generally or 
 any special class of employees. 
 
 SECTION" IX. 
 
 That every employee coming within the provisions of this act shall be 
 deemed to consent and agree to the deductions from salary, pay, or compen- 
 sation as provided in section 8 hereof, and payment less such deductions shall 
 be a full and complete discharge and acquittance of all claims and demands 
 whatsoever for all regular services rendered by such employee during the period 
 covered by such payment, except the right to the benefits to which he or she 
 shall be entitled under the provisions of this act, notwithstanding the provisions 
 of sections 167, 168, and 169 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, and 
 of any other law, rule, or regulation affecting the salary, pay, or compensation 
 of any person or persons employed in the civil service to whom this act applies. 
 
 SECTION X. 
 
 Sec. 10. That upon the transfer of any employee from an unclassified to a 
 classified status, or upon the reinstatement of a former employee, credit for 
 past service rendered subsequent to the date this act shall take effect, or for 
 any part thereof, shall be granted only upon deposit with the Treasurer of the 
 United States of the amount of such deductions "svith interest as provided in 
 this, act as would have been made for the periods of actual service, or part 
 thereof, for which credit is to be given, but such interest shall not be computed 
 for periods of separation from the service: Provided, That failure to make 
 such deposit shall not deprive the employee of credit for any past service 
 rendered prior to the date this act shall become operative, and to which he or 
 she would otherwise be entitled. 
 
 Deposit to Obtain Credit for Unclassified Service. — A classified employee who 
 fomerly had an unclassified status for a period subsequent to the effective 
 date of the retirement act may receive an annuity without making 
 the deposit for said period. He may make the deposit and receive credit for 
 that time, but if he does not he merely loses credit for that period of service 
 and does not forfeit his right to annuity nor lose credit for the period of prior 
 service nor for later service. (Solicitor, Interior, January 22, 1921.) 
 
 SECTION XI.. 
 
 That in the case of an employee in the classified civil service of the 
 United States who shall be transferred to an unclassified position, and in the 
 case of any employee to whom this act applies who shaU become absolutely 
 separated from the service before becoming eligible for retirement on an 
 
13 
 
 annuity, the total amount of deductions of salary, pay, or compensation with 
 accrued interest computed at tlie rate of 4 per centum per annum, compounded 
 on June 30 of each fiscal year, shall, upon application, be returned to such 
 employee: Provided, That all money so returned to an employee must be re- 
 deposited with interest before such employee may derive any benefit under 
 the provisions of this act, upon reinstatement or retransfer to a classified posi- 
 tion ; and in case an annuitant shall die without having received in annuities 
 an amount equal to the total amount of the deductions from his or her salary, 
 pay, or compensation, together with interest thereon at 4 per centum per 
 annum compounded as herein provided up to the time of his or her death, the 
 excess of the said accumulated deductions over the said ajmuity payments 
 shall be paid in one sum to his or her legal representatives upon the establish- 
 ment of a valid claim therefor; and in case an employee shall die without 
 having reached the retirement age or without having established a valid claim 
 for annuity, the total amount of deductions with accrued interest as herein 
 provided shall be paid to the legal representatives of such employee : Provided, 
 That if in case of death the amount of deductions to be paid under the pro- 
 visions of this section does not exceed $300, and if there has been no demand 
 upon the Commissioner of Pensions by a duly appointed executor or ad- 
 ministrator, the payment may be made, after the expiration of three months 
 from date of death, to such person or persons as may appear in the judgment 
 of the Commissioner of Pensions to be legally entitled to the proceeds of the 
 estate, and such payment shall be a bar to recovery by any other person. 
 
 Each executive department, and each independent establishment of the Gov- 
 ernment not within the jurisdiction of any executive department, shall estab- 
 lish and. maintain such record as will enable it to determine the amount de- 
 ducted within each fiscal year from the basic salary, pay, or compensation of 
 each employee within its jurisdiction to whom this Act applies. When such em- 
 ployee is transferred fi'om one office to another a certified abstract of his official 
 record shall be transmitted to the office to which the transfer is made. 
 
 When application is made to the Commissioner of Pensions for return of de- 
 ductions and accrued interest, as provided in this section, such application shall 
 be accompanied by a certificate from the proper officer showing the complete 
 record of deductions, by fiscal years, and other data necessary to the proi)er 
 adjustment of the claim. 
 
 The Commissioner of Pensions, with the approval of the Secretary of the 
 Interior, shall establish rules and regulations for crediting and reporting de- 
 ductions and for computing interest hereunder. 
 
 Computation of interest. — See decisions of the Comptroller of the Treasury, 
 September 15, 1920, October 5, 1920, and February 5, 1921. 
 
 Redeposit of Refund. — ^A former employee in order to be reinstated need not 
 redeposit the deductions refunded to him. Redeposit may be made at any time 
 together with interest thereon for the elapsed period since the refund, except 
 periods of separation from the service, if any. Redeposit is merely a condition 
 precedent to allowance of benefit under the act. The 2^ per cent deduction from 
 salary, pay, or compensation must be taken during the period of service after the 
 reinstatement even though the employee may never qualify for annuity by 
 making redeposit of funds theretofore returned to him. (Solicitor, Interior, 
 January 22, 1921.) 
 
 SECTION XII. 
 
 That annuities granted under the terms of this act shall be due and payable 
 monthly on the first business day of the month following the month or other 
 period for which the annuity shall have accrued, and payment of all annuities, 
 refunds, and allowances granted hereunder shall be made by checks drawn and 
 
14 
 
 issued by tlie disbursing clerk for the payment of pensions in such form and 
 manner and with such safeguards as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of 
 the Interior in accordance with the laws, rules, and regulations governing 
 accounting that may be found applicable to such payments. 
 
 SECTION XIII. 
 
 1. That it shall be the duty of the head of each executive department and the 
 head of each independent establishment of the Government not within the 
 jurisdiction of any executive department to report to the Civil Service Com- 
 mission in such manner as said commission may prescribe, the name and grade 
 of each employee to whom this act applies in or under said department or 
 establishment who shall be at any time in a nonpay status, showing the dates 
 such employee was in a nonpay status, and the amount of salary, pay, or 
 compensation lost by the employee by reason of such absence. The CivU 
 Service Commission shall keep a record of appointments, transfers, changes 
 in grade, separations from the service, reinstatements, loss of pay, and such 
 other information concerning individual service as may be deemed essential 
 to a proper determination of rights under this act, and shall furnish the Com- 
 missioner of Pensions such reports therefrom as he shall from time to time 
 request as necessary to the proper adjustment of any claim for annuity here- 
 under, and shall prepare and keep all needful tables and records required for 
 carrying out the provisions of this act, including data showing the mortality ex- 
 perience of the employees in the service and the percentage of withdrawal from 
 such service, and any other information that may serve as a guide for future 
 valuations and adjustments of the plan for the retirement of employees under 
 this act. 
 
 Reports from Departments. — " The heads of the executive departments and 
 independent establishments are directed to furnish to the United States Civil 
 Service Commission, at such time and in such form and manner as it may pre- 
 scribe, information to complete or to supplement its records, to enable it to 
 carry out the requirements of the retirement act approved May 22, 1920, and 
 to enable it to prepare and keep timely statistical and other information which 
 experience has shown to be of value to the President, the Congress, executive 
 officials, and the public." (Executive order, June 10, 1920.) 
 
 2. The Commissioner of Pensions shall make a detailed comparative report 
 annually showing all receipts and disbursements on account of refunds, allow- 
 ances, and annuities, together with the total number of persons receiving 
 annuities and the amounts paid them. 
 
 SECTION XIV. 
 
 That none of the moneys mentioned in this act shall be assignable, either 
 in law or equity, or be subject to execution, levy, or attachment, garnishment, 
 or other legal process. 
 
 SECTION XV. 
 
 1. That there is hereby authorized to be appropriated, from any moneys in 
 the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the sum of $100,000 for salaries and 
 for clerical and other services, the purchase of books, office equipment, sta- 
 tionery, and other supplies, and all other expenses necessary in carrying out 
 the provisions of this act, including traveling expenses and expenses of medical 
 and other examinations as provided in section 5 hereof. 
 
 2. The Secretary of the Interior shall submit annually to the Secretary of 
 the Treasury estimates of the appropriations necessary to continue this act in 
 full force and effect. 
 
15 
 
 SECTION XVI. 
 
 That the Commissioner of Pensions, with the approval of the Secretary of the 
 Interior, is hereby authorized and directed to select three actuaries, one of 
 whom shall be the Government actuary, to be known as the board of actuaries, 
 whose duty it shall be to annually report upon the actual operations of this 
 act, with authority to recommend to the Commissioner of Pensions such 
 changes as in its judgment may be deemed necessary to protect the public 
 interest and maintain the system upon a sound financial basis. It shall be 
 the duty of the Commissioner of Pensions to submit with his annual report to 
 Congi-ess the recommendations of the board of actuaries. It shall be the duty 
 of the board of actuaries to make a valuation of the " civil-service retirement 
 and disability fund " at the end of the first year following the passage of this 
 act and at intervals of every five years thereafter, or oftener if deemed neces- 
 sary by the Commissioner of Pensions. The compensation of the members of 
 the board of actuaries, exclusive of the Government actuary, shall be fixed by 
 the Commissioner of Pensions with the approval of the Secretary of the 
 Interior. 
 
 SECTION XVII. 
 
 That all laws and parts of laws inconsistent with this act are hereby repealed. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS. 
 
 Certification. — Eligibles who have reached retirement age will not be certified 
 except for temporary appointment. (Minutes, July 24, 1920.) 
 
 Continuance. — The Public Printer requested the reinstatement and continu- 
 ance of an employee. No request for extension was made as provided by the 
 act, and he was automatically separated. Reinstatement denied. The Com- 
 mission has uniformly disallowed requests for extension made subsequent to 
 July 21, 1920, of employees who had reached retirement age at that time, except 
 Avhen it was stated that the initiative had been taken prior to that date. (Min- 
 utes, Sept. 22, 1920.) 
 
 Continuance requested less than 30 days before retirement age disapproved. 
 (Minutes, Dec. 4, 1920.) 
 
 Deputy Marshals. — All deputy marshals are outside the " classified civil serv- 
 ice " within the meaning of those w«rds as they occur in the retirement act. 
 (Attorney General, Mar. 30, 1921.) 
 
 Examination. — ^Applicants of retirement age not admitted. (Minute 4, July 
 24, 1921.) 
 
 False Statement. — Request for retirement on annuity would not be favorably 
 considered in case of an employee whose entire service was based on his false 
 statement as to age. (Minutes, Sept. 18, 1920.) 
 
 Laborers, Custodian Service. — Classified employees transferred to unclassified 
 positions are subject to the retirement act, employees appointed to unclassified 
 positions from classified registers are not subject to that act. (Minutes, June 
 23, 1921.) 
 
 Navy Yards. — Furlough, reemployment. (Minutes, Oct. 30, 1920.) 
 
 Porto Rico customs employees are in the classified competitive service and 
 are therefore subject to the retirement act. (Minutes, Sept. 7, 1920.) 
 
 Postal Agent at Shanghai. — The postal agent at Shanghai, China, is a post- 
 master and therefore excluded from the operation of the retirement act. (Min- 
 utes, Aug. 4, 1920.) 
 
 Reemployment of Retired Employee. — The commission sees no obstacle so far 
 as age is concerned to the reinstatement of a railway mail clerk retired at 62 
 to some position with a higher retirement age. (Minutes, Oct. 1, 1920.) 
 
 A person who is receiving retired pay may not at the same time hold a posi- 
 tion under the Government carrying compensation out of Government funds. 
 (Minutes, Oct. 29, 1920.) 
 
 Reinstatement of a person retired for age can not be made. (Minutes, Nov. 
 18, 1920.) 
 
16 
 
 Retirement Age — Examination and Certification. — ^Admission to examination 
 of person who has reached retirement age is forbidden as is also certification 
 except for temporary appointment. (Minutes, July 24, 1920.) 
 
 Secret Service Employees are subject to retirement act. (Minutes, Sept. 2, 
 1920.) 
 
 Storekeeper-Gangers.— Their classified status is not affected by their tem- 
 porary appointment in the excepted position of warehouse agents. (Minutes, 
 Feb. 4, 1921.) 
 
 Substitutes in Postal Service are within the provisions of the retirement act. 
 (Minutes, Dec. 29, 1920.) 
 
 procedure: in continuance, retirement, and refund. 
 
 An employee who does not wish to be separated from the service should make 
 an early written request for retention upon his official superiors, as the official 
 request for retention must be made at least 30 days before the employee reaches 
 retirement age. 
 
 An employee desiring to be retired for age or total disability makes appli- 
 cation through his official superiors upon the prescribed form which, after 
 the addition of certain data by the department, goes to the Bureau of Pen- 
 sions, which then obtains his service record from the Civil Service Commission 
 and adjudicates the case. 
 
 An employee passing beyond the provisions of the retirement act by sepa- 
 ration or transfer, to secure the refund of deductions made from his salary, 
 makes application through his official superiors, upon a prescribed form which, 
 after the addition of certain data, first by the department and then by the 
 Civil Service Commission, goes to the Bureau of Pensions for determination and 
 payment of the amount. One about to reenter the service in a position subject 
 to the retirement act should not apply for a refund. 
 
 WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1922 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 012 263 752 9 
 
 Hollinger Corp. 
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