be further reviewed by a Performance Selection Standards Board (PSB) for possible selection out.

Those the PSB determines should be selected out will have the right to appeal to a Special Review Board.

The Officer's Evaluation Report (OER) plays a vital part in the Board's decison in almost every case.

Every year the Foreign Service Selection Boards identify rating officers who merit commendations for the reports they prepare. The Boards also single out those who they believe deserve criticism.

The Boards' commendations or reprimands are put in the rating officer's performance file as an indication of how seriously the Service views the officer's responsibility for preparing the OER reports.

The 14 Boards will rank-order Foreign Service personnel according to Precepts negotiated with the American Foreign Service Association.

The Boards base their rank-order decisions on material in the employee's Official Performance File.

Members of the various Boards read the files dating back five years-or to the date of the employ ee's last promotion, whichever period is longer.

The Boards also have access to the evaluation reports each officer under consideration has written, in order to

assess his or her effectiveness as a rating officer.

They do not have access to medical files, security files, or career development counseling files.

The Selection Boards do not promote; they merely recommend officers for promotion.

the

Management determines number of promotions which will be made annually.

In arriving at these figures, management uses an inventory of positions and skills, taking in account such factors as the number of positions, attrition, funding, projected "needs of the service," and the vacancies created by promotions into higher grades.

These numbers are approved before the Selection Boards submit their findings to the Director General. The numbers are also submitted to AFSA under a safeguards agreement.

After the Selection Boards complete their work, they send their recommendations to management. The latter is bound to accept the recommendations to the extent the number of promotional opportunities permits.

The Department seeks to balance

DISCUSS AFRICA-A group of black Americans, led by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Presi

dent of PUSH (People United to Save Humanity), met with Secretary Kissinger in the Department on Aug. 23 to discuss southern African issues. Shown, left to right, are Judge William Booth of the New York City Criminal Court and President of the American Committee on Africa, the Rev. Jackson, and the Secretary. Dr. Kissinger delivered a major address on Africa at the convention of Opportunities Industralization Centers (OIC) on Aug. 31. each board, both geographically and bee, William Orrick, Robert S. Kelfunctionally. It also seeks to have ley and W. D. Kohl. women and representatives of minority groups on each Board, in line with the Department's policy to further equal employment opportunities.

In addition to the Foreign Service career officers who serve on the Boards, many FSRS and FSRUS serve on the Boards which review officers

in the specialist categories.

The Boards also include representatives from other foreign affairs agencies-and Public Members.

Public Members are serving on eight of the 14 Boards.

Members of the Foreign Service Selection Boards:

Board I-Ambassador William J. Porter, Chairman.

Ambassador Frank Carlucci, Ambassador Leonard Unger, Dr. Broadus Butler.

Board II-Ambassador David H. Popper, Chairman.

Ambassador J. Owen Zurhellen, Joel W. Biller, Loren Lawrence, James B. Moran, Carter L. Burgess and Dr. Weir M. Brown.

Board III-Ambassador Robert A. Hurwitch, Chairman.

Ernest J. Colantonio, Alan A. Gise, Lawrence J. Kennon, Hunter P. Wharton and C. Edward Chapman. Intermediate Boards-Classes 4

and 5:

Board A-Robert L. Barry, Chair

man.

Stanley P. Harris, Robert B. Lane, William F. Rope, M. Virginia Schafer, Jeannine Smith Clark, Leo E. Engleson and Philip Riccobono.

Board B-Richard W. Smith, Chairman.

Michele Bova, Peter Jon De Vos, Alta F. Fowler, Donald A. Weather

Board C-Thomas J. Fitzpatrick, Chairman.

David Christensen, Louis Goelz, Clara Ree Moore, Donald Ramage, Carmen M. Delgado Votaw and Barbara Elizabeth Phinney.

Specialist Boards (D through I):
Board D-Lindsay Grant, Chair-

Far-reaching changes in the Foreign Service retirement and disability system were enacted by Congress and signed into law by President Ford on July 12.

The changes are designed to equate Foreign Service survivor, service credit, and cost-of-living benefits with comparable provisions of the Civil Service retirement system. They also put the system on an actuarially sound basis.

The amendments-contained in Title V of Public Law 94-350 and known as the Foreign Service Retirement Amendments of 1976-are part of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1977.

The Department issued an 18-page circular (FAMC 716, Vol. 3, Personnel) outlining the new amendments on July 27. It directed Executive Officers and Administrative Officers to bring the provisions of the new law to the attention of all Foreign Service personnel.

Most of the provisions of the new law become effective with the new fiscal year, October 1, or later, although a fall-back annuity computation became effective for all those who retired under the Foreign Service retirement system on or after Aug. 1.

Future cost-of-living Foreign Service adjustments will become effective on the same date as future corresponding Civil Service increases.

The new legislation overtook an advisory to Foreign Service employees to the effect that they had to retire by July 31 in order to receive a 5.3 percent cost-of-living adjustment effective August 1. The new fall-back computation provision guaranteed employees who retired on or after August 1 that their annuities would at least equal the annuities they would have received if they had retired on July 31.

The new computation formula is an alternate method assuring an annuitant of receiving the highest amount figured on service and salary through the date prior to the last preceding cost-of-living increase, plus the amount of that adjustment, or a computation based on service and salary earned through the actual date of retirement.

A number of bills have been intro

duced in Congress to implement the President's recommendation to eliminate the extra one percent in the costof-living adjustment formulas in all government retirement systems. However, since none of the bills under consideration were enacted before August 1, the August 1 increase in cluded the extra one percent and amounted to 5.3 percent for those retiring under the Foreign Service retirement system.

The new act would make the elimination of the one percent feature from the Foreign Service formula contingent upon enactment of legislation to remove the one percent feature from the Civil Service system.

Other principal changes in the new law:

Survivorship

-Children-Annuities to surviving children who are students will be continued past age 18 through age 21. Children in process of adoption on death of a participant in the Foreign Service retirement system or annuitant would be made eligible for survivor annuities. This amendment applies to present and future surviving children. Annuities become effective October 1, 1976, for children who were made eligible by the amendment and who were not then receiving annuities.

-Survivor annuities-Future annuities to surviving spouses and designated beneficiaries of those who retire or die in service on or after October 1, 1976, will be computed at 55 percent, instead of 50 percent, on the applicable base.

-10 percent increase for certain survivors-Annuities of present surviving spouses and annuities of potential surviving spouses of those who die in service or retire before October 1, 1976, will be increased 10 percent, effective on December 1, 1976, or on the commencing date of annuity, if later.

-Survivorship election at retirement-The requirement for a married male participant to elect at a minimum a $2,400 survivor annuity will be eliminated for those retiring on and after October 1, 1976. Thereafter, both men and women may voluntarily make their survivor election. The

formula for computing the annuity reduction required to elect a survivor annuity for a spouse will be changed as follows:

The reduction will equal 21⁄2 percent of the first $3,600 of annuity specified as the base for the survivor annuity, plus 10 percent of any amount over $3,600 so specified. The surviving spouse will be entitled to an annuity of 55 percent of the specified base. This formula will result in a reduction of $90 less than under the formula in effect until October 1, 1976. The maximum reduction will be made unless the retiring participant (and his or her spouse, whenever possible) sign a request for a lesser reduction or for no reduction.

-Spouses acquired after retirement Survivor annuities will be extended to spouses acquired after retirement for those who have made or hereafter make an election on behalf of a spouse to whom he or she is married at retirement, as well as for those who are unmarried at retirement who make such an election within one year after October 1, 1976, or after the marriage, if later. The annuities will become effective on October 1, 1976, for survivors of those annuitants who died on or after January 8, 1971.

Annuitants who are married at the time of retirement and who do not elect a survivor annuity for their spouses will not be entitled to make a subsequent election in behalf of either the spouse to whom married at retirement nor for any subsequently acquired spouse.

-Termination of survivor annuities on remarriage-A survivor annuity to surviving spouses will be terminated upon remarriage below the age of 60. It will be resumed if the marriage is later terminated. If the spouse remarries after age 60 the annuity will not terminate. This amendment will not apply to current survivor annuitants, nor to spouses of participants who die in service or retire before October 1, 1976.

-Bar against double annuities—A surviving spouse will be barred from receiving more than one survivor annuity from a Government civilian retirement system at the same time (excluding Social Security), based upon the death of successive spouses

who were Government employees. A survivor may elect to receive the anInuity which is largest. Applicability of the amendment would be the same as the above paragraph.

-Grants to certain surviving spouses-An annuity grant will be made to widows or widowers of Foreign Service annuitants who retired before October 16, 1960, and who did not elect a survivor benefit, provided such survivors (1) were married to the annuitants at the time of retirement, (2) are not entitled to any other survivor benefit from the Government, other than Social Security, and (3) have not remarried or at least have not remarried before age 60. The grant will become effective October 1, 1976. It will begin at the rate of $357 a month, the rate received by other "grantee widows."

-Opportunity for certain annuitants to elect survivor benefitForeign Service annuitants who were married at the time of retirement and who retired before October 16, 1960, and have not previously elected a survivor benefit, will be given an opportunity to elect a survivor annuity of $2,400 a year. The $2,400 annuity would be increased, from its commencing date, by the percentage of all cost-of-living increases received by the principal under Section 882 of the Foreign Service Act at his or her death.

Those who make such an election will have to accept a reduction in annuities of $300 a year and, in addition, repay the Fund an amount equivalent to $300 per annum for the period between their retirement and the election. Repayment would be made by deducting $25 a month from the annuity. Any amount unpaid at death will be forgiven.

(Annuity grants under the above, Grants to Certain Widows, and the opportunity to elect survivor benefits for certain older annuitants were authorized by the new law because of the extremely high cost of electing Foreign Service survivor benefits before October 16, 1960.)

Service credit

-Civilian service-all types of service, the absences and separations from service, now or hereafter creditable for Civil Service retirement, will be creditable for Foreign Service retirement for those who retire on or after October 1, 1976. Similarly, service not creditable for Civil Service retirement purposes will not be creditable for Foreign Service retire

ment purposes. This will mean that effective from the date any annuitant becomes eligible for a Social Security benefit based on military, Peace Corps, or VISTA service performed after December 31, 1976, the Foreign Service annuity will be recomputed to disregard such service.

-Credit for additional types of uniformed service-For those who retire after October 1, 1976, free retirement credit will be given for any prior service in the regular or reserve corps of the Public Health Service after June 30, 1960, or as a commissioned officer in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration or predecessor organization after June 30, 1961.

-Nondeposit service-For those who retire on or after October 1, 1976, credit will be given for service for which deposits were not made at the time it was performed, provided the annuitant accepts a reduction in the annual annuity rate of 10 percent of the amount owed for such service. Currently, a participant may not count such service unless the amount owed is paid in full.

A participant who has received a refund for any prior service will continue to be required to make a deposit in the Foreign Service retirement fund for such service in order to obtain annuity credit for the service. Such service may, however, be counted toward eligibility for retirement.

-Refunds

of "'excess" contributions-Participants retiring on or after October 1, 1976, will receive refunds of employee retirement contributions (7 percent of basic salary) for all service they perform after attaining 35 years of service credit, counting regular plus unhealthful post credit.

-Continuation of rights during military service-A participant who leaves the Service to enter the Armed Forces will be deemed as not separated for retirement purposes for up to 5 years, unless the participant withdraws his or her contributions. This amendment will protect survivorship rights and permit retirement if the participant reaches retirement age or becomes disabled during this 5-year period. The provision is retroactively effective for all those who left the Service on and after October 1, 1971, and who are members of the Armed Forces on October 1, 1976.

-Employee organization service-Effective November 7, 1976, a participant who takes leave without pay to serve full-time in an employee

organization will be required to pay into the fund both the employee and employer retirement contribution (14 percent of basic salary) for all such service in order to obtain retirement credit. Participants on leave without pay for this purpose will have 60 more days to make an election to pay the 14 percent contribution and receive full retirement credit, or to make no deposit and forgo all retirement credit for leave without pay after November 7, 1976.

Recall-Effective October 1, 1976, the Secretary, the Director of USIA, and the Administrator of AID will be authorized to recall any retired Reserve or Staff officer or employee to the Service under Section 520(b) of the Foreign Service Act. This amendment will permit the application of appropriate procedures for adjusting. annuities and for processing retirement contributions of such personnel during any period of reemployment under the Foreign Service retirement system.

The rules of adjusting annuities of all personnel following recall would be amended to eliminate loss of costof-living adjustments received prior to recall or that become effective during recall and to make other changes.

-Interest-Foreign Service employees who resign on or after January 1, 1977, and withdraw their contributions to the Fund, will no longer be entitled to receive interest on refunds for service which lasts less than 1 year or more than 5 years. Interest on refunds for service between 1 and 5 years will be compounded at 3 percent from January 1, 1977, instead of the present 4 percent. The interest rate charged employees on special contributions for prior "nondeposit" service or repayments of prior refunds will also be reduced from 4 percent to 3 percent for time after January 1, 1977.

-Annuity commencement and termination dates-Beginning October 1976, annuities to retirees will begin the day after separation instead of the first day of the following month. Annuities will continue to end on the day of death. All survivor annuities will commence the day after the death of the principal, instead of on the first day of the following month. Survivor annuities will end on the last day of the month before death, or other terminating event, instead of on the day of the terminating event.

The annuity to a survivor will become effective as specified. It will not be paid until the survivor submits an application for the annuity, with ap

propriate proof of eligibility. If the application or proof is not submitted during an otherwise eligible person's lifetime, no annuity will be due or payable to that survivor's estate.

-Order of precedence of lumpsum payments-The amendment sets up the order of precedence for the payment of lump-sums, if the former participant has died.

-Future conforming changesNew Section 805 of the Foreign Service Act provides that any Civil Service amendment generally applicable to participants in the Civil Service retirement system shall apply to participants in the Foreign Service retirement system if the corresponding provisions in the two systems had been substantially identical before enactment of the Civil Service amendment. The President is authorized to implement this provision by Executive Order. This section has a January 1, 1974, effective date and will be used to extend to Foreign Service participants the provisions of the following laws enacted since that date:

Public Law 93-260, which reduced to one year the period a marriage must last to qualify a spouse for a survivor annuity after a death in service.

Public Law 93-273, which increased annuities by $240 a year for those who retired before October 20, 1969, under the old "high-5" formula (instead of the current "high-3" formula) and by $132 a year for their surviving spouses.

Public Law 93-474, which eliminated any reduction a participant may have elected in the annuity to provide a survivor annuity for a spouse during any period the annuitant is unmarried. Other amendments

-Foreign Service Staff participation in the retirement system-The 10-year waiting period for State and USIA Foreign Service Staff personnel who must serve before becoming participants in the Foreign Service system will be eliminated, effective January 2, 1977. All Staff personnel with unlimited appointments and under the Civil Service retirement system will be converted on that date to the Foreign Service retirement system. The Foreign Service mandatory retirement age of 60 will not be applicable to employees who are converted until they complete their existing 10year waiting periods.

the President and confirmed by the Senate will continue to be exempt from mandatory retirement provisions while serving in those positions.

-Voluntary contributions-The voluntary contribution program will be discontinued on January 2, 1977. (It is currently being used by less than 1 percent of participants). Effective on that date, further voluntary contributions will be barred. Past voluntary contributions may be withdrawn or they may be left in the Fund, in which case payments will be made as previously authorized.

-Financing-The law authorizes additional annual appropriations to the Retirement Fund to put the System on a sound financial basis.

Officials in the Department, AID and USIA are making every effort to locate beneficiaries who are eligible for benefits under the new law.

The Retirement Division is mailing an information sheet on the various provisions of the new law to all annui

However, the Department may not have the names and addresses of some surviving children, second spouses, and widow grantees who may be eligible for survivor annuities under the new law. It has asked persons who know of such beneficiaries to send the names and addresses to the Bureau of Personnel, Retirement Division, PER/ES/RET, Washington, D.C. 20520.

Construction of the new U.S. Embassy complex in Moscow is expected to begin within a year.

Congress recently approved an appropriation of $30,000,000 to initiate the proposed Chancery project. It will be located on a 10-acre site a few hundred feet to the west of the present Embassy leased property on Tschaikovsky Street.

The Department's Office of Foreign Buildings will establish a special construction team in the Russian capital to manage this unusually large and complex project.

The project has long been in the works.

The United States and the Soviet Union signed an Embassy Agreement on May 16, 1969. That agreement provides for reciprocal, 85-year leases. The Soviet Union will occupy the Mt. Alto property on Wisconsin Avenue in Washington (formerly the site of a Veterans' Hospital) and the United States will build its complex on Konyushkovskaya Boulevard in Moscow.

The Embassy Moscow project is being developed as a "package"not piecemeal. The Chancery building of the new complex in Moscow is scheduled to be occupied simultaneously with the new Chancery building of the Soviet complex in Washington.

But the other buildings will be occupied at any time after they are completed.

The U.S. complex was designed as a joint venture under the combined partnership of two American architectural firms: Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, of San Francisco, and Gruzen and Partners, of New York.

"This procedure was adopted to ensure maximum incorporation of American architectural creativity for this large, complex and important project," officials point out.

The new complex will provide approximately 432,000 square feet of usable space for the Embassy diplomatic and consular functions, support facilities, and housing for most of the American staff and their families.

The Ambassador will continue to live at the official residence, Spaso House.

The central unit within the proposed complex will be an eight-story Embassy office building.

Three-story housing units-"town houses'-will be built on both sides of this building to provide quarters for the Deputy Chief of Mission, 10 other representational apartments for senior officers, and more than 100 staff housing units.

In addition, there will be a school for dependent children; living quarters

for the Marine Security Guards-and parking for 150 cars.

Underneath the surface of the landscaped "common" will be a cafeteria, gymnasium, recreational, maintenance and other facilities.

The U.S. Embassy complex will occupy a somewhat rectangular site, within a short ride to the Kremlin. Nearby is a large Russian apartment building, a new building which will house the Legislature of the USSR Russian Republic, and a large field.

Designers of the complex say it will be a relatively "low-key," reflecting a feeling of dignity, permanence and good taste. The design, they add, will have "a feeling of New England," and will give the U.S. staff and their families a strong sense of community. The buildings will be in light, Colonial-pink brick.

Under the terms of the agreement Soviet workers will do the foundations, structural frames, masonry, and site development work. The Soviet Union will provide materials for the complex, to the extent possible. Much of the mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems will be manufactured in the United States. The interior fittings of the Chancery building will be done by American or third-country nationals.