Evacuation pay
Employees who are given a verbal or written order by the head of the operating unit or a delegated authority to leave a duty station in the continental United States, Puerto Rico, the Panama Canal Zone, or any territory or possession of the United States because of danger to their own life and safety and that of their families, or who are prevented from performing the duties of their positions because of natural disaster, civil unrest or other situation beyond the control of the United States government, may be continued in a pay status at their current rates for the duration not to exceed 180 days. For all purposes, they are deemed on active service for this period.
Advances of pay
Heads of operating units or one to whom authority has been delegated may advance up to 30 days pay, allowances, and differentials to full-time and part-time employees who are officially ordered to leave their duty station in the circumstances described above. The amount advanced to an intermittent employee will be based on the average number of days the employee would likely have worked during the time period. Evacuation pay and advances of pay will be made at the rate in effect just prior to the evacuation less all required deductions. To the extent possible, payments will coincide with employees' regular pay days.
Advances of pay may be recovered under terms of a repayment agreement, by salary offset, from a lump sum leave settlement, etc. The entire amount, or a portion of the entire amount, may be waived at the discretion of an employee's operating unit head without regard to limits on agency approval of waivers of overpayments of pay and allowances. An advance of pay is in addition to evacuation pay, travel, and per diem.
Travel and subsistence
Travel expenses and per diem determined in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulations (FTR) will be paid to employees and their dependents (whether or not such employees would be covered by the FTR) from the date of evacuation to arrival at a safe haven (usually the post to which evacuated).
Subsistence payments at the maximum rate (or a lesser rate if determined appropriate) may be paid evacuees upon arrival at a safe haven not to exceed 30 days from the date of evacuation except that children under 11 will receive one half that rate. If, after 30 days, the evacuation has not terminated, the maximum rate payable in both instances will be reduced by 40 percent. This lesser rate may be paid for a maximum of 180 days from the date of evacuation or until an operating unit head or a delegated authority terminates the payment.
Termination of evacuation payments
Employees at a safe haven may be assigned any work which the evacuation makes necessary without regard to employee grade levels or titles. Refusal to perform assigned work may be the basis for termination of evacuation payments.
Not later than 180 days after the evacuation, or earlier as practicable, action must be taken to assign employees to a regular duty station. Evacuation payments which have not been terminated by an operating unit head or delegated authority will cease the day the employee retires, is reassigned out of the evacuation area, is separated or determined to have abandoned position, or is declared a missing person under the Missing Persons Act.
References
5 U.S.C. 5527
5 CFR 550, Subpart D