Substantive Regulations Adopted by the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance and Approved by Congress Extending Rights and Protections Under Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988
FINAL REGULATIONS
Application of Rights and Protections of the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988
Subpart A--General
Section--
1.1 Purpose and scope.
1.2 Definitions.
1.3 Coverage.
1.4 Prohibitions on lie detector use.
1.5 Effect on other laws or agreements.
1.6 Notice of protection.
1.7 Authority of the Board.
1.8 Employment relationship.
Subpart B--Exemptions
1.10 Exclusion for employees of the Capitol Police. [Reserved]
1.11 Exemption for national defense and security.
1.12 Exemption for employing offices conducting investigations of economic loss or injury.
1.13 Exemption for employing offices authorized to manufacture, distribute, or dispense controlled substances
Subpart C--Restrictions on Polygraph Usage Under Exemptions
1.20 Adverse employment action under ongoing investigation exemption.
1.21 Adverse employment action under controlled substance exemption.
1.22 Rights of examinee--general.
1.23 Rights of examinee--pretest phase.
1.24 Rights of examinee--actual testing phase.
1.25 Rights of examinee--post-test phase.
1.26 Qualifications of and requirements for examiners.
Subpart D--Recordkeeping and Disclosure Requirements
1.30 Records to be preserved for 3 years.
1.35 Disclosure of test information.
Appendix A--Notice to Examinee
Authority: Pub. L. 104-1, 109 Stat. 3, 2 U.S.C. 1314(c)
SUBPART A--GENERAL
Sec. 1.1 Purpose and scope.
Enacted into law on January 23, 1995 , the Congressional Accountability Act (“CAA”) directly applies the rights and protections of eleven federal labor and employment law statutes to covered employees and employing offices within the legislative branch. Section 204(a) of the CAA, 2 U.S.C. 1314(a) provides that no employing office may require any covered employee (including a covered employee who does not work in that employing office) to take a lie detector test where such test would be prohibited if required by an employer under paragraphs (1), (2) or (3) of section 3 of the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 (EPPA), 29 U.S.C. Sec. 2002(1), (2) or (3). The purpose of this part is to set forth the regulations to carry out the provisions of Section 204 of the CAA.
Subpart A contains the provisions generally applicable to covered employers, including the requirements relating to the prohibitions on lie detector use. Subpart B sets forth rules regarding the statutory exemptions from application of section 204 of the CAA. Subpart C sets forth the restrictions on polygraph usage under such exemptions. Subpart D sets forth the rules on recordkeeping and the disclosure of polygraph test information.
Sec. 1.2 Definitions
For purposes of this part:
(a) “Act” or “CAA means the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995” (P.L. 104-1, 109 Stat. 3, 2 U.S.C. Sec. 1301-1438).
(b) “EPPA” means the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100-347, 102 Stat. 646, 29 U.S.C. Sec. 2001-2009) as applied to covered employees and employing offices by Section 204 of the CAA.
(c) The term “covered employee” means any employee of (1) the House of Representatives; (2) the Senate; (3) the Capitol Guide Service; (4) the Congressional Budget Office; (5) the Office of the Architect of the Capitol; (6) the Office of the Attending Physician; (7) the Office of Compliance; or (8) the Office of Technology Assessment.
(d) The term employee includes an applicant for employment and a former employee.
(e) The term “employee of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol” includes any employee of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Botanic Gardens, or the Senate Restaurants.
(f) The term “employee of the Capitol Police” includes any member or officer of the Capitol Police.
(g) The term “employee of the House of Representatives” includes an individual occupying a position the pay for which is disbursed by the Clerk of the House of Representatives, or another official designated by the House of Representatives, or any employment position in an entity that is paid with funds derived from the clerk-hire allowance of the House of Representatives but not any such individual employed by any entity listed in subparagraphs (3) through (8) of paragraph (c) above.
(h) The term “employee of the Senate” includes any employee whose pay is disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate, but not any such individual employed by any entity listed in subparagraphs (3) through (8) of paragraph (c) above.
(i) The term “employing office” means (1) the personal office of a Member of the House of Representatives or of a Senator; (2) a committee of the House of Representatives or the Senate or a joint committee; (3) any other office headed by a person with the final authority to appoint, hire, discharge, and set the terms, conditions, or privileges of the employment of an employee of the House of Representatives or the Senate; or (4) the Capitol Guide Board, the Congressional Budget Office, the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the Office of the Attending Physician, the Office of Compliance, and the Office of Technology Assessment. The term employing office includes any person acting directly or indirectly in the interest of an employing office in relation to an employee or prospective employee. A polygraph examiner either employed for or whose services are retained for the sole purpose of administering polygraph tests ordinarily would not be deemed an employing office with respect to the examinees. Any reference to “employer” in these regulations includes employing offices.
(j) (1) The term “lie detector” means a polygraph, deceptograph, voice stress analyzer, psychological stress evaluator, or any other similar device (whether mechanical or electrical) that is used, or the results of which are used, for the purpose of rendering a diagnostic opinion regarding the honesty or dishonesty of an individual. Voice stress
analyzers, or psychological stress evaluators, include any systems that utilize voice stress analysis, whether or not an opinion on honesty or dishonesty is specifically rendered.
(2) The term “lie detector” does not include medical tests used to determine the presence or absence of controlled substances or alcohol in bodily fluids. Also not included in the definition of lie detector are written or oral tests commonly referred to as “honesty” or “paper and pencil” tests, machine-scored or otherwise; and graphology tests commonly referred to as handwriting tests.
(k) The term “polygraph” means an instrument that--
(1) Records continuously, visually, permanently, and simultaneously changes in cardiovascular, respiratory, and electrodermal patterns as minimum instrumentation standards; and
(2) Is used, or the results of which are used, for the purpose of rendering a diagnostic opinion regarding the honesty or dishonesty of an individual.
(l) “Board” means the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance.
(m) “Office” means the Office of Compliance.
Sec. 1.3 Coverage.
The coverage of Section 204 of the Act extends to any “covered employee” or “covered employing office” without regard to the number of employees or the employing office's effect on interstate commerce.
Sec. 1.4 Prohibitions on lie detector use.
(a) Section 204 of the CAA provides that, subject to the exemptions of the EPPA incorporated into the CAA under section 225(f) of the CAA, as set forth in Sec. 1.10 through 1.12 of this Part, employing offices are prohibited from:
(1) Requiring, requesting, suggesting or causing, directly or indirectly, any covered employee or prospective employee to take or submit to a lie detector test;
(2) Using, accepting, or inquiring about the results of a lie detector test of any covered employee or prospective employee; and
(3) Discharging, disciplining, discriminating against, denying employment or promotion, or threatening any covered employee or prospective employee to take such action for refusal or failure to take or submit to such test, or on the basis of the results of a test. The above prohibitions apply irrespective of whether the covered employee referred to in paragraphs (1), (2) or (3), above, works in that employing office.
(b) An employing office that reports a theft or other incident involving economic loss to police or other law enforcement authorities is not engaged in conduct subject to the prohibitions under paragraph (a) of this section if, during the normal course of a subsequent investigation, such authorities deem it necessary to administer a polygraph test to a covered employee(s) suspected of involvement in the reported incident. Employing offices that cooperate with police authorities during the course of their investigations into criminal misconduct are likewise not deemed engaged in prohibitive conduct provided that such cooperation is passive in nature. For example, it is not uncommon for police authorities to request employees suspected of theft or criminal activity to submit to a polygraph test during the employee's tour of duty since, as a general rule, suspect employees are often difficult to locate away from their place of employment. Allowing a test on the employing office's premises, releasing a covered employee during working hours to take a test at police headquarters, and other similar types of cooperation at the request of the police authorities would not be construed as “requiring, requesting, suggesting, or causing, directly or indirectly, any covered employee . . . to take or submit to a lie detector test.” Cooperation of this type must be distinguished from actual participation in the testing of employees suspected of wrongdoing, either through the administration of a test by the employing office at the request or direction of police authorities, or through reimbursement by the employing office of tests administered by police authorities to employees. In some communities, it may be a practice of police authorities to request testing by employing offices of employees before a police investigation is initiated on a reported incident. In other communities, police examiners are available to covered employing offices, on a cost reimbursement basis, to conduct tests on employees suspected by an employing office of wrongdoing. All such conduct on the part of employing offices is deemed within the prohibitions of section 204 of the CAA.
(c) The receipt by an employing office of information from a polygraph test administered by police authorities pursuant to an investigation is prohibited by section 3(2) of the EPPA. (See paragraph (a)(2) of this section.)
(d) The simulated use of a polygraph instrument so as to lead an individual to believe that an actual test is being or may be performed (e.g., to elicit confessions or admissions of guilt) constitutes conduct prohibited by paragraph (a) of this section. Such use includes the connection of a covered employee or prospective employee to the instrument without any intention of a diagnostic purpose, the placement of the instrument in a room used for interrogation unconnected to the covered employee or prospective employee, or the mere suggestion that the instrument may be used during the course of the interview.
(e) The Capitol Police may not require a covered employee not employed by the Capitol Police to take a lie detector test (on its own initiative or at the request of another employing office) except where the Capitol Police administers such lie detector test as part of an “ongoing investigation” by the Capitol Police. For the purpose of this subsection, the definition of “ongoing investigation” contained section 1.12(b) shall apply.
Sec. 1.5 Effect on other laws or agreements.
(a) Section 204 of the CAA does not preempt any otherwise applicable provision of federal law or any rule or regulation of the House or Senate or any negotiated collective bargaining agreement that prohibits lie detector tests or is more restrictive with respect to the use of lie detector tests.
(b) (1) This provision applies to all aspects of the use of lie detector tests, including procedural safeguards, the use of test results, the rights and remedies provided examinees, and the rights, remedies, and responsibilities of examiners and employing offices.
(2) For example, a collective bargaining agreement that provides greater protection to an examinee would apply in addition to the protection provided in section 204 of the CAA.
Sec. 1.6 Notice of protection.
Pursuant to section 301(h) of the CAA, the Office shall prepare, in a manner suitable for posting, a notice explaining the provisions of section 204 of the CAA. Copies of such notice may be obtained from the Office of Compliance.
Sec. 1.7 Authority of the Board.
Pursuant to sections 204 and 304 of the CAA, the Board is authorized to issue regulations to implement the rights and protections of the EPPA. Section 204(c) directs the Board to promulgate regulations implementing section 204 that are “the same as substantive regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor to implement the statutory provisions referred to in subsections (a) and (b) [of section 204 of the CAA] except insofar as the Board may determine, for good cause shown . . . that a modification of such regulations would be more effective for the implementation of the rights and protections under this section.” The regulations issued by the Board herein are on all matters for which section 204 of the CAA requires a regulation to be issued. Specifically, it is the Board's considered judgment, based on the information available to it at the time of promulgation of these regulations, that, with the exception of the regulations adopted and set forth herein, there are no other “substantive regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Labor to implement the statutory provisions referred to in subsections (a) and (b) [of section 204 of the CAA].”
In promulgating these regulations, the Board has made certain technical and nomenclature changes to the regulations as promulgated by the Secretary. Such changes are intended to make the provisions adopted accord more naturally to situations in the legislative branch. However, by making these changes, the Board does not intend a substantive difference between these regulations and those of the Secretary from which they are derived. Moreover such changes, in and of themselves, are not intended to constitute an interpretation of the regulation or of the statutory provisions of the CAA upon which they are based.
Sec. 1.8 Employment relationship.
Subject to the exemptions incorporated into the CAA by section 225(f), section 204 applies the prohibitions on the use of lie detectors by employing offices with respect to covered employees irrespective of whether a covered employee works in that employing office. Sections 101(3), (4) and 204 of the CAA also apply EPPA prohibitions against discrimination to applicants for employment and former employees of a covered employing office. For example, an employee may quit rather than take a lie detector test. The employing office cannot discriminate or threaten to discriminate in any manner against that person (such as by providing bad references in the future) because of that person's refusal to be tested. Similarly, an employing office cannot discriminate or threaten to discriminate in any manner against that person because that person files a complaint, institutes a proceeding, testifies in a proceeding, or exercises any right under section 204 of the CAA. (See section 207 of the CAA.)
SUBPART B--EXEMPTIONS
Sec. 1.10 Exclusion for employees of the Capitol Police. [Reserved]
Sec. 1.11 Exemption for national defense and security.
(a) The exemptions allowing for the administration of lie detector tests in the following paragraphs (b) through (e) of this section apply only to the Federal Government; they do not allow covered employing offices to administer such tests. For the purposes of this section, the term “Federal Government” means any agency or entity within the Federal Government authorized to administer polygraph examinations which is otherwise exempt from coverage under section 7(a) of the EPPA, 29 U.S.C. 2006(a).
(b) Section 7(b)(1) of the EPPA, incorporated into the CAA under section 225(f) of the CAA, provides that nothing in the EPPA shall be construed to prohibit the administration of any lie detector test by the Federal Government, in the performance of any counterintelligence function, to any expert, consultant or employee of any contractor under contract with the Department of Defense; or with the Department of Energy, in connection with the atomic energy defense activities of such Department.
(c) Section 7(b)(2)(A) of the EPPA, incorporated into the CAA under section 225(f) of the CAA, provides that nothing in the EPPA shall be construed to prohibit the administration of any lie detector test by the Federal Government, in the performance of any intelligence or counterintelligence function of the National Security Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, or the Central Intelligence Agency, to any individual employed by, assigned to, or detailed to any such agency; or any expert or consultant under contract to any such agency; or any employee of a contractor to such agency; or any individual applying for a position in any such agency; or any individual assigned to a space where sensitive cryptologic information is produced, processed, or stored for any such agency.
(d) Section 7(b)(2)(B) of the EPPA, incorporated into the CAA under section 225(f) of the CAA, provides that nothing in the EPPA shall be construed to prohibit the administration of any lie detector test by the Federal Government, in the performance of any intelligence or counterintelligence function, to any covered employee whose duties involve access to information that has been classified at the level of top secret or designated as being within a special access program under section 4.2(a) of Executive Order 12356 (or a successor Executive Order).
(c) Counterintelligence for purposes of the above paragraphs means information gathered and activities conducted to protect against espionage and other clandestine intelligence activities, sabotage, terrorist activities, or assassinations conducted for or on behalf of foreign governments, or foreign or domestic organizations or persons.
(d) Lie detector tests of persons described in the above paragraphs will be administered in accordance with applicable Department of Defense directives and regulations, or other regulations and directives governing the use of such tests by the United States Government, as applicable.
Sec. 1.12 Exemption for employing offices conducting investigations of economic loss or injury.
(a) Section 7(d) of the EPPA, incorporated into the CAA under section 225(f) of the CAA,
provides a limited exemption from the general prohibition on lie detector use for employers conducting ongoing investigations of economic loss or injury to the employer's business. An employing office may request an employee, subject to the conditions set forth in sections 8 and 10 of the EPPA and Secs. 1.20, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, 1.25, 1.26 and 1.35 of this part, to submit to a polygraph test, but no other type of lie detector test, only if--
(1) The test is administered in connection with an ongoing investigation involving economic loss or injury to the employing office's operations, such as theft, embezzlement, misappropriation or an act of unlawful industrial espionage or sabotage;
(2) The employee had access to the property that is the subject of the investigation;
(3) The employing office has a reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved in the incident or activity under investigation;
(4) The employing office provides the examinee with a statement, in a language understood by the examinee, prior to the test which fully explains with particularity the specific incident or activity being investigated and the basis for testing particular employees and which contains, at a minimum:
(i) An identification with particularity of the specific economic loss or injury to the operations of the employing office;
(ii) A description of the employee's access to the property that is the subject of the investigation;
(iii) A description in detail of the basis of the employing office's reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved in the incident or activity under investigation; and
(iv) Signature of a person (other than a polygraph examiner) authorized to legally bind the employing office; and
(5) The employing office retains a copy of the statement and proof of service described in paragraph (a)(4) of this section for at least 3 years.
(b) For the exemption to apply, the condition of an ongoing investigation must be met. As used in section 7(d) of the EPPA, the ongoing investigation must be of a specific incident or activity. Thus, for example, an employing office may not request that an employee or employees submit to a polygraph test in an effort to determine whether or not any thefts have occurred. Such random testing by an employing office is precluded by the EPPA. Further, because the exemption is limited to a specific incident or activity, an employing office is precluded from using the exemption in situations where the so-called “ongoing investigation” is continuous. For example, the fact that items are frequently missing would not be a sufficient basis, standing alone, for administering a polygraph test. Even if the employing office can establish that unusually high amounts of property are missing in a given month, this, in and of itself, would not be a sufficient basis to meet the specific incident requirement. On the other hand, polygraph testing in response to missing property would be permitted where additional evidence is obtained through subsequent investigation of specific items missing through intentional wrongdoing, and a “reasonable suspicion that the employee to be polygraphed was involved” in the incident under investigation. Administering a polygraph test in circumstances where the missing property is merely unspecified, statistical shortages, without identification of a specific incident or activity that produced the missing property and a reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved, would amount to little more than a fishing expedition and is prohibited by the EPPA as applied to covered employees and employing offices by the CAA.
(c) (1) (i) The terms economic loss or injury to the employing office's operations include both direct and indirect economic loss or injury.
(ii) Direct loss or injury includes losses or injuries resulting from theft, embezzlement, misappropriation, espionage or sabotage. These examples, cited in the EPPA, are intended to be illustrative and not exhaustive. Another specific incident which would constitute direct economic loss or injury is the misappropriation of confidential or trade secret information.
(iii) Indirect loss or injury includes the use of an employing office's operations to commit a crime, such as check-kiting or money laundering. In such cases, the ongoing investigation must be limited to criminal activity that has already occurred, and to use of the employing office's operations (and not simply the use of the premises) for such activity. For example, the use of an employing office's vehicles, warehouses, computers or equipment to smuggle or facilitate the importing of illegal substances constitutes an indirect loss or injury to the employing office's business operations. Conversely, the mere fact that an illegal act occurs on the employing office's premises (such as a drug transaction that takes place in the employing office's parking lot or rest room) does not constitute an indirect economic loss or injury to the employing office.
(iv) Indirect loss or injury also includes theft or injury to property of another for which the employing office exercises fiduciary, managerial or security responsibility, or where the office has custody of the property (but not property of other offices to which the employees have access by virtue of the employment relationship). For example, if a maintenance employee of the manager of an apartment building steals jewelry from a tenant's apartment, the theft results in an indirect economic loss or injury to the employer because of the manager's management responsibility with respect to the tenant's apartment. A messenger on a delivery of confidential business reports for a client firm who steals the reports causes an indirect economic loss or injury to the messenger service because the messenger service is custodian of the client firm's reports, and therefore is responsible for their security. Similarly, the theft of property protected by a security service employer is considered an economic loss or injury to that employer.
(v) A theft or injury to a client firm does not constitute an indirect loss or injury to an employing office unless that employing office has custody of, or management, or security responsibility for, the property of the client that was lost or stolen or injured. For example, a cleaning contractor has no responsibility for the money at a client bank. If money is stolen from the bank by one of the cleaning contractor's employees, the cleaning contractor does not suffer an indirect loss or injury.
(vi) Indirect loss or injury does not include loss or injury which is merely threatened or potential, e.g., a threatened or potential loss of an advantageous business relationship.
(2) Economic losses or injuries which are the result of unintentional or lawful conduct would not serve as a basis for the administration of a polygraph test. Thus, apparently unintentional losses or injuries stemming from truck, car, workplace, or other similar type accidents or routine inventory or cash register shortages would not meet the economic loss or injury requirement. Any economic loss incident to lawful union or employee activity also would not satisfy this requirement.
(3) It is the operations of the employing office which must suffer the economic loss or injury. Thus, a theft committed by one employee against another employee of the same employing office would not satisfy the requirement.
(d) While nothing in the EPPA as applied by the CAA prohibits the use of medical tests to determine the presence of controlled substances or alcohol in bodily fluids, the section 7(d) exemption of the EPPA does not permit the use of a polygraph test to learn whether an employee has used drugs or alcohol, even where such possible use may have contributed to an economic loss to the employing office (e.g., an accident involving an employing office's vehicle).
(e) Section 7(d)(2) of the EPPA provides that, as a condition for the use of the exemption, the employee must have had access to the property that is the subject of the investigation.
(1) The word access, as used in section 7(d)(2), refers to the opportunity which an employee had to cause, or to aid or abet in causing, the specific economic loss or injury under investigation. The term “access,” thus, includes more than direct or physical contact during the course of employment. For example, as a general matter, all employees working in or with authority to enter a property storage area have “access” to unsecured property in the area. All employees with the combination to a safe have “access” to the property in a locked safe. Employees also have “access” who have the ability to divert possession or otherwise affect the disposition of the property that is the subject of investigation. For example, a bookkeeper in a jewelry store with access to inventory records may aid or abet a clerk who steals an expensive watch by removing the watch from the employing office's inventory records. In such a situation, it is clear that the bookkeeper effectively has “access” to the property that is the subject of the investigation.
(2) As used in section 7(d)(2), property refers to specifically identifiable property, but also includes such things of value as security codes and computer data, and proprietary, financial or technical information, such as trade secrets, which by its availability to competitors or others would cause economic harm to the employing office.
(f) (1) As used in section 7(d)(3), the term “reasonable suspicion” refers to an observable, articulable basis in fact which indicates that a particular employee was involved in, or responsible for, an economic loss. Access in the sense of possible or potential opportunity, standing alone, does not constitute a basis for “reasonable suspicion.” Information from a coworker, or an employee's behavior, demeanor, or conduct may be factors in the basis for reasonable suspicion. Likewise, inconsistencies between facts, claims, or statements that surface during an investigation can serve as a sufficient basis for reasonable suspicion. While access or opportunity, standing alone, does not constitute a basis for “reasonable suspicion,” the totality of circumstances surrounding the access or opportunity (such as its unauthorized or unusual nature or the fact that access was limited to a single individual) may constitute a factor in determining whether there is a reasonable suspicion.
(2) For example, in an investigation of a theft of an expensive piece of jewelry, an employee authorized to open the establishment's safe no earlier than 9 a.m. , in order to place the jewelry in a window display case, is observed opening the safe at 7:30 a.m. In such a situation, the opening of the safe by the employee one and one-half hours prior to the specified time may serve as the basis for reasonable suspicion. On the other hand, in the example given, if the employee is asked to bring the piece of jewelry to his or her office at 7:30 a.m., and the employee then opened the safe and reported the jewelry missing, such access, standing alone, would not constitute a basis for reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved in the incident unless access to the safe was limited solely to the employee. If no one other than the employee possessed the combination to the safe, and all other possible explanations for the loss are ruled out, such as a break-in, a basis for reasonable suspicion may be formulated based on sole access by one employee.
(3) The employing office has the burden of establishing that the specific individual or individuals to be tested are “reasonably suspected” of involvement in the specific economic loss or injury for the requirement in section 7(d)(3) of the EPPA to be met.
(g) (1) As discussed in paragraph (a)(4) of this section, section 7(d)(4) of the EPPA sets forth what information, at a minimum, must be provided to an employee if the employing office wishes to claim the exemption.
(2) The statement required under paragraph (a)(4) of this section must be received by the employee at least 48 hours, excluding weekend days and holidays, prior to the time of the examination. The statement must set forth the time and date of receipt by the employee and be verified by the employee's signature. This will provide the employee with adequate pre-test notice of the specific incident or activity being investigated and afford the employee sufficient time prior to the test to obtain and consult with legal counsel or an employee representative.
(3) The statement to be provided to the employee must set forth with particularity the specific incident or activity being investigated and the basis for testing particular employees. Section 7(d)(4)(A) of the EPPA requires specificity beyond the mere assertion of general statements regarding economic loss, employee access, and reasonable suspicion. For example, an employing office's assertion that an expensive watch was stolen, and that the employee had access to the watch and is therefore a suspect, would not meet the “with particularity” criterion. If the basis for an employing office's requesting an employee (or employees) to take a polygraph test is not articulated with particularity, and reduced to writing, then the standard is not met. The identity of a co- worker or other individual providing information used to establish reasonable suspicion need not be revealed in the statement.
(4) It is further required that the statement provided to the examinee be signed by the employing office, or an employee or other representative of the employing office with authority to legally bind the employing office. The person signing the statement must not be a polygraph examiner unless the examiner is acting solely in the capacity of an employing office with respect to his or her own employees and does not conduct the examination. The standard would not be met, and the exemption would not apply if the person signing the statement is not authorized to legally bind the employing office.
(h) Polygraph tests administered pursuant to this exemption are subject to the limitations set forth in sections 8 and 10 of the EPPA, as discussed in Secs. 1.20, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, 1.25, 1.26, and 1.35 of this part. As provided in these sections, the exemption will apply only if certain requirements are met. Failure to satisfy any of the specified requirements nullifies the statutory authority for polygraph test administration and may subject the employing office to remedial actions, as provided for in section 6(c) of the EPPA.
Sec. 1.13 Exemption of employing offices authorized to manufacture, distribute, or dispense controlled substances.
(a) Section 7(f) of the EPPA, incorporated into the CAA by section 225(f) of the CAA, provides an exemption from the EPPA's general prohibition regarding the use of polygraph tests for employers authorized to manufacture, distribute, or dispense a controlled substance listed in schedule I, II, III, or IV of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812). This exemption permits the administration of polygraph tests, subject to the conditions set forth in sections 8 and 10 of the EPPA and Sec. 1.21, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, 1.25, 1.26, and 1.35 of this part, to:
(1) A prospective employee who would have direct access to the manufacture, storage, distribution, or sale of any such controlled substance; or
(2) a current employee if the following conditions are met:
(i) The test is administered in connection with an ongoing investigation of criminal or other misconduct involving, or potentially involving, loss or injury to the manufacture, distribution, or dispensing of any such controlled substance by such employing office; and
(ii) The employee had access to the person or property that is the subject of the investigation.
(b) (1) The terms manufacture, distribute, distribution, dispense, storage, and sale, for the purposes of this exemption, are construed within the meaning of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812 et seq.), as administered by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), U.S. Department of Justice.
(2) The exemption in section 7(f) of the EPPA applies only to employing offices that are authorized by DEA to manufacture, distribute, or dispense a controlled substance. Section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812) requires every person who manufactures, distributes, or dispenses any controlled substance to register with the Attorney General (i.e., with DEA). Common or contract carriers and warehouses whose possession of the controlled substance is in the usual course of their business or employment are not required to register. Truck drivers and warehouse employees of the persons or entities registered with DEA and authorized to manufacture, distribute, or dispense controlled substances, are within the scope of the exemption where they have direct access or access to the controlled substances, as discussed below.
(c) In order for a polygraph examination to be performed, section 7(f) of the Act requires that a prospective employee have “direct access” to the controlled substance(s) manufactured, dispensed, or distributed by the employing office. Where a current employee is to be tested as a part of an ongoing investigation, section 7(f) requires that the employee have “access” to the person or property that is the subject of the investigation.
(1) A prospective employee would have “direct access” if the position being applied for has responsibilities which include contact with or which affect the disposition of a controlled substance, including participation in the process of obtaining, dispensing, or otherwise distributing a controlled substance. This includes contact or direct involvement in the manufacture, storage, testing, distribution, sale or dispensing of a controlled substance and may include, for example, packaging, repackaging, ordering, licensing, shipping, receiving, taking inventory, providing security, prescribing, and handling of a controlled substance. A prospective employee would have “direct access” if the described job duties would give such person access to the products in question, whether such employee would be in physical proximity to controlled substances or engaged in activity which would permit the employee to divert such substances to his or her possession.
(2) A current employee would have “access” within the meaning of section 7(f) if the employee had access to the specific person or property which is the subject of the on- going investigation, as discussed in Sec. 1.12(e) of this part. Thus, to test a current employee, the employee need not have had “direct” access to the controlled substance, but may have had only infrequent, random, or opportunistic access. Such access would be sufficient to test the employee if the employee could have caused, or could have aided or abetted in causing, the loss of the specific property which is the subject of the investigation. For example, a maintenance worker in a drug warehouse, whose job duties include the cleaning of areas where the controlled substances which are the subject of the investigation were present, but whose job duties do not include the handling of controlled substances, would be deemed to have “access,” but normally not “direct access,” to the controlled substances. On the other hand, a drug warehouse truck loader, whose job duties include the handling of outgoing shipment orders which contain controlled substances, would have “direct access” to such controlled substances. A pharmacy department in a supermarket is another common situation which is useful in illustrating the distinction between “direct access” and “access.” Store personnel receiving pharmaceutical orders, i.e., the pharmacist, pharmacy intern, and other such employees working in the pharmacy department, would ordinarily have “direct access” to controlled substances. Other store personnel whose job duties and responsibilities do not include the handling of controlled substances but who had occasion to enter the pharmacy department where the controlled substances which are the subject of the investigation were stored, such as maintenance personnel or pharmacy cashiers, would have “access.” Certain other store personnel whose job duties do not permit or require entrance into the pharmacy department for any reason, such as produce or meat clerks, checkout cashiers, or baggers, would not ordinarily have “access.” However, any current employee, regardless of described job duties, may be polygraphed if the employing office's investigation of criminal or other misconduct discloses that such employee in fact took action to obtain “access” to the person or property that is the subject of the investigation-- e.g., by actually entering the drug storage area in violation of company rules. In the case of “direct access,” the prospective employee's access to controlled substances would be as a part of the manufacturing, dispensing or distribution process, while a current employee's “access” to the controlled substances which are the subject of the investigation need only be opportunistic.
(d) The term prospective employee, for the purposes of this section, includes a current employee who presently holds a position which does not entail direct access to controlled substances, and therefore is outside the scope of the exemption's provisions for preemployment polygraph testing, provided the employee has applied for and is being considered for transfer or promotion to another position which entails such direct access. For example, an office secretary may apply for promotion to a position in the vault or cage areas of a drug warehouse, where controlled substances are kept. In such a situation, the current employee would be deemed a “prospective employee” for the purposes of this exemption, and thus could be subject to preemployment polygraph screening, prior to such a change in position. However, any adverse action which is based in part on a polygraph test against a current employee who is considered a “prospective employee” for purposes of this section may be taken only with respect to the prospective position and may not affect the employee's employment in the current position.
(e) Section 7(f) of the EPPA, as applied by the CAA, makes no specific reference to a requirement that employing offices provide current employees with a written statement prior to polygraph testing. Thus, employing offices to whom this exemption is available are not required to furnish a written statement such as that specified in section 7(d) of the EPPA and Sec. 1.12(a)(4) of this part.
(f) For the section 7(f) exemption to apply, the polygraph testing of current employees must be administered in connection with an ongoing investigation of criminal or other misconduct involving, or potentially involving, loss or injury to the manufacture, distribution, or dispensing of any such controlled substance by such employing office.
(1) Current employees may only be administered polygraph tests in connection with an ongoing investigation of criminal or other misconduct, relating to a specific incident or activity, or potential incident or activity. Thus, an employing office is precluded from using the exemption in connection with continuing investigations or on a random basis to determine if thefts are occurring. However, unlike the exemption in section 7(d) of the EPPA for employing offices conducting ongoing investigations of economic loss or injury, the section 7(f) exemption includes ongoing investigations of misconduct involving potential drug losses. Nor does the latter exemption include the requirement for “reasonable suspicion” contained in the section 7(d) exemption. Thus, a drug
store operator is permitted to polygraph all current employees who have access to a controlled substance stolen from the inventory, or where there is evidence that such a theft is planned. Polygraph testing based on an inventory shortage of the drug during a particular accounting period would not be permitted unless there is extrinsic evidence of misconduct.
(2) In addition, the test must be administered in connection with loss or injury, or potential loss or injury, to the manufacture, distribution, or dispensing of a controlled substance.
(i) Retail drugstores and wholesale drug warehouses typically carry inventory of so-called health and beauty aids, cosmetics, over-the-counter drugs, and a variety of other similar products, in addition to their product lines of controlled drugs. The noncontrolled products usually constitute the majority of such firms' sales volumes. An economic loss or injury related to such noncontrolled substances would not constitute a basis of applicability of the section 7(f) exemption. For example, an investigation into the theft of a gross of cosmetic products could not be a basis for polygraph testing under section 7(f), but the theft of a container of Valium could be.
(ii) Polygraph testing, with respect to an ongoing investigation concerning products other than controlled substances might be initiated under section 7(d) of the EPPA and Sec. 1.12 of this part. However, the exemption in section 7(f) of the EPPA and this section is limited solely to losses or injury associated with controlled substances.
(g) Polygraph tests administered pursuant to this exemption are subject to the limitations set forth in sections 8 and 10 of the EPPA, as discussed in Secs. 1.21, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, 1.25, 1.26, and 1.35 of this part. As provided in these sections, the exemption will apply only if certain requirements are met. Failure to satisfy any of the specified requirements nullifies the statutory authority for polygraph test administration and may subject the employing office to the remedies authorized in section 204 of the CAA. The administration of such tests is also subject to collective bargaining agreements, which may either prohibit lie detector tests, or contain more restrictive provisions with respect to polygraph testing.
SUBPART C--RESTRICTIONS ON POLYGRAPH USAGE UNDER EXEMPTIONS
Sec. 1.20 Adverse employment action under ongoing investigation exemption.
(a) Section 8(a)(1) of the EPPA provides that the limited exemption in section 7(d) of the EPPA and Sec. 1.12 of this part for ongoing investigations shall not apply if an employing office discharges, disciplines, denies employment or promotion or otherwise discriminates in any manner against a current employee based upon the analysis of a polygraph test chart or the refusal to take a polygraph test, without additional supporting evidence.
(b) “Additional supporting evidence,” for purposes of section 8(a) of the EPPA, includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(1) (i) Evidence indicating that the employee had access to the missing or damaged property that is the subject of an ongoing investigation; and
(ii) Evidence leading to the employing office's reasonable suspicion that the employee was involved in the incident or activity under investigation; or
(2) Admissions or statements made by an employee before, during or following a polygraph examination.
(c) Analysis of a polygraph test chart or refusal to take a polygraph test may not serve as a basis for adverse employment action, even with additional supporting evidence, unless the employing office observes all the requirements of sections 7(d) and 8(b) of the EPPA, as applied by the CAA and described in Secs. 1.12, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24 and 1.25 of this part.
Sec. 1.21 Adverse employment action under controlled substance exemption.
(a) Section 8(a)(2) of the EPPA provides that the controlled substance exemption in section 7(f) of the EPPA and section 1.13 of this part shall not apply if an employing office discharges, disciplines, denies employment or promotion, or otherwise discriminates in any manner against a current employee or prospective employee based solely on the analysis of a polygraph test chart or the refusal to take a polygraph test.
(b) Analysis of a polygraph test chart or refusal to take a polygraph test may serve as one basis for adverse employment actions of the type described in paragraph (a) of this section, provided that the adverse action was also based on another bona fide reason, with supporting evidence therefor. For example, traditional factors such as prior employment experience, education, job performance, etc. may be used as a basis for employment decisions. Employment decisions based on admissions or statements made by an employee or prospective employee before, during or following a polygraph examination may, likewise, serve as a basis for such decisions.
(c) Analysis of a polygraph test chart or the refusal to take a polygraph test may not serve as a basis for adverse employment action, even with another legitimate basis for such action, unless the employing office observes all the requirements of section 7(f) of the EPPA, as appropriate, and section 8(b) of the EPPA, as described in sections 1.13, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24 and 1.25 of this part.
Sec. 1.22 Rights of examinee--general.
(a) Pursuant to section 8(b) of the EPPA, the limited exemption in section 7(d) of the EPPA for ongoing investigations (described in Secs. 1.12 and 1.13 of this part) shall not apply unless all of the requirements set forth in this section and Secs. 1.23 through 1.25 of this part are met.
(b) During all phases of the polygraph testing the person being examined has the following rights:
(1) The examinee may terminate the test at any time.
(2) The examinee may not be asked any questions in a degrading or unnecessarily intrusive manner.
(3) The examinee may not be asked any questions dealing with:
(i) Religious beliefs or affiliations;
(ii) Beliefs or opinions regarding racial matters;
(iii) Political beliefs or affiliations;
(iv) Sexual preferences or behavior; or
(v) Beliefs, affiliations, opinions, or lawful activities concerning unions or labor organizations.
(4) The examinee may not be subjected to a test when there is sufficient written evidence by a physician that the examinee is suffering from any medical or psychological condition or undergoing any treatment that might cause abnormal responses during the actual testing phase. Sufficient written evidence shall constitute, at a minimum, a statement by a physician specifically describing the examinee's medical or psychological condition or treatment and the basis for the physician's opinion that the condition or treatment might result in such abnormal responses.
(5) An employee or prospective employee who exercises the right to terminate the test, or who for medical reasons with sufficient supporting evidence is not administered the test, shall be subject to adverse employment action only on the same basis as one who refuses to take a polygraph test, as described in Secs. 1.20 and 1.21 of this part.
(c) Any polygraph examination shall consist of one or more pretest phases, actual testing phases, and post-test phases, which must be conducted in accordance with the rights of examinees described in Secs. 1.23 through 1.25 of this part.
Sec. 1.23 Rights of examinee--pretest phase.
(a) The pretest phase consists of the questioning and other preparation of the prospective examinee before the actual use of the polygraph instrument. During the initial pretest phase, the examinee must be:
(1) Provided with written notice, in a language understood by the examinee, as to when and where the examination will take place and that the examinee has the right to consult with counsel or an employee representative before each phase of the test. Such notice shall be received by the examinee at least forty-eight hours, excluding weekend days and holidays, before the time of the examination, except that a prospective employee may, at the employee's option, give written consent to administration of a test anytime within 48 hours but no earlier than 24 hours after receipt of the written notice. The written notice or proof of service must set forth the time and date of receipt by the employee or prospective employee and be verified by his or her signature. The purpose of this requirement is to provide a sufficient opportunity prior to the examination for the examinee to consult with counsel or an employee representative. Provision shall also be made for a convenient place on the premises where the examination will take place at which the examinee may consult privately with an attorney or an employee representative before each phase of the test. The attorney or representative may be excluded from the room where the examination is administered during the actual testing phase.
(2) Informed orally and in writing of the nature and characteristics of the polygraph instrument and examination, including an explanation of the physical operation of the polygraph instrument and the procedure used during the examination.
(3) Provided with a written notice prior to the testing phase, in a language understood by the examinee, which shall be read to and signed by the examinee. Use of Appendix A to this part, if properly completed, will constitute compliance with the contents of the notice requirement of this paragraph. If a format other than in Appendix A is used, it must contain at least the following information:
(i) Whether or not the polygraph examination area contains a two-way mirror, a camera, or other device through which the examinee may be observed;
(ii) Whether or not any other device, such as those used in conversation or recording will be used during the examination;
(iii) That both the examinee and the employing office have the right, with the other's knowledge, to make a recording of the entire examination;
(iv) That the examinee has the right to terminate the test at any time;
(v) That the examinee has the right, and will be given the opportunity, to review all questions to be asked during the test;
(vi) That the examinee may not be asked questions in a manner which degrades, or needlessly intrudes;
(vii) That the examinee may not be asked any questions concerning religious beliefs or opinions; beliefs regarding racial matters; political beliefs or affiliations; matters relating to sexual behavior; beliefs, affiliations, opinions, or lawful activities regarding unions or labor organizations;
(viii) That the test may not be conducted if there is sufficient written evidence by a physician that the examinee is suffering from a medical or psychological condition or undergoing treatment that might cause abnormal responses during the examination;
(ix) That the test is not and cannot be required as a condition of employment;
(x) That the employing office may not discharge, dismiss, discipline, deny employment or promotion, or otherwise discriminate against the examinee based on the analysis of a polygraph test, or based on the examinee's refusal to take such a test, without additional evidence which would support such action;
(xi) (A) In connection with an ongoing investigation, that the additional evidence required for the employing office to take adverse action against the examinee, including termination, may be evidence that the examinee had access to the property that is the subject of the investigation, together with evidence supporting the employing office's reasonable suspicion that the examinee was involved in the incident or activity under investigation;
(B) That any statement made by the examinee before or during the test may serve as additional supporting evidence for an adverse employment action, as described in paragraph (a)(3)(x) of this section, and that any admission of criminal conduct by the examinee may be transmitted to an appropriate government law enforcement agency;
(xii) That information acquired from a polygraph test may be disclosed by the examiner or by the employing office only:
(A) To the examinee or any other person specifically designated in writing by the examinee to receive such information;
(B) To the employing office that requested the test;
(C) To a court, governmental agency, arbitrator, or mediator pursuant to a court order;
(D) By the employing office, to an appropriate governmental agency without a court order where, and only insofar as, the information disclosed is an admission of criminal conduct;
(xiii) That if any of the examinee's rights or protections under the law are violated, the examinee has the right to take action against the employing office under sections 401-404 of the CAA. Employing offices that violate this law are liable to the affected examinee, who may recover such legal or equitable relief as may be appropriate, including, but not limited to, employment, reinstatement, and promotion, payment of lost wages and benefits, and reasonable costs, including attorney's fees;
(xiv) That the examinee has the right to obtain and consult with legal counsel or other representative before each phase of the test, although the legal counsel or representative may be excluded from the room where the test is administered during the actual testing phase.
(xv) That the employee's rights under the CAA may not be waived, either voluntarily or involuntarily, by contract or otherwise, except as part of a written settlement to a pending action or complaint under the CAA, agreed to and signed by the parties.
(b) During the initial or any subsequent pretest phases, the examinee must be given the opportunity, prior to the actual testing phase, to review all questions in writing that the examiner will ask during each testing phase. Such questions may be presented at any point in time prior to the testing phase.
Sec. 1.24 Rights of examinee--actual testing phase.
(a) The actual testing phase refers to that time during which the examiner administers the examination by using a polygraph instrument with respect to the examinee and then analyzes the charts derived from the test. Throughout the actual testing phase, the examiner shall not ask any question that was not presented in writing for review prior to the testing phase. An examiner may, however, recess the testing phase and return to the pre-test phase to review additional relevant questions with the examinee. In the case of an ongoing investigation, the examiner shall ensure that all relevant questions (as distinguished from technical baseline questions) pertain to the investigation.
(b) No testing period subject to the provisions of the Act shall be less than ninety minutes in length. Such “test period” begins at the time that the examiner begins informing the examinee of the nature and characteristics of the examination and the instruments involved, as prescribed in section 8(b)(2)(B) of the EPPA and Sec. 1.23(a)(2) of this part, and ends when the examiner completes the review of the test results with the examinee as provided in Sec. 1.25 of this part. The ninety-minute minimum duration shall not apply if the examinee voluntarily acts to terminate the test before the completion thereof, in which event the examiner may not render an opinion regarding the employee's truthfulness.
Sec. 1.25 Rights of examinee--post-test phase.
(a) The post-test phase refers to any questioning or other communication with the examinee following the use of the polygraph instrument, including review of the results of the test with the examinee. Before any adverse employment action, the employing office must:
(1) Further interview the examinee on the basis of the test results; and
(2) Give to the examinee a written copy of any opinions or conclusions rendered in response to the test, as well as the questions asked during the test, with the corresponding charted responses. The term “corresponding charted responses” refers to copies of the entire examination charts recording the employee's physiological responses, and not just the examiner's written report which describes the examinee's responses to the questions as “charted” by the instrument.
Sec. 1.26 Qualifications of and requirements for examiners.
(a) Section 8 (b) and (c) of the EPPA provides that the limited exemption in section 7(d) of the
EPPA for ongoing investigations shall not apply unless the person conducting the polygraph examination meets specified qualifications and requirements.
(b) An examiner must meet the following qualifications:
(1) Have a valid current license, if required by the State in which the test is to be conducted; and
(2) Carry a minimum bond of $50,000 provided by a surety incorporated under the laws of the United States or of any State, which may under those laws guarantee the fidelity of persons holding positions of trust, or carry an equivalent amount of professional liability coverage.
(c) An examiner must also, with respect to examinees identified by the employing office pursuant to Sec. 1.30(c) of this part:
(1) Observe all rights of examinees, as set out in Secs. 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, and 1.25 of this part;
(2) Administer no more than five polygraph examinations in any one calendar day on which a test or tests subject to the provisions of EPPA are administered, not counting those instances where an examinee voluntarily terminates an examination prior to the actual testing phase;
(3) Administer no polygraph examination subject to the provisions of the EPPA which is less than ninety minutes in duration, as described in Sec. 1.24(b) of this part; and
(4) Render any opinion or conclusion regarding truthfulness or deception in writing. Such opinion or conclusion must be based solely on the polygraph test results. The written report shall not contain any information other than admissions, information, case facts, and interpretation of the charts relevant to the stated purpose of the polygraph test and shall not include any recommendation concerning the employment of the examinee.
(5) Maintain all opinions, reports, charts, written questions, lists, and other records relating to the test, including, statements signed by examinees advising them of rights under the CAA (as described in section 1.23(a)(3) of this part) and any electronic recordings of examinations, for at least three years from the date of the administration of the test. (See section 1.30 of this part for recordkeeping requirements.)
SUBPART D--RECORDKEEPING AND DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS
Sec. 1.30 Records to be preserved for 3 years.
(a) The following records shall be kept for a minimum period of three years from the date the polygraph examination is conducted (or from the date the examination is requested if no examination is conducted):
(1) Each employing office that requests an employee to submit to a polygraph examination in connection with an ongoing investigation involving economic loss or injury shall retain a copy of the statement that sets forth the specific incident or activity under investigation and the basis for testing that particular covered employee, as required by section 7(d)(4) of the EPPA and described in 1.12(a)(4) of this part.
(2) Each examiner retained to administer examinations pursuant to any of the exemptions under section 7(d), (e) or (f) of the EPPA (described in sections 1.12 and 1.13 of this part) shall maintain all opinions, reports, charts, written questions, lists, and other records relating to polygraph tests of such persons.
Sec. 1.35 Disclosure of test information.
This section prohibits the unauthorized disclosure of any information obtained during a polygraph test by any person, other than the examinee, directly or indirectly, except as follows:
(a) A polygraph examiner or an employing office (other than an employing office exempt under section 7 (a), or (b) of the EPPA (described in Secs. 1.10 and 1.11 of this part)) may disclose information acquired from a polygraph test only to:
(1) The examinee or an individual specifically designated in writing by the examinee to receive such information;
(2) The employing office that requested the polygraph test pursuant to the provisions of the EPPA (including management personnel of the employing office where the disclosure is relevant to the carrying out of their job responsibilities);
(3) Any court, governmental agency, arbitrator, or mediator pursuant to an order from a court of competent jurisdiction requiring the production of such information;
(b) An employing office may disclose information from the polygraph test at any time to an appropriate governmental agency without the need of a court order where, and only insofar as, the information disclosed is an admission of criminal conduct.
(c) A polygraph examiner may disclose test charts, without identifying information (but not other examination materials and records), to another examiner(s) for examination and analysis, provided that such disclosure is for the sole purpose of consultation and review of the initial examiner's opinion concerning the indications of truthfulness or deception. Such action would not constitute disclosure under this part provided that the other examiner has no direct or indirect interest in the matter.
Appendix A to Part 801--Notice to Examinee
Section 204 of the Congressional Accountability Act, which applies the rights and protections of section 8(b) of the Employee Polygraph Protection Act to covered employees and employing offices, and the regulations of the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance (Sections 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, and 1.25), require that you be given the following information before taking a polygraph examination:
1. (a) The polygraph examination area [does] [does not] contain a two-way mirror, a camera, or other device through which you may be observed.
(b) Another device, such as those used in conversation or recording, [will] [will not] be used during the examination.
(c) Both you and the employing office have the right, with the other's knowledge, to record electronically the entire examination.
2. (a) You have the right to terminate the test at any time.
(b) You have the right, and will be given the opportunity, to review all questions to be asked during the test.
(c) You may not be asked questions in a manner which degrades, or needlessly intrudes.
(d) You may not be asked any questions concerning: Religious beliefs or opinions; beliefs regarding racial matters; political beliefs or affiliations; matters relating to sexual preference or behavior; beliefs, affiliations, opinions, or lawful activities regarding unions or labor organizations.
(e) The test may not be conducted if there is sufficient written evidence by a physician that you are suffering from a medical or psychological condition or undergoing treatment that might cause abnormal responses during the examination.
(f) You have the right to consult with legal counsel or other representative before each phase of the test, although the legal counsel or other representative may be excluded from the room where the test is administered during the actual testing phase.
3. (a) The test is not and cannot be required as a condition of employment.
(b) The employing office may not discharge, dismiss, discipline, deny employment or promotion, or otherwise discriminate against you based on the analysis of a polygraph test, or based on your refusal to take such a test without additional evidence which would support such action.
(c) (1) In connection with an ongoing investigation, the additional evidence required for an employing office to take adverse action against you, including termination, may be (A) evidence that you had access to the property that is the subject of the investigation, together with (B) the evidence supporting the employing office's reasonable suspicion that you were involved in the incident or activity under investigation.
(2) Any statement made by you before or during the test may serve as additional supporting evidence for an adverse employment action, as described in 3(b) above, and any admission of criminal conduct by you may be transmitted to an appropriate government law enforcement agency.
4. (a) Information acquired from a polygraph test may be disclosed by the examiner or by the employing office only:
(1) To you or any other person specifically designated in writing by you to receive such information;
(2) To the employing office that requested the test;
(3) To a court, governmental agency, arbitrator, or mediator that obtains a court order.
(b) Information acquired from a polygraph test may be disclosed by the employing office to an appropriate governmental agency without a court order where, and only insofar as, the information disclosed is an admission of criminal conduct.
5. If any of your rights or protections under the law are violated, you have the right to take action against the employing office by filing a request for counseling with the Office of Compliance under section 402 of the Congressional Accountability Act. Employing offices that violate this law are liable to the affected examinee, who may recover such legal or equitable relief as may be appropriate, including, but not limited to, employment, reinstatement, and promotion, payment of lost wages and benefits, and reasonable costs, including attorney's fees.
6. Your rights under the CAA may not be waived, either voluntarily or involuntarily, by contract or otherwise, except as part of a written settlement to a pending action or complaint under the CAA, and agreed to and signed by the parties.
I acknowledge that I have received a copy of the above notice, and that it has been read to me.
__________
(Date)
__________
(Signature)
[END]
NOTICE OF ISSUANCE OF FINAL REGULATION
On January 22, 1996, the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance adopted and submitted for publication in the Congressional Record final regulations implementing Sections 204(a) and (b) of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (`CAA”), which relate to the Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988. On April 15, 1996 , pursuant to section 304(c) of the CAA, the House and the Senate agreed to resolutions approving the final regulations. Specifically, the Senate agreed to S. Res. 242, to provide for the approval of final regulations that are applicable to the Senate and the employees of the Senate; the House agreed to H. Res. 400, to provide for the approval of final regulations that are applicable to the House and the employees of the House; and the House and the Senate agreed to S. Con. Res. 51, to provide for approval of final regulations that are applicable to employing offices and employees other than those offices and employees of the House and the Senate. Accordingly, pursuant to section 304(d) of the CAA, the Board submits these regulations to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate for issuance by publication in the Congressional Record.
Pursuant to paragraph (3) of section 304(d) of the CAA, the Board finds good cause for the regulations to become effective on April 16, 1996 , rather than 60 days after issuance. Were the regulations not effective immediately upon the expiration of the interim regulations on April 15, 1996, covered employees, employing offices and the Office of Compliance would be forced to operate under the same kind of regulatory uncertainty that the Board sought to avoid by adopting interim regulations effective as of January 23, 1996, the effective date of the relevant provisions of the CAA.
Signed at Washington , D.C. on this 19th day of April, 1996.
Glen D. Nager,
Chair of the Board, Office of Compliance.
Substantive Regulations Adopted by the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance and Approved by Congress Extending Rights and Protections Under Employee Polygraph Protection Act of 1988: Exclusion of Capitol Police
Final Regulation
None of the limitations on the use of lie detector tests by employing offices set forth in Section 204 of the CAA apply to the Capitol Police. This exclusion from the limitations of Section 204 of the CAA applies only with respect to Capitol Police employees. Except as otherwise provided by law or these regulations, this exclusion does not extend to contractors or nongovernmental agents of the Capitol Police; nor does it extend to the Capitol Police with respect to employees of a private employer or an otherwise covered employing office with which the Capitol Police has a contractual or other business relationship.
SCOPE OF REGULATIONS
These regulations are issued by the Board of Directors, Office of Compliance, pursuant to sections 204(a)(3) and 304 of the CAA, which authorize the Board to issue regulations governing the use of lie detector tests by the Capitol Police. The regulations issued by the Board herein are on all matters for which section 204(a)(3) of the CAA requires a regulation to be issued.
[END]
NOTICE OF ISSUANCE OF FINAL REGULATION
On January 22, 1996, the Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance adopted and submitted for publication in the Congressional Record a final regulation authorizing the Capitol Police to use lie detector tests under Section 204(a)(3) and (c) of the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 (“CAA”). On April 15, 1996 , pursuant to section 304(c) of the CAA, the House and the Senate agreed to resolutions approving the final regulations. Specifically, the Senate agreed to S. Res. 242, to provide for the approval of final regulations that are applicable to the Senate and the employees of the Senate; the House agreed to H. Res. 400, to provide for the approval of final regulations that are applicable to the House and the employees of the House; and the House and the Senate agreed to S. Con. Res. 51, to provide for approval of final regulations that are applicable to employing offices and employees other than those offices and employees of the House and the Senate. Accordingly, pursuant section 304(d) of the CAA, the Board submits these regulations to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate for issuance by publication in the Congressional Record.
Pursuant to paragraph (3) of section 304(d) of the CAA, the Board finds good cause for the regulations of become effective on April 16, 1996, rather than 60 days after issuance. Were the regulations not effective immediately upon the expiration of the interim regulations on April 15, 1996, covered employees, employing offices and the Office of Compliance would be forced to operate under the same kind of regulatory uncertainty that the Board sought to avoid by adopting interim regulations effective as of the January 23, 1996, which has the effective date of the relevant provisions of the CAA.
Signed at Washington , D.C. on this 19th day of April, 1996.
Glen D. Nager,
Chair of the Board, Office of Compliance.
