NASA Procedures and Guidelines
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NPR 3451.1B Eff. Date: June 04, 2009 Cancellation Date:	NASA Awards and Recognition Program
| TOC | Preface | Chapter1 | Chapter2 | Chapter3 | Chapter4 | Chapter5 | Chapter6 | AppendixA | AppendixB | ALL |

Chapter 1. Responsibilities

1.1 Administrator

1.1.1 The Administrator retains the authority to:

1.1.1.1 Appoint the Chair of the NASA Incentive Awards Board (IAB).

1.1.1.2 Approve Senior Executive Service (SES), Senior Scientific and Technical (ST), and Senior Level (SL) employee performance bonuses.

1.1.1.3 Hold senior management officials accountable for ensuring that all covered employees receive timely and complete performance plans and appraisals in accordance with NPR 3430.1.

1.1.1.4 Submit the following to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for approval by the Director of OPM or by the President:

1.1.1.4.1 Individual employee award recommendations over $10,000.

1.1.1.4.2 Recommendations for Presidential Awards.

1.1.1.4.3 Individual employee award recommendations over $25,000 for approval by the President.

1.1.1.5 Submit NASA nominations for external awards when the Agency is asked to provide Agency-approved nominations or when there is an Agency nomination allocation.

1.2 Deputy Administrator

1.2.1 The Deputy Administrator shall:

1.2.1.1 Provide leadership to the NASA awards program to gain maximum benefit for the Government through high levels of performance and productivity from individuals and groups of employees.

1.2.1.2 Approve performance awards that exceed ten percent but not more than twenty percent of a General Schedule (GS) and Federal Wage System (FWS) employee's annual rate of basic pay limited to $10,000.

1.3 Officials-in-Charge of Headquarters Offices
(OICs of Headquarters Offices are listed in NPD 1000.3, The NASA Organization.)

1.3.1 The OICs shall:

1.3.1.1 Establish and communicate the annual performance goals for/to their organization prior to the beginning of the appraisal period.

1.3.1.2 Prior to the end of the appraisal period, communicate their organization's performance in achieving the annual performance goals and provide guidance to subordinate managers and supervisors on how the organization's performance is to be considered when assessing the performance of individual employees.

1.3.1.3 Ensure fairness and consistency in the appraising and rewarding of employees.

1.3.1.4 Ensure that all covered employees receive timely and complete performance plans and appraisals.

1.3.1.5 Be responsible for the general policy, direction, operations, and evaluation of their special awards programs (e.g., Financial Management Award).

1.3.1.6 Ensure that the NASA Automated Awards System (NAAS) is used to capture all awards.

1.4 Assistant Administrator for Human Capital Management

1.4.1 The Assistant Administrator for Human Capital Management is responsible for:

1.4.1.1 The general policy, direction, and evaluation of the NASA awards program and for reviewing requests for new special NASA awards prior to submission to the IAB for review and to the IAB Chair for approval.

1.4.1.2 Serving as the Vice Chair of the IAB.

1.5 NASA Center Directors

1.5.1 NASA Center Directors shall:

1.5.1.1 Establish and communicate the annual performance goals for/to their organization prior to the beginning of the appraisal period.

1.5.1.2 Communicate their organization's performance in achieving the annual performance goals prior to the end of the appraisal period and provide guidance to subordinate managers and supervisors on how the organization's performance is to be considered when assessing the performance of individual employees.

1.5.1.3 Ensure fairness and consistency in the appraising and rewarding of employees.

1.5.1.4 Direct, support, implement, and maintain awards programs in accordance with this NPR, OPM regulations, and other NASA and Center procedures and guidelines.

1.5.1.5 Approve cash awards for a NASA employee's performance and superior accomplishments not to exceed $10,000. (This does not apply to SES/ST/SL Rank Awards or SES bonuses.)

1.5.1.6 Ensure that the NAAS is used to capture the submission and approval of all awards.

1.5.1.7 Establish and ensure that the Center's recognition program is administered in accordance with Agency established policies and regulations.

1.5.1.8 Establish Center-specific procedures for local implementation.

1.6 Supervisors and Managers

1.6.1 Supervisors' and managers' responsibilities to the awards program are shown by their timely communication of planned goals and objectives to employees, observation of employees' performance, continuous two-way communication about performance, creating an accountability culture, and in ensuring fairness and consistency in the appraising and rewarding of their employees. Supervisors and managers are responsible for actively participating in and supporting NASA awards programs as follows:

1.6.1.1 Shall encourage subordinate employees to improve productivity, efficiency, economy, and effectiveness of Government operations.

1.6.1.2 Shall ensure that all individuals or groups of employees, regardless of grade or occupational area, are promptly considered for recognition when criteria for awards programs are met.

1.6.1.3 Shall have a general knowledge and understanding of the various awards available to employees in order to recognize and reward employees in a fair, equitable, and appropriate manner.

1.6.1.4 Shall give first-line supervisors authority to grant time-off awards (TOAs) without further review or approval for periods not to exceed one workday.

1.6.1.5 Shall ensure that all award nominations, including performance-based cash awards and TOAs, requiring supervisory/management approval, are linked to the employees contribution and that the amount and time off accurately reflect the value of the contribution.

1.6.1.6 Shall establish and maintain a work environment that is conducive to the development and free exchange of ideas. The supervisor is also responsible for reviewing employee ideas and providing suggesters with input and assistance in refining ideas, if requested, or refer to the appropriate evaluation authority for evaluation of suggestion.

1.6.1.7 Shall ensure that the NAAS is used to capture all awards.

1.7 Executive Director, NASA Shared Services Center

1.7.1 The Executive Director shall:

1.7.1.1 Administer the NAAS. This includes:

1.7.1.1.1 Working with the user community to:

a. Identify new (or revisions to) system requirements.

b. Establish priorities and release dates.

c. Communicate and provide guidance prior to any new release.

1.7.2 Administer the NASA Honor Awards process.

1.7.3 Maintain a supply of all Agency awards materials (medals, length-of-service pins, standardized certificates, folders, frames, other memorabilia, and Center awards certificates) to be used for the Agency and Center Honor Award programs.

1.7.4 Ensure the timely submission of Center certificates and award items.

1.7.5 Maintain and update the Agency Awards Calendar.

1.7.6 Notify the Centers in advance, on a semiannual basis, of the upcoming call for external award nominations and provide the award criteria, nomination forms, and other pertinent information about the external awards, and when nominations are due to the sponsoring organization or to the NSSC.

1.7.7 Annually, by June 1, request Centers to provide the number of their on-site and near-site (within 20 miles) prime and support service contractor workforce employed as of May 30. This data will be used in determining contractor Agency Honor Award allocations. (Includes contractors located at Component Facilities and Technical and Service Support Centers.)

1.8 Center Incentive Awards Program Officers

1.8.1 Center Incentive Awards Program Officers shall:

1.8.1.1 Ensure that Center out-of-cycle requests meet Agency policy.

1.8.1.2 Disposition and approve award nominations submitted into the NAAS.

1.8.1.3 Notify their Center's organizations of upcoming External Awards and apprise organizations of any updates in a timely manner.

1.8.1.4 Process Center nominations for External Awards when the sponsor's instructions require Agency-approved nominations or when there is an Agency nomination allocation.

1.8.1.5 Conduct and/or facilitate training for NAAS users at the Centers.

1.8.1.6 Manage NAAS for the Center.

1.8.1.7 Participate in, implement, and manage award policies, procedures, and practices at the Center.
1.8.1.8 Provide guidance and strategic recommendations to managers on the appropriate use of incentives and Honor Awards.

1.8.1.9 Coordinate Center-level awards ceremonies.

1.9 Chair, IAB

1.9.1 The Chair is responsible for the following:

1.9.1 1 Shall appoint members of the NASA IAB (Also see 5.5, Expert Panels and Evaluation of Nominees, for selection of chairs of expert panels).

1.9.1.2 Shall appoint the Chair of the Outstanding Leadership Medal Panel.

1.9.1.3 Shall approve nominations for NASA Honor Awards.

1.9.1.4 Shall approve special NASA-wide awards and recognition programs
(Appendix A).

1.10 NASA IAB

1.10.1 The NASA IAB is responsible for the following:

1.10.1.1 Shall provide advice and recommendations to the Chair, IAB, on broad policy issues and specific award cases for Agency-wide honorary recognition.

1.10.1.2 May appoint special technical advisors and/or panels comprised of NASA officials, employees, or non-Government subject experts to advise in the review of nominations for awards.

1.10.1.3 Does not review actions coming under the purview of the Inventions and Contributions Board (See 14 C.F.R. Part 1240.1, Awards for Scientific and Technical Contributions).

1.10.1.4 The IAB membership is shown in Appendix B.

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