A bill to provide for certain Federal employee benefits to be continued for certain employees of the Senate Restaurants after operations of the Senate Restaurants are contracted to be performed by a private business concern, and for other purposes.
Public Law 110-279 · S. 2967 · 110th Congress · began in the Senate
Signed by George W. Bush (R) on Jul 17, 2008 · Congress
Sponsor: Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
Cosponsors (2): Sen. Robert Bennett, Sen. Harry Reid
Passage votes
- HouseUnanimous consent
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Authorizes specified Senate Restaurants employees who are employees of the Architect of the Capitol on the date of enactment of this Act and who become employees of a contractor under a food services contract to elect to continue coverage of federal benefits, including retirement benefits, life and health insurance, annual and sick leave balances and accrual rates, and transit subsidies, after operations of the Senate Restaurants are contracted to be performed by a private business concern.
Prohibits the basic pay of such an employee from being reduced below the rate paid to that employee on the day before operations are transferred.
Requires the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to prescribe regulations to provide for the continuity of benefits.
Sets forth provisions concerning severance pay and voluntary separation incentive payments to, and early retirement by, such employees.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
The record lists no related bills.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 15 actions.
- Jul 17, 2008Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 110-279.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Jul 15, 2008FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Jul 10, 2008FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On passage Passed without objection.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Brady (PA) asked unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table and consider.
- FloorFloor · Considered by unanimous consent.
- OtherOther · Cleared for White House.
- Jun 4, 2008FloorFloor · Held at the desk.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- FloorFloor · Received in the House.
- Jun 3, 2008FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Senate Committee on Rules and Administration discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- May 1, 2008CommitteeCommittee · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.