Human Resources Division (HRD) - Pay, Leave & Tours of Duty - Latest News and Information - Excused Absence for Voting

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The following is issued as a reminder of MRP policy regarding the amount of administrative leave that may be granted for voting purposes:

An employee in pay status may be granted administrative leave (TC 66) to vote. Administrative leave for voting must be requested in advance.

1. Amount of time allowable: Generally, an employee may be excused from duty to permit him/her to report for work up to 3 hours after the polls open, or to leave work up to 3 hours before the polls close, whichever results in the lesser amount of time. The amount of administrative leave granted will vary depending on the employee's voting location and official duty hours/tour of duty.
• In unusual or exceptional circumstances where the general rule does not permit sufficient time, an employee may be excused for such additional time as he/she needs to vote, not to exceed 1 day.
• If an employee must travel to reach a distant voting place because absentee voting is not permitted, the supervisor may grant up to 1 day of administrative leave, and should be liberal in granting additional time off, as required, chargeable to annual leave, LWOP, accrued compensatory time or credit hours.
2. Washington Metropolitan Area Employees: The hours during which polls are generally open in political subdivisions in the Washington metropolitan area are indicated below. However, these hours may be subject to change:
• District of Columbia - 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Maryland (Montgomery and Prince Georges counties) - 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Virginia (cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, and Falls Church; and counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William) - 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
3. Employees Outside the Washington, D. C. Metropolitan Area: Supervisors should obtain information about the polling hours for political subdivisions in which employees reside, and shall grant administrative leave in accordance with the above. If an employee is not provided with information on polling hours, he/she shall obtain it and submit it with the request.

Questions may be referred to Nella Roberts, HR Policy Branch, MRPBS - HRD, through email or by calling area code (301) 851-2910. The above information is also contained in the Human Resources Desk Guide, Subchapter 4630.

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Last Modified: June 11, 2013