Background
Barbara Chafin worked as an Operational Support Technician for the Federal Bureau of Investigation from 1987 until her removal in 2018 for workplace misconduct. In 2019, she applied for Federal Employees Retirement System disability retirement benefits, claiming that seizures prevented her from driving to work and performing her duties. The Office of Personnel Management denied the application, and the Merit Systems Protection Board affirmed the denial.
The court’s reasoning
The court applied the standard of review under 5 U.S.C. section seven thousand seven hundred three subsection c, which requires affirming unless the decision is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or unsupported by substantial evidence. However, the court noted that factual findings relating to physical disability determinations by the Office of Personnel Management are final and conclusive under 5 U.S.C. section eight thousand four hundred sixty-one subsection d. Regarding the commuting issue, the court found that the statute explicitly references commuting only in the context of reassignment offers, not in the general definition of disability. Therefore, the Board correctly refused to consider Chafin’s inability to commute. The court also dismissed Chafin’s argument regarding the supervisor’s certification as a factual matter beyond the court’s review.
What it means going forward
This decision clarifies that employees seeking FERS disability retirement cannot rely on an inability to commute due to medical conditions or economic circumstances to establish disability under the general useful and efficient service standard.
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