This chapter describes the NIH Employee Suggestion Program. As part of the HHS Incentive Awards Program, the NIH program aims to improve Government operations and services. The program is designed to motivate employees to increase productivity and creativity by rewarding those whose accomplishments and adopted ideas benefit the Federal Government.

1. 5 U.S.C. 4501 et seq.
2. Federal Personnel Manual, Chapter 451.
3. HHS Personnel Manual Instruction 451-1, Incentive Awards.
4. NIH Delegation of Authority, HR: Awards #01 entitled Monetary Awards can be accessed via the NIH Delegations of Authority (DOA) Database at http://www.delegations.nih.gov

1. Director, NIH:
   1. is responsible for the overall NIH Employee Suggestion Program;
   2. has authority to approve cash awards up to the amount of $10,000 and to recommend awards in amounts in excess of this level to the Secretary;
   3. approves cash awards for members of the SES/SSS/SBRS between the amounts of $5,001 and $10,000; and
   4. approves cash awards for employees who report to the NIH Director.
2. NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator, Office of Management Assessment (OMA), Division of Management Support (DMS):
   1. manages and administers the NIH Employee Suggestion Program, and
   2. forwards suggestions that require evaluation by another component within or outside HHS, through appropriate channels.
3. Deputy Directors, OHR Director, and IC Directors:
   1. have delegated authority to approve cash awards up to $10,000 for adopted suggestions, with authority to redelegate (OD, NIH approval is required if employee reports to IC Director);
   2. have delegated authority to approve cash awards up to $5,000 for members of the SES/SSS/SBRS; and
   3. appoint a Suggestion Coordinator to administer the program within the IC.
4. NIH Supervisors:
   1. must be receptive to employee suggestions;
   2. do not have the authority to reject employee suggestions;
   3. evaluate the practicality and soundness of the ideas; and
   4. assist employees in preparing suggestions by obtaining the suggestion forms, assisting in wording the suggestion, if the employee so requests, and forwarding the suggestion to the IC or NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator, if requested.
5. Suggestion Coordinators:
   1. acknowledge each employee suggestion upon its receipt, assign a control number, and record the date and time the suggestion is received;
   2. review all suggestions received for evaluation and forward to the Employee Suggestion Coordinator of the evaluating organization;
   3. forward suggestions that require review outside of their organization to the NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator in DMS; and
   4. retain and dispose of employee suggestion program files (see Section J).
6. Suggestion Evaluators:
   1. give due consideration to a suggestion.
   2. process suggestions which pertain to their functional areas in a fair and timely manner (HHS Personnel Manual Instruction 451-1 indicates that suggestions processed within the same organization should be completed within 30 days from date of receipt by the suggestion coordinator; within 60 days if the suggestion requires higher level consideration; and within 90 days if the suggestion requires consideration at the Department level or by other Federal agencies (See Appendix 3));
   3. decide whether or not to adopt a suggestion; and
   4. consider granting an award for adopted suggestions.
7. Suggestors:
   1. submit suggestions using Form HHS 170, Employee Suggestion. (The completed form must include the signature of the suggester and should indicate in item 9 if the suggester wishes to remain anonymous during the evaluation process); and
   2. follow the procedures identified in NIH Manual 2300-451-3, Appendix 1, "Submitting Suggestions."

Employee Suggestion: An employee suggestion is a constructive idea, written on Form HHS 170, Employee Suggestion (Appendix 2), and formally submitted by one or more employees, which directly contributes to economy or efficiency, or directly improves operations or services of the Federal Government. (Examples of types of suggestions excluded from the employee suggestion system are discussed in Appendix 1.) Employees who submit ideas that cannot be considered suggestions will be advised by memorandum that NIH is precluded from accepting these ideas but that their efforts to better NIH operations are appreciated and should continue.

All employees of NIH, except PHS Commissioned Corps Officers who have a separate program, are eligible to participate in the suggestion program. Private citizens are also eligible for an award certificate and letter of thanks but cannot receive a cash award.

1. Individual Suggestions
   The suggester prepares Form HHS-170, Employee Suggestion (Appendix 2) that describes a specific problem and offers a solution. In preparing suggestions, consideration should be given to the criteria identified in HHS Personnel Manual Instruction Exhibit 451-1-J (see Appendix 1). Benefits and/or savings should be shown, if known. Any available clarifying information (photos, drawings, stock numbers, etc.) should be attached.
   The suggester should sign the form and submit an original to the supervisor, IC Suggestion Coordinator or NIH Suggestion Coordinator. Supervisors do not have the authority to reject employee suggestions. This authority is reserved to suggestion coordinators and officials designated by the Director, NIH, to make suggestion awards. Suggesters should keep a copy of any suggestion submitted.
2. Group Suggestions 
   A group suggestion should be submitted using one completed Form 170, Employee Suggestion, designating "Group Suggestion" in item 1. In addition, each co-suggester should complete items 1-10 and 14-15 of a separate Form HHS 170, which will be retained by the suggestion coordinator. There is no limit on the number of co-suggesters who can be involved in the joint effort.
3. After-the-Fact Suggestions 
   After-the-fact suggestions are ideas that have been adopted informally or under some other program. They must be submitted in writing on a Form HHS 170, Employee Suggestion, within six months after the date of implementation. The suggestion should identify the person(s) to whom the proposal was previously made, the place, approximate date, benefits, and circumstances so that a correlation between the suggestion and the implementation can be evaluated.
4. Receipt of an Employee Suggestion 
   The suggestion coordinator acknowledges each employee suggestion upon its receipt, assigns a control number, and records the date and time the suggestion is received. Next, the suggestion coordinator determines whether or not the suggestion meets the criteria identified in HHS Personnel Manual Instruction Exhibit 451-1-J (see Appendix 1). If these criteria are not met, the suggestion coordinator closes the suggestion and sends a memorandum explaining the action to the suggester. If these criteria are met, the suggestion coordinator forwards the suggestion for evaluation to the program official(s) responsible for the area that is the subject of the suggestion. A request for evaluation should include a copy of the evaluating suggestion guidance contained in HHS Personnel Manual Instruction Exhibit 451-1-L (see Appendix 3); Form NIH-2696, Evaluation of Employee Suggestion (see Appendix 4); and the cash award schedules (see Appendix 5).
5. Disposition of an Employee Suggestion 
   The decision on whether a suggestion is adopted or not ultimately rests with the NIH official with delegated authority. In cases where the suggestion coordinator and the evaluator cannot agree on the implementation of a suggestion which affects the evaluator's operations, the matter should be referred to the official with suggestion award authority for resolution.
   Upon receipt of a complete evaluation, the suggestion coordinator prepares a memorandum informing the suggester of the action being taken. When a suggestion is not recommended for adoption, the memorandum should clearly and tactfully state the reasons for non-adoption.
   In all cases the suggester should be advised in writing of the disposition of the suggestion.
6. Cash Awards 
   A minimum cash award of $100 is made for adopted suggestions that result in benefits to the Government (see Appendix 5). This minimum cash award may be granted for tangible benefits only when the benefits reach or exceed $1,000. The minimum award for intangible benefits require a comparably high standard.
   For adopted suggestions, the suggestion coordinator prepares a Form HHS 171, Recommendation for Cash Award, (see Appendix 6), and a Form PHS 4314-1, Certificate of Appreciation, (see Appendix 7). These forms are forwarded with a copy of the suggestion, all in duplicate, to the appropriate approving official. For awards that are not within the IC delegation, the package is submitted to the NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator who will review the package and transmit it through channels to the appropriate office(s). Approvals of cash awards for employees who report to IC Directors must be submitted for OD, NIH approval to OHR.
   When the award is approved, the suggestion coordinator notifies the suggester and the supervisor that the award has been approved. For awards of $100 or over, the suggestion coordinator notifies The NIH Record.

Employees may appeal the decisions concerning their suggestions, first to the IC Suggestion Coordinator who advised them that the suggestion was not adopted; next to the NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator; and finally, to the Associate Director for Administration, NIH. Appeals must be filed within 60 days of final action taken by a suggestion coordinator.

Adopted suggestions that are beyond job requirements and result in first year measurable (tangible savings) benefits of $10,000 or more should be recommended to the Office of the Secretary (OS) for consideration for a Presidential Letter of Commendation. (See HHS Personnel Manual Instruction 451-1-50.)

For copies of the Form HHS 170, Employee Suggestion, or the Form NIH 2696, Evaluation of Employee Suggestion, contact the NIH Employee Suggestion Coordinator, Office of Management Assessment (OMA), Division of Management Support (DMS), on 301-496-2832.

All records (e-mail and non-e-mail) pertaining to this chapter must be retained and disposed of under the authority of NIH Manual 1743, “Keeping and Destroying Records, Appendix 1, NIH Records Control Schedule,” Item 2300-450-1, “General Awards Records.”

NIH e-mail messages. NIH e-mail messages (messages, including attachments, that are created on NIH computer systems or transmitted over NIH networks) that are evidence of the activities of the agency or have informational value are considered Federal records. These records must be maintained in accordance with current NIH Records Management guidelines. Contact your IC Records Officer for additional information.

All e-mail messages are considered government property, and, if requested for a legitimate government purpose, must be provided to the requester. Employees’ supervisors, NIH staff conducting official reviews or investigations, and the Office of Inspector General may request access to or copies of the e-mail messages. E-mail messages must also be provided to members of Congress or Congressional committees if requested and are subject to Freedom of Information Act requests. Since most e-mail systems have back-up files that are retained for significant periods of time, e-mail messages and attachments are likely to be retrievable from a back-up file after they have been deleted from an individual’s computer. The back-up files are subject to the same requests as the original messages.

1. Office responsible for reviewing Internal Controls relative to this chapter is the Division of Management Support (DMS).
2. Frequency of review: three years.
3. A small sample of employee suggestions will be reviewed every three years against the current policy to make certain the policies are being adhered to by the IC/NIH.
4. Review reports are sent to the Deputy Director for Management (DDM).