Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA)

The Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) was established in 1916 to administer the Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA) pursuant to specific federal regulations. Later congressional acts provided compensation to federal workers, such as those in the mining and energy industries or employed by contractors, but the great majority of federal employees receive workers' compensation under FECA.

To print CA-7 and other forms, please visit the OWCP Forms Page.

Federal Compensation Claims and Appeals

The federal regulation 20 C.F.R. § 10.0 explicitly states that proceedings under FECA are non-adversarial in nature. However, the adjudication of claims often seems adversarial. OWCP does not view compensation as a retirement program; rather, it seeks to return claimants to work. As in baseball, OWCP's game is a game of outs. At every step of a claim, a claimant faces threats to his or her eligibility for benefits.

Unlike other disability programs, such as Social Security, there is no set sequential way to contest adverse decisions by an OWCP claims examiner or hearing representative. Decisions list appeal options, and the claimant must somehow decide on the best appeal route for his or her claim and then undertake that appeal before the deadline. And a claimant must appeal by one of the following within these time limits:

1. request a hearing within 30 days;
2. appeal to the Employees' Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB) within 180 days; or
3. request reconsideration and submit further evidence and legal argument within one year.

See FAQs for how to count days to avoid missing an OWCP appeal deadline.

Mr. McNulty has represented a wide range of clients over the course of his career. He has handled cases for workers of the following federal agencies:

• Department of the Agriculture

  • Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
  • Forest Service (FS)

• Department of Defense

  • Department of the Army
  • Department of the Navy
  • Department of the Air Force

• Department of Health and Human Services

  • Indian Health Services (IHS)

• Department of Homeland Security

  • U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
  • Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
  • Transportation Security Administration (TSA)

• Department of the Interior

  • Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
  • Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)

• Department of Justice

  • Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
  • Federal Bureau of Prisons
  • Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (BCBP)
  • United States Marshals Service

• Department of Transportation

  • Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

• Department of the Treasury

  • Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

• Department of Veterans Affairs

  • Veterans Health Administration

• Peace Corps

• Social Security Administration (SSA)

• United States Postal Service (USPS)

See Recent Case Outcomes for summaries of a variety of cases.

Mr. McNulty has handled cases involving ALL the district offices of the Division of Federal Employees' Compensation (DFEC):

Remember OWCP's address for all the district offices (with the exception of hearing requests and ECAB appeals—see the Appeal Request Form) is:

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR OWCP
DFEC CENTRAL MAILROOM
PO BOX 8300
LONDON, KY 40742-8300