118 STAT. 468 PUBLIC LAW 108–201—FEB. 24, 2004 accordance with this section. The Administrator may not delegate this authority. ‘‘(2) The number of positions with pay fixed under this section may not exceed 10 at any time. ‘‘(d)(1) The rate of basic pay fixed under this section may not be less than the rate of basic pay (including any comparability payments) which would otherwise be payable for the position involved if this section had never been enacted. ‘‘(2) The annual rate of basic pay fixed under this section may not exceed the per annum rate of salary payable under section 104 of title 3. ‘‘(3) Notwithstanding any provision of section 5307, in the case of an employee who, during any calendar year, is receiving pay at a rate fixed under this section, no allowance, differential, bonus, award, or similar cash payment may be paid to such employee if, or to the extent that, when added to basic pay paid or payable to such employee (for service performed in such calendar year as an employee in the executive branch or as an employee outside the executive branch to whom chapter 51 applies), such payment would cause the total to exceed the per annum rate of salary which, as of the end of such calendar year, is payable under section 104 of title 3. ‘‘§ 9808. Assignments of intergovernmental personnel ‘‘For purposes of applying the third sentence of section 3372(a) (relating to the authority of the head of a Federal agency to extend the period of an employee’s assignment to or from a State or local government, institution of higher education, or other organiza tion), the Administrator may, with the concurrence of the employee and the government or organization concerned, take any action which would be allowable if such sentence had been amended by striking ‘two’ and inserting ‘four’. ‘‘§ 9809. Science and technology scholarship program ‘‘(a)(1) The Administrator shall establish a National Aeronautics and Space Administration Science and Technology Scholarship Pro gram to award scholarships to individuals that is designed to recruit and prepare students for careers in the Administration. ‘‘(2) Individuals shall be selected to receive scholarships under this section through a competitive process primarily on the basis of academic merit, with consideration given to financial need and the goal of promoting the participation of individuals identified in section 33 or 34 of the Science and Engineering Equal Opportuni ties Act. ‘‘(3) To carry out the Program the Administrator shall enter into contractual agreements with individuals selected under para graph (2) under which the individuals agree to serve as full time employees of the Administration, for the period described in sub section (f)(1), in positions needed by the Administration and for which the individuals are qualified, in exchange for receiving a scholarship. ‘‘(b) In order to be eligible to participate in the Program, an individual must— ‘‘(1) be enrolled or accepted for enrollment as a full time student at an institution of higher education in an academic field or discipline described in the list made available under subsection (d);
�
