This article shall apply to employees of a contracting agency whose services are included in the federal system when employees of another contracting agency who are subject to this article are made by lawful merger of the contracting agencies the employees of the contracting agency. In that case, the application of this article shall be limited to those employees to whom it applied prior to the merger and shall terminate upon expiration of five years following the date of the merger.

(Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 906, Sec. 194. Effective January 1, 1997.)