Introduction to Staffing Laws & Regulations

Lesson 3: Hiring Authorities

Lesson Overview In this lesson, we will explain the various hiring authorities, established through staffing laws and regulations, which are available to agencies.

In this lesson, you will learn to:

 Define the types of service in the federal government  Identify how delegated (or competitive) examining and merit promotion can be used for selection to the competitive service  Explain how noncompetitive and excepted appointing authorities can be used for selection into the competitive service  Describe how excepted appointing authorities can be used to fill positions in the competitive service  Identify how the excepted service appointing authorities can be used for placement in the excepted service  Identify priority placement programs  Determine which appointing authorities would be appropriate to use when filling a position in a hiring scenario

Types of Service You may recall that the federal government consists of three types of services. Competitive Service The competitive service consists of all civil service positions in the executive branch of the federal government with some exceptions. The exceptions are defined in section 2102 of title 5, United States Code (5 U.S.C. 2102).

Entry into the competitive service requires individuals to go through a competitive process (i.e., delegated examining), which is open to all U.S. citizens. This process follows the basic Federal Hiring Process and may consist of a written test, an evaluation of the individual's education and experience, and/or an evaluation of other attributes necessary for successful performance in the position to be filled. Positions in the competitive service are subject to standard qualification and promotion requirements. Excepted Service Appointments to the excepted service include civil service appointments within the federal government that have been excepted from typical competitive hiring processes via statute, Executive Order, or by U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) action. Some agencies’ entire workforce is designated as excepted (e.g., the Federal Bureau of Investigations).

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There are a number of ways to be appointed to the excepted service, such as being appointed under an authority defined by OPM as excepted (e.g., Veterans Recruitment Appointment) or being appointed to a position defined by OPM as excepted (e.g., Attorneys).

Positions in the legislative and judicial branches are in the excepted service unless they are specifically included in the competitive service (e.g., the Government Printing Office, an agency within the legislative branch, has positions in the competitive service).

Most positions excepted by OPM action are subject to the provision of title 5; however, these excepted service positions do not require the same strict competitive hiring procedures and enable agencies to hire using processes or authorities that may result in expedited or streamlined hiring when it is not feasible or not practical to use traditional competitive hiring methods.

When filling excepted service positions, an agency follows agency-specific hiring procedures. If the agency’s excepted service hiring process is merit-based and approved as such by OPM, that agency can be in an interchange agreement with OPM that then allows those members of the excepted service to be eligible to compete for a civil service position through the merit promotion process. Senior Executive Service The Senior Executive Service (SES) leads America’s workforce. As the keystone of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, the SES was established to “...ensure that the executive management of the Government of the United States is responsive to the needs, policies, and goals of the Nation and otherwise is of the highest quality.” These leaders possess well-honed executive skills and share a broad perspective on government and a public service commitment that is grounded in the Constitution.

Members of the SES serve in the key positions just below the top Presidential appointees. SES members are the major link between these appointees and the rest of the federal workforce. They operate and oversee nearly every government activity in approximately 75 federal agencies.

The OPM manages the overall federal executive personnel program, providing the day-to-day oversight and assistance to agencies as they develop, select, and manage their federal executives.

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Competitive Service Appointing Authorities Individuals can be appointed to positions in the competitive service through either delegated (or competitive) examining or merit promotion. Delegated Examining (DE) Individuals hired through DE are appointed to one of these types of positions:

 Permanent o A career appointment is defined as a permanent appointment for current or former federal employees with tenure (3 or more years of service). o A career-conditional appointment is defined as a permanent appointment for appointees with less than 3 years of service in the federal workforce or individuals new to the federal workforce.  Term o Term appointments are defined as appointments expected to last for a specified period of time that is at least more than 1 year, but does not exceed 4 years.  Temporary o Temporary appointments are defined as appointments expected to last for a specified period not to exceed 1 year, but could be less. Merit Promotion Positions filled through merit promotion procedures are open to:

 Status employees (current or former employees who hold or held a non-temporary appointment in the competitive service)  Employees from excepted service agencies who operate with an interchange agreement  Veterans Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) eligibles (only if the posting is open to applicants outside the agency’s workforce) Appointments are made through one of the following actions:

 Promotion  Reassignment  Transfer  Reinstatement  Career or career-conditional appointment (based on the applicant’s original appointment)

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Noncompetitive and Excepted Appointing Authorities When hiring for a competitive service position using delegated examining or merit promotion, a Staffing Specialist and hiring manager can also look for candidates using noncompetitive or excepted appointing authorities. These authorities can be referred to as special hiring authorities or hiring flexibilities as the more strict competitive procedures are not always required. Each has different rules for its use.

Noncompetitive Appointing Authorities The following noncompetitive appointing authorities, or flexibilities, can be used in competitive service hiring: Military Spouses This authority facilitates entry of military spouses into the federal government. Eligible spouses must apply in response to a job opportunity announcement posted on USAJOBS and must meet qualification requirements for the position.

Eligible applicants include:

 Individuals relocating with service member spouse under Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders  Spouse of a service member who is 100 percent disabled due to a service-connected injury  Spouse of a service member killed while on active duty Under this authority, eligible spouses may receive only one permanent appointment and are restricted to the following time limits:

 2 years of eligibility from the date of the spouse’s PCS orders  Permanent eligibility from the date of the documentation indicating the service- connected disability or death (unless the spouse remarries) 30% or More Disabled Veteran’s Appointment The 30% or More Disabled Veteran Appointing authority can be used to make permanent, temporary, or term appointments in the competitive service. In addition, there is no grade-level limitation.

A person can be appointed using this authority as long as there is an applicable vacancy, a posting does not have to exist.

This appointing authority will be discussed in greater detail in Lesson 4. Peace Corps and AmeriCorps VISTA Volunteers Under this authority, (once priority placement lists are cleared) former Peace Corps or AmeriCorps Vista volunteers may be appointed to vacant positions.

Former volunteers with at least 1 year of satisfactory service, certified by Peace Corps or AmeriCorps, are eligible for non-temporary appointment for 1 year after completing their

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volunteer service. This eligibility period may be extended for 2 additional years by military service, attending an institution of higher learning, or if determined by the agency.

Excepted Appointing Authorities A candidate for an open civil service position can be selected using one of the excepted appointing authorities. If the selectee came from one of the excepted appointing authorities, the person is considered an excepted appointment (meaning they were excepted from the competitive hiring process) for a given period of time before they are eligible to be converted to the competitive service.

The following excepted appointing authorities can be used in competitive service hiring: Veterans Recruitment Appointment (VRA) The VRA authority can be used to fill positions quickly by appointing eligible veterans to positions for which they are qualified, up to and including GS-11 or equivalent, without issuing a vacancy announcement.

This appointing authority will be discussed in greater detail in Lesson 4. Schedule A for Appointments of Individuals with Intellectual, Severe Physical, or Psychiatric Disabilities This excepted authority is used to appoint persons with severe physical, psychiatric, or intellectual disabilities. Severe physical disabilities include but are not limited to blindness, deafness, paralysis, missing limbs, epilepsy, dwarfism, and more.

Such individuals may qualify for conversion to permanent, civil service status after two years of satisfactory service. Schedule D for Appointments under the Pathways Programs Students or individuals who recently completed their education under the Pathways Program fill schedule D positions. Positions in the Pathways Programs are excepted from the competitive service. Agencies use excepted service hiring to appoint students and recent graduates who may then be converted to the competitive service after completion of the program requirements.

Excepted Service Appointing Authorities There are also special hiring authorities that can be used to fill excepted service positions.

The excepted service hiring authorities that are subject to OPM rules because they fall under title 5 include: Schedule A In addition to the Schedule A authority to hire people with disabilities, Schedule A is used for many other positions for which competitive examining methods are impractical. These positions are not subject to OPM qualification standards and remain in the excepted service.

Examples of these Schedule A appointments include:

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 Readers, interpreters, and personal assistants for employees with disabilities  30-Day Critical Needs Appointments  Attorneys and Law Clerks Schedule B The Schedule B authority is used for positions for which it is not practical to hold open competition. These positions must meet OPM qualification standards.

For example, the FDIC may request to use this authority because they do not want to openly publicize hiring bank examiners for fear of causing concern in a community about what that means for the banking industry. Schedule C The Schedule C authority is used for political appointee positions.

These excepted service hiring authorities enable agencies to hire when it is not feasible or not practical to use traditional competitive hiring procedures.

Most excepted service positions are not required to be posted on USAJOBS.gov. As a result, it is important to look at individual agency websites for job announcements.

Other Excepted Service Hiring Authorities Agencies may also have excepted service positions that are governed by other parts of the United States Code (not title 5), and are therefore not subject to OPM hiring rules.

For example:

 Department of Defense (DOD)– titles 10 and 32  Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) – title 38 (for medical positions)  Intelligence Community – title 50  Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) – title 42  Department of Agriculture (USDA) – titles 16 and 17  Department of the Interior (DOI) – title 16

Priority Placement Programs In addition to the competitive service and excepted service authorities, individuals may be hired through one of the following priority placement programs: Reemployment Priority List (RPL) The reemployment priority list (RPL) is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by reduction in force (RIF) or fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than 1 year. The RPL is a required component of agency positive placement programs.

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Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) A career transition program that gives priority placement to surplus/displaced employees before they separate from the agency.

Note: The Department of Defense operates its Priority Placement Program to place its surplus employees as an alternative to CTAP. Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) A career transition program that provides interagency assistance to displaced employees before and after separation from the federal workforce.

When filling vacancies, the agency must give RPL registrants and career transition program employees priority consideration over certain outside job applicants and, if it chooses, also may consider RPL registrants before considering internal candidates.

Competitive Service versus Excepted Service Hiring Processes A major difference between the competitive service and the excepted service is how hiring is accomplished.

Competitive service hiring procedures, including the application of veterans’ preference, qualification requirements, and promotion requirements are prescribed by law or by OPM regulation and apply to all agencies.

In the excepted service, only basic requirements are prescribed by law or regulation, and each agency develops its own specific requirements and procedures for filling jobs. For example, veterans’ preference may apply to some excepted service hiring; however, public notice, i.e., job posting, requirements may be determined by agency policy (with a few exceptions).

Hiring Authorities Scenario 1 Read the scenario below to determine which noncompetitive appointing authority can be used in this competitive service hiring.

Robert’s wife has received PCS orders dated six months ago relocating them to the Washington, DC area. Robert is authorized on the PCS orders. What authority may he be appointed under, considering he is qualified?

In this scenario Robert may be appointed under the Military Spouses authority. This authority states that eligible spouses may receive 2 years of eligibility from the date of their spouse’s PCS orders.

Hiring Authorities Scenario 2 Read the scenario below to determine which special hiring authority may be used to fill a position.

Paul submits a certification letter stating that he has a severe physical disability. What hiring authority may he be appointed under, considering he is qualified?

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Because of his disability, Paul will be appointed under the Schedule A appointing authority. This excepted authority is used to appoint persons with severe physical, psychiatric, or intellectual disabilities. Severe physical disabilities include but are not limited to blindness, deafness, paralysis, missing limbs, epilepsy, dwarfism, and more.

Hiring Authorities Review In this lesson, we explored the hiring authorities available to agencies when hiring for the competitive and excepted service. Select the identified boxes in the graphic below to review. Don’t forget agencies must also look to their priority placement lists to identify eligible candidates. Excepted Service Appointing Authorities Hiring authorities available to use for filling excepted service positions include:

 Schedule A  Schedule B  Schedule C Noncompetitive Appointing Authorities Noncompetitive appointing authorities available to use for hiring into the competitive services include:

 Military Spouses  30% or More Disabled Veteran  Peace Corps or AmeriCorps Vista Volunteers Excepted Appointing Authorities Excepted appointing authorities available to use for filling competitive service positions include:

 VRA  Schedule A for Appointments of Individuals with Disabilities  Schedule D for Appointments under the Pathways Programs

Lesson Summary Now that you have completed this lesson, you should be able to:

 Define the types of service in the federal government  Identify how delegated (or competitive) examining and merit promotion can be used for selection to the competitive service  Explain how noncompetitive and excepted appointing authorities can be used for selection into the competitive service  Describe how excepted appointing authorities can be used to fill positions in the competitive service

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 Identify how the excepted service appointing authorities can be used for placement in the excepted service  Identify priority placement programs  Determine which appointing authorities would be appropriate to use when filling a position in a hiring scenario Visit the Resources page for links to valuable reference documents and websites.

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