[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2581 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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115th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2581
To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a 2-year
prohibition on employment in a career civil service position for any
former political appointee, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 21, 2018
Mrs. Ernst introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a 2-year
prohibition on employment in a career civil service position for any
former political appointee, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Political Appointee Burrowing
Prevention Act''.
SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON EMPLOYMENT OF POLITICAL APPOINTEES IN CAREER
CIVIL SERVICE POSITIONS.
(a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 5, United
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 3115. Employment of political appointees
``(a) Appointment Approval Required.--
``(1) In general.--The head of an agency may not appoint
any individual described in paragraph (5) to a career position
within the agency without receiving prior written approval from
the Associate Director for Merit Systems Accountability and
Compliance, consistent with the requirements of this
subsection.
``(2) Request.--The head of an agency shall submit a
request to the Associate Director to approve the appointment of
any individual described in paragraph (5) to a career position.
Any such request shall include certification by the head of the
agency to the Associate Director that the appointment is
necessary for the agency to meet its mission.
``(3) Review and determination.--The Associate Director
shall review any request received pursuant to paragraph (2) and
deny any such request unless the Associate Director determines
that the appointment process with respect to the request was
fair, open, and free from political influence. If the Associate
Director makes that determination, the Associate Director may
approve the request.
``(4) Notification to congress.--With respect to any
request approved under paragraph (3), the Associate Director
shall, not less than five days before the date the Associate
Director provides approval to the head of the requesting
agency, provide to the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate the
agency certification under paragraph (2) and the agency head's
rationale for that certification.
``(5) Covered individuals.--An individual described in this
paragraph is--
``(A) a political appointee;
``(B) a former political appointee who held any
political position during the five-year period before
the date of the request described in paragraph (2); or
``(C) at the discretion of the Director of the
Office of Personnel Management, a former political
appointee who held any political position before the
five-year period described in subparagraph (B).
``(b) Restriction on Appointment.--
``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or
regulation, during the 2-year period following the date a
political appointee leaves or departs from a political
position, such appointee may not be appointed to any career
position in the civil service.
``(2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a
political appointee who has not personally and substantially
participated in any particular matter while employed in a
political position.
``(c) Application.--Nothing in this section shall be construed to
restrict the appointment of an individual who is--
``(1) entitled to reinstatement under section 3593(b); or
``(2) eligible for reinstatement under section 3593(a).
``(d) Definitions.--In this section--
``(1) the term `agency' has the meaning given the term
`Executive agency' in section 105;
``(2) the term `Associate Director' means the Associate
Director for Merit Systems Accountability and Compliance at the
Office of Personnel Management;
``(3) the term `political appointee' means an individual
serving in an appointment of any duration to a political
position;
``(4) the term `political position' means--
``(A) a position with respect to which appointment
is made--
``(i) by the President; or
``(ii) by the President, by and with the
advice and consent of the Senate;
``(B) a position which has been excepted from the
competitive service by reason of its confidential,
policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating
character;
``(C) a position described under sections 5312
through 5316 (relating to the Executive Schedule); and
``(D) a general position in the Senior Executive
Service during such time as it is filled by--
``(i) a noncareer appointee, as defined in
paragraph (7) of section 3132(a); or
``(ii) a limited term appointee or limited
emergency appointee, as defined in paragraphs
(5) and (6) of section 3132(a), who is serving
under a political appointment;
``(5) the term `career position' means--
``(A) a position in the competitive service filled
by career or career-conditional appointment;
``(B) a position in the excepted service filled by
an appointment of equivalent tenure as a position
described in subparagraph (A);
``(C) a career reserved position, as defined in
paragraph (8) of section 3132(a), in the Senior
Executive Service; or
``(D) a general position in the Senior Executive
Service when filled by a career appointee, as defined
in section 3132(a)(4);
``(6) the term `participated' means an action taken as an
officer or employee through decision, approval, disapproval,
recommendation, the rendering of advice, investigation, or
other such action; and
``(7) the term `particular matter' includes any
investigation, application, request for a ruling or
determination, rulemaking, contract, controversy, claim,
charge, accusation, arrest, or judicial or other proceeding.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections of chapter 31 of
title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding after the item
relating to section 3114 the following:
``3115. Employment of political appointees.''.
(c) Application.--
(1) Appointment requests.--Section 3115(a) of title 5,
United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply to
any appointment or request for appointment described in such
section submitted to the Associate Director for Merit Systems
Accountability and Compliance after the date of enactment of
this Act.
(2) Limitation on appointments.--Section 3115(b) of title
5, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply
to any individual who leaves or departs from a political
position (as that term is defined in section 3115(d) of such
title, as added by such subsection) after the date of enactment
of this Act.
(d) Regulations Required.--The Director of the Office of Personnel
Management shall issue regulations necessary to carry out this Act.
Such regulations shall include guidance on the definition of the term
``personally and substantially participated in any particular matter''
in section 3115(b)(2) of title 5, United States Code, as added by
subsection (a), consistent with section 2641.201 of title 5, Code of
Federal Regulations.
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