5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
The rules in this subchapter shall apply to all positions in the competitive service and to all incumbents of such positions. Except as expressly provided in the rule concerned, the rules in this subchapter shall not apply to positions and employees in the excepted service.
The competitive service shall include: (a) All civilian positions in the executive branch of the Government unless specifically excepted therefrom by or pursuant to statute or by the Office of Personnel Management (hereafter referred to in this subchapter as OPM) under § 6.1 of this subchapter; and (b) all positions in the legislative and judicial branches of the Federal Government and in the Government of the District of Columbia which are specifically made subject to the civil service laws by statute. OPM is authorized and directed to determine finally whether a position is in the competitive service.
As used in the rules in this subchapter:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d) An employee shall be considered as being in the competitive service when he has a competitive status and occupies a competitive position unless he is serving under a temporary appointment:
(e)
(a) The excepted service shall include all civilian positions in the executive branch of the Government which are specifically excepted from the requirements of the Civil Service Act or from the competitive service by or pursuant to statute or by OPM under § 6.1 of this subchapter.
(b)
(c)
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
(a) OPM shall be responsible for open competitive examinations for admission to the competitive service which will fairly test the relative capacity and fitness of the persons examined for the position to be filled. OPM is authorized to establish standards with respect to citizenship, age, education, training and experience, suitability, and physical and mental fitness, and for residence or other requirements which applicants must meet to be admitted to or rated in examinations.
(b) In addition to the names of persons who qualify in competitive examinations, the names of persons who have lost eligibility on a career or career-conditional register because of service in the armed forces, and the names of persons who lost opportunity for certification or who have served under career or career-conditional appointment when OPM determines that they should be given certification, may also be entered at such places on appropriate registers and under such conditions as OPM may prescribe.
(c) Whenever the Office of Personnel Management (1) is unable to certify a sufficient number of names to permit the appointing officer to consider three eligibles for appointment to a fourth-class postmaster position in accordance with the regular procedure, or (2) finds that a particular rate of compensation for fourth-class postmaster positions is too low to warrant regular competitive examinations for such positions, it may authorize appointment to any such position or positions in accordance with such procedure as may be prescribed by OPM. Persons appointed under this paragraph may acquire competitive status subject to satisfactory completion of a probationary period prescribed by OPM.
(a) OPM shall establish and administer a career-conditional appointment system for positions subject to competitive examinations which will permit adjustment of the career service to necessary fluctuations in Federal employment, and provide an equitable and orderly system for stabilizing the Federal work force. A competitive status shall be acquired by a career-conditional appointee upon satisfactory completion of a probationary period, but the appointee shall have career-conditional tenure for a period of service to be prescribed by regulation of OPM. When an employee has completed the required period of service his appointment shall be converted to a career appointment without time limitation:
(1) Persons whose appointments are required by statute to be made on a permanent basis;
(2) Employees serving under career appointments at the time of selection from such registers;
(3) Former employees who have eligibility for career appointments upon reinstatement; and
(4) To the extent permitted by law, persons appointed to positions in the field service of the U.S. Postal Service for which salary rates are fixed by the
(b) Under the career-conditional appointment system there shall be a limit on the number of permanent employees in the Federal civil service which shall be the ceiling established by section 1310 of the Supplemental Appropriation Act, 1952 (65 Stat. 757), as amended. In the event section 1310, supra, is repealed, OPM is authorized to fix such limitation on the number of permanent employees in the Federal civil service as it finds necessary to meet the needs of the service.
(c) OPM may determine the types, duration, and conditions of indefinite and temporary appointments, and may prescribe the method for replacing persons holding such appointments.
Subject to such modifications as OPM finds to be necessary in the interest of good administration, appointments to positions in agencies' headquarters offices which are located within the metropolitan area of Washington, DC, shall be made so as to maintain the apportionment of appointments among the several States, Territories, and the District of Columbia upon the basis of population.
Persons selected from registers of eligibles for career or career-conditional appointment and employees promoted, transferred, or otherwise assigned, for the first time, to supervisory or managerial positions shall be required to serve a probationary period under terms and conditions prescribed by the Office.
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
(a) Upon recommendation by the agency concerned, and subject to such noncompetitive examination, time limits, or other requirements as OPM may prescribe the following classes of persons may acquire a competitive status without competitive examination:
(1) A person holding a permanent position when it is placed in the competitive service by statute or executive order or is otherwise made subject to competitive examination.
(2) A disabled veteran who, in a manner satisfactory to OPM, has completed a course of training in the executive branch of the Government prescribed by the Administrator of Veterans' Affairs in accordance with the act of March 24, 1943 (57 Stat. 43).
(3) An employee who has served at least two years in the immediate office of the President or on the White House Staff and who is transferred to a competitive position at the request of an agency.
(4) An employee who was serving when his name was reached for certification on a civil service register appropriate for the position in which he was serving:
(b) Upon recommendation by the employing agency, and subject to such requirements as the Office of Personnel Management may prescribe, the following classes of handicapped employees may acquire competitive status without competitive examination:
(1) A severely physically handicapped employee who completes at least two years of satisfactory service in a position excepted from the competitive service.
(2) A mentally retarded employee who completes at least two years of
(3) An employee with a psychiatric disability who completes at least 2 years of satisfactory service in a position excepted from the competitive service.
Subject to receipt of satisfactory evidence of the qualifications of the person to be appointed, OPM may authorize an appointment in the competitive service without competitive examination whenever it finds that the duties or compensation of the position are such, or that qualified persons are so rare, that, in the interest of good civil-service administration, the position cannot be filled through open competitive examination. Any person heretofore or hereafter appointed under this section shall acquire a competitive status upon completion of at least one year of satisfactory service and compliance with such requirements as OPM may prescribe. Detailed statements of the reasons for the noncompetitive appointments made under this section shall be published in OPM's annual reports.
Any person who acquires a competitive status under this part shall have his appointment converted to career-conditional appointment unless he meets the service requirement for career appointment prescribed under § 2.2(a) of this subchapter.
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
No person employed in the executive branch of the Federal Government, or any agency or department thereof, shall use his official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or affecting the result thereof. No person occupying a position in the competitive service shall take any active part in political management or in political campaigns, except as may be provided by or pursuant to statute. All such persons shall retain the right to vote as they may choose and to express their opinions on all political subjects and candidates.
No person employed in the executive branch of the Federal Government who has authority to take or recommend any personnel action with respect to any person who is an employee in the competitive service or any eligible or applicant for a position in the competitive service shall make any inquiry concerning the race, political affiliation, or religious beliefs of any such employee, eligible, or applicant. All disclosures concerning such matters shall be ignored, except as to such membership in political parties or organizations as constitutes by law a disqualification for Government employment. No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened, or promised by any person in the executive branch of the Federal Government against or in favor of any employee in the competitive service, or any eligible or applicant for a position in the competitive service because of his race, political affiliation, or religious beliefs, except as may be authorized or required by law.
No person shall influence another person to withdraw from competition for any position in the competitive
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302; E.O. 12107.
The Director, Office of Personnel Management, shall promulgate and enforce regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of the Civil Service Act and the Veterans' Preference Act, as reenacted in title 5, United States Code, the Civil Service Rules, and all other statutes and Executive orders imposing responsibilities on the Office. The Director is authorized, whenever there are practical difficulties and unnecessary hardships in complying with the strict letter of the regulation, to grant a variation from the strict letter of the regulation if such a variation is within the spirit of the regulations, and the efficiency of the Government and the integrity of the competitive service are protected and promoted. Whenever a variation is granted the Director shall note the official record to show:
(a) The particular practical difficulty or hardship involved, (b) what is permitted in place of what is required by regulations, (c) the circumstances which protect or promote the efficiency of the Government and the integrity of the competitive service, and (d) a statement limiting the application of the variation to the continuation of the conditions which gave rise to it. Like variations shall be granted whenever like conditions exist. All such decisions and information concerning variations noted in the official record shall be published promptly in a Federal Personnel Manual Letter or Bulletin and in the Director's next annual report.
The Director may secure effective implementation of the civil service laws, rules, and regulations, and all Executive orders imposing responsibilities on the Office by:
(a) Investigating the qualifications and suitability of applicants for positions in the competitive service. The Director may require appointments to be made subject to investigation to enable the Director to determine, after appointment, that the requirements of law or the civil service rules and regulations have been met.
(b) Evaluating the effectiveness of: (1) Personnel policies, programs, and operations of Executive and other Federal agencies subject to the jurisdiction of the Office, including their effectiveness with regard to merit selection and employee development; (2) agency compliance with and enforcement of applicable laws, rules, regulations and office directives; and (3) agency personnel management evaluation systems.
(c) Investigating, or directing an agency to investigate and report on, apparent violations of applicable laws, rules, regulations, or directives requiring corrective action, found in the course of an evaluation.
(a) The Director is authorized to ensure enforcement of the civil service laws, rules, and regulations, and all applicable Executive orders, by:
(1) Instructing an agency to separate or take other action against an employee serving an appointment subject to investigation when the Director finds that the employee is disqualified for Federal employment. Where the employee or the agency appeals the Director's finding that a separation or other action is necessary, the Director may instruct the agency as to whether or not the employee should remain on duty and continue to receive pay pending adjudication of the appeal:
(2) Reporting the results of evaluation or investigations to the head of the agency concerned with instructions for any corrective action necessary, including cancellation of personnel actions where appropriate. The Director's findings resulting from evaluations or investigations are binding unless changed as a result of agency evidence and arguments against them. If, during the course of any evaluation or investigation under this section, the Director finds evidence of matters which come within the investigative and prosecutorial jurisdiction of the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Director shall refer this evidence to the Special Counsel for appropriate disposition.
(b) Whenever the Director issues specific instructions as to separation or other corrective action with regard to an employee, including cancellation of a personnel action, the head of the agency concerned shall comply with the Director's instructions.
(c) If the agency head fails to comply with the specific instructions of the Director as to separation or other corrective action with regard to an employee, including cancellation of a personnel action, the Director may certify to the Comptroller General of the United States the agency's failure to act together with such additional information as the Comptroller General may require, and shall furnish a copy of such certification to the head of the agency concerned. The individual with respect to whom such separation or other corrective action was instructed shall be entitled thereafter to no pay or only to such pay as appropriate to effectuate the Director's instructions.
When required by the Office, the Merit Systems Protection Board, or the Special Counsel of the Merit Systems Protection Board, or by authorized representatives of these bodies, agencies shall make available to them, or to their authorized representatives, employees to testify in regard to matters inquired of under the civil service laws, rules, and regulations, and records pertinent to these matters. All such employees, and all applicants or eligibles for positions covered by these rules, shall give to the Office, the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Special Counsel, or to their authorized representatives, all information, testimony, documents, and material in regard to the above matters, the disclosure of which is not otherwise prohibited by law or regulation. These employees, applicants, and eligibles shall sign testimony given under oath or affirmation before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Employees are performing official duty when testifying or providing evidence pursuant to this section.
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
(a) OPM may except positions from the competitive service when it determines that (A) appointments thereto through competitive examination are not practicable, or (B) recruitment from among students attending qualifying educational institutions or individuals who have recently completed qualifying educational programs can better be achieved by devising additional means for recruiting and assessing candidates that diverge from the processes generally applicable to the
(b) OPM shall decide whether the duties of any particular position are such that it may be filled as an excepted position under the appropriate schedule.
(c) Notice of OPM's decision granting authority to make appointments to an excepted position under the appropriate schedule shall be published in the
OPM shall list positions that it excepts from the competitive service in Schedules A, B, C, and D, which schedules shall constitute parts of this rule, as follows:
(a) The head of an agency may fill excepted positions by the appointment of persons without civil service eligibility or competitive status and such persons shall not acquire competitive status by reason of such appointment:
(b) To the extent permitted by law and the provisions of this part, appointments and position changes in the excepted service shall be made in accordance with such regulations and practices as the head of the agency concerned finds necessary.
Except as may be required by statute, the Civil Service Rules and Regulations shall not apply to removals from positions listed in Schedules A, C, or D or from positions excepted from the competitive service by statute. The Civil Service Rules and Regulations shall apply to removals from positions listed in Schedule B of persons who have competitive status.
No person who is serving under an excepted appointment shall be assigned to the work of a position in the competitive service without prior approval of OPM.
OPM may remove any position from or may revoke in whole or in part any provision of Schedule A, B, C, or D. Notice of OPM's decision making these changes shall be published in the
Whenever OPM and any Federal agency having an established merit
(a) Positions in the Department of the Interior and in the Department of Commerce whose incumbents serve as the principal representative of the Secretary in their respective regions shall be listed in Schedule C for grades not exceeding grade GS-15 of the General Schedule, and shall be designated Noncareer Executive Assignments for positions graded higher than GS-15. Incumbents of these positions who are, on February 15, 1975, in the competitive service shall not be affected by the foregoing provisions of this section.
(b) Positions in the Community Services Administration and ACTION whose incumbents serve as regional director or regional administrator shall be listed in Schedule C for grades not exceeding GS-15 of the General Schedule and shall be designated Noncareer Executive Assignments for positions graded higher than GS-15. Incumbents of these positions who are, on November 29, 1977, in the competitive service shall not be affected by the foregoing provisions of this subsection.
(c) Within the Department of Agriculture, positions in the Agriculture Stabilization and Conservation Service the incumbents of which serve as State Executive Directors and positions in the Farmers Home Administration the incumbents of which serve as State Directors or State Directors-at-Large shall be listed in Schedule C for all grades of the General Schedule.
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
In his discretion, an appointing officer may fill any position in the competitive service either by competitive appointment from a civil service register or by noncompetitive selection of a present or former Federal employee, in accordance with the Civil Service Regulations. He shall exercise his discretion in all personnel actions solely on the basis of merit and fitness and without regard to political or religious affiliations, marital status, or race.
OPM, whenever it determines it to be necessary, shall prescribe regulations governing the release of employees (both within the competitive service and the excepted service) by any agency in the executive branch of the Government for employment in any other agency, and governing the establishment, granting, and exercise of rights to reemployment in the agencies from which employees are released.
(a) No person shall be admitted to competitive examination unless such person is a citizen or national of the United States.
(b) No person shall be given any appointment in the competitive service unless such person is a citizen or national of the United States.
(c) OPM may, as an exception to this rule and to the extent permitted by law, authorize the appointment of aliens to positions in the competitive service when necessary to promote the efficiency of the service in specific cases or for temporary appointments.
5 U.S.C. 3301, 3302.
In addition to authorizing the recruitment and appointment of persons to overseas positions under regulations issued under the preceding Rules, OPM may, by the regulations prescribed by it, authorize the recruitment and appointment of persons to such positions as provided in § 8.2. As used in this part,
United States citizens may be recruited overseas for appointment to overseas positions in the competitive service without regard to the competitive requirements of the Civil Service Act. Persons so recruited who meet the qualification standards and other requirements of OPM for overseas positions may be given appointments to be known as “overseas limited appointments.” Such appointments shall be of temporary or indefinite duration, and shall not confer the right to acquire a competitive status. OPM may authorize overseas limited appointments for United States citizens recruited within the continental limits of the United States whenever it determines that it is not feasible to appoint from a civil-service register. Persons serving under appointments made pursuant to this section are hereby excluded from the operation of the Civil Service Retirement Act of May 29, 1930, as amended, unless eligible for retirement benefits by continuity of service or otherwise.
Persons who are not citizens of the United States may be recruited overseas and appointed to overseas positions without regard to the Civil Service Act.
This part shall not apply to positions in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and Alaska, and on the Isthmus of Panama.
As used in this rule, 'Executive agency' means an Executive department, a Government corporation, and an independent establishment, as those terms are defined in chapter 1 of title 5, United States Code, but does not include the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Central Intelligence Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Imagery and Mapping Agency, the National Security Agency, and, as determined by the President, any Executive agency or unit within an Executive agency which has as its principal function the conduct of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence activities.
The Director of the Office of Personnel Management may require all Executive agencies to report information relating to civilian employees, including positions and employees in the competitive, excepted, and Senior Executive services, in a manner and at times prescribed by the Director. The Director shall establish standards for workforce information submissions under this section, and agencies shall ensure that their submissions meet these standards consistent with the Privacy Act. The Director may exempt
For purposes of this rule—
(a) 'Agency' means an Executive agency as defined in Rule IX, but does not include a Government corporation or the General Accounting Office; and
The Director of the Office of Personnel Management may require an agency to establish and maintain a system of accountability for merit system principles that
(1) Sets standards for applying the merit system principles,
(2) Measures the agency's effectiveness in meeting these standards, and
(3) Corrects any deficiencies in meeting these standards.
The Office of Personnel Management may review the human resources management programs and practices of any agency and report to the head of the agency and the President on the effectiveness of these programs and practices, including whether they are consistent with the merit system principles.