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1 1 (March 19, 2020)

handle is hein.crs/govcauu0001 and id is 1 raw text is: FF. , -iE , .,. i , March 19, 2020 Federal Executive Agencies: Hiring Flexibilities for Emergency Situations On January 31, 2020, Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar declared a public health emergency for the United States in response to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). To assist the federal government in responding to the emergency, Congress passed legislation that provides Direct-Hire Authority (DHA) to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has also reiterated long-standing guidance on flexibilities for hiring in executive agencies that are codified in Title 5 of the United States Code and Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations. Section 302 of P.L. 116-123 (H.R. 6074), the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020, as enacted on March 6, 2020, provides the HHS Secretary with DHA to appoint individuals to positions that perform critical work related to coronavirus. The law states that appointments may be made without regard to Title 5, Sections 3309-3319, of the U.S. Code, which prescribe veterans' preference requirements, requirements for rating and ranking applicants, and category rating procedures that increase the number of eligible candidates a selecting official may choose from. Still, public notice of positions the department seeks to fill would need to be given. And, the Secretary would need to determine that a public health threat exists. Under Section 3304(a)(3), OPM may also authorize an agency to appoint candidates directly to positions without regard to Sections 3309-3318. The statute provides that public notice must be given for positions the agency seeks to fill. OPM would need to determine that there exists a severe shortage of candidates (for the Department of Veterans Affairs, there must be a severe shortage of highly qualified candidates) or that there is a critical hiring need. OPM regulations indicate that there is a severe shortage of candidates when an agency is having difficulty identifying candidates possessing the competencies or the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform the job requirements despite extensive recruitment, extended announcement periods, and the use, as applicable, of hiring flexibilities such as recruitment or relocation incentives or special salary rates. A critical hiring need occurs when an agency has a need to fill the position(s) to meet mission requirements brought about by circumstances such as, but not limited to, a national emergency, threat, potential threat, environmental disaster, or unanticipated or unusual event or mission requirement, or to conform to the requirements of law, a Presidential directive or Administration initiative. The regulations also provide that OPM may decide independently that a severe shortage exists or that there is a critical hiring need or may make a decision about granting DHA in response to an agency's written request. An agency with delegated examining authority may request DHA for a position or group of positions in the competitive service at pay grade GS-15 (or equivalent) and below. OPM determines the length of the authority. The regulations specify the evidence that must support an agency's request. Periodically, OPM reviews DHAs and may extend them if the conditions justifying their use are continuing. DHAs may be terminated or modified when changes occur in the justifying conditions or when an agency does not use them properly. An agency must also report to OPM when there are adequate numbers of qualified candidates for positions filled by direct hire. (5 C.F.R. Part 337, Subpart B) OPM maintains a web page with information on DHA, including templates for submitting direct-hire requests based on a severe shortage of candidates and critical hiring need. On February 7, 2020, OPM issued guidance on human resources flexibilities for COVID-19 that included policies related to hiring. With regard to DHA authorities, OPM reminded agencies that direct hire is authorized government-wide for certain positions, including the following: * Medical officers, nurses, diagnostic radiologic technicians, and pharmacists for all grade levels and locations; * Information technology management (information security) for GS-9 and above at all locations; * Veterinary medical officers for GS-11 through GS-15 nationwide, including overseas territories and commonwealths, indefinitely, until terminated; * Scientific, technical, engineering and mathematics for GS-11 through GS-15 nationwide through October 10, 2023; and * Cybersecurity-related positions for GS-12 through GS- 15 nationwide, indefinitely, until terminated. Individuals in the positions listed above may be appointed as competitive service career, career-conditional, term, or temporary employees. The guidance advised an agency to contact OPM if it believes it has one or more occupations :!K.:$:OOK~2$' ~dN gognpo goo g , q 'S a X 11LULANJILiN,

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