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1 1 (January 28, 2021)

handle is hein.crs/govebmd0001 and id is 1 raw text is: The Senior Executive Service: An Overview January 28, 2021 The Senior Executive Service (SES) was establishedby the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-454) to provide a government-wide cadre ofhigh-level managers within federal agencies. The SES comprises mostly career appointees who are chosen through a merit staffing process and serve in policy, supervisory, and managerial positions above grade 15 of the General Schedule (GS). Most agencies have SES members, but some agencies are exempted by statute, including governmentcorporations and certain intelligence and financial regulatory agencies. The SES was intended to create a linkbetween the politically appointed leadership of agencies and career civil servants. The SES was to be the solution to frictions caused by sometimes differing objectives that each of these two groups may have, with the focus of political appointees often on instituting programmatic changes in line with the President's policy goals and the focus of career civil servants more on the technical details of program execution. In addition, the creation of the SES was partly intended to ease the transition period for new Presidents and their political appointees byproviding incoming administrations with a flexible, responsive setof experienced leaders who could ensure that agencies were running smoothly through the change in leadership and beyond. This In Focus provides a brief overview of the SES, including types of positions, the process for and types of appointments to the SES, and compensation. SES Structure: Positions and Appointment Types The SES has two types of positions: career reserved and general. Approximately half of SES positions are career reserved and the otherhalf are general. The Civil Service Reform Act tasked the allocation of SES positions (along with other responsibilities relating to the SES) to the Office of PersonnelManagement(OPM). Positions in the SES may be filled using one of three appointment types: career, noncareer, and limited. The type of position determines, in part, what type of appointment may be made to fill it. Career res ervedpositions may be filled only by career appointment, while generalpositions may be filled by any of the three types of appointment (career, noncareer, or limited). Position Types: Career Reserved Career reserved positions are those that involve day-to-day functions of government and require impartiality. By law (5 U.S.C. §3132(b)(1)) and regulation (5 C.F.R. §214.402), certain types of positions must be removed frompolitical influence to ensure public confidence in the impartiality of certain government functions. Examples include audits, inspections, civilor criminal law enforcement, grants administration, and security matters-the principal duties of which involve day-to-day government operations. Careerpositions may be filled only by career appointees through a merit staffmg process, which is dis cussed below. OPM publishes an annual list of careerreserved SES positions in the FederalRegister. Position Types: General General positions are those remaining positions in the SES that do not meet the criteria for a career reservedposition. General positions may be filled by career appointment, noncareer appointment, or limited term appointment. Because of statutory limitations onthe total number of noncareer and limited appointees, however, most general positions are filled by career appointees. An agency may convert a position fromcareerreserved to general or vice versa, but such a switch requires OPM's approval. Generalpositions are listed in the Plum Book (U.S. Government Policy and Supporting Positions), which is published alternately by the House and Senate each presidential election y ear and lists all positions to which political appointments canbe made. Appointment Types: Career Appointments Most SES positions, including all career reserved positions and most generalpositions, are filled through career appointment. The requirements for a merit staffing process apply to all career appointments to the SES regardless of whether the underlying position is career reserved or general. The process for career appointments is generally as follows: the agency advertises theposition; candidates submit applications; the agency's rating panel reviews and ranks candidates; the agency's Executive Resources Board recommends thebest qualified candidates; the appointing authority selects a candidate and certifies that he or she meets the qualifications for the SES and the position; the agency submits the candidate's application package to an OPM-adminis tered Qualifications Review Board for certification; and, if approved, the agency appoints the candidate to theposition. Agencies may also have some ability to reinstatea former career SES member orhire an individual directly froman SES candidate development programif certain conditions are met. Career appointees typically s erve a one-year probationary period and, following theconclusion of the period, may be removed fromthe SES only forcause or poor performance. https://crs rept

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