II 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2249 

To provide for the reform of the Senior Executive Service. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 28, 2012 

Mr. AKAKA introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To provide for the reform of the Senior Executive Service. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Senior Executive Service Reform Act of 2012’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

TITLE I—RESTORATION OF CAREER LEADERSHIP 

Sec. 101. Senior Executive Service agency appointments. 

Sec. 102. Career reserved position designation for certain administrative or 

management positions. 

TITLE II—SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE PAY AND PERFORMANCE 

MANAGEMENT IMPROVEMENT 


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Sec. 201. Annual adjustment for senior executives and other senior employees 

at the fully successful level or higher. 

Sec. 202. Inclusion of executive performance awards and bonuses in basic pay 

for retirement annuities. 

Sec. 203. Certification of agency performance appraisal systems. 

Sec. 204. Transparency of ratings for performance appraisals and rating reductions of senior executives. 

Sec. 205. Transparency of Senior Executive Service rankings and pay. 

Sec. 206. Effective dates. 

TITLE III—SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE CAREER DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 301. Senior Executive Service Resource Office. 

Sec. 302. Senior Executive Service executive development plans. 

Sec. 303. Senior executive onboarding programs. 

Sec. 304. Senior Executive Service rotation programs. 

Sec. 305. Effective date. 

TITLE IV—SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE DIVERSITY ASSURANCE 

Sec. 401. Career appointments. 

Sec. 402. Encouraging a more diverse Senior Executive Service. 

1 TITLE I—RESTORATION OF 

2 CAREER LEADERSHIP 

3 SEC. 101. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE AGENCY APPOINT4 MENTS. 

5 Section 3134 of title 5, United States Code, is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (b)— 

8 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(b)’’; and 

9 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(2) The total number of Senior Executive Service 

11 positions used to determine the 10-percent limitation 

12 under paragraph (1) for available positions for noncareer 

13 appointees shall be based on filled Senior Executive Serv14 ice positions at the start of each fiscal year, not total au15 thorized positions.’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (d)(1), by striking ‘‘25 per2 cent’’ and inserting ‘‘15 percent’’; 

3 (3) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub4 section (f); and 

5 (4) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(e)(1) The total number of Senior Executive Service 

8 positions used to determine the 15-percent limitation 

9 under subsection (d)(1) for available positions for non10 career appointees shall be based on filled Senior Executive 

11 Service positions at the start of each fiscal year, not total 

12 authorized positions.’’. 

13 SEC. 102. CAREER RESERVED POSITION DESIGNATION FOR 

14 CERTAIN ADMINISTRATIVE OR MANAGEMENT 

15 POSITIONS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 14 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘§ 1403. Career reserved position designation for cer20 tain administrative or management posi21 tions 

22 ‘‘(a)(1) The head of each agency referred to under 

23 paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 901(b) of title 31 shall 

24 establish a position which is, or is comparable to, an as25 sistant secretary for administration or management. 


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1 ‘‘(2) Each agency assistant secretary for administra2 tion or management, or incumbent of a comparable posi3 tion shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) be appointed in accordance with the law, 

5 or if no law provides for that appointment, by the 

6 head of the agency; 

7 ‘‘(B) be a member of the career Senior Execu8 tive Service; 

9 ‘‘(C) be appointed or designated, as applicable, 

10 from among individuals who possess demonstrated 

11 ability in general management of, and knowledge of, 

12 and extensive practical experience in areas such as 

13 procurement, human capital, information technology, 

14 and related matters; and 

15 ‘‘(D) perform such duties as the head of the 

16 agency shall prescribe. 

17 ‘‘(b) If the individual serving in any position of assist18 ant secretary or in any comparable position in an agency 

19 described under subsection (a) is not a career appointee 

20 as defined under section 3132(a)(4), the head of that 

21 agency shall appoint a career appointee to the position of 

22 the principal deputy to that assistant secretary or the offi23 cer in that comparable position. 

24 ‘‘(c) The head of each agency shall appoint a career 

25 appointee to the positions which entail direct responsibility 


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1 for agency-wide programs or functions in the following oc2 cupational disciplines: 

3 ‘‘(1) Acquisition. 

4 ‘‘(2) Information Technology. 

5 ‘‘(3) Human Resources.’’. 

6 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

7 The table of sections for chapter 14 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relat9 ing to section 1402 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 1403. Career reserved position designation for certain administrative or 

management positions.’’. 

10 (c) REGULATIONS.—The Office of Personnel Man11 agement shall prescribe regulations to carry out this sec12 tion. 

13 TITLE II—SENIOR EXECUTIVE 

14 SERVICE PAY AND PERFORM15 ANCE MANAGEMENT IM16 PROVEMENT 

17 SEC. 201. ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT FOR SENIOR EXECUTIVES 

18 AND OTHER SENIOR EMPLOYEES AT THE 

19 FULLY SUCCESSFUL LEVEL OR HIGHER. 

20 (a) PROHIBITION ON QUOTAS AND FORCED DIS21 TRIBUTIONS.—Section 4314 of title 5, United States 

22 Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) Any determination under this section shall be 

2 made without the use of quotas or forced distribution of 

3 ratings.’’. 

4 (b) PAY FOR CERTAIN SENIOR-LEVEL POSITIONS.— 

5 Section 5376(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

6 by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to paragraph (1), effective at 

8 the beginning of the first applicable pay period com9 mencing on or after the first day of the month in 

10 which an adjustment takes effect under section 5303 

11 in the rates of pay under the General Schedule, each 

12 rate of pay established under this section for posi13 tions within an agency shall be adjusted, in the case 

14 of an employee in such a position whose most recent 

15 performance appraisal rating is the equivalent of 

16 fully successful or higher, by the total average ad17 justment in rates of pay authorized by sections 5303 

18 and 5304. 

19 ‘‘(B) Subject to paragraph (1), subparagraph 

20 (A) of this paragraph shall not limit the authoriza21 tion of an annual adjustment based on performance 

22 or contribution to agency mission that is greater 

23 than the amount provided for in this section.’’. 


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1 (c) SETTING SENIOR EXECUTIVE PAY.—Section 

2 5383 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by strik3 ing subsection (c) and inserting the following: 

4 ‘‘(c)(1) Effective at the beginning of the first applica5 ble pay period commencing on or after the first day of 

6 the month in which an adjustment takes effect under sec7 tions 5303 and 5304 in the rates of pay under the General 

8 Schedule, each rate of pay established under this section 

9 for positions within an agency shall be adjusted, in the 

10 case of an employee in such a position whose most recent 

11 performance appraisal rating is the equivalent of fully suc12 cessful or higher, by the total average adjustment in rates 

13 of pay authorized by sections 5303 and 5304. 

14 ‘‘(2) Subject to paragraph (1) this subsection shall 

15 not limit the authorization of an annual adjustment based 

16 on performance or contribution to agency mission that is 

17 greater than the amount provided for in this section. 

18 ‘‘(3) This subsection shall comply with any require19 ment established under section 5382. 

20 ‘‘(4) Except as provided under paragraph (3), this 

21 subsection shall not limit the head of an agency from au22 thorizing an annual adjustment that is greater than the 

23 amount provided for in this section.’’. 


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1 (d) SETTING INDIVIDUAL SENIOR-LEVEL PAY.—Sec2 tion 5383(e) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

3 by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(3)(A) In this paragraph the term ‘covered ap5 pointee’ means— 

6 ‘‘(i) an appointee to a senior level position 

7 described under section 5376(a) (1) or (2); or 

8 ‘‘(ii) an appointee to the FBI–DEA Senior 

9 Executive Service established under section 

10 3151. 

11 ‘‘(B) Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply to cov12 ered appointees— 

13 ‘‘(i) by substituting ‘covered appointee’ for 

14 ‘career appointee’; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) by substituting ‘a career position as a 

16 covered appointee’ for ‘a career reserved posi17 tion in the Senior Executive Service’.’’. 

18 SEC. 202. INCLUSION OF EXECUTIVE PERFORMANCE 

19 AWARDS AND BONUSES IN BASIC PAY FOR 

20 RETIREMENT ANNUITIES. 

21 (a) DEFINITION OF BASIC PAY.—Section 8331(3) of 

22 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

23 (1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

24 after the semicolon; 


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1 (2) in the matter following subparagraph (H), 

2 by striking ‘‘subparagraphs (B) through (H)’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘subparagraphs (B) through (J)’’; and 

4 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (H) the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(I) with respect to a member of the Sen7 ior Executive Service, performance awards 

8 under section 5384; and 

9 ‘‘(J) with respect to a senior executive as 

10 defined under section 3132(a)(3), a member of 

11 the FBI–DEA Senior Executive Service estab12 lished under section 3151, and senior level posi13 tions compensated under section 5376— 

14 ‘‘(i) agency awards under section 

15 4503; 

16 ‘‘(ii) performance awards under sec17 tion 4505a; 

18 ‘‘(iii) bonuses under section 5754; and 

19 ‘‘(iv) bonuses under section 5753;’’. 

20 (b) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by this 

21 section only apply to bonuses and awards granted to an 

22 employee after the date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 203. CERTIFICATION OF AGENCY PERFORMANCE AP2 PRAISAL SYSTEMS. 

3 Section 5307(d)(3) of title 5, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and the 

6 Office of Management and Budget jointly’’; 

7 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘not to ex8 ceed 24 months’’ and inserting ‘‘of 36 months’’; 

9 (3) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘, with the 

10 concurrence of the Office of Management and Budg11 et,’’; and 

12 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(D)(i) The Office of Personnel Management 

14 may annually review the information provided by 

15 agencies under section 4314(c)(6) to determine 

16 whether the agency meets minimum certification re17 quirements. 

18 ‘‘(ii) At the discretion of the Office, the Office 

19 may review the certification of an agency and re20 quest the agency to submit information to support 

21 certification at any time during the certification pe22 riod. 

23 ‘‘(E)(i) An agency that has received certifi24 cation from the Office of Personnel Management 

25 shall not make changes to that agency’s performance 


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1 appraisal system without approval from the Office of 

2 Personnel Management. 

3 ‘‘(ii) The Office of Personnel Management shall 

4 review annual performance plans to ensure agency 

5 compliance and implementation. 

6 ‘‘(F) The termination of certification during the 

7 certification period shall be preceded by— 

8 ‘‘(i) notification from the Office of Per9 sonnel Management to an agency about what 

10 the agency is required to do to continue its cer11 tification; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) a reasonable period of time following 

13 the notification referred to under clause (i) to 

14 take corrective action.’’. 

15 SEC. 204. TRANSPARENCY OF RATINGS FOR PERFORMANCE 

16 APPRAISALS AND RATING REDUCTIONS OF 

17 SENIOR EXECUTIVES. 

18 Section 4314(c) of title 5, United States Code, is 

19 amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(1)’’; and 

22 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(B) When recommending a lower rating than was 

24 assigned in the initial appraisal of a senior executive’s per25 formance, a written explanation providing reasons for the 


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1 lower rating shall be provided to the senior executive by 

2 the board not later than the date the recommendation is 

3 made.’’; 

4 (2) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘Not later 

5 than 30 days after an appraisal and rating is made 

6 for a senior executive, the agency shall provide the 

7 senior executive with notification of that appraisal 

8 and rating, including, as applicable, a written expla9 nation of reasons why a lower rating is assigned 

10 than is recommended by the board.’’ after the pe11 riod; and 

12 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(6)(A)(i) Each agency, having 10 or more ca14 reer appointees, shall annually publish on the agency 

15 website the overall number of ratings awarded to 

16 members of the Senior Executive Service at each 

17 performance rating level, including— 

18 ‘‘(I) the average overall salary adjustment 

19 at each level; 

20 ‘‘(II) the minimum and maximum adjust21 ment at each level; 

22 ‘‘(III) the percentage of senior executives 

23 at each rating level who received the minimum 

24 and maximum salary adjustment; and 


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1 ‘‘(IV) the number of senior executives who 

2 received performance awards under section 

3 5384 and the average amount of those awards. 

4 ‘‘(ii) Rating levels and salary adjustment infor5 mation under clause (i) shall be provided separately 

6 for career and noncareer senior executives in agen7 cies having 10 or more noncareer senior executives. 

8 ‘‘(B) Each agency shall annually publish on the 

9 agency website an internal plan which describes a 

10 system for determining Senior Executive Service sal11 ary and bonus amounts.’’. 

12 SEC. 205. TRANSPARENCY OF SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE 

13 RANKINGS AND PAY. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 43 of title 5, United 

15 States Code, is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating section 4315 as section 

17 4316; 

18 (2) in section 4312(c)(3), by striking ‘‘4315’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘4316’’; and 

20 (3) by inserting after section 4314 the fol21 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘§ 4315. Survey on the transparency of Senior Execu2 tive Service performance management 

3 and pay 

4 ‘‘In consultation with the organization representing 

5 the largest number of senior executives, the Merit Systems 

6 Protection Board shall every 2 years conduct and publish 

7 the results of a survey of career appointees relating to— 

8 ‘‘(1) the level of transparency and availability of 

9 agency performance appraisal systems and com10 pensation policies to career appointees; 

11 ‘‘(2) the use or perceived use of quotas or 

12 forced distribution in the application of the agency 

13 performance appraisal system; 

14 ‘‘(3) any actual or perceived irregularities with 

15 the administration of the Senior Executive Service 

16 performance appraisal system; and 

17 ‘‘(4) such other factors as the Merit Systems 

18 Protection Board shall determine are necessary and 

19 appropriate.’’. 

20 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

21 The table of sections for chapter 43 of title 5, United 

22 States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to 

23 section 4315 and inserting the following: 

‘‘Sec. 4315. Survey on the transparency of Senior Executive Service performance management and pay. 

‘‘Sec. 4316. Regulations.’’. 


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1 SEC. 206. EFFECTIVE DATES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided under sub3 section (b), this title shall take effect 180 days after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act. 

5 (b) CERTIFICATION OF AGENCY PERFORMANCE AP6 PRAISAL SYSTEMS.—Section 203 shall take effect on the 

7 date of enactment of this Act. 

8 TITLE III—SENIOR EXECUTIVE 

9 SERVICE CAREER DEVELOP10 MENT 

11 SEC. 301. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE RESOURCE OFFICE. 

12 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

13 (1) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

14 the Office of Personnel Management; 

15 (2) the term ‘‘Senior Executive Service’’ has the 

16 meaning given under section 2101a of title 5, United 

17 States Code; 

18 (3) the terms ‘‘agency’’ and ‘‘career reserved 

19 position’’ have the meanings given under section 

20 3132 of title 5, United States Code; and 

21 (4) the term ‘‘SES Resource Office’’ means the 

22 Senior Executive Service Resource Office established 

23 under subsection (b). 

24 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director shall establish 

25 within the Office of Personnel Management an office to 

26 be known as the Senior Executive Service Resource Office. 


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1 (c) MISSION.—The mission of the SES Resource Of2 fice shall be to— 

3 (1) improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and 

4 productivity of the Senior Executive Service through 

5 policy formulation and oversight; 

6 (2) advance the professionalism of the Senior 

7 Executive Service; and 

8 (3) seek to achieve a Senior Executive Service 

9 reflective of the Nation’s diversity. 

10 (d) FUNCTIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The functions of the SES 

12 Resource Office are to— 

13 (A) make recommendations to the Director 

14 with respect to regulations; and 

15 (B) provide guidance to agencies, con16 cerning the structure, management, and diverse 

17 composition of the Senior Executive Service. 

18 (2) SPECIFIC FUNCTIONS.—In order to carry 

19 out the purposes of this section, the SES Resource 

20 Office shall— 

21 (A) take such actions as the SES Resource 

22 Office considers necessary to manage and pro23 mote an efficient, elite, and diverse corps of 

24 senior executives by providing oversight of the 

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1 tion, and candidate development of the Senior 

2 Executive Service, including the Senior Execu3 tive Service Federal Candidate Development 

4 Program; 

5 (B) be responsible for coordinating, pro6 moting, and monitoring programs for the ad7 vancement and training of senior executives, in8 cluding mentoring programs; 

9 (C) be responsible for the policy develop10 ment, management, and oversight of the Senior 

11 Executive Service pay and performance man12 agement system; 

13 (D) develop standards for certification of 

14 each agency’s Senior Executive Service per15 formance management system and evaluate all 

16 agency applications for certification; 

17 (E) provide oversight of, and guidance to, 

18 agency executive resources boards; 

19 (F) be responsible for the administration 

20 of the qualifications review board; 

21 (G) establish and maintain annual statis22 tics (in a form that renders such statistics use23 ful to appointing authorities and candidates) 

24 on— 


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1 (i) the total number of career reserved 

2 positions at each agency; 

3 (ii) the total number of vacant career 

4 reserved positions at each agency; 

5 (iii) the amount of time it takes to 

6 hire a candidate into a career reserved po7 sition; 

8 (iv) the number of individuals who 

9 have been certified in accordance with sec10 tion 3393(c) of title 5, United States Code, 

11 and the composition of that group of indi12 viduals with regard to race, ethnicity, sex, 

13 age, and individuals with disabilities; 

14 (v) the composition of the Senior Ex15 ecutive Service with regard to race, eth16 nicity, sex, age, and individuals with dis17 abilities; 

18 (vi) the composition of executive re19 sources boards with regard to race, eth20 nicity, sex, and individuals with disabilities; 

21 and 

22 (vii) the composition of qualifications 

23 review boards with regard to race, eth24 nicity, sex, and individuals with disabilities; 


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1 (H) make available to the public through 

2 the official public Internet site of the Office of 

3 Personnel Management, the data collected 

4 under subparagraph (G); 

5 (I) conduct a continuing program for the 

6 recruitment of women, members of racial and 

7 ethnic minority groups, and individuals with 

8 disabilities for Senior Executive Service posi9 tions, with special efforts directed at recruiting 

10 from educational institutions, professional asso11 ciations, and other sources; 

12 (J) advise agencies on the best practices 

13 for an agency in utilizing or consulting with an 

14 agency’s equal employment or diversity office or 

15 official (if the agency has such an office or offi16 cial) with regard to the agency’s Senior Execu17 tive Service appointments process; and 

18 (K) administer an online survey to all indi19 viduals leaving a position in the Senior Execu20 tive Service to better understand the reasons 

21 for the departure— 

22 (i) which shall— 

23 (I) at a minimum request infor24 mation regarding— 


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1 (aa) the reason for depar2 ture; 

3 (bb) plans for subsequent 

4 employment; and 

5 (cc) suggestions for improv6 ing the effectiveness of senior ex7 ecutives within the agency in 

8 which the individual serves and 

9 the Federal Government; and 

10 (II) be incorporated into strategic 

11 planning by agencies, in coordination 

12 with the Office of Personnel Manage13 ment; and 

14 (ii) the results of which shall be made 

15 available to the public on a semi-annual 

16 basis through the official public Internet 

17 site of the Office of Personnel Manage18 ment. 

19 (e) PROTECTION OF INDIVIDUALLY IDENTIFIABLE

20 INFORMATION.—For purposes of subparagraphs (H) and 

21 (K)(ii) of subsection (d)(2), the SES Resource Office shall 

22 combine data for any agency that is not named in section 

23 901(b) of chapter 31, United States Code, to protect indi24 vidually identifiable information. 


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1 (f) COOPERATION OF AGENCIES.—The head of each 

2 agency shall provide the Office of Personnel Management 

3 with such information as the SES Resource Office may 

4 require in order to carry out subsection (d)(2)(G). 

5 SEC. 302. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE EXECUTIVE DEVEL6 OPMENT PLANS. 

7 (a) EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT PLANS.—Section 

8 3396 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

10 subsections (d) and (e), respectively; and 

11 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(c)(1) Upon appointment into the Senior Executive 

14 Service, each senior executive shall create an executive de15 velopment plan that includes continuing development, 

16 training, and mentoring goals. The plan shall be submitted 

17 to the head of the agency for approval. Each senior execu18 tive shall update their executive development plan on a 

19 regular basis. 

20 ‘‘(2) The Office shall establish standards for multi21 year executive development plans.’’. 

22 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

23 Section 3151(a)(7) of title 5, United States Code, is 

24 amended by striking ‘‘section 3396(c)’’ and inserting ‘‘sec25 tion 3396(d)’’. 


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1 SEC. 303. SENIOR EXECUTIVE ONBOARDING PROGRAMS. 

2 Section 3396 of title 5, United States Code, (as 

3 amended by section 302) is further amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as 

5 subsections (e) and (f), respectively; and 

6 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(d)(1) In consultation with the Office of Personnel 

9 Management, the head of each agency shall oversee the 

10 establishment of an onboarding program for newly ap11 pointed career appointees and noncareer appointees. 

12 ‘‘(2)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), not 

13 later than 180 days after the date of an initial appoint14 ment, each career appointee or noncareer appointee shall 

15 be required to successfully complete an onboarding pro16 gram established under this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(B)(i) A position described under section 5312 or 

18 5313 may be exempt from the requirement under subpara19 graph (A). 

20 ‘‘(ii) In addition to positions described in clause (i), 

21 the head of an agency may exempt appointees in very sen22 ior positions at the agency from the requirement under 

23 subparagraph (A). 

24 ‘‘(C) The Office of Personnel Management shall es25 tablish criteria for determining which positions are very 

26 senior for purposes of this paragraph. 


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1 ‘‘(3) Each agency onboarding program shall in2 clude— 

3 ‘‘(A) an overview of the mission, priorities, and 

4 strategic plan of the agency; 

5 ‘‘(B) the role and responsibilities for each new 

6 appointee; 

7 ‘‘(C) a review of individual performance objec8 tives and goal setting; 

9 ‘‘(D) goals for mentoring candidates for the 

10 Senior Executive Service; 

11 ‘‘(E) an overview of the rules and regulations 

12 governing the Senior Executive Service; and 

13 ‘‘(F) other components the head of the agency 

14 or the Office determines necessary.’’. 

15 SEC. 304. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE ROTATION PRO16 GRAMS. 

17 Section 3396 of title 5, United States Code, (as 

18 amended by sections 301 and 302) is further amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub20 section (g); and 

21 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(e)(1)(A) In consultation with the Office of Per24 sonnel Management, an agency may establish a program 

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1 sector rotation programs for career appointees and poten2 tial career appointees in the Senior Executive Service, sen3 ior positions, and managers showing leadership potential. 

4 The rotation programs established under this section shall 

5 adhere to the principles of the Senior Executive Service 

6 by strengthening collaboration and building interagency 

7 relationships. 

8 ‘‘(B)(i) In consultation with the Chief Privacy Officer 

9 of the Office of Personnel Management, the Office shall 

10 establish a centralized database for agencies establishing 

11 rotation programs under subparagraph (A) that— 

12 ‘‘(I) contains information on each senior execu13 tive as defined under section 3132, including infor14 mation on education, experience, training, and pro15 fessional development interests; and 

16 ‘‘(II) shall serve as a profile registry to be used 

17 by agencies and senior executives in making rotation 

18 decisions. 

19 ‘‘(ii) The Office shall prescribe regulations to carry 

20 out this subparagraph, including regulations to establish 

21 the database and provide for oversight, management, and 

22 administration of the database. 

23 ‘‘(C) Each agency shall allow a senior executive the 

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1 ment that is not a reassignment or transfer without a loss 

2 of status and seniority. 

3 ‘‘(2) Senior Executive Service rotations may be ac4 complished through the use of— 

5 ‘‘(A) extended details; 

6 ‘‘(B) task force assignments and interagency 

7 projects; 

8 ‘‘(C) sabbaticals to the private sector in accord9 ance with subsection (c); 

10 ‘‘(D) programs established under the Intergov11 ernmental Personnel Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4701 

12 note); 

13 ‘‘(E) the Information Technology Exchange 

14 Program; or 

15 ‘‘(F) other exchange programs as established by 

16 agencies. 

17 ‘‘(3) Any career appointee in an agency may be 

18 granted a detail or sabbatical under this subsection if the 

19 appointee agrees, as a condition of accepting the detail 

20 or sabbatical, to serve in the civil service upon the comple21 tion of the detail or sabbatical for a period equal to the 

22 period of the detail or sabbatical. 

23 ‘‘(4) The Office shall publish guidelines for specific 

24 objectives and desired results that should be obtained by 

25 a senior executive who receives a rotation assignment. 


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1 ‘‘(5)(A) Except as provided under subparagraph (B), 

2 an agency may not require participation in a rotation pro3 gram as a precondition for an appointment to a career 

4 reserved position as defined under section 3132. 

5 ‘‘(B) Subparagraph (A) shall not apply if the agency, 

6 under regulations prescribed by the Office— 

7 ‘‘(i) provides adequate notice of a requirement 

8 to participate in a rotation program to candidates 

9 within the agency; 

10 ‘‘(ii) makes opportunities under a rotation pro11 gram available to those candidates; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) provides a phase-in period for candidates 

13 to meet the rotation requirement. 

14 ‘‘(C) The Office shall prescribe regulations to carry 

15 out this paragraph.’’. 

16 SEC. 305. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

17 This title shall take effect 180 days after the date 

18 of enactment of this Act. 

19 TITLE IV—SENIOR EXECUTIVE 

20 SERVICE DIVERSITY ASSUR21 ANCE 

22 SEC. 401. CAREER APPOINTMENTS. 

23 (a) PROMOTING DIVERSITY IN THE CAREER AP24 POINTMENTS PROCESS.—Section 3393(b) of title 5, 

25 United States Code, is amended by inserting after the first 


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1 sentence the following: ‘‘In establishing an executive re2 sources board, the head of the agency shall, to the extent 

3 practicable, ensure diversity of the board and of any sub4 group thereof or other evaluation panel related to the 

5 merit staffing process for career appointees, by including 

6 members of racial and ethnic minority groups, women, and 

7 individuals with disabilities.’’. 

8 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year after the 

9 date of the enactment of this Act, the Director shall pro10 mulgate regulations to implement subsection (a). 

11 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

12 of the enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit 

13 to the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern14 mental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Over15 sight and Government Reform of the House of Represent16 atives a report evaluating agency efforts to improve diver17 sity in executive resources boards based on the informa18 tion collected by the SES Resource Office under section 

19 301(d)(2)(G) (vi) and (vii). 

20 SEC. 402. ENCOURAGING A MORE DIVERSE SENIOR EXECU21 TIVE SERVICE. 

22 (a) SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE DIVERSITY

23 PLANS.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act, each agency, 


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1 in consultation with the Office of Personnel Manage2 ment and the Chief Human Capital Officers Council, 

3 shall submit to the Office of Personnel Management 

4 a plan to enhance and maximize opportunities for 

5 the advancement and appointment of minorities, 

6 women, and individuals with disabilities in the agen7 cy to the Senior Executive Service. Agency plans 

8 shall be reflected in the strategic human capital 

9 plan. 

10 (2) CONTENTS.—Agency plans shall address 

11 how the agency is identifying and eliminating bar12 riers that impair the ability of minorities, women, 

13 and individuals with disabilities to obtain appoint14 ments to the Senior Executive Service and any ac15 tions the agency is taking to provide advancement 

16 opportunities, including— 

17 (A) conducting outreach to minorities, 

18 women, and individuals within the agency and 

19 outside the agency; 

20 (B) establishing and maintaining training 

21 and education programs to foster leadership de22 velopment; 

23 (C) identifying career enhancing opportuni24 ties for agency employees; 


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1 (D) assessing internal availability of can2 didates for Senior Executive Service positions; 

3 and 

4 (E) conducting an inventory of employee 

5 skills and addressing current and potential gaps 

6 in skills and the distribution of skills. 

7 (3) UPDATE OF AGENCY PLANS.—Agency plans 

8 shall be updated at least every 2 years during the 

9 10 years following enactment of this Act. An agency 

10 plan shall be reviewed by the Office of Personnel 

11 Management and, if determined to provide sufficient 

12 assurances, procedures, and commitments to provide 

13 adequate opportunities for the advancement and ap14 pointment of minorities, women, and individuals 

15 with disabilities to the Senior Executive Service, 

16 shall be approved by such Office. An agency may, in 

17 updating its plan, submit to the Office of Personnel 

18 Management an assessment of the impacts of the 

19 plan. 

20 (b) SUMMARY AND EVALUATION.—Not later than 

21 180 days after the deadline for the submission of any re22 port or update under subsection (a), the Director shall 

23 transmit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

24 Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

25 on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of 


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1 Representatives a report summarizing and evaluating the 

2 agency plans or updates (as the case may be) so sub3 mitted. 

4 (c) COORDINATION.—The Office of Personnel Man5 agement shall, in carrying out subsection (a), evaluate ex6 isting requirements under section 717 of the Civil Rights 

7 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16) and section 501 of the 

8 Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 791) and determine 

9 how agency reporting can be performed so as to be con10 sistent with, but not duplicative of, such sections and any 

11 other similar requirements. 

Æ 


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