II 

Calendar No. 299 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1887 

[Report No. 115–205] 

To grant expedited hiring authority to the head of an agency to appoint 

college graduates and post-secondary students. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 28, 2017 

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

referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

FEBRUARY 5, 2018 

Reported by Mr. JOHNSON, with amendments 

[Omit the part struck through and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To grant expedited hiring authority to the head of an agency 

to appoint college graduates and post-secondary students. 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Direct Hire of Stu5 dents and Recent Graduates Act of 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. EXPEDITED HIRING AUTHORITY FOR COLLEGE 

2 GRADUATES AND POST-SECONDARY STU3 DENTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 

5 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘§ 3115. Expedited hiring authority for college grad8 uates; competitive service 

9 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 ‘‘(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means 

11 the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. 

12 ‘‘(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

13 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

14 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 

15 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

16 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of an agency may 

18 appoint, without regard to any provision of sections 

19 3309 through 3319 and 3330, a qualified individual 

20 to a position in the competitive service classified in 

21 a professional or administrative occupational cat22 egory at the GS–11 level, or an equivalent level, or 

23 below. 

24 ‘‘(2) RESTRICTIONS.—An appointment under 

25 paragraph (1) shall be made in accordance with reg26 ulations prescribed by the Director. 


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1 ‘‘(c) QUALIFICATIONS FOR APPOINTMENT.—The 

2 head of an agency may make an appointment under sub3 section (b) only if the individual being appointed— 

4 ‘‘(1) has received a baccalaureate or graduate 

5 degree from an institution of higher education; 

6 ‘‘(2) applies for the position— 

7 ‘‘(A) not later than 2 years after the date 

8 on which the individual being appointed re9 ceived the degree described in paragraph (1); or 

10 ‘‘(B) in the case of an individual who has 

11 completed a period of not less than 4 years of 

12 obligated service in a uniformed service, not 

13 later than 2 years after the date of the dis14 charge or release of the individual from that 

15 service; and 

16 ‘‘(3) meets each minimum qualification stand17 ard prescribed by the Director for the position to 

18 which the individual is being appointed. 

19 ‘‘(d) PUBLIC NOTICE AND ADVERTISING.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of an agency 

21 making an appointment under subsection (b) shall 

22 publicly advertise positions under this section. 

23 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out para24 graph (1), the head of an agency shall— 

25 ‘‘(A) adhere to merit system principles; 


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1 ‘‘(B) advertise positions in a manner that 

2 provides for diverse and qualified applicants; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(C) ensure potential applicants have ap5 propriate information relevant to the positions 

6 available. 

7 ‘‘(e) LIMITATION ON APPOINTMENTS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2), the total number of employees that the 

10 head of an agency may appoint under this section 

11 during a fiscal year may not exceed the number 

12 equal to 15 percent of the number of individuals 

13 that the agency head appointed during the previous 

14 fiscal year to a position in the competitive service 

15 classified in a professional or administrative occupa16 tional category, at the GS–11 level, or an equivalent 

17 level, or below, under a competitive examining proce18 dure. 

19 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Under a regulation pre20 scribed under subsection (f), the Director may estab21 lish a lower limit on the number of individuals that 

22 may be appointed under paragraph (1) of this sub23 section during a fiscal year based on any factor the 

24 Director considers appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

2 the date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students and 

3 Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the Director shall issue 

4 interim regulations, with an opportunity for comment, for 

5 the administration of this section. 

6 ‘‘(g) REPORTING.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 

8 30 of each of the first 3 fiscal years beginning after 

9 the date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students 

10 and Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the head of an 

11 agency that makes an appointment under this sec12 tion shall submit to Congress a report assessing the 

13 impact of the use of the authority provided under 

14 this section during the fiscal year in which the re15 port is submitted. 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 30 

17 of each of the first 3 fiscal years beginning after the 

18 date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students and 

19 Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the head of an agency 

20 that makes an appointment under this section shall 

21 submit a report to— 

22 ‘‘(A) Congress that assesses the impact of 

23 the use of the authority provided under this sec24 tion during the fiscal year in which the report 

25 is submitted; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the Director that contains data that 

2 the Director considers necessary for the Director 

3 to assess the impact and effectiveness of the au4 thority described in subparagraph (A). 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—The head of an agency shall 

6 include in each report under paragraph (1)— 

7 ‘‘(A) the total number of individuals ap8 pointed by the agency under this section, as 

9 well as the number of such individuals who 

10 are— 

11 ‘‘(i) minorities or members of other 

12 underrepresented groups; or 

13 ‘‘(ii) veterans; 

14 ‘‘(B) recruitment sources; 

15 ‘‘(C) the total number of individuals ap16 pointed by the agency during the applicable fis17 cal year to a position in the competitive service 

18 classified in a professional or administrative oc19 cupational category at the GS–11 level, or an 

20 equivalent level, or below; and 

21 ‘‘(D) any additional data specified by the 

22 Director of the Office of Personnel Manage23 ment. 

24 ‘‘(3) SUBMISSION TO OFFICE OF PERSONNEL

25 MANAGEMENT.—Upon request of the Director of the 


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1 Office of Personnel Management, the head of an 

2 agency that submits a report to Congress under 

3 paragraph (1) shall submit a copy of the report to 

4 the Director. 

5 ‘‘(h) SPECIAL PROVISION REGARDING THE DEPART6 MENT OF DEFENSE.— 

7 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section shall 

8 preclude the Secretary of Defense from exercising 

9 any authority to appoint a recent graduate under 

10 section 1106 of the National Defense Authorization 

11 Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (10 U.S.C. note prec. 

12 1580), or any applicable successor statute. 

13 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Any regulations pre14 scribed by the Director for the administration of this 

15 section shall not apply to the Department of Defense 

16 during the period ending on the date on which the 

17 appointment authority of the Secretary of Defense 

18 under section 1106 of the National Defense Author19 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (10 U.S.C. note 

20 prec. 1580), or any applicable successor statute, ter21 minates. 

22 ‘‘§ 3116. Expedited hiring authority for post-sec23 ondary students; competitive service 

24 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 


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•S 1887 RS

1 ‘‘(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means 

2 the Director of the Office of Personnel Management. 

3 ‘‘(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

4 The term ‘institution of higher education’ has the 

5 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 

6 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 

7 ‘‘(3) STUDENT.—The term ‘student’ means an 

8 individual enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an 

9 institution of higher education who is pursuing a 

10 baccalaureate or graduate degree on at least a part11 time basis as determined by the institution of higher 

12 education. 

13 ‘‘(b) APPOINTMENT.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of an agency may 

15 make a time-limited appointment of a student, with16 out regard to any provision of sections 3309 through 

17 3319 and 3330, to a position in the competitive 

18 service at the GS–11 level, or an equivalent level, or 

19 below for which the student is qualified. 

20 ‘‘(2) RESTRICTIONS.—An appointment under 

21 paragraph (1) shall be made in accordance with reg22 ulations prescribed by the Director. 

23 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC NOTICE.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The head of an agency 

25 making an appointment under subsection (b) shall 


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1 publicly advertise positions available under this sec2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out para4 graph (1), the head of an agency shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) adhere to merit system principles; 

6 ‘‘(B) advertise positions in a manner that 

7 provides for diverse and qualified applicants; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(C) ensure potential applicants have ap10 propriate information relevant to the positions 

11 available. 

12 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON APPOINTMENTS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), the total number of students that the 

15 head of an agency may appoint under this section 

16 during a fiscal year may not exceed the number 

17 equal to 15 percent of the number of students that 

18 the agency head appointed during the previous fiscal 

19 year to a position in the competitive service at the 

20 GS–11 level, or an equivalent level, or below. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Under a regulation pre22 scribed under subsection (g), the Director may es23 tablish a lower limit on the number of students that 

24 may be appointed under paragraph (1) of this subVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:16 Feb 05, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1887.RS S1887

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1 section during a fiscal year based on any factor the 

2 Director considers appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(e) CONVERSION.—The head of an agency may, 

4 without regard to any provision of chapter 33 or any other 

5 provision of law relating to the examination, certification, 

6 and appointment of individuals in the competitive service, 

7 convert a student serving in an appointment under sub8 section (b) to a permanent appointment in the competitive 

9 service within the agency without further competition if 

10 the student— 

11 ‘‘(1) has completed the course of study leading 

12 to the baccalaureate or graduate degree; 

13 ‘‘(2) has completed not less than 640 hours of 

14 current continuous employment in an appointment 

15 under subsection (b); and 

16 ‘‘(3) meets the qualification standards for the 

17 position to which the student will be converted. 

18 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION.—The head of an agency shall, 

19 without regard to any provision of chapter 35 or 75, termi20 nate the appointment of a student appointed under sub21 section (b) upon completion of the designated academic 

22 course of study unless the student is selected for conver23 sion under subsection (e). 

24 ‘‘(g) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

25 the date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students and 


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•S 1887 RS

1 Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the Director shall issue 

2 interim regulations, with an opportunity for comment, for 

3 the administration of this section. 

4 ‘‘(h) REPORTING.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 

6 30 of each of the first 3 fiscal years beginning after 

7 the date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students 

8 and Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the head of an 

9 agency that makes an appointment under this sec10 tion shall submit to Congress a report assessing the 

11 impact of the use of the authority provided under 

12 this section during the fiscal year in which the re13 port is submitted. 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than September 30 

15 of each of the first 3 fiscal years beginning after the 

16 date of enactment of the Direct Hire of Students and 

17 Recent Graduates Act of 2017, the head of an agency 

18 that makes an appointment under this section shall 

19 submit a report to— 

20 ‘‘(A) Congress that assesses the impact of 

21 the use of the authority provided under this sec22 tion during the fiscal year in which the report 

23 is submitted; and 

24 ‘‘(B) the Director that contains data that 

25 the Director considers necessary for the Director 


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1 to assess the impact and effectiveness of the au2 thority described in subparagraph (A). 

3 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—The head of an agency shall 

4 include in each report under paragraph (1)— 

5 ‘‘(A) the total number of individuals ap6 pointed by the agency under this section, as 

7 well as the number of such individuals who 

8 are— 

9 ‘‘(i) minorities or members of other 

10 underrepresented groups; or 

11 ‘‘(ii) veterans; 

12 ‘‘(B) recruitment sources; 

13 ‘‘(C) the total number of individuals ap14 pointed by the agency during the applicable fis15 cal year to a position in the competitive service 

16 at the GS–11 level, or an equivalent level, or 

17 below; and 

18 ‘‘(D) any additional data specified by the 

19 Director of the Office of Personnel Manage20 ment. 

21 ‘‘(3) SUBMISSION TO OFFICE OF PERSONNEL

22 MANAGEMENT.—Upon request of the Director of the 

23 Office of Personnel Management, the head of an 

24 agency that submits a report to Congress under 


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1 paragraph (1) shall submit a copy of the report to 

2 the Director. 

3 ‘‘(i) SPECIAL PROVISION REGARDING THE DEPART4 MENT OF DEFENSE.— 

5 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this section shall 

6 preclude the Secretary of Defense from exercising 

7 any authority to appoint a post-secondary student 

8 under section 1106 of the National Defense Author9 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (10 U.S.C. note 

10 prec. 1580), or any applicable successor statute. 

11 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Any regulations pre12 scribed by the Director for the administration of this 

13 section shall not apply to the Department of Defense 

14 during the period ending on the date on which the 

15 appointment authority of the Secretary of Defense 

16 under section 1106 of the National Defense Author17 ization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (10 U.S.C. note 

18 prec. 1580), or any applicable successor statute, ter19 minates.’’. 

20 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENTS.—The table 

21 of sections for subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 5, United 

22 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

‘‘3115. Expedited hiring authority for college graduates; competitive service. 

‘‘3116. Expedited hiring authority for post-secondary students; competitive service.’’. 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 299 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1887 

[Report No. 115–205] 

A BILL 

To grant expedited hiring authority to the head of 

secondary students. an agency to appoint college graduates and postFEBRUARY 5, 2018 

Reported with amendments 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with BILLS