Title: Reduce Bureaucracy Act
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Reduce Bureaucracy Act
This bill prohibits certain political appointees from serving in career positions in federal agencies.
Specifically, the bill prohibits current and former presidential appointees, cabinet officials, and other senior officials from serving in career-appointment (i.e., permanent) positions in executive agencies without the approval of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Agencies must certify that the appointment is necessary in order for the agency to meet its mission and the OPM must determine that the appointment process was fair, open, and free from political influence in order to approve a request. OPM must also transmit approved requests to specified congressional committees before issuing final approval to agencies.
The bill also prohibits political appointees from serving in career positions for two years after their departure, and directs the OPM and the Office of Management and Budget to take any actions necessary so as to limit the number of political appointees to 2,000.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1619 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1619

     To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a 2-year 
 prohibition on employment in a career civil service position for any 
          former political appointee, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 13, 2021

   Ms. Ernst introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for a 2-year 
 prohibition on employment in a career civil service position for any 
          former political appointee, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reduce Bureaucracy Act''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON EMPLOYMENT OF POLITICAL APPOINTEES IN CAREER 
              CIVIL SERVICE POSITIONS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 31 of title 5, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 3117. Employment of political appointees
    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `agency' has the meaning given the term 
        `Executive agency' in section 105;
            ``(2) the term `Associate Director' means the Associate 
        Director for Merit System Accountability and Compliance at the 
        Office of Personnel Management;
            ``(3) the term `career position' means--
                    ``(A) a position in the competitive service filled 
                by career or career-conditional appointment;
                    ``(B) a position in the excepted service filled by 
                an appointment of equivalent tenure as a position 
                described in subparagraph (A);
                    ``(C) a career reserved position, as defined in 
                section 3132(a)(8), in the Senior Executive Service; or
                    ``(D) a general position in the Senior Executive 
                Service when filled by a career appointee, as defined 
                in section 3132(a)(4);
            ``(4) the term `participated' means an action taken as an 
        officer or employee through decision, approval, disapproval, 
        recommendation, the rendering of advice, investigation, or 
        other such action;
            ``(5) the term `particular matter' includes any 
        investigation, application, request for a ruling or 
        determination, rulemaking, contract, controversy, claim, 
        charge, accusation, arrest, or judicial or other proceeding;
            ``(6) the term `political appointee' means an individual 
        serving in an appointment of any duration to a political 
        position; and
            ``(7) the term `political position' means--
                    ``(A) a position with respect to which appointment 
                is made--
                            ``(i) by the President; or
                            ``(ii) by the President, by and with the 
                        advice and consent of the Senate;
                    ``(B) a position that has been excepted from the 
                competitive service by reason of its confidential, 
                policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating 
                character;
                    ``(C) a position described in sections 5312 through 
                5316 (relating to the Executive Schedule); and
                    ``(D) a general position in the Senior Executive 
                Service during such time as it is filled by--
                            ``(i) a noncareer appointee, as defined in 
                        section 3132(a)(7); or
                            ``(ii) a limited term appointee or a 
                        limited emergency appointee, as defined in 
                        paragraphs (5) and (6) of section 3132(a), 
                        respectively, who is serving under a political 
                        appointment.
    ``(b) Appointment Approval Required.--
            ``(1) In general.--The head of an agency may not appoint 
        any individual described in paragraph (5) to a career position 
        within the agency without receiving prior written approval from 
        the Associate Director, consistent with the requirements of 
        this subsection.
            ``(2) Request.--The head of an agency shall submit to the 
        Associate Director a request to approve the appointment of any 
        individual described in paragraph (5) to a career position, 
        which shall include certification by the head of the agency to 
        the Associate Director that the appointment is necessary for 
        the agency to meet the mission of the agency.
            ``(3) Review and determination.--The Associate Director--
                    ``(A) shall--
                            ``(i) review any request received under 
                        paragraph (2); and
                            ``(ii) deny any request described in clause 
                        (i), unless the Associate Director determines 
                        that the appointment process with respect to 
                        the request was fair, open, and free from 
                        political influence; and
                    ``(B) may, if the Associate Director makes a 
                determination described in subparagraph (A)(ii), 
                approve a request submitted under paragraph (2).
            ``(4) Notification to congress.--With respect to any 
        request approved under paragraph (3)(B), the Associate Director 
        shall, not less than 5 days before the date on which the 
        Associate Director provides approval to the head of the 
        requesting agency, provide to the Committee on Homeland 
        Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the 
        Committee on Oversight and Reform of the House of 
        Representatives the agency certification under paragraph (2) 
        and the rationale of the applicable agency head with respect to 
        that certification.
            ``(5) Covered individuals.--An individual described in this 
        paragraph is--
                    ``(A) a political appointee;
                    ``(B) a former political appointee who held any 
                political position during the 5-year period before the 
                date on which the applicable request described in 
                paragraph (2) is submitted; or
                    ``(C) at the discretion of the Director of the 
                Office of Personnel Management, a former political 
                appointee who held any political position before the 5-
                year period described in subparagraph (B).
    ``(c) Restriction on Appointment.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or 
        regulation, during the 2-year period following the date on 
        which a political appointee leaves or departs from a political 
        position, that appointee may not be appointed to any career 
        position in the civil service.
            ``(2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a 
        political appointee who has not personally and substantially 
        participated in any particular matter while employed in a 
        political position.
    ``(d) Application.--Nothing in this section may be construed to 
restrict the appointment of an individual who is--
            ``(1) entitled to reinstatement under section 3593(b); or
            ``(2) eligible for reinstatement under section 3593(a).''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subchapter I of 
chapter 31 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding after 
the item relating to section 3116 the following:

``3117. Employment of political appointees.''.
    (c) Application.--
            (1) Appointment requests.--Section 3117(b) of title 5, 
        United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply to 
        any appointment or request for appointment described in such 
        section submitted to the Associate Director for Merit System 
        Accountability and Compliance after the date of enactment of 
        this Act.
            (2) Limitation on appointments.--Section 3117(c) of title 
        5, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply 
        to any individual who leaves or departs from a political 
        position (as that term is defined in section 3117(a) of such 
        title, as added by such subsection) after the date of enactment 
        of this Act.
    (d) Regulations Required.--
            (1) In general.--The Director of the Office of Personnel 
        Management shall issue regulations necessary to carry out this 
        section and the amendments made by this section.
            (2) Contents.--The regulations issued under paragraph (1) 
        shall include guidance regarding the definition of the term 
        ``personally and substantially participated in any particular 
        matter'' in section 3117(c)(2) of title 5, United States Code, 
        as added by subsection (a), consistent with section 2641.201 of 
        title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, and the definitions of 
        applicable terms in section 3117(a) of title 5, United States 
        Code, as added by subsection (a).

SEC. 3. REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF POLITICAL APPOINTEES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the terms ``limited term appointee'', ``limited 
        emergency appointee'', and ``noncareer appointee'' have the 
        meanings given the terms in section 3132(a) of title 5, United 
        States Code; and
            (2) the term ``political appointee'' means any individual 
        who--
                    (A) is employed in a position on the Executive 
                Schedule under sections 5312 through 5316 of title 5, 
                United States Code;
                    (B) is a limited term appointee, a limited 
                emergency appointee, or a noncareer appointee; or
                    (C) is employed in a position in the executive 
                branch of the Federal Government of a confidential or 
                policy-determining character under Schedule C of 
                subpart C of part 213 of title 5, Code of Federal 
                Regulations, or any successor regulations.
    (b) Limitation.--The President, acting through the Director of the 
Office of Management and Budget and the Director of the Office of 
Personnel Management, shall take such actions as necessary to ensure 
that the total number of political appointees shall not exceed 2,000.
    (c) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date 
that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.
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