Chance to Compete Act of 2024

Bill: 118-s-59
Sponsor: Sen. Sinema, Kyrsten [I-AZ]
Introduced: 2023-01-24 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Census and government statistics
Computers and information technology
Congressional oversight
Employee hiring
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Internet, web applications, social media
Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
Performance measurement

Summary:
action_date: 2023-01-24
text: 

Chance to Compete Act of 2023

 
This bill modifies examination requirements and other components of the federal hiring process for positions in the competitive service.
 
Specifically, the bill provides that a qualifying examination includes a r&eacute;sum&eacute; review that is conducted by a subject matter expert. Additionally, beginning two years after the bill's enactment, the bill prohibits examinations from consisting solely of a self-assessment from an automated examination, a r&eacute;sum&eacute; review that is not conducted by a subject matter expert, or any other method of assessing an applicant's experience or education.
 
Agencies may use subject matter experts to develop position-specific technical assessments that allow applicants to demonstrate job-related skills, abilities, and knowledge; assessments may include structured interviews, work-related exercises, procedures to measure career-related qualifications and interests, or other similar assessments. The bill also allows agencies to establish talent teams to support and improve hiring practices.
 
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must create online platforms through which agencies may share and customize technical assessments and share the r&eacute;sum&eacute;s of qualifying applicants. The OPM must also create online platforms with information about the types of assessments used and hiring outcomes.

action_date: 2024-12-02
text: 

Chance to Compete Act of 2024

This bill requires federal agencies to use technical assessments to fill most positions in the competitive service.

Under the bill, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must develop and implement a plan for transitioning to using technical assessments for hiring into competitive service positions unless the hiring agency certifies that it is impracticable. Technical assessments must be developed by subject matter experts within each hiring agency and allow for candidates to demonstrate job-related skills and knowledge; however, they may not include an occupational questionnaire. An agency may determine that the use of a technical assessment to assess applicants for a position in the competitive service is not practicable and, instead, use an occupational questionnaire. (An occupational questionnaire is an evaluation system in which applicants self-rate their training and experience and that is commonly delivered through an automated system such as USAJobs.)

OPM must also study and report to Congress regarding the feasibility of examining agencies sharing technical assessments and the development of an online platform to be used by the agencies.

The OPM plan must be provided to Congress within 18 months after the bill's enactment and implemented within three years following the bill's enactment. During the three-year period beginning on the date of enactment of this bill, technical assessments must be preferred by hiring agencies. 

action_date: 2024-12-23
text: 

Chance to Compete Act of 2024

This act requires federal agencies to use technical assessments to fill most positions in the competitive service. Under the act, a technical assessment is a tool relevant and specific to a position for which it is developed that allows for the demonstration of job-related skills, abilities, knowledge, and competencies. A technical assessment must be based upon a job analysis and may not solely or principally rely upon a self-assessment from an automated examination. 

(Sec. 3) Under the act, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must develop and implement a plan for transitioning to using technical assessments for hiring into competitive service positions unless the hiring agency certifies that it is impracticable. No later than 18 months after the act's enactment, OPM must provide Congress with the plan for federal agencies to transition to the use of technical assessments. The plan must be implemented within three years after the act's enactment.

In the three-year period following the bill's enactment, executive agencies must preference the use of technical assessments for hiring into competitive service positions to the maximum extent practicable. An agency that determines that the use of a technical assessment is impracticable must describe its rationale for using an alternative assessment in the applicable job posting. 

The act authorizes agencies to identify subject matter experts (SMEs) and agency talent teams to provide hiring support to the agency. SMEs in the job field of a given position may develop position-specific assessments that allow for an applicant to demonstrate job-related technical skills, abilities, and knowledge relevant to the position. OPM may establish a federal talent team to provide support to agency talent teams. 

No later than one year after the act's enactment, OPM must study and report to Congress regarding the feasibility of examining agencies sharing technical assessments and the development of an online platform where agencies can share and customize technical assessments.

(Sec. 4) The act requires OPM to conduct a review of examinations for positions in the competitive service for which agencies have established a minimum educational requirement because the position is of a scientific, technical, or professional nature. OPM must determine whether such requirements are justified based on data, evidence, and other relevant information and provide Congress with recommendations to amend the hiring practices in accordance with the review's findings. The review must be conducted in consultation with appropriate agencies, employee representatives, external experts, and other relevant stakeholders. The report shall be provided within one year after the act's enactment.

(Sec. 5) OPM must publish on a public-facing website and submit to Congress a report examining agencies' progress and any significant difficulties in implementing the act's requirements. The first report must be provided within one year after the act's enactment and subsequent reports provided annually until the fifth publication and submission of the report to Congress.

OPM must also publish on a public facing website and submit to Congress an annual report of positions in the competitive service for which an examining agency examined applicants during the applicable period (limited to positions for which hiring is complete). The data must be broken down by applicant demographic indicators to facilitate direct comparisons to data available as of October 1, 2020, as a baseline.

(Sec. 6) No later than three years after the act's enactment, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) must provide Congress with a report that assesses the implementation of the act, assesses changes to the hiring process for the competitive service, and makes recommendations to improve the hiring process for the competitive service.

(Sec. 7) No later than one year after the act's enactment, OPM shall evaluate and revise, as appropriate to conform with the act, government-wide systems of records specified in the act. OPM must notify Congress of any revisions.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Became Public Law No: 118-188.
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Became Public Law No: 118-188.
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Signed by President.
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2024-12-23
text: Presented to President.
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H7216-7217)
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H7216-7217)
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 59.
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H7215-7218)
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Mr. Burlison moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Held at the desk.
action_date: 2024-12-16
text: Received in the House.
action_date: 2024-12-13
text: Message on Senate action sent to the House.
action_date: 2024-12-12
text: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent. (text of amendment in the nature of a substitute: CR S7010-7011)
action_date: 2024-12-12
text: Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2024-12-12
text: The committee substitute withdrawn by Unanimous Consent.
action_date: 2024-12-12
text: Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S7041-7043)
action_date: 2024-12-02
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 651.
action_date: 2024-12-02
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Peters with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 118-250.
action_date: 2024-12-02
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Peters with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 118-250.
action_date: 2024-07-31
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2023-01-24
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2023-01-24
text: Introduced in Senate

Enacted as: number: 118-188