Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act

Bill: 117-hr-6066
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Connolly, Gerald E. [D-VA-11]
Introduced: 2021-11-23
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Advisory bodies

Congressional oversight

Federal officials

Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management

Government information and archives

Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
Latest action: action_date: 2021-12-02
text: Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 25 - 14.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-11-23
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act</b></p> <p>This bill provides statutory authority for the mission of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), establishes the Chief Management Officer and the OPM Advisory Committee on Human Capital Management, and specifies additional requirements for the appointment of the OPM Director and the removal of the OPM Director or Deputy Director.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 6066 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 23, 2021 Mr. Connolly (for himself, Mr. Fitzpatrick , and Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform A BILL To amend title 5, United States Code, to reaffirm the role of the Office of Personnel Management as the leader for civilian human resource management in the Federal Government, to encourage innovation in the Office’s management of human capital, to strengthen the Office’s ability to support Federal human capital management as a strategic priority, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act . 2. Role and mission of Office of Personnel Management Section 1101 of title 5, United States, Code is amended— (1) by striking The Office of Personnel Management and inserting (a) Establishment .—The Office of Personnel Management ; and (2) by adding at the end the following: (b) Mission The Office of Personnel Management shall lead the Federal Government in enterprise strategic human resources management, ensure the proper application of merit system principles for all Federal civilian human resource systems and employees, and carry out the policies set forth in section 3 of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 ( Public Law 95–454 ). In addition, the Office of Personnel Management shall— (1) function as an independent human capital agency for Federal civilian personnel systems, employees, and annuitants; (2) structure as a streamlined, customer-focused organization to effectively and efficiently execute its mission priorities; (3) provide Government-wide leadership and facilitate appropriate and efficient access to human capital data and systems to support strategic Government-wide human capital management; (4) use information technology and data, data analytics, and predictive analytics to inform decision making, identify best practices and drive innovation; (5) develop both current and forward-looking approaches for human resource management; (6) establish and maintain an efficient, risk-based, data-driven oversight program in support of merit systems principles; and (7) promote staff capacity-building to support a competent and diverse workforce, consistent with the requirements of chapter 41 of this title. . 3. Qualifications of OPM Director Chapter 11 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— (1) in section 1102— (A) in subsection (a), by adding at the end after the period the following: The individual appointed as Director shall be appointed without regard to political affiliation and have demonstrated human capital expertise and management and leadership experience. ; and (B) by adding after subsection (d) the following: (e) An individual serving as Director or Deputy Director may be removed from office by the President only if the reasons for such removal are specifically set forth in a written statement submitted to the Committee on Oversight and Reform in the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in the Senate. The President shall communicate in writing the reasons for any such removal to both Houses of Congress not later than 30 days before the removal. ; and (2) in section 1103(a) by— (A) redesignating paragraph (9) as paragraph (12); (B) striking and at the end of paragraph (8); and (C) inserting after paragraph (8) the following: (9) serving as the principal advisor to the President on Federal human capital policies and leading Federal civilian human capital efforts to attract and retain the optimal Federal workforce; (10) establishing a framework for Federal agency workforce management and working with stakeholders to develop policies that foster best practices in all human capital areas; (11) setting standards of practice and working collaboratively across the Federal human capital community; and . 4. OPM Chief Management Officer (a) In general Section 1102 of title 5, United States Code, as amended by section 3, is further amended by adding at the end the following: (f) (1) There is established within the Office of Personnel Management the position of Chief Management Officer. Such position shall be filled by a member of the Senior Executive Service in a designated career reserved position. The Director shall establish and appoint an individual to occupy such position not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of the Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act . (2) Subject to the authority, direction, and control of the Director, the Chief Management Officer shall perform such duties and exercise such powers as the Director may prescribe, including— (A) assisting the Director and Deputy Director to provide continuity, strengthen internal agency organization and management, promoting the mission and strategic goals of the Office, and improving Office performance; (B) serving as the principal advisor to the Director on all operations, activities, and programs in the Office; (C) directing the associate Directors, program divisions, and support functions of the Office on matters for which the Chief Management Officer has responsibility; (D) establishing processes for supervising operations of the Office, including planning and processes, performance management, information technology management, and unifying management efforts across the Office; (E) aligning human resources policies and programs of the Office with the organization mission, goals and performance outcomes; (F) developing a culture of continuous learning and positive employee engagement within the Office to attract and retain employees; and (G) identifying leading practices and benchmarks relevant to the Officer’s areas of responsibility. . (b) Clerical amendments (1) Section heading The section heading for section 1102 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding after Associate Directors the following: ; Chief Management Officer . (2) Table of sections The table of sections for chapter 11 of such title is amended by striking the item relating to section 1102 and inserting the following: 1102. Director; Deputy Director; Associate Directors; Chief Management Officer. . 5. OPM Advisory Committee on Human Capital Management (a) In general Chapter 11 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: 1106. OPM Advisory Committee on Human Capital Management (a) Establishment (1) In general Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of the Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (in this section referred to as the Director ) shall establish within the Office an advisory committee to be known as the OPM Advisory Committee on Human Capital Management (in this section referred to as the Advisory Committee ). (2) Duties The Advisory Committee shall advise and provide information and recommendations to the Director on— (A) strategies for making the Federal Government an employer of choice and model employer; (B) approaches for recruiting, hiring, and retaining people with needed skills to improve Federal services; and (C) programs and initiatives to build and support a diverse, trusted, and effective Federal workforce. (b) Membership (1) In general (A) Appointment The Director shall appoint not more than 15 members, excluding ex officio members in paragraph (2), to the Advisory Committee. (B) Representation The Director shall ensure that individuals appointed as members of the Advisory Committee shall possess knowledge and experience in human capital management and have experience in at least one of the following categories: (i) Public sector or governmental organizations, including global public sector human resource professionals. (ii) Nonprofit organizations, including labor unions. (iii) Private sector organizations. (iv) Academia. (v) Federal employee, retiree, and labor organizations, including organizations that represent substantial numbers of Federal employees occupying General Schedule positions. (vi) Chief Human Capital Officers or other members from Federal agency human resource offices. (2) Ex officio members The following positions shall serve as ex officio members of the Advisory Committee: the Director, the Deputy Director, any Associate Director, the Chief Management Officer, the Chief Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Officer, the Chief Human Capital Officers Council Executive Director, and other Federal officials at the discretion of the Director. (c) Administrative provisions (1) Meetings (A) In general The Advisory Committee shall meet at least two times per year, with additional meetings as required. (B) Opportunity for public comment Each meeting shall include, at a minimum, opportunity for public comment during the Advisory Committee’s deliberations. (2) Bylaws At the first meeting of the Advisory Committee, the members shall select a chairperson and vice chairperson. The Advisory Committee’s bylaws shall be established by the chairperson and vice chairperson and shall be submitted to the members for unanimous approval by the members. (3) Quorum Seven members of the Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum. (4) Decisions and recommendations by consensus All decisions, activities, findings, and recommendations of the Advisory Committee shall be made by consensus of the members of the Advisory Committee. (d) Annual report Not later than one year after the date of the first meeting of the Advisory Committee and annually thereafter, the Advisory Committee shall submit an annual report to the Director, the Committee on Oversight and Reform of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate. The Director shall make the report available online on a publicly accessible website. The report shall contain— (1) a detailed summary of the agenda and activities of, and the findings and recommendations made by, the Advisory Committee during the previous year; (2) if applicable, any agency actions taken to address the findings and recommendations made by the Advisory Committee; and (3) a detailed list of subjects and areas of interest that the Advisory Committee plans to examine in the next year. . (b) Clerical amendment The table of sections for such chapter 11 is amended by adding after the item relating to section 1105 the following: 1106. OPM Advisory Committee on Human Capital Management. .