Some individuals, who are serving in appointed (noncareer) positions in the executive branch, convert to career positions in the competitive service, the Senior Executive Service (SES), or the excepted service. This practice, commonly referred to as "burrowing in," is permissible when laws and regulations governing career appointments are followed. While such conversions may occur at any time, frequently they do so during the transition period when one Administration is preparing to leave office and another Administration is preparing to assume office. Generally, these appointees were selected noncompetitively and are serving in such positions as Schedule C, noncareer SES, or limited tenure SES that involve policy determinations or require a close and confidential relationship with the department or agency head and other top officials. Many of the Schedule C appointees receive salaries at the GS-12 through GS-15 pay levels. The noncareer and limited tenure members of the SES receive salaries under the pay schedule for senior executives that also covers the career SES. Career employees, on the other hand, are to be selected on the basis of merit and without political influence following a process that is to be fair and open in evaluating their knowledge, skills, and experience against those of other applicants. The tenure of noncareer and career employees also differs. The former are generally limited to the term of the Administration in which they are appointed or serve at the pleasure of the person who appointed them. The latter constitute a work force that continues the operations of government without regard to the change of administrations. Paul Light, a professor of government at New York University, who has studied appointees over the past several administrations, reportedly believes that the pay, benefits, and job security of career positions underlie the desire of individuals in noncareer positions to "burrow in." The President of the Senior Executives Association, Carol Bonosaro, echoed this viewpoint in stating that, "Remember, not everybody who comes in is going to have a very high-profile job where they are going to be able to leave and make really good money.... Not everyone has had necessarily a strong enough background to go back out. They may just have been a campaign worker." Beyond the fundamental concern that the conversion of an individual from an appointed (noncareer) position to a career position may not have followed the legal and regulatory requirements, "burrowing in" raises other concerns. When the practice occurs, there may be these perceptions (whether valid or not): that an appointee converting to a career position may limit the opportunity for other employees (who were competitively selected for their career positions, following examination of their knowledge, skills, and experience) to be promoted into another career position with greater responsibility and pay; or that the individual who is converted to a career position may seek to undermine the work of the new Administration whose policies may be at odds with those that he or she espoused when serving in the appointed capacity. Both perceptions may increase the tension between noncareer and career staff, thereby hindering the effective operation of government at a time when the desirability of creating "common ground" between these staff to facilitate government performance continues to be emphasized. Appointments to career positions in the executive branch are governed by law and regulations that are codified in Title 5 of the United States Code and Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations . For purposes of both, appointments to career positions are among those activities defined as "personnel actions," a class of activities that can be undertaken only in accordance with strict procedures. In taking a personnel action, each department and agency head is responsible for preventing prohibited personnel practices; for complying with, and enforcing, applicable civil service laws, rules, and regulations and other aspects of personnel management; and for ensuring that agency employees are informed of the rights and remedies available to them. Such actions must adhere to the nine merit principles and twelve prohibited personnel practices that are codified at 5 U.S.C. §2301(b) and §2302(b), respectively. These principles and practices are designed to ensure that the process for selecting career employees is fair and open (competitive), and without political influence. Table 1 below presents these principles and practices. Department and agency heads also must follow regulations, codified at Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations , that govern career appointments. Among these are Civil Service Rules 4.2 and 7.1: Sec. 4.2. Prohibition against racial, political or religious discrimination. No person employed in the executive branch of the Federal Government who has authority to take or recommend any personnel action with respect to any person who is an employee in the competitive service or any eligible or [sic] applicant for a position in the competitive service shall make any inquiry concerning the race, political affiliation, or religious beliefs of any such employee, eligible, or applicant. All disclosures concerning such matters shall be ignored, except as to such membership in political parties or organizations as constitutes by law a disqualification for Government employment. No discrimination shall be exercised, threatened, or promised by any person in the executive branch of the Federal Government against or in favor of any employee in the competitive service, or any eligible or applicant for a position in the competitive service because of his race, political affiliation, or religious beliefs, except as may be authorized or required by law. Sec. 7.1 Discretion in filling vacancies. In his discretion, an appointing officer may fill any position in the competitive service either by competitive appointment from a civil service register or by noncompetitive selection of a present or former Federal employee, in accordance with the Civil Service Regulations. He shall exercise his discretion in all personnel actions solely on the basis of merit and fitness and without regard to political or religious affiliations, marital status, or race. Other regulations provide that Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approval is required before employees in Schedule C positions may be detailed to competitive service positions, public announcement is required for all SES vacancies that will be filled by initial career appointment, and details to SES positions that are reserved for career employees (known as Career-Reserved) may only be filled by career SES or career-type non-SES appointees. During the period June 1, 2012, through January 20, 2013, defined as the Presidential Election Period, certain appointees are prohibited from receiving financial awards. These appointees, referred to as senior politically appointed officers, are individuals serving in noncareer SES positions; individuals serving in confidential or policy determining positions as Schedule C employees; and individuals serving in limited term and limited emergency positions. When a department or agency, for example, converts an employee from an appointed (noncareer) position to a career position without any apparent change in duties and responsibilities, or that appears to be tailored to the individual's knowledge and experience, such actions may invite scrutiny. OPM, on an ongoing basis, and the Government Accountability Office (GAO), periodically, each conduct oversight related to conversions of employees from noncareer to career positions to ensure that proper procedures have been followed. An OPM memorandum to the heads of departments and agencies that was issued on November 5, 2009, reiterated that, under Section 1104(b)(2) of Title 5, United States Code , and Section 5.2 of Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations , "OPM requires Federal agencies to seek our approval before selecting a political appointee for a competitive service position during a Presidential election year" and "conducts merit staffing reviews of proposed SES appointments whenever they occur." The memorandum noted that, "if the proposed civil service job is below the SES level, OPM's review has been limited only to competitive service appointments and only those appointments that take place during a Presidential election year." In a significant change to the policy, the memorandum announced that, beginning on January 1, 2010, departments and agencies "must seek prior approval from OPM before they can appoint a current or recent political appointee to a competitive or non-political excepted service position at any level." A written authorization from OPM is now required whenever an department or agency appoints [a] current political Schedule A or Schedule C Executive Branch employee or a former political Schedule A or Schedule C Executive Branch employee who held the position within the last five years to a competitive or non-political excepted service position under title 5 of the U.S. Code; or [a] current Non-career SES Executive Branch employee or a former Non-career SES Executive Branch employee who held the position within the last five years to a competitive or non-political excepted service position under title 5 of the U.S. Code. According to the memorandum, the central personnel agency "will continue to conduct merit staffing reviews for all proposed career SES selections involving a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or noncareer SES political appointee before the SES selections are presented to OPM's Qualifications Review Board (QRB) for certification of executive qualifications." OPM reminded agencies "to carefully review all proposed SES selections to ensure they meet merit system principles before such cases are forwarded to the QRB." OPM Director John Berry explained the policy change by saying that the agency's "responsibility to uphold the merit system is not limited to Presidential election years nor to competitive service appointments." He also said that he "delegated decisionmaking authority over these matters to career Senior Executives at OPM to avoid any hint of political influence." "Pre-Appointment Checklists" for Competitive Service Positions and Non-Political Excepted Service Positions were included as attachments to the OPM memorandum and list the documentation that a department's or agency's Director of Human Resources must submit to OPM along with a dated cover letter. The competitive service pre-appointment checklist includes the following required documentation: The position descriptions for the candidate's current or former appointment and the proposed appointment, including information on why and how the respective positions were established and the relationship between the positions.