[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 159 Engrossed in House (EH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 159

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
  To implement merit-based reforms to the civil service hiring system 
  that replace degree-based hiring with skills- and competency-based 
                    hiring, 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 ``Chance to Compete Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Terms Defined in Section 3304 of Title 5, United States Code.--
In this Act, the terms ``agency'', ``Director'', ``examining agency'', 
``Office'', ``subject matter expert'', and ``technical assessment'' 
have the meanings given those terms in subsection (c)(1) of section 
3304 of title 5, United States Code, as added by section 3(a).
    (b) Other Terms.--In this Act, the term ``competitive service'' has 
the meaning given the term in section 2102 of title 5, United States 
Code.

SEC. 3. DEFINING THE TERM ``EXAMINATION'' FOR PURPOSES OF HIRING IN THE 
              COMPETITIVE SERVICE.

    (a) Examinations; Technical Assessments.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3304 of title 5, United States 
        Code, is amended--
                    (A) by redesignating subsections (c) through (f) as 
                subsections (d) through (g), respectively; and
                    (B) by inserting after subsection (b) the 
                following:
    ``(c) Examinations.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--
                    ``(A) Examination.--
                            ``(i) In this chapter, the term 
                        `examination'--
                                    ``(I) means an opportunity to 
                                directly demonstrate knowledge, skills, 
                                abilities, and competencies, through a 
                                passing score assessment;
                                    ``(II) includes a resume review 
                                that is--
                                            ``(aa) conducted by a 
                                        subject matter expert; and
                                            ``(bb) based upon 
                                        indicators that--

                                                    ``(AA) are derived 
                                                from a job analysis; 
                                                and

                                                    ``(BB) bear a 
                                                rational relationship 
                                                to performance in the 
                                                position for which the 
                                                examining agency is 
                                                hiring; and

                                    ``(III) on and after the date that 
                                is 2 years after the date of enactment 
                                of the Chance to Compete Act of 2023 
                                does not include a self-assessment from 
                                an automated examination, a resume 
                                review (except as provided in subclause 
                                (II)), or any other method of 
                                determining the experience or level of 
                                educational attainment of an 
                                individual, alone.
                            ``(ii)(I) An agency's Chief Human Capital 
                        Officer may waive clause (i)(III) when needed 
                        to enable the filling of a position or class of 
                        positions.
                            ``(II) Not later than 180 days after the 
                        date of enactment of the Chance to Compete Act 
                        of 2023, the Director shall provide agencies 
                        guidance and instruction on the data, evidence, 
                        and circumstances that Chief Human Capital 
                        Officers of agencies should consider in 
                        determining whether to grant a waiver under 
                        subclause (I).
                            ``(III)(aa) An agency shall post any waiver 
                        granted under subclause (I) on a public website 
                        within 30 days of the granting of the waiver.
                            ``(bb) A waiver shall not be considered in 
                        effect until it is posted on the public website 
                        pursuant to item (aa).
                            ``(IV)(aa) Each agency shall submit to the 
                        Director on a semiannual basis a report 
                        summarizing the number of waivers granted by 
                        the Chief Human Capital Officer of the agency 
                        under subclause (I) during the preceding 6-
                        month period and the reasons therefor.
                            ``(bb) The Director shall submit annually 
                        to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                        Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the 
                        Committee on Oversight and Accountability of 
                        the House of Representatives a report 
                        summarizing the number of waivers granted by 
                        the Chief Human Capital Officers of all 
                        agencies under subclause (I) during the 
                        preceding year and the reasons therefor 
                        provided by the agencies.
                            ``(V) Not more than 10 percent of an 
                        agency's positions filled through competitive 
                        hiring procedures during a fiscal year may be 
                        filled under the authority of a waiver granted 
                        under clause (I), and an agency shall obtain 
                        the Director's approval to fill more than 5 
                        percent of such positions under such authority.
                    ``(B) Other definitions.--In this subsection--
                            ``(i) the term `agency' means an agency 
                        described in section 901(b) of title 31;
                            ``(ii) the term `Director' means the 
                        Director of the Office;
                            ``(iii) the term `examining agency' means--
                                    ``(I) the Office; or
                                    ``(II) an agency to which the 
                                Director has delegated examining 
                                authority under section 1104(a)(2) of 
                                this title;
                            ``(iv) the term `passing score assessment' 
                        means an assessment that an individual can pass 
                        or fail;
                            ``(v) the term `subject matter expert' 
                        means an employee or selecting official--
                                    ``(I) who possesses understanding 
                                of the duties of, and knowledge, 
                                skills, and abilities required for, the 
                                position for which the employee or 
                                selecting official is developing or 
                                administering an assessment; and
                                    ``(II) whom the agency that employs 
                                the employee or selecting official 
                                designates to assist in the development 
                                and administration of technical 
                                assessments under paragraph (2); and
                            ``(vi) the term `technical assessment' 
                        means an assessment developed under paragraph 
                        (2)(A)(i) that--
                                    ``(I) allows for the demonstration 
                                of job-related technical skills, 
                                abilities, and knowledge;
                                    ``(II)(aa) is based upon a job 
                                analysis; and
                                            ``(bb) is relevant to the 
                                        position for which the 
                                        assessment is developed; and
                                    ``(III) may include--
                                            ``(aa) a structured 
                                        interview;
                                            ``(bb) a work-related 
                                        exercise;
                                            ``(cc) a custom or generic 
                                        procedure used to measure an 
                                        individual's employment or 
                                        career-related qualifications 
                                        and interests; or
                                            ``(dd) another assessment 
                                        that meets the criteria under 
                                        subclauses (I) and (II).
            ``(2) Technical assessments.--
                    ``(A) In general.--For the purpose of conducting an 
                examination for a position in the competitive service, 
                an individual or individuals whom an agency determines 
                to have an expertise in the subject and job field of 
                the position, as affirmed and audited by the Chief 
                Human Capital Officer or Human Resources Director (as 
                applicable) of that agency, may--
                            ``(i) develop, in partnership with human 
                        resources employees of the examining agency, a 
                        position-specific assessment that is relevant 
                        to the position; and
                            ``(ii) administer the assessment developed 
                        under clause (i) to--
                                    ``(I) determine whether an 
                                applicant for the position has a 
                                passing score to be qualified for the 
                                position; or
                                    ``(II) rank applicants for the 
                                position for category rating purposes 
                                under section 3319.
                    ``(B) Sharing and customization of assessments.--
                            ``(i) Sharing.--An examining agency may 
                        share a technical assessment with another 
                        examining agency if each agency maintains 
                        appropriate control over examination material.
                            ``(ii) Customization.--An examining agency 
                        with which a technical assessment is shared 
                        under clause (i) may customize the assessment 
                        as appropriate, provided that the resulting 
                        assessment satisfies the requirements under 
                        part 300 of title 5, Code of Federal 
                        Regulations (or any successor regulation).
                            ``(iii) Platform for sharing and 
                        customization.--
                                    ``(I) In general.--The Director 
                                shall establish and operate an online 
                                platform on which examining agencies 
                                can share and customize technical 
                                assessments under this subparagraph.
                                    ``(II) Online platform.--The 
                                Director shall ensure that the online 
                                platform described in subclause (I) 
                                includes the ability of its users to 
                                rate the utility of the content and 
                                technical assessments shared in the 
                                online platform to allow for a ranking 
                                of such contents.
            ``(3) Regulations.--Not later than one year after the date 
        of enactment of the Chance to Compete Act of 2023, the Office 
        of Personnel Management shall prescribe regulations necessary 
        for the administration of this subsection with respect to 
        employees in each agency.''.
            (2) Alternative ranking and selection procedures.--Section 
        3319(a) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at 
        the end the following: ``To be placed in a quality category 
        under the preceding sentence, an applicant shall be required to 
        have passed an examination in accordance with section 
        3304(b).''.
            (3) Technical and conforming amendment.--Section 
        3330a(a)(1)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
        striking ``section 3304(f)(1)'' and inserting ``section 
        3304(g)(1)''.
    (b) Implementation of Passing Score Assessment Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director and the head of any other 
        examining agency shall eliminate the use of any examination for 
        the competitive service that does not satisfy the definition of 
        the term ``examination'' in subsection (c)(1)(A) of section 
        3304 of title 5, United States Code (as amended by subsection 
        (a)(1)(B)).
            (2) Report required.--One year following the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit to the 
        Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and 
        Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report examining agencies' 
        progress in implementing the requirement specified in paragraph 
        (1), identifying any significant difficulties encountered in 
        such implementation.
    (c) OPM Reporting.--
            (1) Public online tool.--
                    (A) In general.--The Director of the Office of 
                Personnel Management shall maintain and periodically 
                update a publicly available online tool that, with 
                respect to each position in the competitive service for 
                which an examining agency examined applicants during 
                the applicable period, includes--
                            (i) the type of assessment used, such as--
                                    (I) a behavioral off-the-shelf 
                                assessment;
                                    (II) a resume review conducted by a 
                                subject matter expert;
                                    (III) an interview conducted by a 
                                subject matter expert;
                                    (IV) a technical off-the-shelf 
                                assessment; or
                                    (V) a cognitive ability test;
                            (ii) whether or not the agency selected a 
                        candidate for the position; and
                            (iii) the hiring authority used to fill the 
                        position.
                    (B) Timing.--
                            (i) Initial data.--Not later than 180 days 
                        after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
                        Director shall update the online tool described 
                        in subparagraph (A) with data for positions in 
                        the competitive service for which an examining 
                        agency examined applicants during the period 
                        beginning on the date of enactment of this Act 
                        and ending on the date of submission of the 
                        report.
                            (ii) Subsequent updates.--Not later than 
                        October 1 of each fiscal year beginning after 
                        the date on which the online tool is initially 
                        updated under clause (i), the Director shall 
                        update the online tool described in 
                        subparagraph (A) with data for positions in the 
                        competitive service for which an examining 
                        agency examined applicants during the preceding 
                        fiscal year.
            (2) Annual progress report.--
                    (A) In general.--Each year, the Director, in 
                accordance with subparagraphs (B) and (C), shall make 
                publicly available and submit to Congress an overall 
                progress report that includes summary data from 
                examinations that are closed, audited, and anonymous on 
                the use of examinations (as defined in subsection 
                (c)(1)(A) of section 3304 of title 5, United States 
                Code, as added by subsection (a) of this section) for 
                the competitive service, including technical 
                assessments.
                    (B) Categories; baseline data.--In carrying out 
                subparagraph (A), the Director shall--
                            (i) break the data down by applicant 
                        demographic indicator, including veteran 
                        status, race, gender, disability, and any other 
                        measure the Director determines appropriate; 
                        and
                            (ii) use the data available as of October 
                        1, 2020, as a baseline.
                    (C) Limitations.--In carrying out subparagraph (A), 
                the Director may only make publicly available and 
                submit to Congress data relating to examinations for 
                which--
                            (i) the related announcement is closed;
                            (ii) certificates have been audited; and
                            (iii) all hiring processes are completed.
    (d) GAO Report.--Not later than 5 years after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit 
to Congress a report that--
            (1) assesses the implementation of this section and the 
        amendments made by this section;
            (2) assesses the impact and modifications to the hiring 
        process for the competitive service made by this section and 
        the amendments made by this section; and
            (3) makes recommendations for the improvement of the hiring 
        process for the competitive service.

SEC. 4. AMENDMENTS TO COMPETITIVE SERVICE ACT OF 2015.

    (a) Platforms for Sharing Certificates of Eligibles.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3318(b) of title 5, United States 
        Code, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``240-day'' and 
                inserting ``1-year'';
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph 
                (6); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
            ``(5) Online tool for sharing resumes of individuals on 
        certificates of eligibles.--Not later than one year after the 
        date of enactment of the Chance to Compete Act of 2023, the 
        Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall establish 
        and operate an online tool on which an appointing authority can 
        share, with other appointing authorities and the Chief Human 
        Capital Officers Council established under section 1303 of the 
        Chief Human Capital Officers Act of 2002 (5 U.S.C. 1401 note; 
        Public Law 107-296), the resumes of individuals who are on a 
        certificate of eligibles requested by the appointing authority. 
        In carrying out this paragraph, the Director shall consult with 
        the Chief Human Capital Officers Counsel and its membership to 
        develop a plan to establish such online tool.''.
            (2) Plan.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director shall provide to Congress a 
        plan to develop the online tool required in paragraph (5) of 
        section 3318(b) of title 5, United States Code, as added by 
        paragraph (1) of this subsection. Such plan shall--
                    (A) incorporate the input and feedback collected 
                during the required consultation under such paragraph; 
                and
                    (B) include estimated costs for building and 
                operating the online tool.
    (b) Maximizing Sharing of Applicant Information.--Section 2 of the 
Competitive Service Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-137; 130 Stat. 310) is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
        (d) and (e), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
    ``(c) Exploring the Benefits of Maximizing Sharing of Applicant 
Information.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection--
                    ``(A) the terms `agency', `Director', and `Office' 
                have the meanings given those terms in section 
                3304(c)(1) of title 5, United States Code; and
                    ``(B) the term `competitive service' has the 
                meaning given the term in section 2102 of title 5, 
                United States Code.
            ``(2) Maximizing sharing.--The Director shall maximize the 
        sharing of information among agencies regarding qualified 
        applicants for positions in the competitive service, including 
        by--
                    ``(A) providing for the delegation to other 
                agencies of the authority of the Office to host multi-
                agency hiring actions to increase the return on 
                investment on high-quality pooled announcements; and
                    ``(B) sharing certificates of eligibles and 
                accompanying resumes for appointment.''.

SEC. 5. MODERNIZING AND REFORMING THE ASSESSMENT AND HIRING OF FEDERAL 
              JOB CANDIDATES.

    (a) OPM Review.--The Director shall conduct a review of all 
examinations for hiring for a position that the Office or any other 
examining agency has determined requires a minimum educational 
requirement because the nature of the duties of such position is of a 
scientific, technical, or professional position pursuant to section 
3308 of title 5, United States Code, to determine whether there are 
data, evidence, or other information that justifies the need for 
educational requirements for such position. The Director shall consult 
with appropriate agencies, employee representatives, external experts, 
and other stakeholders when making any such determinations.
    (b) Online Tool Regarding Position Duties.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than two years after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director shall create and maintain 
        an online tool that lists each of the duties determined to 
        require minimum educational requirements and the data, 
        evidence, or other information that justifies the need for 
        these educational requirements. This online tool shall include 
        a mechanism to receive feedback regarding data, evidence, or 
        information that could affect the determination that a duty 
        requires a minimum educational requirement.
            (2) Hiring practices.--Not later than one year after the 
        creation of the online tool under paragraph (1), the Director 
        and the head of any other examining agency shall amend the 
        hiring practices of the Office or the other examining agency, 
        respectively, in accordance with the findings of the review 
        made by subsection (a).
    (c) Online Tool Regarding Recruiting.--Upon the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Director shall establish and maintain an online tool 
that provides Federal agencies guidance on, and information about, all 
programs and authorities that help agencies attract, recruit, hire, and 
retain individuals.

SEC. 6. TALENT TEAMS.

    (a) Federal Agency Talent Teams.--
            (1) In general.--An agency may establish one or more talent 
        teams (referred to in this section as ``agency talent teams''), 
        including at the component level.
            (2) Duties.--An agency talent team shall provide hiring 
        support to the agency and other agencies, including by--
                    (A) improving examinations (as defined in 
                subsection (c)(1)(A) of section 3304 of title 5, United 
                States Code, as added by section 3(a));
                    (B) facilitating writing job announcements for the 
                competitive service;
                    (C) sharing high-quality certificates of eligibles; 
                and
                    (D) facilitating hiring for the competitive service 
                using examinations (as defined in such subsection 
                (c)(1)(A)) and subject matter experts.
    (b) Office of Personnel Management.--The Director may establish a 
Federal talent team to support agency talent teams in facilitating 
pooled hiring actions across the Federal Government, providing 
training, and creating technology platforms to facilitate hiring for 
the competitive service, including--
            (1) the development of technical assessments; and
            (2) the sharing of certificates of eligibles and 
        accompanying resumes under sections 3318(b) and 3319(c) of 
        title 5, United States Code.

SEC. 7. UPDATES TO SYSTEM OF RECORDS FOR HIRING ACTIONS IN THE CIVIL 
              SERVICE.

    (a) Update to Select System of Records.--Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act, and on a regular basis 
thereafter, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall 
provide guidance to all Federal departments and agencies to ensure 
appropriate use of a system of records, including any government-wide 
systems of records, to meet the requirements of section 552a of title 
5, United States Code (commonly known as the ``Privacy Act''), in 
hiring actions in the civil service.
    (b) Government-wide Systems of Records at the Office.--
            (1) In general.--The Director of the Office of Personnel 
        Management, in consultation with the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget, shall ensure that any system of records 
        notice updates required pursuant to the guidance provided under 
        subsection (a) account for any use of newer technologies that 
        capture records (as defined in section 552a(a)(4) of title 5, 
        United States Code) in video, audio, and video/audio 
        combination formats and accommodate maintenance of such video, 
        audio, and video/audio combination records.
            (2) Evaluation for potential updates or revisions.--
                    (A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the 
                date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the 
                Office of Personnel Management shall evaluate whether 
                the government-wide System of Records Notices (referred 
                to in this paragraph as ``SORNs'') ``OPM/GOVT-5 
                Recruiting, Examining, and Placement Records'' and 
                ``OPM/GOVT-6 Personnel Research and Test Validation 
                Records'', or any successor materials thereto, require 
                updating or revision to implement the purposes of this 
                Act.
                    (B) Issuance of updates or revisions; notice to 
                congress.--If the Director, after the evaluation under 
                subparagraph (A), finds that any updates or revisions 
                to the SORNs identified in that subparagraph are 
                necessary and appropriate to support implementation of 
                this Act, the Director shall promptly--
                            (i) issue the updates or revisions; and
                            (ii) notify the Committee on Homeland 
                        Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate 
                        and the Committee on Oversight and 
                        Accountability of the House of Representatives.

            Passed the House of Representatives January 24, 2023.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
118th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                               H. R. 159

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

  To implement merit-based reforms to the civil service hiring system 
  that replace degree-based hiring with skills- and competency-based 
                    hiring, and for other purposes.