[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 150 (Thursday, October 4, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12778-S12780]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. AKAKA:
  S. 2148. A bill to provide for greater diversity within, and to 
improve policy direction and oversight of, the Senior Executive 
Service; to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs.
  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I wish to join my colleague in the House, 
Congressman Danny Davis, to introduce the Senior Executive Service 
Diversity Assurance Act to improve the management of the Senior 
Executive Service, SES, and enhance its diversity.
  For years we have known that the Federal SES does not reflect the 
diversity of our Nation. The Government Accountability Office released 
reports in 2003 and 2007 showing that the percentages of minorities in 
the SES are inconsistent from agency to agency and not reflective of 
the diversity of the potential pool of applicants.
  While we have seen some gains in the area of women in senior 
positions, the 28 percent of women in the SES is far less than the 
national average. And for minorities in senior level career positions, 
the gap is worse. Twenty-one percent of the potential applicants are 
racial and ethnic minorities while only 16 percent of the entire SES 
are minorities.
  As agencies think about the next generation of SES, it is important 
to be reminded of the need to recruit a talented and diverse pool of 
candidates in order to bring fresh perspectives into our Government's 
leadership roles. In serving the diverse population of America, we need 
diverse leaders to improve the way the Federal workforce serves our 
country.
  It is well known that the Federal Government is facing an impending 
retirement wave. Ninety percent of senior level employees will be 
eligible for retirement in the next 10 years. Federal agencies need to 
prepare for the next generation of leaders and in the process actively 
recruit diverse talent. I believe that mentoring is an excellent way to 
do that. This bill requires the establishment of an SES mentorship 
program. Qualified senior executives would be paired up with other 
talented women, racial and ethnic minorities, and disabled persons to 
mentor them in the hopes of cultivating a diverse pool of applicants 
for SES positions.
  The Senior Executive Service Diversity Assurance Act also establishes 
an office of senior executive resources to improve overall efficiency 
and diversity by bringing together all the SES policy development and 
implementation functions at the Office of Personnel Management.
  The bill also establishes evaluation panels made up of women and 
minorities to review incoming applications for SES positions and pass 
along recommendations of the qualified candidates to the Executive 
Review Board.
  The standards are high for entry into the SES, and I believe that 
this bill continues that tradition and will improve the overall 
diversity in our highly talented executive workforce.
  America is a nation of many different races and backgrounds. Every 
year, the diverse heritage of America continues to grow, and our 
communities benefit from the addition of those cultures. New cultures 
bring new ideas, and in our civil service--America's workforce--we need 
leadership that reflects those varied cultures and backgrounds.
  I believe this bill lays the framework for bringing these new ideas 
and different populations into Federal leadership. I hope to see 
improvements in the representation of women, racial and ethnic 
minorities, and the disabled in the SES.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.

[[Page S12780]]

  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2148

       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 ``Senior Executive Service 
     Diversity Assurance Act''.

     SEC. 2. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE RESOURCE OFFICE.

       (a) Definitions.--For purposes of this section--
       (1) the term ``Director'' means the Director of the Office 
     of Personnel Management;
       (2) the term ``Senior Executive Service'' has the meaning 
     given such term by section 2101a of title 5, United States 
     Code;
       (3) the terms ``agency'', ``career appointee'', and 
     ``career reserved position'' have the meanings given them by 
     section 3132 of title 5, United States Code; and
       (4) the term ``SES Resource Office'' means the Senior 
     Executive Service Resource Office, established under 
     subsection (b).
       (b) Establishment.--Not later than January 1, 2009, the 
     Director shall establish within the Office of Personnel 
     Management an office to be known as the Senior Executive 
     Service Resource Office. The mission of the SES Resource 
     Office shall be--
       (1) to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and 
     productivity of the Senior Executive Service through policy 
     formulation and oversight;
       (2) to advance the professionalism of the Senior Executive 
     Service; and
       (3) to ensure that, in seeking to achieve a Senior 
     Executive Service reflective of the Nation's diversity, 
     recruitment is from qualified individuals from appropriate 
     sources.
       (c) Functions.--It shall be the function of the SES 
     Resource Office to make recommendations to the Director with 
     respect to regulations, and to provide guidance to agencies, 
     concerning the structure, management, and diverse composition 
     of the Senior Executive Service. In order to carry out the 
     purposes of this section, the SES Resource Office shall--
       (1) take such actions as the SES Resource Office considers 
     necessary to manage and promote an efficient, elite, and 
     diverse corps of senior executives by--
       (A) creating policies for the management and improvement of 
     the Senior Executive Service;
       (B) providing oversight of the performance, structure, and 
     composition of the Senior Executive Service; and
       (C) providing guidance and oversight to agencies in the 
     management of senior executives and candidates for the Senior 
     Executive Service;
       (2) be responsible for the policy development, management, 
     and oversight of the Senior Executive Service pay system;
       (3) develop standards for certification of each agency's 
     Senior Executive Service performance management system and 
     evaluate all agency applications for certification;
       (4) be responsible for developing and monitoring programs 
     for the advancement and training of senior executives, 
     including the Senior Executive Service Federal Candidate 
     Development Program;
       (5) provide oversight of and guidance to agency executive 
     resources boards;
       (6) be responsible for the administration of the 
     qualifications review board;
       (7) establish and maintain lists (in a form that renders 
     them useful to appointing authorities and candidates) of--
       (A) the total number of career reserved positions at each 
     agency;
       (B) the total number of vacant career reserved positions at 
     each agency;
       (C) whether candidates are being sought for each such 
     vacant position; and
       (D) the names and (to the extent available) the race, 
     ethnicity, gender, and any disabilities of individuals who 
     have been certified, in accordance with section 3393(d) of 
     title 5, United States Code (as so redesignated by section 
     3(a)), as having the executive qualifications necessary for 
     initial appointment as a career appointee;
       (8) establish mentoring programs for individuals described 
     in paragraph (7)(D);
       (9) collect and maintain statistics relating to the 
     composition of the Senior Executive Service based on race, 
     ethnicity, gender, age, and persons with disabilities;
       (10) publish annually in the Federal Register statistics 
     relating to--
       (A) the data collected by the SES Resource Office under 
     paragraph (7); and
       (B) the composition of the Senior Executive Service based 
     on the factors listed in paragraph (7)(D); and
       (11) conduct a continuing program for the recruitment of 
     women, members of racial and ethnic minority groups, and the 
     disabled for Senior Executive Service positions, with special 
     efforts directed at recruiting from educational institutions, 
     professional associations, and other sources.
       (d) Public Access to Statistics.--The SES Resource Office 
     shall make the statistics under subsection (c)(10) accessible 
     to the public through an Internet website.

     SEC. 3. CAREER APPOINTMENTS.

       (a) Establishment and Role of SES Evaluation Panels.--
     Section 3393 of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (g) as 
     subsections (c) through (h), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
       ``(b)(1)(A) Each agency shall establish one or more Senior 
     Executive Service evaluation panels, as appropriate, the 
     members of which shall be appointed by the head of the agency 
     (or his or her designee)--
       ``(i) from among senior executives of the agency or 
     commissioned officers of the uniformed services serving on 
     active duty in such agency; or
       ``(ii) from among senior executives of or commissioned 
     officers of the uniformed services serving on active duty in 
     another agency, if--
       ``(I) subparagraph (B) could not (but for this clause) 
     otherwise be satisfied; and
       ``(II) the consent of the head of the other agency is 
     obtained.
       ``(B) Each panel shall consist of 3 members, of whom at 
     least 1 shall be a woman and 1 other shall be a member of a 
     racial or ethnic minority group.
       ``(2) It shall be the function of a Senior Executive 
     Service evaluation panel, with respect to any Senior 
     Executive Service position for which a vacancy announcement 
     is posted--
       ``(A) to review the executive qualifications of each 
     candidate for a position which is to be filled by a career 
     appointee; and
       ``(B) to certify to the appropriate executive resources 
     board the names of candidates who, in the judgment of the 
     panel, are best qualified for such position.

     Nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be considered to apply in 
     the case of any candidate who is already a career 
     appointee.''.
       (b) Role of Executive Resources Boards.--Paragraph (1) of 
     section 3393(c) of title 5, United States Code (as so 
     redesignated by subsection (a)), is amended to read as 
     follows:
       ``(1) for each career reserved position for which a vacancy 
     is posted, review the executive qualifications of candidates 
     certified under subsection (b) with respect to such position; 
     and''.
       (c) Definition of Appointing Authority.--Section 3393 of 
     title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding after 
     subsection (h) (as so redesignated by subsection (a)) the 
     following:
       ``(i) For purposes of this section, the term `appointing 
     authority' means, with respect to a position within an 
     agency, the head of such agency (or his or her designee).''.
       (d) Technical and Conforming Amendments.--
       (1) Section 3592(a)(1) of title 5, United States Code, is 
     amended by striking ``3393(d)'' and inserting ``3393(e)''.
       (2) Section 3593 of such title is amended--
       (A) in subsection (a)--
       (i) in the matter before paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``3393(b) and (c)'' and inserting ``3393(c) and (d)''; and
       (ii) in paragraph (1), by striking ``3393(d)'' and 
     inserting ``3393(e)''; and
       (B) in subsection (c)(1)--
       (i) in the matter before subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``3393(b) and (c)'' and inserting ``3393(c) and (d)''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``3393(d)'' and 
     inserting ``3393(e)''.
       (3) Section 3594 of such title is amended in subsections 
     (a) and (b) by striking ``3393(d)'' and inserting 
     ``3393(e)''.
       (4) Section 3595(b)(1) of such title is amended by striking 
     ``3393(d)'' and inserting ``3393(e)''.
       (5) Section 7541(1)(A) of such title is amended by striking 
     ``3393(d)'' and inserting ``3393(e)''.
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