[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 75 (Tuesday, May 18, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3947-S3948]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FEDERAL HIRING PROCESS IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 2010
Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 373, S. 736.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 736) to provide for improvements in the Federal
hiring process and for other purposes.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill,
which had been reported from the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, with an amendment to strike all after the
enacting clause and insert in lieu thereof the following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Federal Hiring Process
Improvement Act of 2010''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITION.
In this Act, the term ``agency''--
(1) means an Executive agency as defined under section 105
of title 5, United States Code; and
(2) shall not include the Government Accountability Office.
SEC. 3. STRATEGIC WORKFORCE PLAN.
(a) In General.--
(1) Development of plan.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act and in every subsequent year,
the head of each agency, in consultation with the Office of
Personnel Management and the Office of Management and Budget,
shall develop a strategic workforce plan as part of the
agency performance plan required under section 1115 of title
31, United States Code, to include--
(A) hiring projections, including occupation and grade
level;
(B) long-term and short-term strategic human capital
planning to address critical skills deficiencies;
(C) recruitment strategies to attract highly qualified
candidates from diverse backgrounds;
(D) streamlining the hiring process to conform with the
provisions in this Act; and
(E) a specific analysis of the contractor workforce,
whether the balance between work being performed by the
Federal workforce and the contractor workforce should be
adjusted, and the capacity of the agency to manage employees
who are not Federal employees and are doing the work of the
Government.
(2) Inclusion in performance plan.--Section 1115(a) of
title 31, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' after the
semicolon;
(B) in paragraph (6), by striking the period and inserting
``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(7) include the strategic workforce plan developed under
section 3 of the Federal Hiring Process Improvement Act of
2010.''.
(b) Hiring Projections.--Agencies shall make hiring
projections made under strategic workforce plans available to
the public, including on agency websites.
(c) Submission to the Office of Personnel Management.--Each
agency strategic workforce plan shall be submitted to the
Office of Personnel Management.
(d) Governmentwide Strategic Workforce Plan.--Based on the
agency plans submitted under subsection (a), the Office of
Personnel Management shall--
(1) develop a governmentwide strategic workforce plan
updated at least annually to include the contents described
under subsection (a)(1) on a governmentwide basis; and
(2) make such plan available to the President, Congress,
and the public.
SEC. 4. FEDERAL JOB ANNOUNCEMENTS.
(a) Targeted Announcements.--In consultation with the Chief
Human Capital Officers Council, the head of each agency
shall--
(1) take steps necessary to target highly qualified
applicant pools with diverse backgrounds before posting job
announcements;
(2) clearly and prominently post job announcements in
strategic locations convenient to, and accessible by, such
targeted applicant pools;
(3) seek to develop relationships with targeted and diverse
applicant pools to develop regular pipelines for high-quality
applicants; and
(4) post job announcements for a reasonable period of time.
(b) Public Notice Requirements.--The requirements of
subsection (a) shall not supersede public notice
requirements.
(c) Plain Writing Requirement.--
(1) Definition.--In this subsection, the term ``plain
writing'' means writing that the intended audience can
readily understand and use because that writing is clear,
concise, well-organized, and follows other best practices of
plain writing.
(2) Requirement.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, all job announcements for Federal
positions shall be in plain writing in accordance with
guidance provided by the Office of Management and Budget.
(d) Contact Information.--Job announcements shall include
contact information for applicants to seek further
information.
SEC. 5. APPLICATION PROCESS AND NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.
(a) Application Process.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act and in consultation with the
Office of Personnel Management and the Office of Management
and Budget, the head of each agency shall develop processes
to--
(1) ensure that job announcements are open for a reasonable
period of time as determined by the head of the agency to
allow applicants from diverse backgrounds time to submit an
application;
(2) review and revise the hiring process of the agency to
create a streamlined and timely system for hiring decisions;
(3) allow applicants to submit a cover letter, resume, and
answers to brief questions, such as questions relating to
United States citizenship and veterans status, to complete an
application;
(4) allow applicants to submit application materials in a
variety of formats, including word processing documents and
portable document format;
(5) not require any applicant to provide a Social Security
number or any other personal identifying information
unnecessary for the initial review of an applicant for a
position;
(6) not require lengthy writing requirements such as
knowledge, skills, and ability essays as part of an initial
application;
(7) not require the submission of additional material in
support of an application, such as educational transcript,
proof of veterans status, and professional certifications,
unless necessary to complete the hiring process;
(8) provide for a valid, job-related assessment process to
help identify the best candidates for the position to be
filled and which does not place an unreasonable burden upon
applicants;
(9) ensure that applicants are given a reasonable amount of
time after the closing date of the job announcement to
provide additional necessary information; and
(10) include the hiring manager in all parts of the hiring
process, including--
(A) targeted recruitment;
(B) drafting the job announcement;
(C) review of the initial applications;
(D) interviewing the applicants; and
(E) the final decisionmaking process.
(b) Notification Requirements.--
(1) In general.--In consultation with the Chief Human
Capital Officers Council, the head of each agency shall
develop mechanisms under which each applicant for a Federal
job vacancy shall receive timely notification of the status
of each application or provide the applicant the ability to
check on the status of each application.
(2) Contents of notification.--A notification to an
applicant under this subsection shall include--
(A) notice of receipt of an application not later than 5
business days after the application was received by the
employing agency;
(B) an explanation of the hiring process and an estimated
timeline of the next actions in the process;
(C) notice of the qualification and status of an applicant
after all applications for the applicable position have been
initially reviewed and ranked;
(D) notice of the qualifications and status of the
applicant after all interviews for the applicable position
are completed;
(E) for all applicants selected for an interview, notice of
the ongoing process if selected, including the process for
any needed security clearance or suitability review, not
later than the date of the interview; and
(F) notice to nonaccepted applicants that the applicable
position is not open not later than 10 business days after
the date on which--
(i) the selected candidate has accepted an offer of
employment; or
(ii) the job announcement has been cancelled.
SEC. 6. APPLICANT INVENTORY.
(a) In General.--Section 3330 of title 5, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections
(f) and (g), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
``(e)(1) The Office of Personnel Management shall establish
and keep current a comprehensive inventory of individuals
seeking employment in the Federal Government.
``(2) The inventory under this subsection shall--
``(A) be made available to agencies for use in filling
vacancies;
``(B) contain information voluntarily provided by
applicants for employment, including--
``(i) the resume and contact information provided by the
applicant; and
``(ii) any other information which the Office considers
appropriate;
``(C) retain information for no longer than 1 calendar
year;
``(D) not include information relating to--
``(i) the application of the applicant for a specific
vacancy announcement; or
``(ii) any other information relating to vacancy
announcements; and
``(E) shall provide for a mechanism to allow --
``(i) applicants to update resume, qualifications, and
contact information; and
``(ii) agency officials to search information in the
inventory by agency and job classification.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of
this Act.
[[Page S3948]]
SEC. 7. TRAINING.
Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this
Act--
(1) in consultation with the Chief Human Capital Officers
Council, the Office of Personnel Management shall develop and
notify agencies of a training program for human resources
professionals to implement the requirements of this Act; and
(2) each agency shall develop and submit to the Office of
Personnel Management a plan to implement the training
program.
SEC. 8. REDUCTION IN THE LENGTH OF THE HIRING PROCESS.
(a) Agency Plans.--In consultation with the Office of
Management and Budget, the head of each agency shall develop
a plan to reduce the length of the hiring process, which
shall include an analysis of the current hiring process
performed in accordance with standards established by the
Office of Personnel Management.
(b) Requirements.--To the extent practical, the plan shall
require that each agency fill identified vacancies not later
than an average of 80 calendar days after the date of
identification of the vacancy.
(c) Reports.--Each agency shall submit an annual report to
Congress on the average period of time required to fill each
job, and whether such jobs are cancelled or reopened.
SEC. 9. MEASURES OF FEDERAL HIRING EFFECTIVENESS.
(a) In General.--Each agency shall measure and collect
information on indicators of hiring effectiveness with
respect to the following :
(1) Recruiting and hiring.--
(A) Ability to reach and recruit highly qualified talent
from diverse talent pools.
(B) Use and impact of each hiring authority and flexibility
to recruit most qualified applicants, including the use of
student internships and scholarship programs as a talent pool
for permanent hires.
(C) Use and impact of special hiring authorities and
flexibilities to recruit diverse candidates, including
veteran, minority, and disabled candidates.
(D) The age, educational level, and source of applicants.
(E) Length of time between the time a position is
advertised and the time a first offer of employment is made.
(F) Length of time between the time a first offer of
employment for a position is made and the time a new hire
starts in that position.
(G) Number of internal and external applicants for Federal
positions.
(H) Number of positions filled compared to the specific
number in the annual workforce plan of the agency, with
specific reference to mission-critical occupations or areas
of critical shortage deficiencies.
(I) Number of offers accepted compared to the number of
offers made for permanent positions.
(2) Hiring manager assessment.--
(A) Manager satisfaction with the quality of the applicants
interviewed and new hires.
(B) Manager satisfaction with the match between the skills
of newly hired individuals and the needs of the agency.
(C) Manager satisfaction with the hiring process and hiring
outcomes.
(D) Mission-critical deficiencies closed by new hires and
the connection between mission-critical deficiencies and
annual agency performance.
(E) Manager satisfaction with the length of time to fill a
position.
(3) Applicant assessment.--Applicant satisfaction with the
hiring process (including clarity of job announcement,
reasons for withdrawal of any application, user-friendliness
of the application process, communication regarding status of
application, and timeliness of hiring decision).
(4) New hire assessment.--
(A) New hire satisfaction with the hiring process
(including clarity of job announcement, user-friendliness of
the application process, communication regarding status of
application, and timeliness of hiring decision).
(B) Satisfaction with the onboarding experience (including
timeliness of onboarding after the hiring decision, welcoming
and orientation processes, and being provided with timely and
useful new employee information and assistance).
(C) New hire attrition.
(D) Investment in training and development for employees
during their first year of employment.
(E) Other indicators and measures as required by the Office
of Personnel Management.
(b) Reports.--
(1) In general.--Each agency shall submit on an annual
basis and in accordance with regulations prescribed under
subsection (c) the information collected under subsection (a)
to the Office of Personnel Management.
(2) Availability of recruiting and hiring information.--
Each year the Office of Personnel Management shall provide
the information submitted under paragraph (1) in a consistent
format to allow for a comparison of hiring effectiveness and
experience across demographic groups and agencies to--
(A) Congress before that information is made publicly
available; and
(B) the public on the website of the Office not later than
90 days after the submission of the information under
paragraph (1).
(c) Regulations.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of
Personnel Management shall prescribe regulations directing
the methodology, timing, and reporting of the data described
in subsection (a).
SEC. 10. REGULATIONS.
(a) In General.--Except as provided under section 9(c), not
later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Director of the Office of Personnel Management shall
prescribe regulations as necessary to carry out this Act.
(b) Consultation.--The Director of the Office of Personnel
Management shall consult the Chief Human Capital Officers
Council in the development of regulations under this section.
Mr. LEVIN. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported
substitute amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be read a
third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid upon the
table, with no intervening action or debate, and any statements be
printed in the Record.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
The bill (S. 736), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a
third reading, was read the third time, and passed.
____________________