[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 98 (Wednesday, June 27, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1152]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 INTRODUCING THE SES REFORM ACT OF 2012

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JAMES P. MORAN

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 27, 2012

  Mr. MORAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Senior 
Executive Service Reform Act of 2012. To put it simply, this bill will 
make the Senior Executive Service more attractive to senior General 
Schedule employees by reforming SES compensation, improving SES career 
management, reforming the SES hiring process, and increasing diversity 
within the SES.
  Today approximately 64 percent of the nearly 7,100 Senior Executives 
will be eligible to retire by 2016. According to officials at the 
Office of Personnel Management (OPM), there are insufficient numbers of 
candidates to replace outgoing Senior Executives. The Senior Executive 
Service is not broken, but needs reform to continue to attract, retain, 
develop and reward our nation's most talented civil servants.
  Although Senior Executives can earn more at the upper ranges, lower-
level Senior Executives have significant pay overlap with upper-level 
GS-14 and 15 employees, who receive locality and overtime pay. Pay 
compression, as the phenomenon is known, reduces the attractiveness of 
joining the SES, where employees work longer hours and are more 
susceptible to being geographically relocated.
  To address pay compression, this bill would provide an automatic pay 
raise equal to the annual average GS pay raise for any SES that 
receives a ``fully successful'' rating. Additionally, this bill would 
allow Senior Executives to count performance awards and bonuses towards 
their High-3 annuity calculation. Each reform is intended to alleviate 
pay compression, making the SES more financially attractive for high-
performing GS employees.
  Mr. Speaker, more attention needs to be given to ensuring that Senior 
Executives receive continuing professional development throughout their 
careers. This bill will require each agency to establish onboarding 
programs for newly appointed Senior Executives. Agency programs must 
include an overview of the mission, priorities, strategic plan of the 
agency and the roles and responsibilities of the new appointee.
  To improve the hiring process, agency heads will also be required to 
advertise vacancies for a sufficient period of time to allow a larger 
pool of applicants to apply. The bill will reduce the exhaustive 
amounts of paperwork that needs to be submitted into a more manageable 
process that will allow agencies to provide timely notification to 
applicants regarding the status of their application.
  Finally, I am proud that this bill will require each agency to create 
plans to increase diversity within their agencies. The plan, which will 
need to be updated biennially, will maximize the opportunities for the 
appointment of minorities, women and individuals with disabilities to 
the SES.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to introduce the SES Reform Bill of 2012 with 
my colleagues Representatives Gerry Connolly and Chris Van Hollen, who 
have been such great leaders on federal employee issues.

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