[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 212 (Friday, November 5, 2021)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 61043-61047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-23871]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 212 / Friday, November 5, 2021 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 61043]]



OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

5 CFR Parts 315 and 330

RIN 3206-AN79


Hiring Authority for College Graduates

AGENCY: Office of Personnel Management.

ACTION: Interim rule with request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is issuing an interim 
rule, with an opportunity for comment, to amend its career and career-
conditional employment regulations. The revision is necessary to 
implement the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 
for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019, which requires OPM to issue regulations, in 
interim final form, establishing hiring authorities for college 
graduates into positions at specified grades in the competitive 
service. The intended effect of the authority is to provide additional 
flexibility in hiring eligible and qualified individuals.

DATES: 
    Effective date: This interim rule is effective December 6, 2021.
    Comments due date: OPM must receive comments on or before January 
4, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by the docket number or 
Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) for this proposed rulemaking, by the 
following method:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for sending comments.
    All submissions must include the agency name and docket number or 
RIN for this rulemaking. Please arrange and identify your comments on 
the regulatory text by subpart and section number; if your comments 
relate to the supplementary information, please refer to the heading 
and page number. All comments received will be posted without change, 
including any personal information provided. Please ensure your 
comments are submitted within the specified open comment period. Before 
finalizing this rule, OPM will consider all comments we receive on or 
before the closing date for comments. OPM may make changes to the final 
rule in light of the comments we receive.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Katika Floyd at (202) 606-0960, by fax 
at (202) 606-4430, TDD at (202) 418-3134, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On August 13, 2018, the President signed 
Public Law 115-232, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
Year 2019, (i.e., the Act). Section 1108 of the Act established a new 
hiring authority, codified at 5 U.S.C. 3115, for appointing college 
graduates into positions at specified grades in the competitive 
service. This section also directs OPM to issue regulations, on an 
interim final basis, to implement this authority. Section 1108 of the 
Act also established a hiring authority for the time-limited 
appointments of Post-Secondary Students. OPM will issue regulations to 
implement the hiring authority for Post-Secondary students in a 
separate notice.
    OPM is issuing interim regulations, with an opportunity for 
comments, that will create a new section 315.614 in subpart F of part 
315, title 5, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), and revise part 330 
Recruitment, Selection, and Placement (General) to implement these 
provisions.
    The interim rule for college graduates allows agencies to make 
appointments of eligible individuals directly into the competitive 
service, without regard to 5 U.S.C. 3309-3319 and 3330. Readers should 
note that this new hiring authority is separate and distinct from the 
Pathways Program and other programs for recent graduates authorized 
under the Executive Order 13562 (establishing the Pathways Programs, 
and providing for appointments in the excepted service for Interns, 
Recent Graduates, and Presidential Management Fellows as defined in 
that Order).
    When using this authority, agencies must provide public 
notification in accordance with Section 1108, as codified at 5 U.S.C. 
3315, and the merit system principles, and notify OPM, in accordance 
with 5 U.S.C. 3327(b). Because section 1108 of the Act waives the 
requirement for OPM to post a vacancy to be filled under this authority 
that would otherwise apply (5 U.S.C. 3330), agencies are not required 
to use www.USAJOBS.gov (i.e., USAJOBS) to provide notice of these 
vacancies. Although posting on USAJOBS is optional, 5 U.S.C. 3327 
requires agencies to notify OPM of the vacancies they intend to fill 
under this authority. OPM will provide additional information on 
meeting the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3327(b) in supplemental guidance. 
Agencies may wish to use USAJOBS, nevertheless, in light of that 
system's ability to assist with the requirement to collect demographic 
information. Moreover, agencies must, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 3327(b), 
notify OPM of positions to be filled through this authority, whether or 
not an agency uses USAJOBS. Agencies must advertise positions in a 
manner that provides for ``diverse and qualified applicants,'' 5 U.S.C. 
3115(d)(2)(B), and ``ensure[s] that potential applicants have 
appropriate information relevant to the positions'' being filled. Id. 
at 3115(d)(2)(C). As indicated in 5 U.S.C. 3115(c), agencies must 
determine whether an applicant meets the eligibility requirements for 
the College Graduates hiring authority before giving that applicant 
further consideration. Agencies must then assess whether an eligible 
applicant meets the government-wide (i.e., OPM-approved) or OPM-
approved agency-specific minimum qualification standard for the 
position being filled.
    Agencies are not required to provide selection priority to eligible 
and qualified applicants entitled to selection priority in accordance 
with 5 CFR part 330 subparts F, and G pertaining to Agency Career 
Transition Assistance Plans (CTAP), and Interagency Career Transition 
Assistance Plans (ICTAP). OPM has revised these subparts to include 
exceptions to these provisions when appointments are made using the 
college graduate authority.
    Section 1108 of the Act also allows agencies to make appointments 
without regard to any provision of sections 3309 through 3319 of title 
5. An agency may select any eligible individual who meets each minimum 
qualification standard, without regard to the application of veterans' 
preference, but must follow merit system principles, 5 U.S.C. 2301, in 
so doing. Agencies may appoint

[[Page 61044]]

individuals under this authority to career or career conditional 
appointments (as appropriate) in the competitive service at the grade 
levels specified in 5 U.S.C. 3115.
    OPM is adding a new Sec.  315.614,
    Interim Sec.  315.614(a) Agency authority establishes that an 
agency may noncompetitively appoint an eligible and qualified College 
Graduate to any position classified by OPM in the administrative or 
professional series at or below the General Schedule (GS) 11 level (or 
equivalent).
    Interim Sec.  315.614(b) Eligibility defines an eligible College 
Graduate as an individual who has received a bachelors or advanced 
degree within two years of submitting an application for employment 
under this authority. For these purposes, a baccalaureate or graduate 
degree must be obtained from an institution of higher education in 
accordance with section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as 
codified at 20 U.S.C. 1001(a). The two-year eligibility period begins 
on the date the degree is received, not the date of the graduation 
ceremony. An agency may accept applications from applicants prior to 
the applicant receiving a degree. If such an applicant is selected, the 
applicant may not be appointed until after the degree is completed. An 
applicant who has applied for a specific position within the two-year 
eligibility period may be appointed to that position after the two-year 
eligibility period expires. For example, if a student receives a degree 
in May of 2020 and applies for a position in April of 2022; then the 
appointment may be made after May of 2022. The date on which an 
application is submitted is the date on which it was received by the 
hiring agency.
    This section also makes clear that for individuals who have 
completed a degree and have an intervening period of obligated service 
of at least four years in the uniformed services, the two-year 
eligibility period begins on the date of the individual's discharge or 
release from the uniformed service. The intervening period of uniformed 
service must prevent the individual from applying within the standard 
two-year period for applying after completing a degree. For example, a 
service member completes a master's degree in May 2018 while serving in 
a four-year enlistment period that ends in May 2021. The service 
member's two-year eligibility period under the authority will begin in 
May 2021, upon discharge or release from uniformed service, because 
they were unable to apply and accept a position while completing their 
service obligation. Or an individual in the Reserve Officers Training 
Corps (ROTC) who has a four-year service obligation after graduation 
would be eligible to apply for a position under the authority within 
two years of completing the four-year service obligation.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(c) Qualifications explains that individuals 
appointed under this authority must meet each OPM-prescribed minimum 
qualification standard, or OPM-approved agency-specific minimum 
qualification standard, for the position being filled.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(d) Classification establishes that an agency 
may appoint an eligible and qualified individual to any position 
classified in the administrative and professional series at the GS 11 
level or below (or equivalent), including positions with promotion 
potential beyond the GS-11 level. Agencies may refer to OPM's, 
``Introduction to the Position Classification Standards,'' available at 
https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/classifying-general-schedule-positions/positionclassificationintro.pdf for a definition of these positions. In 
addition, agencies can refer to the ``Handbook of Occupational Groups 
and Families'' available at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/classifying-general-schedule-positions/occupationalhandbook.pdf.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(e) Public notification contains the public 
notice and advertising requirements agencies must follow before filling 
a position using this provision. This section explains that if an 
agency using this authority does not use USAJOBS to post the position 
it must post a job announcement on its public facing home web page 
(home page), or at a minimum, display a link to the job announcement on 
the hiring agency's public facing home page. Agencies are free to 
additionally post announcements directly on third party recruitment 
boards (e.g., LinkedIn, Monster, Yello) as long as the agency's public 
facing homepage also includes a link to a specific announcement.
    This section requires that the agency's job announcement must 
include the following information about the position being filled: The 
position's title, series, grade level (or equivalent), minimum 
qualifications, the position's salary, whether the position has 
promotion potential to a higher grade(s), any pertinent flexibilities 
that may be offered in conjunction with the position (e.g., telework 
opportunities or student loan repayments), and information on how to 
apply. This section also requires the agency to adhere to the merit 
system principles and perform appropriate recruiting and advertising 
activities to foster a diverse and qualified applicant pool when using 
the authority. An agency may use USAJOBS to satisfy the public 
notification requirements and the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3327. If 
USAJOBS is not used to advertise a position(s), the agency must satisfy 
the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3327 by providing OPM link(s) to the 
public notification(s) used to solicit applicants as those links are 
posted.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(f) Appointment Type makes clear that 
individuals are appointed to permanent career or career-conditional 
positions in the competitive service.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(g) Acquisition of competitive status explains 
that an individual appointed under this provision acquires competitive 
status upon completion of a probationary period in accordance with 
subpart H of this part.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(h) Tenure upon appointment states that an 
individual appointed under this provision becomes a career or career-
conditional employee in accordance with Sec.  315.201.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(i) Limitation on the number of appointments 
restricts the number of appointments an agency may make using this 
authority in a fiscal year. This section specifies that the number of 
appointments in any fiscal year may not exceed fifteen percent of the 
number of individuals appointed by the agency the previous fiscal year 
(i.e., the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which an agency is 
using this authority) to professional or administrative positions at 
the GS-11 level (or equivalent) or below under competitive examining 
procedures. An appointing agency may not count appointments made using 
direct hire authorities or excepted service authorities, or selections 
under merit promotion authorities, when establishing the limit for a 
given fiscal year. In calculating this limitation, agencies must round 
up or down to the nearest whole number, if necessary, to eliminate a 
decimal place. Values ending in ``.5'' may be rounded up to the nearest 
whole number in determining an agency's cap limitation. Values ending 
in less than ``.5'' should be rounded down to the nearest whole number 
in determining an agency's cap limitation. For example, 15% of 217 is 
32.55, which should be rounded up to 33 or .15% of 235 is 35.25, which 
should be rounded down to 35. This section also provides that OPM may 
establish a lower percentage limitation based on any factor OPM deems 
appropriate. OPM shall notify agencies

[[Page 61045]]

via the OPM website and other venues (such as the Chief Human Capital 
Officer's Council) of any changes to the numerical limitation.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(j) Reporting requirements describes the type 
of data and frequency at which agencies must provide information to the 
Congress and OPM on their use of this authority. Agencies will be 
required to provide data on the total number of appointments; the grade 
levels and occupational series of the positions filled; the numerical 
limit established for the authority; the number of those appointed who 
have been separated; recruitment activities; and any difficulties 
encountered in using the authority. OPM will provide written guidance 
following publication of this rule describing the means by which 
agencies should collect this information, the timing of such collection 
and the groups as to which information should be collected.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(j)(2) establishes that OPM may request from 
agencies any additional information that it deems necessary to further 
evaluate the impact and effectiveness of this authority.
    Interim Sec.  315.614(k) describes the special provisions on the 
use of the authority by Department of Defense (DoD) in relation to 
other DoD specific hiring authorities.

Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking

    Section 3115(f) of Title 5 of the U.S. Code, as enacted by section 
1108(a) of Public Law 115-232 (Aug. 13, 2018), the John S. McCain 
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 (NDAA), 
directs the rulemaking shall be through ``interim regulations, with an 
opportunity to comment.'' Therefore, a general notice of proposed 
rulemaking, as typically required for rulemaking under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) 
and 1103(b) need not be issued in advance of this rule.

Expected Impact of This Interim Rule

    OPM is issuing this rule to implement 5 U.S.C. 3115. This statute 
establishes a hiring authority for college graduates into certain 
positions at specified grades in the competitive service. The statute 
and this implementing regulation will allow agencies to make 
appointments of college graduates directly into the competitive service 
positions, without regard to rating, ranking and veterans' preference 
provisions in 5 U.S.C. 3309-3319 and 3330. This authority will be a 
useful tool as part of an overall strategy to implement strategic 
workforce and recruitment plans.

Costs

    This interim final rule will affect the operations of over eighty 
Federal agencies--ranging from cabinet-level departments to small 
independent agencies. We estimate that this rule will require 
individuals employed by these agencies to develop policies and 
procedures to implement the rule and perform outreach and recruitment 
activities when using the authority. For the purpose of this cost 
analysis, the assumed average salary rate of Federal employees 
performing this work will be the rate in 2021 for GS-14, step 5, from 
the Washington, DC, locality pay table ($138,66 annual locality rate 
and $66.54 hourly locality rate). We assume that the total dollar value 
of labor, which includes wages, benefits, and overhead, is equal to 200 
percent of the wage rate, resulting in an assumed labor cost of $133.08 
per hour.
    In order to comply with the regulatory changes in this interim 
final rule, affected agencies will need to review the rule and update 
their policies and procedures. We estimate that, in the first year 
following publication of the final rule, this will require an average 
of 250 hours of work by employees with an average hourly cost of 
$133.08. This would result in estimated costs in that first year of 
implementation of about $33,270 per agency, and about $2,661,600 
governmentwide. We do not believe this rule will substantially increase 
the ongoing administrative costs to agencies, including the 
administrative costs of administering the program and hiring and 
training new staff.

Benefits

    This authority will allow agencies to use strategic recruiting to 
hire recent college graduates to fill professional and administrative 
positions at the GS-11 level and below. When using the authority 
agencies will have additional flexibility in how college graduates are 
hired. Federal agencies will determine recruitment sources and 
processes for the solicitation of applications and will be held 
responsible for merit-based selections. This authority--when combined 
with agencies strategic recruitment plans--may help agencies better 
recruit to fill mission critical occupations.

Executive Order 12866

    Executive Order 12866 directs agencies to assess all costs and 
benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is 
necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits 
(including potential economic, environmental, public health and safety 
effects, distributive impacts, and equity). In accordance with the 
provisions of Executive Order 12866, this rule was reviewed by the 
Office of Management and Budget as a significant, but not economically 
significant rule.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Director of the Office of Personnel Management certifies that 
this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities.

Federalism

    We have examined this rule in accordance with Executive Order 
13132, Federalism, and have determined that this rule will not have any 
negative impact on the rights, roles and responsibilities of State, 
local, or tribal governments.

Civil Justice Reform

    This regulation meets the applicable standard set forth in 
Executive Order 12988.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

    This rule will not result in the expenditure by state, local, and 
tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 
million or more in any year, and it will not significantly or uniquely 
affect small governments. Therefore, no actions were deemed necessary 
under the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995.

Congressional Review Act

    Subtitle E of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness 
Act of 1996 (known as the Congressional Review Act or CRA) (5 U.S.C. 
801 et seq.) requires rules to be submitted to Congress before taking 
effect. OPM will submit to Congress and the Comptroller General of the 
United States a report regarding the issuance of this rule before its 
effective date, as required by 5 U.S.C. 801. The Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs in the Office of Management and Budget has 
determined that this rule is not a major rule as defined by the CRA, 5 
U.S.C. 804.

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521)

    This rule does not impose any new reporting or record-keeping 
requirements subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act.

List of Subjects in 5 CFR Part 315

    Government employees.


[[Page 61046]]


Office of Personnel Management.
Alexys Stanley,
Regulatory Affairs Analyst.

    Accordingly, OPM is amending parts 315 and 330 of title 5, Code of 
Federal Regulations, as follows:

PART 315--CAREER AND CAREER CONDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT

0
1. The authority citation for part 315 is revised to read as follows:

    Authority:  5 U.S.C. 1302, 3301, and 3302; E.O. 10577, 3 CFR, 
1954-1958 Comp. p. 218, unless otherwise noted; and E.O. 13162. 
Secs. 315.601 and 315.609 also issued under 22 U.S.C. 3651 and 3652. 
Secs. 315.602 and 315.604 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 1104. Sec. 
315.603 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 8151. Sec. 315.605 also issued 
under E.O. 12034, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp. p.111. Sec. 315.606 also issued 
under E.O. 11219, 3 CFR, 1964-1965 Comp. p. 303. Sec. 315.607 also 
issued under 22 U.S.C. 2560. Sec. 315.608 also issued under E.O. 
12721, 3 CFR, 1990 Comp. p. 293. Sec. 315.610 also issued under 5 
U.S.C. 3304(c). Sec. 315.611 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3304(f). 
Sec. 315.612 also under E.O. 13473. Sec 315.613 also issued under 
Pub. L. 114-47, 2(a) (Aug. 7, 2015), amended by Pub. L. 114-328, 
1135 (Dec. 23, 2016), as codified at 5 U.S.C. 9602. Sec. 315.614 
also is issued under 5 U.S.C. 3115. Sec. 315.708 also issued under 
E.O. 13318, 3 CFR, 2004 Comp. p. 265. Sec. 315.710 also issued under 
E.O. 12596, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp. p. 264.

Subpart F--Career or Career-Conditional Appointment Under Special 
Authorities

0
2. Add Sec.  315.614 to read as follows:


Sec.  315.614  Hiring Authority for College Graduates.

    (a) Appointment authority. In accordance with the provisions of 
this section, an agency may appoint noncompetitively an eligible and 
qualified individual to a position classified in a professional or 
administrative occupational category at the general schedule (GS) 11 
level (or equivalent) or below, without regard to the provisions of 5 
U.S.C. 3309 through 3319 and 3330.
    (b) Eligibility. An eligible college graduate is defined as an 
individual who:
    (1) Has received a baccalaureate or graduate degree from an 
institution of higher education as defined in 20 U.S.C. 1001(a); and
    (i) Has submitted an application for the position being filled 
under this authority (using the date on which the application is 
received by the hiring agency as the date of submission).
    (ii) Not later than two years after the date on which the 
individual received their degree described in paragraph (b)(1) 
introductory text of this section; or
    (iii) in the case of an individual who has completed a period of 
not less than four years of intervening obligated service in a 
uniformed service, not later than two years after the date on which the 
individual was released or discharged from that uniformed service.
    (2) Meets the minimum qualification standards prescribed or 
approved by OPM for the position to which the individual is being 
appointed.
    (c) Qualifications. Agencies must evaluate eligible college 
graduates using the OPM-prescribed qualification standard, or an OPM-
approved agency-specific minimum qualification standard, for the 
position being filled.
    (d) Classification. An agency may make an initial appointment of an 
eligible and qualified individual to any position classified according 
to OPM classification standards in a professional or administrative 
occupational series at the GS-11 level (or equivalent) or below, 
including positions with promotion potential beyond the GS-11.
    (e) Public notice and advertising. An agency must adhere to merit 
system principles, and thus must publicly advertise the position in a 
manner that endeavors to reach qualified individuals from all segments 
of society, including notifying OPM, in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 
3327(b), before filling a position under this authority. To meet this 
requirement, an agency must display information about the position to 
be filled on its home page (that is accessible to the general public). 
An agency may, but is not required to, use www.USAJOBS.gov for this 
purpose. Alternatively, an agency may either provide an actual job 
announcement on its public-facing web page (home page) or provide a 
link to the job announcement on its public-facing homepage. The agency 
should consider whether additional recruitment and advertisement 
activities are necessary or appropriate to further merit system 
principles. If USAJOBS is not used to advertise the position, the 
agency must satisfy the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3327(b) by providing 
OPM information about the position in the same format it usually would 
when posting a position on USAJOBS. A job announcement must include, at 
a minimum, the following information:
    (1) The position title, series, grade level;
    (2) The geographic location where the position will be filled;
    (3) The starting salary of the position;
    (4) The minimum qualifications of the position;
    (5) Whether the position has promotion protentional to higher grade 
levels;
    (6) Any other relevant information about the position such as 
telework opportunities, recruitment incentives, etc.;
    (7) Specific information instructing applicants on how to apply;
    (8) Equal employment opportunity statement (Agencies may use the 
recommended equal employment opportunity statement located on OPM's 
USAJOBS website.); and
    (9) Reasonable accommodation statement.
    (f) Appointment type. College graduates are appointed to career or 
career-conditional permanent positions in the competitive service.
    (g) Acquisition of competitive status. A person appointed under 
this section acquires competitive status upon completion of 
probationary period in accordance with the provisions of subpart H of 
this part.
    (h) Tenure upon appointment. A person appointed under paragraph (a) 
of this section becomes a career-conditional employee unless the 
appointee has already satisfied the requirements for career tenure or 
is exempt from the service requirement pursuant to Sec.  315.201.
    (i) Numerical limit on the number of appointments. (1) Except as 
provided in paragraph (i)(2) of this section, the total number of 
individuals that an agency may appoint under this authority during a 
fiscal year may not exceed 15 percent of the number of individuals that 
the agency appointed during the previous FY to a position in the 
competitive service classified in a professional or administrative 
occupational category, at the GS-11 level or below, or equivalent, 
under competitive examining procedures. An appointing agency may not 
count appointments made using direct hire authorities, non-competitive 
authorities, excepted service authorities, or selections under merit 
promotion authorities, when establishing the limit for a given fiscal 
year. In calculating this limitation, agencies must round up or down to 
the nearest whole number, if necessary, to eliminate a decimal place. 
Values ending in ``.5'' or more may be rounded up to the nearest whole 
number in determining an agency's cap limitation. Values ending in less 
than ``.5'' should be rounded down to the nearest whole number in 
determining an agency's cap limitation.
    (2) During any given fiscal year, OPM may establish a lower 
limitation on the number of individuals that may be appointed under 
paragraph (i)(1) of this section based on any factor OPM

[[Page 61047]]

considers appropriate. OPM shall notify agencies via the OPM website to 
communicate any modification to the numerical limitation.
    (j) Reporting requirements. (1) Not later than September 30 of each 
of the first three fiscal years beginning in FY 2020 an agency that 
makes an appointment under these provisions must report to Congress and 
to OPM on the impact of this authority for the fiscal year for which 
the report is submitted. OPM will provide written guidance, at the time 
this rule is published, describing the means by which agencies should 
collect this information, the timing of such collections, and the 
groups as to which information should be collected. An agency's report 
must contain the following information:
    (i) The total number of individuals appointed by the agency under 
this authority by position title, series, grade, and geographic 
location;
    (ii) The number of individuals appointed under this authority by 
the items identified in 5 U.S.C. 3115(g), and in OPM guidance;
    (iii) The number of veterans appointed, as defined in 5 U.S.C. 
2108;
    (iv) Any numerical limitation established in paragraph (i) of this 
section;
    (v) Recruitment sources, outreach, and recruitment activities used 
to fill positions;
    (vi) The total number of individuals appointed by the agency during 
the applicable fiscal year to a position in the competitive service 
classified in a professional or administrative occupational category at 
the GS-11 level, or an equivalent level, or below;
    (vii) The number of individuals appointed under the authority that 
have been separated to show a break down between involuntary and 
voluntary separations as well as the reasons for each type of 
separation;
    (viii) Information on difficulties encountered when using the 
authority;
    (2) OPM may request additional information from agencies on their 
use of this authority. An agency must include in its report to Congress 
and OPM any additional information required by OPM under this 
subsection.
    (k) Special provisions for Department of Defense. These regulations 
do not preclude the Secretary of Defense from exercising authority to 
appoint a recent graduate under section 1106 of Public Law 114-328. 
Additionally, these regulations do not apply to the Department of 
Defense during the period section 1106 of Public Law 114-328 is in 
effect.

PART 330--RECRUITMENT, SELECTION, AND PLACEMENT (GENERAL)

0
3. The authority citation for part 330 is revised to read as follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 1104, 1302, 3301, 3302, 3304, and 3330; E.O. 
10577, 3 CFR, 1954-58 Comp., p. 218; Section 330.103 also issued 
under 5 U.S.C. 3327; Section 330.104 also issued under sec. 2(d), 
Pub. L. 114-137, 130 Stat. 310; Subpart B also issued under 5 U.S.C. 
3315 and 8151; Section 330.401 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3310; 
Subparts F and G also issued under Presidential Memorandum on Career 
Transition Assistance for Federal Employees, September 12, 1995; 
Section 330.609 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 3115; Subpart G also 
issued under 5 U.S.C. 8337(h) and 8456(b); Section 330.707 also 
issued under 5 U.S.C. 3115 and 3116.

Subpart F--Agency Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) for 
Local Surplus and Displaced Employees

0
4. In Sec.  330.609, add paragraph (ff) to read as follows:


Sec.  330.609  Exceptions to CTAP selection priority.

* * * * *
    (ff) Make an appointment using the college graduate hiring 
authority under 5 U.S.C. 3115 and part 315 of this chapter.
* * * * *

Subpart G--Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) 
for Displaced Employees

0
5. In Sec.  330.707, add paragraph (x) to read as follows:


Sec.  330.707   Exceptions to ICTAP selection priority.

* * * * *
    (x) Make an appointment using the college graduate hiring authority 
under 5 U.S.C. 3115 and part 315 of this chapter.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2021-23871 Filed 11-4-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6325-39-P