President Trump’s memo imposing a general federal hiring freeze differs somewhat from the terms of the freeze he had previewed during the campaign, including the exceptions.
A memo issued Monday states that no vacant positions may be filled–and no new positions may be created “except in limited circumstances”–as of noon the previous day.
While a campaign document had spoken of specific exceptions for military, public safety and public health, the memo instead creates a general freeze while giving agencies discretion to fill positions they deem “necessary to meet national security or public safety standards.” OPM can carve out other exceptions that are “otherwise necessary.”
The memo also states that it “does not prohibit making reallocations to meet the highest priority needs and to ensure that essential services are not interrupted and national security is not affected.”
Further guidance from OPM and OMB is expected on those details. OMB additionally was given three months to produce a “long-term plan to reduce the size of the federal government’s workforce through attrition.”
