DHS, DoD Systems Still Pending

The hearings on personnel reforms are being held in the context of pending changes at the Defense and Homeland Security departments that have been in the works for several years. A federal judge last week held another hearing in a lawsuit in which unions are challenging the final rules that DHS issued earlier this year but that it still hasn’t implemented. The hearing focused on the scope of an earlier order by the judge invalidating certain union and employee appeal rights provisions of the rules. Another ruling is expected soon that could help define how much of its new system DHS can carry out in the face of the suit; also, the deadline for the government to appeal the injunction is coming up. Meanwhile, DoD is expected to soon issue its final rules on its “national security personnel system,” triggering a 30-day congressional review of those rules before any of them could be put into effect. A separate suit is pending against DoD, and more legal motions are likely once DoD puts out its final rules. Both departments plan to phase in their new systems over several years in any event.