The bill would expand and put into law several changes to hiring policy that started during the Trump administration and were kept in place under Biden. Image: Dillxr/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffUPDATED: As its first legislative action in the new Congress on federal employee issues, the House has passed a bill downplaying the role of educational credentials in job qualifications and the role of self-evaluations in assessing candidates.
The bill (HR-159) was passed on a bipartisan vote, sending it to the Senate, where a similar bill passed the committee level last year on a bipartisan vote but never reached a floor vote. Separately, a counterpart bill (S-59) has been introduced there.
The bill would expand and put into law several changes to hiring policy that started during the Trump administration that are among that administration’s few policies that the Biden administration has continued. A 2020 executive order initially required agencies to put many similar policies in place, and guidance issued in 2021 and 2022 told agencies to continue pursuing those policies.
The bill defines acceptable job assessments used in competitive-service hiring to include skills-based assessments; authorizes agencies to use subject-matter experts to administer skills-based assessments; allows agencies to share their applicant assessments; and directs agencies to have staff who specialize in supporting the development of skills-based assessments, improving examinations and otherwise carrying out the requirements.
Outside bodies such as the MSPB have questioned reliance on self-assessments as creating an incentive for candidates to over-rate themselves and have said that over-reliance on educational credentials can freeze out candidates who are otherwise well qualified, including in fields such as IT where candidates may have certifications rather than college degrees.
House Oversight and Accountability chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said the bill “represents one of those rare bipartisan legislative reforms that targets a specific problem, implements tested solutions, and reflects private-sector best practices.”
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