U.S. Office of Personnel Management

5 C.F.R. Part 213, Subpart C ( §§ 213.3301–213.3309 )

—OPTIONAL--

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

Qualifications for Schedule C Excepted Service Appointments in the Executive Office of the President

Eliminates a broad excepted-service carve-out that allows White House and EOP staff to bypass minimum education requirements, written assessments, rating panels, and veteran-preference rules—restoring full merit-based hiring for all Executive Office roles

U.S. Office of Personnel Management 1900 E Street NW Washington, DC 20415

regulations@opm.gov

Schedule C was established to fill short-term confidential and policy-determining roles without open competition. Today it encompasses over 900 White House and Executive Office positions, none of which require a minimum education level, written assessment, rating panel review, or veteran-preference consideration. This rescission removes the regulatory delegation under 5 U.S.C. § 3301(b)(1) that enabled OPM to carve out Subpart C

1. Restore merit protections: Reinstate competitive-service procedures—including minimum qualifications, written assessments, rating panels, and veteran preference—for all Schedule C roles. 2. Curb patronage: Prevent purely political appointments from overriding career-service candidates. 3. Ensure uniformity: Align Executive Office hiring with the competitive-service and Career SES (Part 317, Subpart A) frameworks used across the federal government.

Subpart C of Part 213 (Schedule C appointments) is hereby removed. No position in the Executive Office of the President may be classified under the Excepted Service—Schedule C. All such positions shall be filled under the competitive-service provisions of Part 302 or pursuant to the qualification and selection procedures of Part 317, Subpart A (Career SES).

Scott Kupor

Director, U.S. Office of Personnel Management