Personnel Practices

Governmentwide, from October 1984 through June 1994, 1,090 former political and congressional/judicial branch employees received career appointments. Of these, 552 persons received noncompetitive appointments under the Ramspeck Act, and 502 persons converted from Schedule C and noncareer Senior Executive Service (SES) positions to competitive appointments. Another 36 persons received White House Service appointments. Of the 1,090 appointments, 42 were to the SES level. The rest were to jobs equivalent to a GS-15 grade or lower. Ramspeck Act appointments followed a cyclical trend during the 10-year period, increasing significantly following federal elections. GAO found that the cycle is associated with turnover in congressional members and the resulting involuntary separation of congressional staffers. The pattern of Schedule C and noncareer SES conversions and White House service appointments is less clear. Cabinet-level departments accounted for most appointments.

GAO found that: (1) between October 1984 and June 1994, 1,090 former political and congressional employees received career appointments, including 552 noncompetitive appointments under the Ramspeck Act, 502 competitive appointments, and 36 White House service appointments; (2) 42 of the appointments were to the Senior Executive Service (SES), while the remaining 1,048 appointments were to positions equivalent to GS-15 or below; (3) Ramspeck Act appointments have followed a cyclical trend over the 10-year period, increasing greatly during the years immediately following federal elections; (4) these noncompetitive appointments are generally associated with congressional membership turnover and the consequent involuntary separation of congressional employees; and (5) cabinet-level departments accounted for 81 percent of the Ramspeck Act appointments, 76 percent of former Schedule C and noncareer SES appointments, and 81 percent of White House service appointments.