United States Office of Personnel Management explained

Agency Name:United States Office of Personnel Management
Seal:Seal of the United States Office of Personnel Management.svg
Preceding1:Civil Service Commission
Jurisdiction:U.S. federal government
Employees:2,448 [1]
Budget:$329,755,000
Headquarters:Theodore Roosevelt Federal Building
1900 E Street, NW
Washington, D.C., US
Chief1 Name:Rob Shriver
Chief1 Position:Acting Director

The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is an independent agency of the United States government that manages the United States federal civil service. The agency provides federal human resources policy, oversight, and support, and tends to healthcare (FEHB), life insurance (FEGLI), and retirement benefits (CSRS and FERS, but not TSP) for federal government employees, retirees, and their dependents.[2]

OPM is headed by a director, who is nominated by the President.

History

The United States Civil Service Commission was created by the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act of 1883. The commission was renamed as the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), and most of commission's former functions—with the exception of the federal employees appellate function—were assigned to new agencies, with most being assigned to the newly created U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on January 1, 1979, and Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1978.

On January 1, 1979, the Office of Personnel Management was established with the dissolution of the U.S. Civil Service Commission following the passage and signing of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 into law by then President Jimmy Carter.[3]

The United States Office of Government Ethics, responsible for directing executive branch policies relating to the prevention of conflicts of interest on the part of Federal executive branch officers and employees, was formerly a part of OPM, until being spun off as an independent agency in 1989.[4]

In 1996 the investigation branch of the OPM was privatized, and USIS was formed.[5] In 2014, after several scandals, OPM declined to renew its contract with USIS and brought background investigations back in house under the short-lived National Background Investigations Bureau.[6] In 2019, the responsibility for conducting federal background checks changed hands again when NBIB was dissolved and its functions given to the Defense Security Service, part of the Department of Defense, which was reorganized into the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency for the purpose.[7]

2015 data breach

See main article: Office of Personnel Management data breach. In April 2015, hackers working on behalf of the Jiangsu State Security Department, a provincial branch of the Chinese Ministry of State Security spy agency obtained access to 22.1 million SF-86 records of US federal employees, contractors, and their friends and family.[8] [9] [10] Representing one of the largest breaches of government data in U.S. history, information that was obtained and exfiltrated in the breach included personally identifiable information such as Social Security numbers, as well as names, dates and places of birth, and addresses.[11] [12] [13]

New updates regarding this security breach came to light on September 24, 2015. The agency then indicated that additional evidence showed that 5.6 million people's fingerprints were stolen as part of the hacks, more than five times the 1.1 million originally estimated. The total number of individuals whose records were disclosed in whole or part, including Social Security numbers and addresses, remained at 21.5 million.[14]

Attempts at reform

In July 2013, Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Texas) introduced the Office of Personnel Management Inspector General Act.[15] The bill would increase oversight of OPM's revolving fund. Farenthold introduced the bill as a response to accusations of fraud and concerns about security clearance background investigations.[16] The bill would fund the expenses for investigations, oversight activities and audits from the revolving fund.[17] The bill was in response to a find that between 2002 and 2012, OPM's revolving fund had tripled, totaling over $2 billion, or 90% of OPM's budget. In February 2014, President Obama signed the bill into law.[18] [19] The fund's history goes back to the early 1980s, where it was used for two main activities: training and background investigations for government personnel.[20]

Between 2018 and 2019, as part of a larger initiative to restructure the executive branch, President Donald Trump (R) submitted a proposal to congress to merge OPM into the General Services Administration (GSA) while returning the federal personnel policy-making components under the direct authority of the Executive Office of the President of the United States to the Office of Management and Budget in the White House. House Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), chairman of the Subcommittee on Government Operations under the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, was the fiercest critic of the proposal. During a congressional hearing, Connolly claimed: "The administration wants to take over the merit policy-making functions and put them into the highly politicized environment of the White House itself, away from direct congressional oversight and inspector general review." Political pressure against the proposal peaked when a provision barring the President from transferring any function, responsibility, authority, service, system or program that is assigned in law until 6 months after the completion of an "independent report" issued by the federally-chartered National Academy of Public Administration was added to the 1,120 page bill S-1790, a.k.a. the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020.[21] [22] [23] [24]

Function

According to its website, the mission of the OPM is "recruiting, retaining and honoring a world-class force to serve the American people."[25] The OPM is partially responsible for maintaining the appearance of independence and neutrality in the administrative law system. While technically employees of the agencies they work for, administrative law judges (or ALJs) are hired exclusively by the OPM, effectively removing any discretionary employment procedures from the other agencies. The OPM uses a rigorous selection process which ranks the top three candidates for each ALJ vacancy, and then makes a selection from those candidates, generally giving preference to veterans.

OPM is also responsible for federal employee retirement applications for FERS and CSRS employees.[26] OPM makes decisions on federal employee regular[27] and disability retirement cases.[28] OPM also oversees FEHB and FEGLI, the health insurance and life insurance programs for Federal employees. However, it does not oversee TSP, which is handled by the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB), a separate independent agency.

OPM implements Diversity, equity, and inclusion in line with Executive Order 13583 and Executive Order 13985.[29]

Components

Directors of OPM

Source: OPM's Agency Leadership Through Time[30]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://www.opm.gov/about-us/budget-performance/performance/2021-annual-performance-report.pdf Annual Performance Report
  2. Web site: Our Mission, Role & History – What We Do . U.S. Office of Personnel Management . Washington, D.C. . 24 January 2018 . April 23, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210423005428/https://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-mission-role-history/what-we-do/ . live .
  3. Web site: Glossary of Terms. 5 January 2016. January 17, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130117163746/http://www.opm.gov/glossary/. live.
  4. Web site: Our History . U.S. Office of Government Ethics . Washington, D.C. . 15 October 2022 . October 16, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221016043902/https://oge.gov/web/oge.nsf/about_our-history . live .
  5. Gayathri, Amrutha. "USIS That Vetted Snowden Under Investigation; Booz Allen Hamilton Overlooked Snowden Resume Discrepancies ." International Business Times. June 21, 2013. Retrieved on October 15, 2022.
  6. News: Davenport . Christian . USIS contracts for federal background security checks won't be renewed . . September 9, 2014 . October 16, 2022 . September 26, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220926043528/https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/opm-to-end-usis-contracts-for-background-security-checks/2014/09/09/4fcd490a-3880-11e4-9c9f-ebb47272e40e_story.html . live .
  7. Web site: The National Background Investigations Bureau Moves to the Department of Defense . U.S. Office of Personnel Management . Washington, D.C. . 15 October 2022 . October 16, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221016042802/https://www.opm.gov/news/releases/2019/04/the-national-background-investigations-bureau-moves-to-the-department-of-defense/ . live .
  8. News: Zengerle . Patricia . Cassella . Megan . 2015-07-09 . Estimate of Americans hit by government personnel data hack skyrockets . . 2015-07-09.
  9. News: Nakashima . Ellen . 9 July 2015 . Hacks of OPM databases compromised 22.1 million people, federal authorities say . . 19 July 2020.
  10. News: Sanders . Sam . 4 June 2015 . Massive Data Breach Puts 4 Million Federal Employees' Records At Risk . . 5 June 2015.
  11. News: Barrett, Devlin . 5 June 2015 . U.S. Suspects Hackers in China Breached About four (4) Million People's Records, Officials Say . . subscription . 5 June 2015.
  12. News: Fruhlinger . Josh . 2020-02-12 . The OPM hack explained: Bad security practices meet China's Captain America . en . CSO Online . 2023-05-29.
  13. News: Risen, Tom . 5 June 2015 . China Suspected in Theft of Federal Employee Records . . 5 June 2015.
  14. News: OPM says 5.6 million fingerprints stolen in biggest cyber attack in US history. America doesn't have anything together this is why this happened . . Andrea . Peterson . 2015-09-24 . 2015-09-24 . September 15, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170915160954/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/opm-says-56-million-fingerprints-stolen-in-biggest-cyber-attack-in-us-history-10515256.html . live .
  15. https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/113/hr2860 "OPM IG Act (H.R. 2860)”
  16. http://riponadvance.com/news/opm-inspector-general-act-signed-law/6615 "OPM Inspector General Act signed into law”
  17. http://theweekincongress.com/2014/01/16/h-r-2860-opm-ig-act/ "H.R.2860 OPM IG Act”
  18. Carney, Jay (White House Press Secretary). "Statement by the Press Secretary on H.R. 2860, S. 1901” . The White House, Office of the Press Secretary. 2014-02-12 (Retrieved 2014-02-17)
  19. Reilly, Sean. "OPM inspector general getting more money for revolving fund oversight”. Federal Times. 2014-02-13 (Retrieved 2014-02-17)
  20. U.S. Government Accountability Office. "OPM's Revolving Fund Policy Should Be Clarified and Management Controls Strengthened” . GGD-84-23: Published: Oct 13, 1983. Publicly Released: Oct 13, 1983 (Retrieved 2014-02-17)
  21. Web site: Congress Moves to Block OPM-GSA Merger. Government Executive. December 10, 2019 . en. 2020-01-03. December 5, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201205062941/https://www.govexec.com/management/2019/12/congress-moves-block-opm-gsa-merger/161796/. live.
  22. Web site: Congress to formally block OPM-GSA merger with defense authorization bill. 2019-12-10. Federal News Network. en-US. 2020-01-03. November 6, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211106212101/https://federalnewsnetwork.com/opm-reorganization/2019/12/congress-to-formally-block-opm-gsa-merger-with-defense-authorization-bill/. live.
  23. Web site: Remarks by President Trump at Signing Ceremony for S.1790, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020. en-US. National Archives. whitehouse.gov. 2020-01-03. November 6, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211106214715/https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-signing-ceremony-s-1790-national-defense-authorization-act-fiscal-year-2020/. live.
  24. Web site: Text of S. 1790: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (Passed Congress version) - GovTrack.us. 2019-12-19. GovTrack. 2020-01-03. December 29, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191229232541/https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/s1790/text/enr#link=A_XI_A_1112&nearest=HE327F33CB78B46E8B001F56E3286C6E6. live.
  25. Web site: Biography of an Ideal. 5 January 2016. March 5, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120305051034/http://www.opm.gov/BiographyofAnIdeal/SubMain1979-present.asp. dead.
  26. Web site: 7 MAR . Retirement Info Center . Opm.gov . 2019-06-19 . April 30, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210430223633/https://www.opm.gov/Blogs/Retire/ . live .
  27. Web site: Pamphlet . opm.gov . 2019-06-18 . March 18, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210318235825/https://www.opm.gov/retirement-services/publications-forms/pamphlets/sf3113.pdf . live .
  28. Web site: OPM Disability Retirement. berrylegal. December 11, 2016. Federal Employee Law Blog. December 19, 2016. January 27, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210127222328/https://federalemployeelawblog.com/2016/12/10/opm-disability-retirement/. live.
  29. Web site: Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility . U.S. Office of Personnel Management . 2021-06-25 . 2024-07-19.
  30. Web site: Agency Leadership. U.S. Office of Personnel Management. 5 January 2016. March 30, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130330145132/http://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-mission-role-history/agency-leadership/. live.
  31. Web site: Our Mission: Constance Horner. opm.gov. August 1, 2014. August 22, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140822023107/http://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-mission-role-history/agency-leadership/constance-horner/. live.
  32. Web site: James King. U.S. Office of Personnel Management. June 19, 2019. June 19, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190619165639/https://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-mission-role-history/agency-leadership/james-king/. live.
  33. Linda M. Springer Sworn In as New OPM Director . United States Office of Personnel Management . 2005-06-29 . 2009-04-04 . April 8, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090408052641/http://www.opm.gov/news/linda-m-springer-sworn-in-as-new-opm-director,921.aspx . live .
  34. Web site: Rosenberg. Alyssa. Bush taps new OPM director. National Journal. 2008-08-01. 2009-04-04. May 28, 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20090528024656/http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=40644. live.
  35. White House Names Acting Director of OPM . United States Office of Personnel Management . 2009-01-23 . 2009-04-04 . March 30, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090330231957/http://opm.gov/news/white-house-names-acting-director-of-opm,1449.aspx . live .
  36. Web site: OPM Director John Berry. United States Office of Personnel Management. 24 April 2013. May 25, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130525135330/http://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-mission-role-history/agency-leadership/john-berry/. live.
  37. Web site: Kathleen McGettigan . U.S. Office of Personnel Management . Washington, D.C. . March 15, 2018 . February 8, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180208220501/https://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-people-organization/senior-staff-bios/kathleen-mcgettigan/ . live .
  38. News: Trump replaces federal personnel director, in job only a few months, with OMB official . Yoder . Eric . 2018-10-05 . The Washington Post . 2019-01-06 . en . January 7, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190107015812/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/10/05/after-just-months-office-federal-personnel-director-replaced-by-omb-official/ . live .
  39. Web site: OPM Welcomes Director Dale Cabaniss as the Agency's 12th Director . OPM.gov . OPM Office of Communications . 7 January 2020 . 16 September 2019 . December 12, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191212095618/https://www.opm.gov/news/releases/2019/09/opm-welcomes-director-dale-cabaniss-as-the-agency%E2%80%99s-12th-director/ . live .
  40. News: Lippman . Daniel . OPM chief Dale Cabaniss abruptly resigns . March 18, 2020 . . March 17, 2020 . en . March 17, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200317234753/https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/17/opm-chief-resigns-134541 . live .
  41. Web site: Michael J. Rigas . U.S. Office of Personnel Management . March 18, 2020 . en . January 19, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170119071003/https://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-director/ . live .
  42. Web site: Kathleen McGettigan. 2021-01-23. U.S. Office of Personnel Management. en. January 19, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170119071003/https://www.opm.gov/about-us/our-director/. dead.
  43. Web site: Bur. Jessie. 2021-01-20. McGettigan to once again take up temporary personnel leadership. 2021-01-23. Federal Times. en-US. April 14, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230414134814/https://www.federaltimes.com/management/leadership/2021/01/21/mcgettigan-to-once-again-take-up-temporary-personnel-leadership/. live.
  44. Web site: 2021-01-21. Pres. Biden looks to puts a hold on any midnight regulations from the Trump administration. 2021-01-23. Federal News Network. en-US. January 21, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210121165704/https://federalnewsnetwork.com/federal-newscast/2021/01/pres-biden-looks-to-puts-a-hold-on-any-midnight-regulations-from-the-trump-administration/. live.
  45. Web site: Here's Who Is Leading Federal Agencies as Biden Nominees Await Confirmation. 2021-01-23. Government Executive. January 20, 2021 . en. January 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210120201629/https://www.govexec.com/management/2021/01/heres-who-leading-federal-agencies-biden-nominees-await-confirmation/171512/. live.
  46. USOPM . It is the honor and privilege of my professional career... . 1408076914099638273 . 2023-04-07 . en.
  47. Web site: Shriver assumes acting OPM director role . 2024-05-07. Government Executive. May 6, 2024 . en.

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