Restoring Accountability to Policy-Influencing Positions Within the Federal Workforce

2025-01-31Executive Order 14171
Signed by: Donald Trump
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Headline: Reinstates Policy/Career Schedule and Authority Over Federal Policy Positions

What it does: Agencies must designate and apply Schedule Policy/Career to specified policy-influencing positions and implement related personnel and regulatory changes.

Real World Impact:
  • Makes failure to carry out administration policies grounds for dismissal.
  • Rescinds recent civil service protections and suspends specific rules until changed.
  • Requires guidance to identify additional positions for Schedule Policy/Career consideration.
Topics: civil service, federal personnel, government accountability, hiring and firing, regulatory changes

Summary

This order reinstates and changes the prior "Schedule F" approach, renaming it "Schedule Policy/Career" to classify confidential, policy-determining federal jobs and apply different personnel rules. It revokes a prior order and directs the Office of Personnel Management to rescind recent civil service protections that would block these changes.

It affects career federal employees in policy-making or confidential roles, agency leaders, and human resources officials by making failure to implement administration policies grounds for dismissal and expanding which jobs can be reclassified. The stated aim is to restore accountability and ensure policy staff answer to executive leadership.

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