Bills
| 3.23.22

Should Seasonal Federal Land Management Employees Have a Path to Permanent Jobs? (H.R. 1531)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 1531?

(Updated July 19, 2017)

This bill was enacted on August 28, 2015

This bill would offer seasonal (part-time) employees of federal land management agencies a path to permanent positions. Employee eligibility for full-time jobs year-round would be determined by an internal merit-based promotion procedure. 

Federal land management agencies that would be affected by this legislation include the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the National Park Service, the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Bureau of Reclamation.

Eligible employees must have:

  • Initially been appointed through a competitive application process, 
  • Served in at least one time-limited job — totaling more than 24 months, 
  • Acceptable performance reviews throughout that period.

Former time-limited employees could also be eligible as long as they apply for a position covered by this bill within two years of the end of their last employment with the agency. 

Argument in favor

Allowing temporary employees to become permanently employed by federal land management agencies will hopefully reduce training costs and lead to better retention. This leads to a more capable and cost-efficient workforce.

Argument opposed

This bill tries to keep it "all in the family" so to speak. There are no protections to ensure that former seasonal employees aren't favored over the many qualified people who have never worked for these agencies but still apply for permanent jobs.

Impact

Time-limited employees who want permanent jobs from federal land management agencies, federal land management agencies and their functions.

Cost of H.R. 1531

Even though this bill would open up the pool of people eligible to work at federal land management agencies, it doesn't expand the number of people those agencies can hire. It also doesn't change any salaries. Considering those two factors, the CBO estimates that implementing this bill wouldn't have a significant impact on the federal budget.

Additional Info

Of Note: Sponsoring Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), said that his bill: 

“Is common-sense legislation that removes needless bureaucratic barriers currently preventing some of our experienced temporary employees from competing for permanent seasonal positions.

Rep. Don Young (R-AK), a co-sponsor, noted:

“This legislation would significantly reduce the costs associated with the high attrition rate in our nation’s temporary seasonal workforce, and enhance the pool of highly-qualified applicants that compete for permanent seasonal positions.”

In-Depth: A nearly identical version of this legislation was introduced in February 2013, but it did not progress out of committee.

Media:


Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user BLMOregon)