OPM Responds to Congressional Report Reaffirming Independence

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) yesterday responded to the National Academy of Public Administration's (NAPA) congressionally mandated report concluding that the federal human resources agency should remain independent.

OPM accepted or conditionally accepted nearly all recommendations from the academy study. NTEU is pleased that OPM “firmly agrees” with NAPA affirming the agency’s role as an “independent, enterprise-wide human capital agency and steward of the merit system principles.”

The NAPA report was ordered in the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act in response to the previous administration's plan to break up OPM and divide its responsibilities with the General Service Administration and the White House personnel office. NTEU warned that the plan to dismantle OPM, which was shelved in October 2020, would have weakened civil service protections and politicized the federal government.