Panel Criticizes Administration for Appointees

The Reagan Administration has significantly increased the number of political appointees in the Senior Executive Service, according to a Senate committee staff report released Wednesday by Sen. John Glenn (D-Ohio).

“This report demonstrates that the SES has become politicized by the Reagan Administration at the expense of the career service and, ultimately, the agencies that it manages,” Glenn said.

The service, which has about 7,000 members, was established by the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. It was designed to create an elite corps of top managers who could be used by all presidents regardless of party, the report said.

Career Members Decline

The report, prepared by the Democratic majority staff of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, said that according to the General Accounting Office the number of non-career members of the service grew 13% from 1980 to 1986, while career members declined by 5%.

The analysis was criticized by Constance Horner, director of the Office of Personnel Management, and by Sen. William V. Roth Jr. (R-Del.), the ranking minority member of the committee. Both attacked the staff for underscoring percentages instead of actual numbers.

Career members have Civil Service status and are appointed competitively, while non-career members are appointed non-competitively and serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority. The staff report said Schedule C positions, which also are exempted from competitive appointment procedures, rose 13%.

Non-Career Appointees

The report said the number of non-career appointees in the Justice Department increased 126%, while career appointees declined 2%. Non-career appointees in the Agriculture Department increased about 40%, while career members fell 11%.

Horner said the report fails to find a single instance in which a federal agency exceeded the authority granted by Congress and ignores the important value of policy-making members of the Civil Service who reflect the priorities and positions of the President.

“It is irresponsible for the committee’s staff to be complaining that the Administration is implementing a law passed by Congress,” she said.

Roth said the staff report failed to note that the Administration is well within the limits set by Congress and called its reliance on percentages instead of actual numbers “grossly misleading.”