State Attorney General Anne Lopez and a coalition of 18 other attorneys general are speaking out against the U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s intention to create a new employment classification in the federal civil service that might politicize the employment status of employees who work in policy-related positions and strip them of due process protections.
The AGs submitted a comment letter to OPM acting director Charles Ezell arguing that the proposed rule is unlawful, unconstitutional and harmful to states.
Under the current system, approximately 2,000,000 federal employees serve in the “competitive service,” meaning they are hired through a merit-based process and are protected by civil service laws that guard against arbitrary dismissal or political interference.
OPM is seeking to establish a Schedule F classification that would reclassify a broad range of policy-related civil servants — such as analysts, attorneys, scientists and regulators — into an at-will employment status.
The AGs note that unlike traditional Schedule C political appointees who change with each new presidential administration, Schedule F would apply to career staff not normally subject to such turnover. They argue that such reclassification would remove long-standing due process protections and open these employees up to being fired on political grounds.
The Trump administration argued that the change was needed to promote accountability and address accountability, addressing "unaccountable, policy-determining federal employees who put their own interests ahead of the American people’s."
A fact sheet released by the White House last month said the change would affect roughly 50,000 employees, about 2% of the total federal workforce.
"This rule empowers federal agencies to swiftly remove employees in policy-influencing roles for poor performance, misconduct, corruption, or subversion of Presidential directives, without lengthy procedural hurdles," the fact sheet stated.
However, the AGs said the proposed change would be illegal.
“Schedule F violates the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, which Congress passed to protect federal employees from arbitrary dismissal and ensure merit-based hiring,” the letter states. “It also raises due process concerns under the Fifth Amendment by retroactively stripping career civil servants of vested employment rights.”
The AGs stressed the threat the rule poses to states and the administration of shared programs.
As the letter states, “The removal of adverse action protections from thousands of career civil servants poses a substantial risk to agency performance and continuity. According to the (Government Accountability Office), this disruption would impair the federal government’s ability to administer long-term policies, respond to emergencies and manage complex regulatory regimes. Agencies rely on experienced professionals to oversee grants, enforce compliance, and ensure smooth program administration. Their sudden removal could result in significant delays and procedural errors.”
The AGs called on OPM to withdraw its proposal.
This letter was co-led by Lopez and attorney general Keith Ellison of Minnesota. They were joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia.
Michael Tsai covers local and state politics for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at michael.tsai@charter.com.
