 Dear Agency Heads, Chiefs of Staff, CHCOs, Deputy CHCOs, and HR Directors,
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is initiating the next implementation phase of Schedule Policy/Career and opening a submission period for agencies to petition positions for inclusion. Agency submissions are due to OPM by Friday, August 14, 2026.
To help agencies prepare their submissions, OPM will send each agency a spreadsheet listing its previously submitted positions that were not realigned into Schedule Policy/Career under Executive Order (EO) 14410. Agencies should use this spreadsheet as the starting point. Specifically, agencies must:
- Revalidate and conduct quality control (QC) reviews of all previously submitted positions returned by OPM;
- Review positions included in EO 14410 and correct any inaccurate or incomplete position information associated with those listings; and
- Submit all positions that meet the applicable Schedule Policy/Career criteria. This would include: Positions previously recommended for inclusion in Schedule Policy/Career but not incorporated into EO 14410; and GS‑15, GS‑14, GS‑13, and Senior Level (SL) or equivalent positions that may meet the criteria set forth in EO 13957 (as amended) and prior OPM guidance.
Agencies are strongly encouraged to begin reviewing, validating, and updating Position Descriptions (PDs) to ensure submissions accurately reflect current duties and responsibilities. All petitions, including revalidated prior submissions and any new positions, must be submitted through the new submission system described below.
CHCOs and Deputy CHCOs are the designated points of contact for submission approval. Agencies may also provide the names and email addresses of the individuals who will serve as an agency administrator for managing agency users and role assignments in the system. An agency’s headquarters office must review and approve component-level submissions before they are transmitted to OPM. Please submit this information to Schedule-PolicyCareer@opm.gov.
To support this initiative, OPM has developed a new collection and review tool designed to reduce administrative burden and streamline the submission, review, and validation process. The Schedule Policy/Career Petition & Concurrence System will go live on Monday, July 20, 2026. OPM will send notification and instructions on accessing the system to your designated points of contact. A recording of a system demonstration will also be available to help agencies with its use.
Implementation Timeline
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July 16-20: OPM issues this data call, provides training on the collection tool, grants agencies access to the system, and makes the recorded system demonstration available.
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By August 14: Agency submissions due to OPM.
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By September 18: OPM completes QC and position determinations.
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By September 30: OPM submits cleared petitions to the White House for final decision.
References
For comprehensive guidance on the submission process, review, and approval workflow, please consult the following materials:
Thank you for your support of this important Administration initiative. We look forward to a comprehensive and accurate review of positions being petitioned for inclusion in Schedule Policy/Career. Questions or requests for clarification may be directed to the OPM review team at: Schedule-PolicyCareer@opm.gov.
OPM Workforce Policy and Innovation
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