An 81-page joint proposal from OPM and the Merit Systems Protection Board would speed federal employee removals for poor performance or misconduct and open a 30-day public comment period.
The draft would cap performance improvement plans at 30 calendar days, bar pre-PIPs, push managers to decide proposed removals within 30 days, and require annual supervisor training instead of once every three years.
MSPB would also stop using the 12 Douglas factors in adverse-action appeals and instead judge penalties under a case-by-case “totality of the circumstances” standard.
AFGE and former MSPB officials said the changes could weaken due-process protections, invite politically motivated discipline, and undermine the board's independence because OPM and MSPB issued the rule jointly.
The proposal revives first-term Trump priorities on faster removals and tougher penalties, and critics say abandoning the 45-year-old Douglas framework is a likely target for legal challenges if finalized.