United States Civil Service Commission

The United States Civil Service Commission was a government agency of the federal government of the United States. It was created to select employees of federal government on merit rather than relationships. In 1979, it was dissolved as part of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978; the Office of Personnel Management and the Merit Systems Protection Board are the successor agencies.

History

On March 3, 1871, President Ulysses S. Grant signed into law the first U.S. civil service reform legislation, which had been passed by Congress.<ref>"Civil Service Commission", in Landmark Legislation, 1774-2002: Major U.S. Acts and Treaties, ed. by Stephen W. Stathis (Congressional Quarterly Press, 2003) p107</ref> The act created the United States Civil Service Commission, that was implemented by President Grant and funded for two years by Congress lasting until 1874. However, Congress which relied heavily on patronage, especially the Senate, did not renew funding of the Civil Service Commission.<ref name=Brands_pp543-544>Brands (2012), pp. 543-544</ref> President Grant's successor, President Rutherford B. Hayes requested a renewal of funding but none was granted.

President Hayes' successor, James A. Garfield, advocated Civil Service reform. His efforts against the spoils system, also known as patronage, were cut short after he was assassinated by Charles J. Guiteau.

Pendleton law

President Garfield's successor, President Chester A. Arthur, took up the cause of Civil Service reform and was able to lobby Congress to pass the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act in 1883. The Pendleton law was passed in part following a public outcry over the assassination of President Garfield. The Pendleton Act renewed funding for the Civil Service Commission and established a three-man commission to run Civil Service whose commissioners were chosen by President Arthur. The Civil Service Commission administered the civil service of the United States federal government.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Pendleton law required certain applicants to take the civil service exam in order to be given certain jobs; it also prevented elected officials and political appointees from firing civil servants, removing civil servants from the influences of political patronage and partisan behavior.<ref>Creating America: A History of the United States, Rand McNally, p 238 (2003)</ref> President Arthur and succeeding Presidents continued to expand the authority of the Civil Service Commission and federal departments that the Civil Service was covered. The Civil Service Commission, in addition to reducing patronage, also alleviated the burdensome task of the President of the United States in appointing federal office seekers.

Under the Commission Model, policy making and administrative powers were given to semi-independent commission rather than to the president. Reformers believed that a commission formed outside of the president’s chain of command would ensure that civil servants would be selected on the basis of merit system and the career service would operate in a politically neutral fashion. Civil Service Commissions typically consisted of three to seven individuals appointed by the chief executive on a bipartisan basis and for limited terms. Commissioners were responsible for direct administration of personnel system, including rule-making authority, administration of merit examinations, and enforcement of merit rules.

Official Register

In 1933, the Commission assumed responsibility for the Official Register, the annual list of federal employees. This lasted until 1959, when the Register ceased publication.

1953 Executive Order

On April 27, 1953, President Eisenhower issued Executive Order 10450, which banned gay men and lesbians from working for any agency of the federal government, including the United States Civil Service Commission.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was not until 1973 that a federal judge ruled that a person's sexual orientation alone could not be the sole reason for termination from federal employment,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and not until 1975 that the United States Civil Service Commission announced that they would consider applications by gays and lesbians on a case by case basis.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

1978 reorganization

Effective January 1, 1978, functions of the commission were split between the Office of Personnel Management and the Merit Systems Protection Board under the provisions of Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1978 (43 F.R. 36037, 92 Stat. 3783) and the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. In addition, other functions were placed under jurisdiction of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) and the Office of Special Counsel (OSC).

Chairmen of the commission

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Image	Name	From	Until
File:George William Curtis - Brady-Handy.jpg	George W. Curtis<ref name=Smith_p589>Smith (2001), p. 589</ref>	January 1, 1872	January 1, 1874
File:Dorman B. Eaton.jpg	Dorman B. Eaton	Mar 9, 1883 <ref>Foulke, W. D. Fighting the spoilsmen: reminiscences of the civil service reform movement (New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons. 1919), p.8</ref>	Nov 1, 1885 (resigned)<ref>Cleveland, Grover. Accepting Letter of Resignation of Dorman B. Eaton in The Writings and Speeches of Grover Cleveland, ed. George F. Parker (New York: Cassell Publishing Company, 1892), p.46</ref>
File:Alfred Peck Edgerton.png	Alfred P. Edgerton	Nov 9, 1885 <ref name="4thReport">Fourth Report of the United States Civil Service Commission (Washington: Government Printing Office. 1888) pp. 120-121</ref>	Feb 9, 1889 (removed)<ref name="4thReport"/>
	Charles Lyman	May 13, 1889 <ref>Trying The Charleston, "New York Times", May 14, 1889</ref>	Dec 15, 1893 (resigned)<ref name="ProcterSucceedsLyman">Procter Succeeds Lyman, "The Daily Argus News" (Crawfordsville, Indiana), Dec 15 1893</ref>
File:John-R.-Procter.jpg	John R. Procter	Dec 15, 1893 <ref name="ProcterSucceedsLyman"/>	Dec 12, 1903 (died)<ref name="20thReport">''Twentieth Annual Report of the United States Civil Service Commission (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1904) p. 7.</ref>
File:John c black-illinois-1902.png	John C. Black	Jan 17, 1904 <ref>Gen. Black Takes The Oath, "New York Times", Jan 17, 1904</ref>	Jun 10, 1913 (resigned)<ref name="31stReport">Thirty-First Annual Report of the United States Civil Service Commission (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1915) p. 116.</ref>
	John A. McIlhenny	Jun 12, 1913 <ref>McIlhenny Heads Civil Service, "New York Times", Jun 13, 1913</ref>	Feb 28, 1919 (resigned)<ref name="36thReport">Thirty-Sixth Annual Report of the United States Civil Service Commission(Washington: Government Printing Office, 1919) p. xxvii</ref>
File:MartinAMorrison.jpg	Martin A. Morrison	Mar 13, 1919 <ref name="36thReport"/>	Jul 14, 1921 (resigned)<ref name="39thReport">Thirty-Ninth Annual Report of the United States Civil Service Commission(Washington: Government Printing Office, 1922) p. 121</ref>
File:BARTLETT, J.N. GOVERNOR LCCN2016860880.jpg	John H. Bartlett	Jul 15, 1921 <ref name="39thReport"/>	Mar 12, 1922 (resigned)<ref name="39thReport"/>
File:W.C. Deming LCCN2014715789.jpg	William C. Deming	Mar 1, 1923 <ref name="CongDigest">The U.S. Civil Service Commission, "Congressional Digest", Vol II. No. 7 (April 1923), p. 198</ref>	Feb 6, 1930 (resigned)<ref>Hoover, Herbert. Letter Accepting the Resignation of William C. Deming as President of the Civil Service Commission in "Public Papers Of The Presidents Of The United States" (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1976)</ref>
File:Thomas E Campbell.jpg	Thomas E. Campbell	Jul 11, 1930 <ref>Civil Service Head Takes Oath, "The Hartford Courant" (Hartford, Connecticut), Jul 11, 1930</ref>	c. 1933 (resigned)
File:Harry B. Mitchell LCCN2016875911 (cropped).jpg	Harry B. Mitchell	May 19, 1933 <ref>Politics And Politicians, "Gazette And Bulletin" (Williamsport, Pennsylvania), May 20, 1933</ref>	Feb 26, 1951 (resigned)<ref>Ramspeck Is Named Civil Service Head, "The Day" (New London, Connecticut), Feb 27, 1951</ref>
File:Robert Ramspeck.jpg	Robert Ramspeck	Mar 16, 1951 <ref>Ramspeck Takes Oath For Commission Post, "The Spokesman-Review" (Spokane, Washington), Mar 17, 1951</ref>	Dec 31, 1952 (resigned)<ref>Civil Service Chief Quits, Wins Praise, "Toledo Blade" (Toledo, Ohio), Jan 1, 1953</ref>
File:Philip Young (ambassador) 1957.jpg	Philip Young	Mar 23, 1953 <ref>Eisenhower Pledges To Rid Civil Service Of All Incompetents, "Florence Times" (Florence, Alabama), Mar 23, 1953</ref>	Feb 11, 1957 (resigned)<ref>Two Quit CSC, "Reading Eagle" (Reading, Pennsylvania), Feb 11, 1957</ref>
File:Harris Ellsworth (Oregon Congressman).jpg	Harris Ellsworth	Apr 18, 1957 <ref name="EllsworthBio">Template:Cite web</ref>	Feb 28, 1959 (resigned)<ref name="EllsworthBio"/>
File:RogerWJones1963.png	Roger W. Jones	Mar 10, 1959 <ref>Roger Jones Becomes Head of Civil Service, "The Hartford Courant" (Hartford, Connecticut), Mar 10, 1959</ref>	Jan 4, 1961 (resigned)<ref>Kennedy, Farm Bosses Tackle Issue, "The Miami News" (Miami, Florida), Jan 5, 1961</ref>
File:JohnWMacyJr1963.png	John W. Macy	Mar 6, 1961 <ref>Macy Serves First Month In Federal Post for Free, "The Hartford Courant" (Hartford, Connecticut), Mar 5, 1961</ref>	Jan 18, 1969 (resigned)<ref name="nixon">Nixon Names Three to Policy Positions, "The Los Angeles Times" (Los Angeles, California), Jan 18, 1969</ref>
	Robert E. Hampton	Jan 18, 1969 <ref name="nixon"/>	c. 1977<ref name="ford">Template:Cite web</ref>
File:Alan K. Campbell.jpg	Alan K. Campbell	January 2, 1979	January 20, 1981

See also

• United States civil service

External links

• Guide to the United States Civil Service Commission Announcements and Other Papers 1949-1950