Streamlining the Presidential Transition Process (S. 1172)
Do you support or oppose this bill?
What is S. 1172?
(Updated April 19, 2018)
This bill was enacted on March 18, 2016
This bill seeks to streamline the Presidential transition process by ensuring that a senior-level, White House-led interagency transition council is in place at least six months before Election Day. It also requires a working-level interagency group to develop an integrated transition strategy.
A career employee at the General Services Administration (GSA) would serve as a Federal Transition Coordinator, and the GSA would continue to provide office space and support to the major presidential candidates.
Federal agencies would be required designate employees to serve in an “acting” capacity in senior political positions during a transition before September 15 in a presidential election year.
Incoming presidential appointees would have expanded training made available to them.
Argument in favor
Anything to make the presidential transition process smoother should be done. The federal government is enormously complex, and this is a nonpartisan issue.
Argument opposed
Recent presidential transitions haven’t gone that badly without these councils and working groups -- is this really necessary?
Impact
Federal employees involved in the presidential transition process, presidential campaigns, the interagency transition council and working group, and voters.
Cost of S. 1172
A CBO cost estimate is unavailable.
Additional Info
In-Depth: A study done by the Partnership for Public Service
found that preparing for the presidential transition needs to begin
well before Election Day. It also suggested that a new President should
have nominees for national security and economic positions vetted and
ready for confirmation immediately after the election, and that
political appointees need additional training.
Sponsoring Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) points out that after an election “the new administration must be as prepared as possible to hit the ground running from day one,” and that Congress can help in that role. A cosponsor of this bill, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) echoed this concern, saying:
“handing over the keys to the entire $3.5 trillion federal government is a colossal undertaking.”
Media:
- Sponsoring Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) Press Release
- Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) Press Release on Committee Passage
- Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Press Release
- GovExec
- General Services Administration (Context)
-
Partnership for Public Service (Context)
Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: Flickr user FDR Presidential Library & Museum)
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