HR 5750119th CongressIn Committee

EQUALS Act of 2025

Introduced: Oct 14, 2025

Sponsor: Rep. Gill, Brandon [R-TX-26] (R-Texas)

Standard Summary

Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs

The bill, titled the Ensuring a Qualified Civil Service Act of 2025 (also called the EQUALS Act of 2025), would overhaul how federal probationary and trial periods operate. For positions in the competitive service, it would generally extend the probationary period to two years (one year for preference-eligible veterans) and establish a formal certification process by agency heads before finalizing an appointment. For the excepted service, it would create a new two-year trial period (one year for preference-eligible individuals), with rules for transfers and reappointment after separation. The bill would also modify personnel actions tied to performance (adverse actions) to require longer periods of current continuous employment before taking certain actions, align regulations across agencies (including FAA/TSA), and require the Office of Personnel Management to issue regulations within 180 days. The act would take effect one year after enactment and would apply to new appointments made after that date. Some existing agencies and personnel (like USPS, Congress, and certain managerial positions) are carved out from certain provisions.

Key Points

1Competitive service probation extended to two years (general) or one year for preference-eligible individuals; final appointment conditioned on performance and public-interest certification; agency heads have discretion in the certification and may provide notice and require performance benchmarks.
2Creation of a two-year trial period in the excepted service (one year for preference-eligible employees); if the employee is moved to another excepted-service position before the end of the trial, they complete the remainder of the trial in the new position.
3Transitional provisions and exemptions: effective date is one year after enactment; applies only to appointments made after that date; not applying to USPS/Postal Regulatory Commission or Congress and certain managerial positions; certain transfers if promoted to supervise require concurrent probation/trial rules.
4Adverse actions tightened: for performance-based removals or related actions, the required length of current continuous employment is increased (two years for most employees; one year for preference eligibles), across multiple sections of Title 5.
5FAA and TSA alignment: amendments to bring probationary/trial period provisions into FAA/TSA contexts (through a cross-reference in title 49).
6Regulatory requirement: Office of Personnel Management must issue necessary regulations within 180 days to implement the act and its amendments.

Impact Areas

Primary group/area affected- Federal employees in the competitive service (probationary process lengthened; final appointment contingent on certification of public-interest) and excepted-service employees (new two-year trial period).Secondary group/area affected- Agency heads, supervisors, and HR offices (responsible for performance evaluation metrics, timely notices, and certification decisions).- Veterans and other preference-eligible employees (receive a shorter probation/trial period than non-preference employees).- Office of Personnel Management (OPM) (regulatory duties, oversight, and reinstatement processes in cases of administrative error).Additional impacts- Agencies may experience a longer lead time to finalize hires and potentially greater use of probation/trial mechanics for performance management.- Backpay provisions for reinstated employees due to administrative errors provide a remedy mechanism but add administrative complexity.- Notable carveouts (USPS, Postal Regulatory Commission, Congress/congressional agencies) limit applicability of certain provisions to these entities.Probationary period: the initial period of employment during which the agency assesses fitness, performance, and public-interest alignment before finalizing a competitive-service appointment.Trial period: a similar concept for the excepted service, with its own criteria and transfer/workplace rules.Preference eligible: veterans or other groups entitled to federal employment preferences; under this bill, they receive shorter required periods for finalizing appointments and adverse-action thresholds.Certification: an agency head’s written determination that finalizing an appointment would advance the public interest, based on specified performance and organizational criteria.

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