Excepting Administrative Law Judges From the Competitive Service

What it means

Changes how Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) are appointed, moving them from competitive service to excepted service. This gives agency heads more flexibility to directly select ALJs without traditional competitive examination processes, while requiring appointees to have law licenses.

Expected impact

• Greater agency control over ALJ selection, emphasizing qualities like temperament and judgment
• Reduced likelihood of constitutional challenges to ALJ appointments following Supreme Court's Lucia decision
• Streamlined hiring process for ALJs across federal agencies
• Enhanced agency flexibility to select ALJs that match their specific needs
• Protection of existing ALJs who remain in competitive service