HR Bulletin 276: Schedule Policy/Career Prohibited Personnel Practices

This bulletin establishes the Department of Commerce's Prohibited-Personnel-Practices (PPP) policy for employees in and applicants to Schedule Policy/Career position. The policy restates the fourteen statutory prohibited practices — discrimination, coerced political activity, nepotism, whistleblower retaliation, and others— and preserves disclosure rights to Inspectors General and Congress. It also outlines the complaint process for Schedule P/C employees and applicants to allege violations of these prohibited practices. Federal law grants most federal employees protection against PPPs and gave them the right to file complaints of violations with the Office of Special Counsel or in some cases the Merit Systems Protection Board. President Trump's creation of Schedule Policy/Career via Executive Order 14,171 required agencies to establish their own internal systems for reviewing PPP complaints for Schedule Policy/Career employees, with no required process for those employees to obtain independent review outside their agency.