Mspb Temporary Term Extension Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on H.R. 1235, the MSPB Temporary Term Extension Act.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle know that I personally am committed to ensuring the successful operation of the Merit Systems Protection Board, also known as MSPB. In fact, last Congress, I introduced H.R. 6391, the MSPB Reauthorization Act of 2018. My bill would have reauthorized the Board and made other vital reforms. The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform reported the bill favorably, but without a single vote from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle.

We all know an effective and functional MSPB is important to the health of our Federal workforce. MSPB's primary responsibility is to adjudicate appeals of Federal personnel actions. MSPB also plays a vital role in Federal whistleblower protections.

To be effective and issue decisions, MSPB needs at least a two-member quorum, but the Board has not had a quorum for over 2 years. In January 2017, Mark Robbins, as my friend mentioned, become the sole remaining member of MSPB.

Last year, Mr. Robbins' 7-year term came to an end, and he was granted a 1-year extension as authorized by law, but that extension ends this week. Starting Friday, the MSPB will be without a single Board member.

My colleagues claim this bill is an emergency measure to prevent the MSPB from extending this crisis of leadership, but I disagree. The real problem is the lack of a quorum.

Without a quorum for the last 2 years, a backlog of undecided appeals has grown to over 1,700 cases. Mr. Robbins cannot fix that problem on his own. His continued tenure will not resolve those cases.

In December, the President selected Mr. Robbins to serve as the general counsel at the Office of Personnel Management, so for the last 10 weeks, he has served in both capacities at OPM and MSPB. Mr. Robbins is planning to serve at OPM in his full capacity beginning this Friday.

Mr. Robbins has stayed at MSPB as long as he has out of a sense of duty to MSPB and its mission. I trust that my colleagues do not intend to use this bill to coerce Mr. Robbins to stay any longer than he wants to.

I urge my colleagues to join me in applauding Mr. Robbins for his dedication to MSPB, the Federal workforce, the President, and our country. I also urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the Senate's confirmation of President Trump's nominees.

We owe it to our Federal workers to give MSPB a quorum so the board can do the important job that Congress gave it to do.

In the future, I certainly hope we can work together to provide certainty to Federal workers and whistleblowers by making MSPB operational once again.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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