The Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 aims to encourage the president to fill the critical leadership positions requiring Senate confirmation ( so-called PAS positions) by limiting the amount of days someone can serve in those roles in an acting capacity. So who can fill a vacant PAS position? How long can an acting official serve? Get the answers to these questions and more in our Vacancy Act FAQs resource.

The Miller Center’s First Year Project is a multi-year, non-partisan effort to examine the history and structure of presidential first years; assess the policy opportunities and threats for the next president; and influence the national debate by addressing candidates, opinion leaders, and the public.

As part of our ongoing efforts to support new appointees, the Partnership for Public Service has developed a guidance checklist for Cabinet secretaries and agency leaders to prepare for the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS). In early May, OPM will release the survey to several hundred thousand employees across approximately 80 federal agencies and their subcomponents. The results of the survey will provide a snapshot of employee views that can be used to inform broader employee engagement efforts at your agency. This is a crucial part of each agency’s ability to deliver on its mission objectives.

Beginning in March 2016, several government management organizations—the transition partners—came together to advance the common goal of ensuring a smooth, safe and effective presidential transition. Our purpose was to help the next administration be ready to govern from day one. The transition partners identified six management priorities vital for the success of the administration’s policy agenda. The group has outlined several practices in each area that new leaders can adopt immediately to improve government performance and enable policy implementation. You can view these recommendations here.

Report of the contributions received by Trump for America and the expenses incurred reported to the General Services Administration as required by the Presidential Transition Act.

Report of the contributions received by the Clinton-Kaine Transition Fund and the expenses incurred reported to the General Services Administration as required by the Presidential Transition Act.

Memorandum from Vice President-elect Mike Pence to President-elect Donald Trump with a summary of transition accomplishments. Topics included are presidential appointments, legislative affairs, communications and correspondence, website, agency action (agency review), policy implementation, president-elect support, Office of Nationwide Engagement, financials and transition statistics.

Memo from Beth Cobert, Acting Director Office of Personnel Management, providing guidance on the temporary transition Schedule C presidential appointments and noncareer and limited term Senior Executive Service (SES) appointment authorities available following the inauguration.

Every year, the federal government asks its employees whether they have what they need to do their jobs well. This year more than 400,000 of them responded, and the Partnership for Public Service, an organization whose goal is improving government effectiveness, distilled the results in “Best Places to Work in the Federal Government.”