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Title 5, Government Organization and EmployeesRelease 119-110

§3327 Civil Service Employment Information

Title 5 › PART III — EMPLOYEES › Subpart B — Employment and Retention › CHAPTER 33 — EXAMINATION, SELECTION, AND PLACEMENT › SUBCHAPTER I — EXAMINATION, CERTIFICATION, AND APPOINTMENT › § 3327

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

OPM must give the United States Employment Service’s job offices information about chances to take competitive exams run by OPM or by people OPM authorizes. Each federal agency must quickly tell OPM and those job offices about every open job in the competitive service or the Senior Executive Service that it wants outside applicants for, and must say how long applications will be accepted. An "agency" means a federal agency as defined in 5 U.S.C. 5102(a)(1), except ones whose jobs are all legally outside the competitive service. OPM may allow the Department of Defense to use flexible outreach methods, like curated prospect sourcing, as long as all hiring stays public and merit-based.

Full Legal Text

Title 5, §3327

Government Organization and Employees, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Office of Personnel Management shall provide that information concerning opportunities to participate in competitive examinations conducted by, or under authority delegated by, the Office of Personnel Management shall be made available to the employment offices of the United States Employment Service.
(b)Subject to such regulations as the Office may issue, each agency shall promptly notify the Office and the employment offices of the United States Employment Service of—
(1)each vacant position in the agency which is in the competitive service or the Senior Executive Service and for which the agency seeks applications from persons outside the Federal service, and
(2)the period during which applications will be accepted.
As used in this subsection, “agency” means an agency as defined in section 5102(a)(1) of this title other than an agency all the positions in which are excepted by statute from the competitive service.
(c)The Office of Personnel Management may authorize the Department of Defense to use flexible outreach methods, including curated prospect sourcing, provided that all hiring opportunities remain publicly accessible and merit-based.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 3327, Pub. L. 89–554, Sept. 6, 1966, 80 Stat. 424, which prescribed standards for determination of qualifications of postmasters, including experience in postal field service, seniority, length of service, level of difficulty and responsibility of work, attendance, awards and commendations, and performance rating, was repealed by Pub. L. 91–375, § 6(c)(7)(A), Aug. 12, 1970, 84 Stat. 776. See section 1001 of Title 39, Postal Service.

Amendments

2025—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 119–60 added subsec. (c).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective 90 days after Oct. 13, 1978, see section 907 of Pub. L. 95–454, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1978 Amendment note under section 1101 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

5 U.S.C. § 3327

Title 5, Government Organization and Employees

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110