In June, the U.S. Senate reintroduced the Competitive Service Act of 2015, which is designed to streamline the federal hiring process. "This bipartisan legislation represents a common-sense way of treating our government as a single organization trying to achieve shared goals rather than a disconnected collection of many agencies," says Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service.

This disconnectedness is the primary cause of the cumbersome, inconsistent processes many applicants face. The act would simplify recruiting and hiring by revoking an existing law that forbids agencies with similar hiring needs to share assessments of applicants with each other. This reduces duplicative work and expeditiously presents candidates not chosen for one post to other agencies with similar positions to fill.

"This bill makes it easier for qualified folks who are interested in public service to find jobs," says Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont.), who is sponsoring the bill along with Senators Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.).

The Competitive Service Act passed the Senate without amendments on September 17, and has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.