In today’s chaos, is it too early to discuss civil service reform?

Raymond Limon Federal News Network June 2, 2025

As a former federal career and political leader, I have proudly stood alongside my fellow public servants, bound by the sacred responsibility of making tomorrow better. On March 1, 2022, after 27 years serving in federal executive and career positions, including 16 on the Chief Human Capital Officer Council, I was sworn in as vice and acting chairman of the Merit Systems Protection Board, a quasi-judicial and independent agency that protects the merit system principles within the federal workforce.

With that swearing in, the board was restored to a quorum after a five-year hiatus that occurred during the prior Trump administration. The lack of quorum had resulted in over 3,800 backlogged appeals. However, after three years in my role, the newly constituted board eliminated the backlog. On March 1, after voting on approximately 5,000 appeals, my three-year term appointment ended, and I retired after 30 years of human capital and legal experiences, with a board quorum still intact.