SL and ST Ratings: OPM's Final Rule Lets It Limit Top Scores for Senior Professionals Starting November 18

Bottom line

If you hold an SL or ST position, can your agency now limit how many of you get a top rating? From November 18, the regulations allow it. A final rule from OPM and OMB, published Monday, gives senior professionals their own appraisal subpart modeled on the Senior Executive Service and removes the long-standing ban on rating distributions ^[1]. The rule sets no percentage. That number will come from OPM ^[1].

What happened

The rule. FR Doc. 2026-21316 adds a new subpart E to 5 CFR part 430 for the roughly 1,420 executive branch employees on SL or ST pay plans ^[1]. These are positions classified above GS-15 and paid under 5 U.S.C. 5376 ^[1]. Until now they were appraised under subpart B, the general rules that also cover GS and prevailing rate employees and that OPM says “have not been updated since the mid-1990s” ^[1]. The rule takes effect November 18 ^[1].

The distribution language. The central sentence is new section 430.505(d): OPM “may establish, and refine as needed, a standardized distribution of some or all rating levels for senior professionals which agencies must apply,” with an option to exclude Schedule C and Schedule G appointees ^[1]. OPM says it has “no intention” of limiting Level 3 or below and will limit only the highest levels ^[1]. It also says limits should apply at an aggregate level, not inside each supervisor’s team, and that the President may waive the requirement by certifying that an agency’s senior professionals performed at an outstanding level ^[1].

OPM’s case rests on its own data. In fiscal 2023 and 2024, about 90 percent of senior professionals were rated Level 4 or 5, and less than half of one percent were rated below Level 3 ^[1]. OPM also cites the 2024 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey, where 47 percent agreed that performance differences in their work unit are recognized in a meaningful way ^[1].

Where the 30 percent came from. This is the second step, not the first. OPM’s April 3, 2025 memo ordered every agency to adopt a new SL/ST appraisal system from October 1, 2025, and set a ceiling: in agencies with four or more senior professionals, no more than 30 percent of ratings at Levels 4 and 5 ^[2]. The same memo said the ceiling would bind only after OPM revised 5 CFR 430.208(c), the provision barring forced distributions ^[2]. Until then, agencies were to treat it as general guidance “and not a hard-and-fast rule or requirement” ^[2]. This rule is that revision for senior professionals ^[1]. The October 2 memo covered OPM’s separate fiscal 2026 caps for GS, senior professional and SES ratings.

The comments. OPM received 12 comments and adopted the rule largely as proposed in February, with technical changes ^[1]. The Partnership for Public Service argued that forced distribution would “likely drive critical technical or highly-skilled talent out of government” and that senior professional jobs are often too specialized to compare against one another ^[3]. It also opposed quarterly progress reviews and urged OPM to test the changes first as a demonstration project ^[3]. OPM declined, saying a demonstration project would “create unacceptable delays,” and pointed to its 2025 SES rule as the model ^[1].

What it means for you

SL and ST employees. Four things change on November 18 ^[1]:

• Progress reviews at least quarterly, with your rating official telling you how you are performing ^[1].
• No more informal grievance of a rating, and no mandatory review of a Level 1 rating ^[1]. In their place, you may request a higher-level review of your initial summary rating at any level. The reviewer cannot change the rating but can recommend a different one ^[1].
• In agencies with 10 or more senior professionals, the agency’s Performance Review Board reviews your initial rating, your written response and any higher-level findings before the approving official assigns the rating of record ^[1]. A PRB rating a career employee must have a career majority ^[1].
• Ratings and appraisals are “not appealable, beyond what is otherwise provided under applicable law or regulation” ^[1].

Readers should note what stays the same. A demotion, suspension or removal for unacceptable performance still goes through 5 U.S.C. 4303, 7503 and 7513, with MSPB appeal where the law provides it ^[1]. OPM states that the distribution will not push anyone below Level 3 ^[1].

Pay. Ratings drive pay adjustments and awards, and the rule requires agencies to use them that way ^[1]. There is also an agency-level stake. Under the 2008 Senior Professional Performance Act, SL and ST pay tops out at Executive Schedule level III, or level II for an agency whose appraisal system is certified as making “meaningful distinctions based on relative performance” ^[4]. The rule makes conforming changes to the certification regulations in parts 430 and 1330 ^[1].

RIF exposure. Senior professional ratings of record under the new subpart count for reduction-in-force purposes ^[1]. OPM’s August RIF rule ranks employees by rating before tenure ^[1], as noted in the August 3 memo. One commenter argued the two rules together make ratings more consequential; OPM called the pairing “complementary” ^[1].

Political appointees in SL slots. OPM may exclude Schedule C and G appointees from the distribution. OPM’s stated purpose is to remove any perception that limits could favor appointees over career staff ^[1].

Contractors. The rule applies only to federal agencies and employees ^[1].

• The percentage. The 2025 memo said 30 percent; OPM has not published guidance under the final rule ^{[1, 2]}.
• Which cycle it governs. The fiscal 2027 appraisal year began October 1, before the effective date, and the rule is silent on whether a limit applies to it ^{[1, 2]}.
• The size of the group. OPM counts about 1,420 SL and ST employees; the Partnership’s letter says around 2,000 ^{[1, 3]}.

Questions you’re probably asking

When does the new SL/ST performance appraisal rule take effect?

November 18, 2026 ^[1]. The rule does not say which appraisal cycle any OPM-set rating limit will first govern ^[1].

Is there now a cap on Outstanding ratings for senior professionals?

The rule lets OPM set one, and OPM says it intends to limit only Levels 4 and 5 ^[1]. The rule names no percentage; OPM’s 2025 memo proposed no more than 30 percent at Levels 4 and 5 in agencies with four or more senior professionals ^{[1, 2]}.

Can an SL or ST employee grieve or appeal a performance rating?

Not on the rating itself. The rule says senior professional appraisals and ratings are not appealable beyond what other law provides, and it ends the informal grievance process ^[1]. You may still ask for a higher-level review of your initial summary rating at any level ^[1].

Does the rule apply to political appointees in SL positions?

OPM may exclude senior professionals appointed under Schedule C or Schedule G from a distribution requirement ^[1]. That option covers only the distribution requirement; the rest of the subpart applies to SL and ST positions generally ^[1].

Can a senior professional be removed under this rule?

Removal, demotion or suspension for unacceptable performance still runs through the existing statutes, 5 U.S.C. 4303, 7503 and 7513 ^[1]. OPM says the distribution will not require anyone to be rated below Level 3 ^[1].

What I’m watching

• November 18, 2026: the effective date, and any OPM implementation memo that sets a percentage for senior professionals ^{[1, 2]}.
• No date set: OPM approval of revised agency SL/ST appraisal systems, which must now be submitted under new section 430.514 ^[1].