State Department Screens GS-13s for Schedule Policy/Career: What the Questionnaire Means

If a Schedule Policy/Career questionnaire has landed in your State Department inbox, it is not a survey — it is the front end of a legal determination about your job. Government Executive reported on August 13, 2026 that the Department of State has begun screening GS-13 and GS-14 positions for reclassification into Schedule Policy/Career, the excepted-service category created by Executive Order 14410, "Implementing Schedule Policy/Career in the Excepted Service," signed in June 2026.

Federal employees at other agencies should read this one too. The screening tool State is using is a short questionnaire, and the questions on it track the statutory test almost word for word.

What the Questionnaire Asks

Employees who described the form to Government Executive said it asks whether the position "formulates, develops and/or determines foreign policy" and whether the employee "provides substantive advocacy of foreign policy." One employee said it was not clear how many "yes" answers would trigger a change in status.

That uncertainty is worth sitting with for a moment. You may be asked to characterize your own duties without being told what the characterization does.

Why the Wording Matters

Chapter 75 of Title 5 is where a federal employee's adverse-action protections live: advance written notice, a chance to reply, and an appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board. Those protections do not apply to an employee whose position "has been determined to be of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making or policy-advocating character." 5 U.S.C. § 7511(b)(2).

Read that language again for what it does not say. It does not say GS-15. It does not say Senior Executive Service. It turns on the character of the position — which is exactly what a questionnaire and a position description are built to establish.

What Has Not Happened Yet

• A questionnaire is not a conversion. Filling one out does not move your position into Schedule Policy/Career.
• According to employees who spoke to Government Executive, State has placed a hold on routine reclassification of GS-13 and GS-14 positions while this review runs.
• When EO 14410 was signed, roughly 8,000 positions were covered, and a senior administration official said 97% of them were GS-15 or above.

For most people reading this, that means there is still time to get the paper right.

Your EEO Rights Do Not Come From Chapter 75

This is the part that gets lost in the alarm. Schedule Policy/Career status does not touch your equal employment opportunity rights. The federal-sector EEO regulations at 29 C.F.R. § 1614.103 apply to employees and applicants of executive agencies with no excepted-service carve-out, and the deadline to contact an EEO counselor — 45 days from the effective date of the personnel action, under 29 C.F.R. § 1614.105(a)(1) — runs exactly as it always has.

Three Things to Do Today

• Save your current position description and your most recent SF-50 — before anyone updates them. State employees have reportedly been directed to update their position descriptions to reflect the full scope of their duties.
• Save the questionnaire and exactly what you answered, with the date you returned it.
• Answer accurately. Do not inflate the job to sound senior. Do not shrink it to stay invisible. That document is evidence now.

The Practical Takeaway

A senior administration official said that employees performing competently and professionally have "nothing to be afraid of." That is a reassuring sentence. It is not a legal standard. The legal standard is the character of your position, and the record of that character is being built right now — partly by you, in a form you may have already returned.

Legal Disclaimer: This content is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Federal employment situations are fact-specific and time-sensitive. Please consult a qualified federal employment attorney about your specific situation. You can contact Southworth PC at attorneysforfederalemployees.com.