Trump administration critiques provide chance for civil service reform

The state's current civil service system is a complicated, inflexible, and highly bureaucratic set of rules, regulations, and policies that has been slow to adapt to generational and demographic changes in the workforce and to emerging trends in the workplace. As a result, California is not optimally positioned to consistently recruit and retain the best and brightest, properly train and support employees to perform to their highest potential, and plan for the succession of future leaders —all key characteristics of a strong and nimble civil service system.

—Governor Jerry Brown, January 2015 budget

The Trump administration's attacks on civil servants for heroic acts of whistleblowing and refusals to comply with orders that undermine democracy and the express mission of public agencies have reinvigorated interest in civil service. President Donald Trump's criticisms resonate with a long history of the civil service being regarded as overly bureaucratic, corrupt, and inefficient. For as much as recent events have shown the value of civil service systems, they follow years of questions about their faults. However, Trump's criticisms also provide a new opportunity to revive old discussions about the importance of civil service systems in government and how we can make those systems better.