Disaster Recovery Mitigation Division, CSC Docket No. 2025-607

BackgroundThe Department of Community Affairs (DCA) requests that the Civil Service Commission (Commission) extend that December 31, 2026, deadline established in In the Matter of Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division, Department of Community Affairs (CSC, decided June 2, 2021) to make temporary unclassified appointments to various career service titles to staff the Disaster Recovery Mitigation Division.

By way of background, In the Matter of Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division, supra, the Commission extended its approval for temporary unclassified appointments to be made to various career service titles in the Disaster Recovery Mitigation Division, so the necessary personnel could be appointed to appropriate job classifications. See In the Matter of Interim Disaster Recovery Division (CSC, decided April 17, 2013). The DCA had been designated to administer a grant of more than $6 billion the State received under the American Rescue Plan Act. Based on the new grant and the ongoing need, the Commission extended the September 30, 2022, deadline for utilizing unclassified titles to December 31, 2026.

In its current request, DCA asserts that in In the Matter of Interim Disaster Recovery Division (CSC, decided April 17, 2013), the Commission noted that the Sandy Recovery Division would be phased down by no later than September 30, 2017. However, this deadline had been extended several times, and last year the deadline was eliminated through federal legislation. With the elimination of the statutory expenditure deadline, the federal government established a period of performance for the Sandy Recovery funding, which concludes in 2029. Therefore, the DCA requests that the Commission extend Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division’s use of unclassified positions until January 1, 2030, to allow the Division to complete work associated with obtained federal funds.

Additionally, DCA has indicated that it has recently received $377 million dollars in Community Development Block Grant funding from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development to assist with the State’s recovery efforts from Tropical Storm Ida. This specific funding has a six-year period of performance and concludes at the end of 2029.

CONCLUSION

In the instant matter, DCA explains that with the federal government eliminating the statutory expenditure deadline and establishing a period of performance for the Sandy Recovery funding concluding in 2029, it requires the use of unclassified positions in the Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division until January 1, 2030, to allow the Division to complete work associated with obtained federal funds. Based on these facts and the long-term challenging nature of disaster recovery as evidenced by continued grant appropriations to resolve these matters, and given the anticipated phasedown by January 1, 2030, the Commission finds that it would not be practicable to make permanent appointments to positions and titles utilized by the Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division. Therefore, it is appropriate to extend the current deadline of existing unclassified appointments, as well as any other titles needed to staff positions until January 1, 2030. However, the DCA is reminded to ensure that all appointees to positions within its interim Disaster Recovery and Mitigation Division are advised that their appointments are in the unclassified service and that they are not entitled to the tenure protections provided under Civil Service law and rules.

Further, the Division of Agency Services is authorized to review and approve future requests that may occur for unclassified appointments to career service titles, as it deems appropriate for DCA, to assist in the staffing efforts for disaster recovery.

ORDER

Therefore, it is ordered that this request be granted and the above deadline is extended to January 1, 2030.

ClosingThis is the final administrative determination in this matter. Any further review should be pursued in a judicial forum.