GOP Bill to Limit Su’s Acting Tenure at DOL Moves in the House

House Republicans advanced a bill Thursday that would curb acting Labor Secretary Julie Su’s tenure at the job as her nomination to fill the position permanently languishes in the Senate.

The Department of Labor Succession Act (H.R. 4957) would place the line of succession for the labor secretary under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, which sets parameters for how long an official can serve in an acting capacity. The bill advanced Thursday after a markup by the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and now awaits floor consideration.

Su took over the Labor Department in February under a 1946 statute that created the deputy labor secretary role, which establishes the DOL’s second-in-command as the successor in case of an absent secretary. But unlike the FVRA, there are no time limits for how long the deputy can serve as acting labor secretary.

Su’s nomination has stalled in the Senate, with full Democratic caucus support looking increasingly unlikely. But because she hasn’t resigned from her role or withdrawn as the nominee, she’s continued to lead the DOL as it works on major rulemakings—drawing ire from congressional Republicans who oppose her.

“What President Biden is attempting here is an insult to the voters whose elected representatives in the Senate spent a great deal of time meeting with Ms. Su, attending her confirmation hearing, evaluating her record only to be told it was all play acting,” Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), the bill’s sponsor, said during the markup.

Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy, the top Republican on the Senate’s labor panel, offered a similar bill last week that would apply the 210-day time limit established by the FVRA to all deputy secretaries serving as agency chief while nominated for the job.

But even if Su were serving under the FVRA, the ambiguity in how long she can remain would persist. Under that law, the clock pauses for as long as the Senate considers the pending nomination.

Both bills are unlikely to go anywhere in the Democratic Senate or garner White House support, but they’re one of the few ways Republicans who are unhappy about Su’s predicament can keep the spotlight on her acting tenure and stalled confirmation.

Meanwhile, Democrats on the House panel said the Republican move was an attack on the Biden’s administration’s pro-labor policies, and ignores that the Senate previously confirmed Su to her current position.

“HR. 4957 is a cynical attack on Acting Secretary Su in an effort to undermine the Biden administration’s robust pro-worker agenda,” said Rep. Alma Adams (D-N.C.), who noted that the FVRA only fills the gaps for agencies that don’t have a succession statute. “Julie Su has been lawfully appointed and confirmed by the Senate and permitted by the Department’s organic statute to do the job she is doing now.”