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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release February 25, 1997

          PRESIDENT CLINTON NAMES JAMES B. KING AS DIRECTOR OF
                THE U.S. OFFICE OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

     The President today announced his intent to nominate James

B. King to serve as Director of the Office of Personnel Management to his second four-year term.

James B. King, of Ludlow, Massachusetts, has served as Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) since April 6, 1993. Under his leadership, OPM has carried out a series of reforms that have reshaped the agency and provided government wide leadership in reinvention. Mr. King's major initiatives at OPM include reducing salaries and expenses by 33%, reducing the full-time workforce by 48%, implementing an aggressive program of career- transition assistance for departing employees, and creating the federal government's first Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). In addition, Mr. King has given strong support to veterans preference, with the percentage of veterans hired during the Clinton administration increasing by 50% over the three previous years. Prior to his service at the OPM, Mr. King worked for Massachusetts Senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy.

Mr. King is a Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from American International College in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The Director of the Office of Personnel Management provides leadership in developing federal personnel policies that protect and enhance the merit system of government and the veterans preference law. The Director is also charged with ensuring compliance with personnel laws and regulations, and providing guidance and support to agencies in operating human resources programs, including development of Government-wide career transition policies. The Director also serves as Chair of the National Partnership Council, is a member of the President?s Management Council, and manages the Interagency Advisory Group of federal personnel directors.

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