HHS executive and longtime civil service leader dies

Thomas S. McFee, former assistant secretary for personnel administration at the Health and Human Services Department and a longtime leader in the federal human resources community, died June 14 of pancreatic cancer. He was 75.

McFee worked for more than 30 years in government. In his 18 years at HHS, he served under seven presidents. In 1978, when he became assistant secretary, it marked the first time a federal agency had made personnel administration the responsibility of an official at that high a level. Prior to being named to the job, McFee was deputy assistant secretary for management planning and technology.

During his long tenure at high levels of the civil service, he learned how to deal with changes in political leadership at agencies, McFee told Government Executive in 1992. Political appointees who come in after presidential elections "really don't owe you anything," McFee said. "They've been out there getting a president elected. You didn't have anything to do with that. You have to realize not to expect a promotion or a new job."

In 1987, McFee was honored with the Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Executive. In 1993, he received the Leadership Award presented by Government Executive and the National Capital Area Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration.

After his retirement from the civil service in 1995, McFee became an active member of the Human Resources Management Consortium at the National Academy of Public Administration. In 2003 and 2004, he led the effort to produce a NAPA report on performance-based pay and more flexible job classification systems.

In 2005, McFee's colleagues at NAPA named him an Academy Luminary. Earlier this year, NAPA and ASPA presented him with the their Keeper of the Flame award, presented to "an individual who has kept the fire of public service burning after retirement."

At the time of the award, former Office of Personnel Management Director Kay Coles James said, "Tom continued to protect the core values of the civil service even after retiring. During the time that I was privileged to serve as the head of the civil service, we experienced a period of dramatic change. Tom continued to give of his wisdom, experience and judgment during this period of transformation."