The Office of Personnel Management administers the presidential rank awards. The Washington Post / Getty Images
After scrapping it in 2025, the Trump administration is reinstating awards program for senior executives
The Senior Executive Association praised the return of the presidential rank awards.
The Trump administration is bringing back an awards program for senior executives after canceling it for fiscal 2025.
In a Jan. 5 memo, Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor asked agencies to nominate up to nine percent of their highest-ranking career employees for the fiscal 2026 presidential rank awards. The program was established in 1978 to honor civil servants who have exhibited consistent achievement.
Kupor wrote in the memo that the award would recognize members of the SES who “have made significant and lasting contributions in implementing President Trump’s priorities and delivering outstanding results for the American people.”
No more than five percent of the SES can receive the meritorious rank PRA for “sustained accomplishment,” and no more than one percent can be awarded with the distinguished rank PRA for “sustained extraordinary accomplishment.”
The meritorious rank comes with a financial award that is 20% of the employee’s basic pay, while the distinguished prize comes with a lump-sum payment that is 35% of the SES member’s basic pay.
OPM officials and review boards composed of former and current leaders in the private and public sector evaluate the nominees before they are sent to the president who selects the winners.
In 2024, the last year that the PRAs occurred, there were 236 recipients from 30 federal agencies.
The administration nixed the 2025 awards for no specified reason but said they would resume in 2026. They also were canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and in 2013 for budgetary reasons.
The Senior Executive Association welcomed the reinstatement of the awards.
“After a pause in the program, restoring these awards sends a clear signal that excellence, accountability and mission impact matter — and that the federal government remains committed to recognizing the dedicated career leaders who deliver results for the American people across administrations,” said Marcus Hill, president of the organization for senior executives, in a statement to Government Executive.
Officials under Trump have recently limited the number of SES members who can receive “outstanding” performance ratings and have taken other actions that exert more political influence over the SES.
PRA nominations from agencies are due by Feb. 5, according to the memo. The president will make decisions regarding award recipients by Sept. 30.