Career federal leaders working across 30 different federal agencies are receiving special recognition for their dedication to public service.

President Joe Biden named 236 winners of the 2024 Presidential Rank Awards. Last week, the Office of Personnel Management announced the honorees, all of whom hold Senior Executive Service, Senior-Level, and Scientific and Professional positions.

One PRA winner, for example, is a senior executive at the Department of Veterans Affairs who was “instrumental” to the VA’s electronic health records modernization, OPM said.

Another PRA winner at the Energy Department was responsible for launching the “Energy Earthshots” initiative, which aims to address energy challenges and make progress toward cost-effective climate change solutions.

“This year’s honorees are representative of the patriotic and hard-working public servants across the federal government who work day in and day out to make life better for all Americans,” White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients said in a statement.

The Presidential Rank Awards are broadly considered the most prestigious honor that a career civil servant can receive. The highly selective awards program recognizes career senior employees’ extensive contributions to public service.

OPM Acting Director Rob Shriver congratulated the 2024 PRA winners for their accomplishments and contributions across the federal government.

“Each day, thousands of dedicated federal employees work tirelessly to address our nation’s most urgent challenges and drive innovation that positively impacts millions of lives,” Shriver said in a statement. “The Presidential Rank Awards recognize those who demonstrate outstanding leadership, unwavering integrity and an enduring commitment to public service.”

The Presidential Rank Awards began in 1978 as part of the Civil Service Reform Act as a way to recognize outstanding career senior leaders in the federal workforce. Each year, OPM helps run the PRA program by developing the criteria for agencies to submit nominations and evaluate the nominees. OPM then sends its recommendations to the president for final selection.

In the PRA program, just 1% of federal senior executives earn a Distinguished Rank Award in any given year, while 5% will earn a Meritorious Rank Award. Awardees typically receive a cash bonus between 20% and 35% of the recipient’s salary. After OPM announced the 2024 winners last week, the agency put out a call to agencies asking for their nominations of employees for the 2025 PRA series.

The Presidential Rank Awards is an annual effort to highlight the important work of the career, non-political federal workforce. OPM’s announcement of the 2024 PRA winners comes as public trust in government is at an all-time low, according to research from the nonprofit Partnership for Public Service. In 2024, the Partnership found that 63% of those surveyed said they do not trust the federal government.

But at the same time, the Partnership reported that 87% of respondents said they believed having a nonpartisan civil service is important for a strong American democracy.

“Both Republicans and Democrats agreed at almost the same rate,” the Partnership said in its findings. “In fact, support for a merit-based civil service grew across most demographics from 2022 to 2024.”

At a Nov. 14 event hosted by the National Academy of Public Administration, Republican consultant and pollster Frank Luntz said accountability is a key element for earning trust in government.

“If you demonstrate accountability, you will begin to solve the problem of why people are so hostile,” Luntz said. “If you don’t show them accountability, you will get nowhere.”

Luntz also emphasized his findings that show a majority of Americans look for a government that is efficient and effective with their tax dollars.

“That’s what taxpayers want of us — if you fail with us, if you fail with that, if you’re not efficient and effective, then they’ll never support you. They’ll never trust you,” Luntz said.

In the Partnership’s research, two-thirds of survey respondents said they believe there “are many civil servants who work to undermine policies they disagree with.” But the Partnership has also said that highlighting the work of career civil servants is important to regaining the public’s trust in government, which has continued to decline for years.

“To a certain extent, better explanations of the role and impact of civil servants, and how their work helps people and communities, may help neutralize these arguments,” the Partnership said. “Indeed, our survey shows that a majority of Americans report more favorable views of civil servants when told that they are responsible for some of our country’s greatest achievements, serve as experts in their field who keep us safe, and work in roles that directly provide essential services to the public rather than as elected officials or political appointees.”

The Senior Executives Association urged Biden to hold a White House ceremony to honor the 236 winners of the 2024 Presidential Rank Awards.

“SEA encourages President Biden and federal agencies to tell the stories of these Presidential Rank Awardees and the accomplishments they have helped their agencies and programs deliver for the American people,” SEA President Marcus Hill said in a statement. “During an era when the merit-based civil service system and career servants continue to experience intense scrutiny, SEA believes the hard work, dedication, patriotism and excellence of these public servants must be recognized, appreciated and celebrated.”

OPM published the full list of winners of the 2024 Presidential Rank Awards on its website.

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