Restrictions on federal employees receiving pay for more than one government position do not apply to part-time work offered by the 2020 census, according to a Feb. 6 memorandum issued by the Office of Personnel Management.

“The U.S. Census Bureau has begun its campaign to recruit hundreds of thousands of individuals across the country to fill a variety of temporary jobs, including recruiting assistants, office staff, census takers and supervisory staff. Because of these efforts, we are beginning to receive questions from current federal employees about accepting employment for the 2020 census,” OPM Director Dale Cabaniss wrote in the memo.

“The Census Bureau may hire federal employees upon approval of agency directors, but only for temporary, short-term work on the 2020 census.”

Normally, U.S. code prohibits one federal employee from receiving pay for multiple jobs, but temporary census positions are specifically exempted from that rule.

Despite planning for fewer personnel and more technological presence for the 2020 count, the Census Bureau has struggled to hire the number of temporary employees it needs, in part due to delays in processing background investigations.

Federal employees who have already undergone background checks for their current positions may be able to expedite that process with the Census Bureau, though their information will still take time to transfer between agencies.

Jessie Bur covers federal IT and management.

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