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Abstract: Terms of service and protections from removal for political reasons are important tools to promote nonpartisan, expert administration informed by experience. Most discussions about restrictions on removal of government officials center on agency heads or quasi-adjudicative administrative officials, such as administrative law judges, where removal protections serve compelling due process functions by promoting objectivity in decision-making. But protections from political influence extend beyond adjudicative positions and far into the hierarchy of federal agencies. We explore the importance of these positions for insuring that federal administrative agencies carry out their delegated functions on the basis of expertise and experience.
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