(a) In General.—
The Secretary shall conduct an annual performance plan for each political appointee of the Department that is similar to the annual performance plan conducted for an employee of the Department who is appointed as a career appointee (as that term is defined in section 3132(a) of title 5) within the Senior Executive Service at the Department.
(b) Elements of Plan.—Each annual performance plan conducted under subsection (a) with respect to a political appointee of the Department shall include an assessment of whether the appointee is meeting the following goals:
(1)
Recruiting, selecting, and retaining well-qualified individuals for employment at the Department.
(c) Definition of Political Appointee.—In this section, the term “political appointee” means an employee of the Department who holds—
(1)
a position which has been excepted from the competitive service by reason of its confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating character; or
(2)
a position in the Senior Executive Service as a noncareer appointee (as such term is defined in section 3132(a) of title 5).