President Biden renominates Julie Su for Secretary of Labor

President Joe Biden sent the nomination of Julie Su as Secretary of Labor to the Senate on January 8, 2024, although her previous nomination didn’t even receive a vote on the Senate floor. Meanwhile, Su has been serving as the “acting” head of Department of Labor (DOL) since previous DOL Secretary Marty Walsh left the administration.

The day after President Biden renominated Su, the agency issued its final independent contractor rule and is expected to issue its final overtime rule later this spring. In litigation challenging these and other regulations, advocacy groups are claiming the regulations are invalid because they were issued under the authority of an official acting without the Senate’s constitutionally required advice and consent.

As previously reported in FELI, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) held that Su as confirmed deputy secretary could continue in her role under the DOL succession provision, so the time limits in the Federal Vacancies Reform Act don’t apply. Her service is also being challenged as violating the Constitution’s appointments clause, although Congress enacted a statute that said the deputy secretary could serve as acting secretary. For now, Su can continue in her acting secretary role until her nomination is acted on.

FAR Council finalizes labor agreement rules for federal projects