President Joe Biden formally nominated Kiran Ahuja to serve as Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on Wednesday, handing the Senate the opportunity to put an experienced community advocate in charge of the agency that oversees the federal workforce.
In a statement, the White House described Ahuja as someone who spearheaded “efforts to increase access to federal services, resources and programs for underserved Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders” during the Obama administration.
OPM is tasked with protecting and supporting federal employees, and oversees healthcare, life insurance, and retirement benefits, according to a description on the agency’s website. If confirmed, Ahuja would be the first South Asian and first Asian American woman to lead OPM.
Ahuja previously served as Chief of Staff at OPM, executive director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI), and a civil rights lawyer at the U.S. Department of Justice. She spent her career in public service and nonprofit work, including as founding executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum.
“I commend President Biden for continuing to build on his commitment to nominate highly qualified Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to senior roles throughout the federal government, and I know Kiran will be an outstanding member of the Biden Administration,” said Rep. Judy Chu (D-California), the chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. “I look forward to working with her again and urge the Senate to confirm her swiftly.”
