Philadelphia Civil Service: Veterans Preference and the Residency Rule

Preference. The Office of Human Resources says that State law requires that veterans who pass an open-competitive civil service test receive preference in hiring and additional points on their score; see the Pennsylvania entry on the Veterans' Preference Act. The Home Rule Charter, section 7-401(d), has the civil service regulations grant preference in entrance examinations to members of the armed forces as statute or ordinance requires. The pass-over rule. Section 7-401(h) lets an appointing authority choose among the highest names certified from an eligible list and limits how often a candidate can be rejected before the name is no longer sent to that authority. "The passing over of a non-veteran eligible in order to appoint a veteran shall not constitute a rejection", so choosing a veteran with a lower qualifying score does not use up the non-veteran's chances. Residency. Philadelphia Code section 20-101 requires a year of city residence before appointment to the civil service. A person who lived in the city for at least a year before leaving for military service meets the rule if they resume living in the city within six months of completing that service.