*** Federal employees logged 28% fewer hours of official time in 2019 as compared to 2016, according to a new report from the Office of Personnel Management. The cost of those work hours devoted to union business also decreased. The Trump administration issued an executive order in 2018 cracking down on the use of official time.
*** The Department of Homeland Security issued new documents purporting to nail down the legality of the disputed appointment of Chad Wolf to be acting DHS secretary. The Government Accountability Office and several federal courts have issued opinions or rulings stating that there were legal missteps made in determining the succession to retired DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and those missteps will result in the overturning of multiple decisions made by Wolf and other acting occupants of the top DHS job. DHS disputes the GAO opinion and the court rulings, and is issuing the documents, it says, out of "an abundance of caution."
*** Nominations for the 2021 Fed 100 are now being accepted. The deadline for submissions is Dec. 31.
*** Did you miss FCW's recent Digital Transformation Workshop? Register now for a free encore presentation and learn how IT leaders at DHS, SBA, FCC, the Navy and the Defense Digital Service are driving transformation efforts across government. The presentations cover proven strategies for retooling business practices, building stakeholder consensus, moving to user-centered design and responding rapidly to unexpected crises. Sign up here for an on-demand viewing.