People

House approves measure to block OPM furloughs

An appropriations bill passed in the House includes multiple provisions to prevent OPM and GSA from merging and blocks any reduction in force arising from a budget gap at the human resources agency.

People

Connolly amendment would block OPM layoffs

The chairman of the Government Operations subcommittee is looking to check an administration warning of layoffs at the Office of Personnel Management in the event that a merger with the General Services Administration can't move forward.

Modernization

Latest filings in JEDI lawsuit offer an inside look into the cloud program

Amazon Web Services and the Justice Department push back on Oracle's claims of conflict of interest in a pair of court filings this week.

People

Senate panel advances third MSPB nominee

The Merit System Protection Board is getting closer to having a quorum of confirmed officials in place to begin chipping away at its backlog of more than 2,000 appeals.

People

Senate panel passes law to prevent shutdowns as spending crisis looms

While Democrats and the White House fight over spending caps, some lawmakers are looking for ways to make a shutdown more painful for leaders in the executive branch and on Capitol Hill.

Acquisition

Report cites dramatic uptick in government spending on temps

Veterans Affairs, Defense Health Agency are filling gaps with temporary workers rather than hiring career staff.

People

Shanahan out as Pentagon chief; Army Secretary Esper takes over top job

In a tweet, President Donald Trump announced that acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan was resigning and withdrawing his name from consideration to hold the top Pentagon job on an acting basis. Trump announced that Army Secretary Mark Esper is taking over as acting defense secretary.

Digital Government

USDS budget cut forces focus on core capabilities

The White House tech team that was formed to save HealthCare.gov in 2014 is returning to its roots as a 911 squad for government tech.

Modernization

NDAA pushes DOD-VA cooperation on health record modernization

The $20 billion health record modernization efforts at the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs are going to be joined a little more closely under an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.

Modernization

DOD and VA's decisionmaking body for health record modernization lacks a decider

Defense and Veterans Affairs officials revealed a plan, decided March 1, to set up a joint governance board to make decisions on implementation of their commercial electronic health record system at a House hearing.

Cybersecurity

Hackers swipe traveler photos from CBP subcontractor

Customs and Border Protection acknowledged that images of travelers and license plates collected under its authority were stolen in a breach of a subcontractor's network.

People

No merger, but a long to-do list for OPM from the House

House Appropriators want the Office of Personnel Management to improve on its core duties including retirement processing without support from a planned merger with the General Services Administration.

Digital Government

SSA to offer electronic verification of Social Security numbers

An anti-fraud measure under a 2018 banking law requires the Social Security Administration to build an electronic verification system, but first industry has to help pay for it.

Modernization

Contractors still looking for leadership on joint health record project

Contractors are hoping that the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense deliver on plans to create a body with authority to settle disputes and guide joint implementation of the Cerner Millennium health record software across the two departments.

People

Oversight Dems press FLRA chief on union, FEVS scores

Democrats on the Government Operations subcommittee of the Committee on Oversight and Reform hammered FLRA Chairwoman Colleen Duffy Kiko for her decision to stop recognizing the Union of Authorities Employees last December.

People

Funding bill looks to block USDA relocations

The House appropriations bill funding the Department of Agriculture nixes plans to move two offices outside of the National Capitol Region.

Digital Government

OPM-GSA merger scuttled in House approps bill

The Financial Services and General Government appropriation, which includes a pay raise for civilian feds, passed its subcommittee and will be voted on by the full committee.

Digital Government

House Dems offer $35 million for TMF

The central tech fund gets a slight increase in 2020, but proposed funding for the federal CIO office is down almost 50% from 2019 levels.

Acquisition

Union cries foul over planned transfer of IT workers at DOD

A leading federal employee union has filed an unfair labor practice charge against the Department of Defense over the planned transfer of tech workers between defense agencies.

People

VA pushes back on health record oversight bill

The Department of Veterans Affairs is opposing a Senate plan to establish an advisory board to conduct oversight of the agency's $16 billion, 10-year plan to implement a commercial electronic health record system.