Category: Congress

Why federal employees are watching the political landscape more than ever

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If you wonder why federal employees worry, along with everyone else, consider: mini financial crises, a stubbornly bear stock market, no breakthroughs on Social Security solvency, and the debt-ceiling debate dragging out. For one point of view, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin talked with John Hatton, vice president for Policy at the National Association of Active and Retired Federal Employees (NARFE). Interview transcript: Tom Temin People are concerned. I actually had a reader write to me asking, well, our TSP funds insured? Unfortunately, no. And nobody’s investments are insured yet,…

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Ahuja plans to fix OPM programs under the microscope of the House Oversight Committee

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The House Oversight and Accountability Committee zeroed in on examining several federal programs with long-standing challenges, housed under the Office of Personnel Management. Among heated questions about federal telework, committee members pressed OPM Director Kiran Ahuja on how she plans to improve challenges in other departments at the agency, including in retirement services and the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program, as well as the federal hiring process. Retirement services backlog Challenges in retirement services at OPM were a common concern among both Democrats and Republicans on the committee —…

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Federal IT spending in 2024 request up by 13% in part thanks to cyber, CX plans

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The White House plans to ask Congress for $ 74 billion in federal technology spending for civilian agencies in fiscal 2024. What is significant about that number isn’t the fact it’s a 13% increase over the 2023 request, rather it’s the specific detail the Office of Management and Budget lays out for what that increase will go toward. The most obvious breakdown is in cybersecurity spending. The Biden administration wants to increase spending to secure federal networks, applications and data to $ 12.7 billion, a 13% increase over the prior…

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VA makes ‘full court press’ on recruiting, retaining staff with new workforce incentives

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The Department of Veterans Affairs, facing an increased workload as more veterans seek VA health care and benefits,  is prepared to significantly staff up under the Biden administration’s fiscal 2024 budget request. The VA in its fiscal 2024 budget request is looking to grow its workforce to 453,834 employees — a more than 4.5% increase from current staffing levels. Since 2019, the VA has added the equivalent of more than 78,000 full-time employees. The Biden administration is proposing a $ 351.1 billion total budget for VA in 2024 —  more…

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Revived bills would alter feds’ payment obligations during shutdowns, federal first responders’ pensions

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Lawmakers revived a host of bills this week that would impact the federal workforce, through changes to payments, retirement benefits and more. The Federal Employee Civil Relief Act, for one, would let federal employees and contractors postpone certain types of payments during government shutdowns, or if the government defaults on its debt. Specifically, feds would get a 30-day cushion, after a government shutdown ends, before they would have to make payments on loans and other types of financial obligations. Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.), who reintroduced the…

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White House $1.6B COVID fraud plan gives federal watchdogs increased staffing

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The Biden administration is asking Congress to give federal watchdogs and prosecutors more funding — and more time — to go after billions of dollars in COVID-19 spending lost to fraudsters. The White House is seeking $ 1.6 billion to help federal law enforcement and agency inspectors general handle a growing caseload of pandemic-related fraud claims. The spending request issued Thursday previews some of what the Biden administration will include in its fiscal 2024 budget proposal, which it expects to release next week. It also includes many of the recommendations…

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