Omnibus silently endorses 4.6% pay raise for federal employees in 2023

For federal employees, the most significant part of the $ 1.7 trillion omnibus spending package that Congress unveiled this week may not be contained in the text of the legislation itself, but rather found in what’s not said. The 4,155-page bill, which House and Senate lawmakers released in the early morning hours of Dec. 20, doesn’t make any reference to the 4.6% across-the-board federal pay raise, in effect silently endorsing the Biden administration’s proposal for 2023. The bill additionally supports a 4.6% pay raise for military members in 2023. But…

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Can a 10-year federal infrastructure plan really sustain itself for 10 years

Best listening experience is on Chrome, Firefox or Safari. Subscribe to Federal Drive’s daily audio interviews on Apple Podcasts or PodcastOne. The action plan from the Biden administration for the Infrastructure Bill seeks to ensure projects across the nation get done on time and on budget. They’ve already hired 2,500 people to help state, local and tribal governments. But the plan has a 10-year horizon. And that could spell trouble. The Federal Drive with Tom Temin   gets analysis from Professor Bob Tobias of American University. Interview transcript: Tom Temin: And Bob, this…

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Survey: Half of federal chief data officers are unclear about responsibilities

Chief data officers in federal agencies have been in the government for a long time, but that doesn’t mean they are clear on their responsibilities. That’s according to a recent survey of CDOs conducted by the Data Foundation. The chief data officer role in federal agencies was established in 2018 by an act of Congress. In the four years since, the Data Foundation has conducted surveys of the people who fill these roles responsible for data governance. This year, the survey sponsored by Guidehouse found that while CDOs tend to…

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For 2023, federal retirees will see largest COLA increase in over 40 years

Federal retirees and Social Security recipients are about to get the largest increase in their cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in over four decades. The COLA will increase 8.7% for 2023, the Social Security Administration announced on Oct. 13. But not all federal retirees will see that amount added to their checks. Those in the Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS) will receive a 7.7% COLA starting in January. The large COLA announcement for 2023 is no surprise, given high rates of inflation and climbing consumer prices this year, said Ken Thomas, national…

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Federal building security agency short-staffed amid rise in threats

Federal employees and their office buildings are facing an increase in threats at a time when the agency sworn to protect them is running into challenges to fill law enforcement vacancies. The Federal Protective Service secures 9,500 federal buildings across the country. But FPS Principal Deputy Director Kris Cline said last month that about 21% of its authorized positions remain vacant, and that filling them is a “continued challenge.” Cline said told the oversight subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee that FPS has an authorized end strength of 1,131 law enforcement…

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Biden’s pick for OPM deputy director addresses concerns about federal hiring, retirement processing

President Joe Biden’s nominee for second-in-command at the Office of Personnel Management, Rob Shriver, shared his priorities for the federal workforce with the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. During a Sept. 29 nomination hearing, the committee raised concerns about the future of telework, the federal hiring process and delays in retirement processing — all of which are involved in OPM’s mission. Telework was a prominent issue for a few of the committee members. Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) asked Shriver about the governmentwide telework policy for agencies, saying that…

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