Friday federal headlines – October 31, 2014

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on Federal News Radio each day. It is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com reade...

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive and In Depth radio shows each day. Our headlines are updated twice per day — once in the morning and once in the afternoon — with the latest news affecting federal employees and contractors.

  • Thirty-nine percent of federal employees who entered the workforce 10 years ago improved their educational status in some way. That’s according to a new report from the Office of Personnel Management. Eighty-six percent of employees who entered the federal workforce with a high school diploma pursued further educational degrees. (OPM)
  • The Justice Department’s Inspector General has dinged the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for a case it likens to the failed Fast and Furious gun- tracing operation. This case involved hand grenade parts. The IG said ATF officials failed to arrest a man suspected of buying the parts online and then selling them in Mexico. The parts were believed to have ended up in weapons used by drug cartels. Instead, ATF intercepted the parts, marked them, sent them on their way and then tried to trace them. The incident happened in 2009. In a report just released, the IG said ATF officials acted without adequate consideration for public safety. Justice Department officials said they’ve taken action in the intervening years to prevent a recurrence. (Federal News Radio)
  • The U.S. Agency for International Development is asking contractors working in West Africa to draft emergency plans in case employees have to evacuate. Companies are told to describe how they would secure their work and property, maintain business continuity and return to full speed once the crisis has passed. In a fact sheet, the agency said it will consider, case by case, costs and delays that contractors may incur because of the outbreak. It’s also telling companies not to discuss any of this with the press. But one contractor executive told Federal News Radio it’s asking employees in West Africa to take their temperatures several times a day. It’s also formed its own Ebola response task force. (Federal News Radio)
  • A new House bill would make federal contracting officers give preference to bidders based on their labor practices. It will be introduced by Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.). The bill would force agencies to give extra points to bidders that pay employees what Norton calls a living wage and benefits. Companies that let employees join unions would also get extra points. The bill follows a similar one Holmes Norton introduced in July. That bill would give preferential points to companies that stop wage theft and don’t pay their CEOs outsized salaries. An Obama White House executive order requires contractors to pay minimum of $10.10 per hour starting in January. (Federal News Radio)
  • Spending by the intelligence community rose in fiscal 2014 to $50.5 billion. That’s according to the brief annual report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Appropriations the year earlier reached only $49 billion. It would have been higher except for sequestration. Spending authority in 2014 reversed a downward trend that started in 2012. In its three- paragraph summary, the ODNI gives no detail about how the money was spent or how much by agency. But The Wall Street Journal reports that Director James Clapper recently quipped to members of Congress, “Whatever you think about intelligence, you have a lot less of it to complain about.” (The Wall Street Journal)
  • The Pentagon is considering training to help in the battle against the Islamic State group. Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said training and advising Sunni tribes in Iraq is an important part of the Pentagon’s strategy. The Defense Department is also considering advising Iraqi government troops and creating national guard units in the region. But the Iraqi government has to approve all of this, and it must be willing to arm the Sunni tribes. Congress has approved $500 million to train up to 5,000 fighters. (Federal News Radio)
  • Government spending on technology is likely to increase, despite budgets shrinking overall. The TechAmerica Foundation predicts federal IT spending will grow by nearly 3 percent over five years. That brings IT spending to more than $90 billion in fiscal 2016. TechAmerica forecasts defense IT spending will grow by about 2 percent, while civilian IT spending could grow by more than 3.5 percent. TechAmerica Chairman Phil Bond said agencies “realize the promise of government technology.” Health and Human Services and Treasury will likely have the fastest growing IT budgets. HHS could see its IT spending increase by nearly 6 percent. (TechAmerica Foundation)
  • The White House announced its first-ever 3-D printed ornament challenge, in partnership with the Smithsonian Institution. Anyone who’s interested can submit design ideas starting now until Nov. 10. A number of winning ornament designs will be on display at the White House. The designs will also appear on the Smithsonian’s online 3-D data platform. Some ornaments will be part of a collection at the National Museum of American History. The White House said technologies like 3-D printing provide an opportunity to turn ideas into reality. (White House)
  • The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction said the U.S. has turned a blind eye to a key issue in Afghanistan: opium production. In the SIGAR’s quarterly report, John Sopko said he can’t develop an effective strategy in the country without considering the opium economy. Afghanistan produces 90 percent of the world’s supply of opium. Sopko said the narcotics trade fuels corruption and criminal networks in the country. According to the report, opium cultivation levels are at an all-time high. Afghanistan’s opium exports totaled $3 billion in 2013, an increase from $2 billion in 2012. (SIGAR)
  • The Pentagon is objecting to a wind energy project off the Eastern Shore of Maryland. It said the wind turbines pose a potential threat to a naval base across the Chesapeake Bay. The turbines could interfere with a radar system at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. The Navy tests new stealth aircraft at the base. In a letter, Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work said the energy project is an “unacceptable risk” to national security. Some congressmen worry the project could lead to cutbacks, or even closure, of the naval base. (Baltimore Sun)

Copyright © 2024 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.