Thursday federal headlines – February 19, 2015

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.

• Agencies will soon have new accessibility guidelines for federal information and communication technology. The Access Board released a proposed rule to update Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. It includes the latest version of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and Real Time Text capabilities. (Federal News Radio)
• All federal employees who use mass transit to get to work would get the same benefits as those who drive. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) introduced the 2015 Commuter Benefit Parity Act. It would set monthly caps for both parking and mass transit at $235. (GovExec)
• After a blue ribbon commission recommended an outsider, President Barack Obama picked an insider to lead the Secret Service. Obama named Joseph Clancy, a 27- year veteran of the agency who has been acting director since the resignation of Julia Pierson last year. Before retiring, Clancy had headed the Secret Service’s presidential protective division. The pick drew a rebuke from the chairman of the House committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R- Utah) says he’s disappointed in the choice of Clancy. But Chaffetz called Clancy and offered his congratulations. (Federal News Radio)
• The Pentagon’s press secretary is stepping down. Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby was chief spokesman while Chuck Hagel was defense secretary. Kirby’s resignation comes as Ash Carter takes over as defense secretary. Carter said he wants a civilian in the position of Pentagon spokesman. Kirby has served as a Navy officer since 1986. (Federal News Radio)
• The White House named its first ever chief data scientist. Dr. DJ Patil will work on the administration’s Precision Medicine Initiative, a project that would find the best treatment for individual patients. He’ll also recruit people in data science to join the public sector. Patil has worked at LinkedIn, Skype, PayPal, eBay and the Defense Department. As a doctoral student at the University of Maryland, Patil used open data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to improve weather forecasting. Chief data scientists are a growing trend among agencies. The departments of Transportation, Energy, Agriculture and the Federal Communications Commission have chief data officers. (Federal News Radio)
• National parks drew record-breaking crowds in 2014. More than 290 million people visited national parks last year, breaking the previous record set in 1987. The National Park Service said the reopening of the Washington Monument in 2014 boosted visitation numbers. The parks saw a dip in visits in 2013. NPS attributed that to the 16-day government shutdown and several park closures for repairs after Hurricane Sandy.

  Separately, President Obama will designate three national monuments. The Pullman National Monument is a Chicago neighborhood where railroad workers won a labor agreement. The Honouliuli National Monument in Hawaii is the site on an internment camp during World War Two. The third is Browns Canyon National Monument in Colorado. (NPS/Federal News Radio)

• A labor union wrote to Congress, warning of consequences if the Homeland Security Department shuts down. National Treasury Employees Union President Colleen Kelley said 85 percent of DHS employees would still have to report to work but they wouldn’t be paid until appropriations are resolved. And Customs and Border Protection would have to suspend training of new hires. The union represents more than 25,000 CBP Officers. A shutdown would delay updates on DHS websites. Kelley asked lawmakers to end the “funding impasse” and pass a bill to fund DHS by Feb. 27. (NTEU)
• Teens don’t always listen to their parents, but that’s not the case for agencies. A Deloitte study found agencies usually follow recommendations from the Government Accountability Office. Deloitte looked at more than 40,000 GAO recommendations going back to 1983. It found the auditors’ recommendations have an 81 percent success rate. That number is based on GAO’s own audit of how well agencies implement recommendations. Deloitte said agencies are most successful in following recommendations related to information security — a 94 percent completion rate. But recommendations related to cross-agency issues and high- ranking officials aren’t as successful. (Gov Exec)
• Secretary of State John Kerry welcomed the inaugural fellows to the Veterans Innovation Partnership. The fellowship program lets veterans take what they learned during military service and apply it to international affairs. Kerry said the fellows bring a unique way of looking at foreign policy. The fellows have been deployed to places in the Middle East, Asia and Europe. Kerry said the veterans joined the program because they waned to continue their public service. They may be offered positions in the State Department after the fellowship concludes. ( DoD)
• The Commerce Department launched the fourth round of grants for technologies to replace passwords as online identifiers. The grants come through the program office of the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace. The NSTIC is looking for pilot projects in several areas. These include solving privacy issues in federated identity solutions and usability of strong ID systems. The five-year grant program launched in 2012. So far, it’s given out $30 million. NSTIC director Jeremy Grant told staff he’ll step down in April after four years on the job. Mike Garcia will become acting director. (NSTIC)
• Pentagon officials reported the U.S. has screened about 1,200 moderate Syrian rebels. They’re slated to participate in a training program so they can join the fight against the Islamic State militants. The Army is setting up training bases in Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Army Maj. Gen. Michael Nagata is in charge of training the Syrians. He’ll eventually have about 1,000 U.S. troops to carry out the program. The rebels will undergo training in firearms, communications and command-and- control. Pentagon Spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby said after they’re trained, the Syrians wwould be able to help coalition forces pinpoint places to bomb the Islamic State. (Federal News Radio )
• A new multiple award contract worth up to $8 billion is coming from the Defense Microelectronics Activity. Bloomberg reports the new MAC will be two vehicles in one. The bulk will be a full-and-open competition deal worth $7.2 billion, and the rest will be set aside for small business. The Advanced Technology Support Program IV replaces the sold-out ATSP3. The Microelectronics Activity is in Sacramento. It supports weapon systems by keeping their control systems up to date and reliable. It also seeks the newest electronics to boost capabilities. Incumbent contractors represent a familiar bunch. They include Raytheon, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman, Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Proposals are due April 17. (Bloomberg Government)

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