Monday Morning Federal Newscast – January 3

It\'s official! Gene Dodaro is confirmed, cost-savings ideas from the Postal Service and the FCC seeks to expand traveler information.

The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Amy Morris discuss throughout the show each day. The Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the stories you hear on the air.

  • The federal government begins the new year with a new comptroller general. Gene Dodaro has taken the oath of office. He’s been the acting comptroller general since March of 2008. Dodaro has worked at GAO for more than three decades. The Senate confirmed him just before the holiday recess.
  • More than one in five people who take the military’s entrance exam…fail. The Education Trust has released its analysis of results from 350,000 high school graduates who took the tests from 2004 through 2009. The Army accepts the lowest passing score of any of the service branches. Still, 23 percent of applicants couldn’t pass.
  • Congress gears up for a showdown on spending. Both chambers return from the holiday recess on Wednesday, and new House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darryl Issa (R. Calif.), says he’ll take an aggressive stance toward government waste. Politico reports that the incoming chairman intends to schedule hearings on FDA recalls, job growth, corruption in Afghanistan and the role of Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae in the foreclosure crisis. Congress also must work to pass a permanent federal budget. The continuing resolution expires in March.
  • U.S. offshore oil production will drop 13 percent in 2011. The Energy Information Administration reversed a year-old estimate that offshore production would rise. But that was before BP’s Deepwater Horizon blowout in the Gulf of Mexico produced the nation’s worst oil spill. The Wall Street Journal reports, the Obama administration has resumed licensing offshore drilling. But applications are held up by a series of new rules put in place after the BP disaster.
  • Maybe the U.S. Postal Service can save money by reducing “workshare discounts.” The Postal Service Inspector General says the Postal Service has failed to justify the millions of dollars in “workshare discounts” to mailers for efficiency reasons. Under the program, the mailers get reduced postage rates in return for preparing, sorting, or transporting mail. Theoretically, USPS would come out ahead in the deal because it saves costs. But in 2009, the Postal Service didn’t justify 19 out of 30 workshare discounts that exceeded costs by $104 million. It also says that more discounts could cost more money, and be less efficient. Postal managers agreed to compile data to support the discounts, but didn’t agree with the recommendation to document their decision-making process.
  • The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has added new information about doctors to its Medicare.gov web site. The enhanced directory is called Physician Compare. The enhancement was required by the Affordable Health Care Act of 2010. Included is more information to help people find specific doctors. The directory also has information about nurse practitioners, psychologists, dieticians and physical therapists who serve Medicare patients.
  • The Federal Communications Commission has hatched a plan to expand travelers information radio stations. The stations broadcast traffic information, often near airports or major interchanges. They typically operate at the high end of the AM band. The FCC wants to expand what the stations broadcast to include weather reports, Amber alerts, and public health warnings. The stations would also get a power boost under the FCC proposal. The FCC is now seeking public comment on the plan.
  • The IRS has chosen 33 contractors to help the agency maintain and update a large portfolio of legacy tax systems. It’s part of the Total Information Processing Support Services (TIPSS-4). That’s a multiple award contract. Some of the work includes cybersecurity and program management support.

More news links

Spending showdowns will test new Congress leaders

Chrysler, Ford recall thousands of trucks and SUVs

NTSB: American Airlines mishandled plane data

Figures on government spending and debt

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