Thursday federal headlines – October 16, 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.

  • Defense Department employees traveling for work will soon have lower expense allowances. DoD wants employees who travel to one location for more than 30 days to get a flat per diem rate. Allowances fall to 75 percent of the locality rate for employees traveling for 31 to 180 days. After that, allowances fall to 55 percent. New rates would start Nov. 1. (DoD)
  • John Pistole is retiring as administrator of the Transporation Security Administration. He’s been head of the TSA for about four years. He plans to leave at the end of the year for a position in academia. (Federal News Radio)
  • The federal government is ramping up its response to Ebola. The moves come after a second nurse in Dallas is diagnosed with the disease. She was allowed to go on a commercial flight after reporting to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that she had a slight fever. The House Energy and Commerce Committee holds a hearing today to grill CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden. President Barack Obama canceled campaign travel to confer with his cabinet. He promises a CDC swat team for every U.S. case of Ebola. Obama called on European leaders to better coordinate the worldwide response. (Federal News Radio)
  • The Health and Human Services Department is looking to industry for an Ebola vaccine. It awarded an $8.6 million contract to Profectus BioSciences Inc. The Baltimore company said its Ebola vaccine has proved 100 percent effective in animal tests. The contract covers research, development and testing of the vaccine. Profectus published a paper two years ago. It said the Ebola vaccine would help protect health care workers from the virus. (FBO)
  • The White House shared a short video yesterday of first lady Michelle Obama dancing with a turnip. Earlier that day, she took part in a Q&A on Vine, the social media site where users post short videos. A Barack Obama impersonator on Vine asked the first lady how many calories she burns when she “turns up.” Michelle Obama responded saying “Turn up? For what?” while holding a turnip, and bobbing her head to the pop song “Turn Down for What.” The video has already gone viral. (Federal News Radio )
  • The federal budget deficit reached its lowest point in six years at $483 billion for fiscal year 2014. That’s less than 3 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said it’s a sign the economy is getting healthier. Last year’s deficit came in at $680 billion. The deficit hit a record high in 2009, at $1.4 trillion. Shaun Donovan, director of the Office of Management and Budget, called the 2014 numbers a return to fiscal normalcy. But the good news might just be temporary. The baby boom generation is expected to retire in large waves. That could spike the deficit in the coming years. ( Federal News Radio)
  • The Office of Personnel Management issued guidelines for agencies to hire the long-term unemployed or people with large debts. The guidelines carry out a policy established by the White House in January. In a memo, OPM Director Katherine Archuleta said agencies may no longer bar candidates whose debt occurred through no fault of their own. Hiring managers have been told to delay use of a form that asks about delinquency on federal debt. The guidelines tell agencies where to go to look for people who have been unemployed for a year or longer. (Chief Human Capital Officers Council)
  • The Air Force reached an agreement with Pratt and Whitney on a plan to fix a major defect in the engines for the F-35 joint strike fighter. An engine fire last summer temporarily grounded the fleet of F-35s and prevented the Air Force from bringing the plane to a major air show. Defense News reports Pratt and Whitney has identified the cause of the fire. The F-35 Joint Program Office said it has a plan for the company to fix existing engines and update the design for new ones. The company received an order for a new batch of 36 engines worth nearly $600 million. (Defense News )
  • An annual summer campaign raised nearly 15 million pounds in food donations this year. Feds Feed Families beats last year’s donation of about 9 million pounds. That brings total donations to 39 million pounds since the campaign began in 2009. This year’s top contributors were employees from the departments of Education, Housing and Urban Development, Agriculture and Defense, and the Social Security Administration. USDA partnered with other agencies and the Chief Human Capital Officers Council to lead the campaign. Feds can donate canned goods and other non-perishables at their agencies. (Federal News Radio)

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