Tuesday federal headlines – December 2, 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...

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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.

  • The list of potential Defense secretary candidates keeps shrinking. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson has told the White House he’d rather stay put. Earlier, former Pentagon policy chief Michele Flournoy told the White House she’d prefer to remain at the Washington think tank she co-founded. That leaves the short list with two names — the current deputy secretary Robert Work and the former deputy Ashton Carter. Secretary Chuck Hagel has agreed to stay on until a successor is confirmed by the Senate. That’s looking more and more like an early 2015 event. (Federal News Radio)
  • The federal prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba will remain open for at least another year. Language in the 2015 Defense authorization bill omits a provision giving the president authority to transfer terror suspects to the United States for incarceration or trial. It thwarts for another year President Obama’s desire to close the prison. The Senate version of the bill included the closure provision. But Armed Services Committee chairman Carl Levin said enough Senate Democrats agreed with House Republicans to leave it out. Currently, Guantanamo holds 142 men, including 73 cleared for release. (Federal News Radio)
  • All funds in the Thrift Savings Plan return in the black for November. It’s the first time since June that the TSP funds see across-the-board gains. The C fund grows the most, with 2.7 percent for November. That brings it to an increase of more than 14 percent so far this year. The G-Fund sees the smallest growth, at 0.17 percent. Even the troubled I fund returns positive in November, gaining 0.5 percent. It’s the only fund this year that’s still in the red. ( Federal News Radio)
  • The U.S. Postal Service is late with its annual financial report. The reason: Officials aren’t certain whether a recent cyber attack affected financial data. NextGov reports, Postal officials have asked for a 15-day extension to file their 10-K form. The September attack compromised the personal information on 800,000 Postal employees. In an amended filing, General Counsel Thomas Marshall said an extensive process is underway to ensure the integrity of financial systems was not also harmed. (NextGov)
  • The Veterans Affairs Department expands eligibility for health care related to sexual trauma. The new rules allow more veterans to get mental health care for trauma caused by sexual harassment or assault during military service. The department said the expansion applies mostly to reservists and National Guard members. VA changes eligibility under authority from the Veterans Access Choice and Accountability Act of 2014. Secretary Bob McDonald said the VA needs to provide comprehensive care for all veterans dealing with military sexual trauma. (VA)
  • The Coast Guard will get a flotilla of new ships under a deal between House and Senate negotiators. Bloomberg reports the 2015 budget agreement would provide $6.7 billion for the next-generation Offshore Patrol Cutter. It also contains language to let the Coast Guard push ahead on the design and acquisition of new icebreakers for the polar regions. The Offshore Patrol Cutter is potentially the Coast Guard’s biggest acquisition ever. General Dynamics, Bollinger Shipyards Lockport, and Eastern Shipbuilding Group have won design contracts for the vessel. They’re competing for production. (Bloomberg Government)
  • The Pentagon spends too much on service contracts and it isn’t doing enough to track the $161 billion dollars it spends on IT, weapons, intelligence and professional management support. That’s according to the Project on Government Oversight. POGO is writing to Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. It says the Pentagon spends billions of unnecessary dollars because DoD hasn’t fully implemented the enterprise-wide Contractor Manpower Reporting Application. POGO has some harsh words for the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. In POGO’s words P&R is willingly “shirking its force management responsibilities.” (GovExec )
  • The government warns service members to beware what you post on social media. The FBI and the Homeland Security Department have told members of the military to avoid posts that might attract attention from Islamic State militants. A bulletin from the two agencies comes as the group has been targeting attacks toward law enforcement individuals and service members. The FBI said ISIS is looking for so-called “like-minded individuals” who can help carry out attacks. (Federal News Radio )

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