Tuesday federal headlines – April 14, 2015

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.

  • The Defense Department could save billions of dollars by closing and consolidating some of its bases. That’s one of 24 new recommendations from the Government Accountability Office’s annual Duplication and Cost Savings report. GAO also said DoD should get rid of its overlapping health care programs. It found billions of improper payments through the Pentagon’s TRICARE program. (Federal News Radio)
  • A new study found agencies are falling behind in the race to attract cyber talent. The report came from the Partnership for Public Service and Booz Allen Hamilton. They found the government doesn’t have a strategy to build its cyber workforce and it doesn’t have a plan to address that problem. Agencies have created definitions of cyber jobs since 2009, but those descriptions haven’t been fully implemented. The report recommended creating a comprehensive strategy to attract talent into the cyber workforce. It also said the Office of Personnel Management should create an occupational series for cyber jobs. (Federal News Radio)
  • President Barack Obama sent nine nominations to the Senate. Among them, he nominated Gabriel Camarillo to be assistant secretary of the Air Force for Manpower and Reserve Affairs. Daniel Ginsberg has held that position since 2009. Obama also nominated Jonathan Elkind for assistant secretary of Energy for International Affairs. David Sandalow last held that job. He resigned in 2013. (White House)

    The Veterans Affairs Department told Congress it has a plan to pay for its Denver hospital. The department said it wants to tap into a fund for improving health care. That money was to hire more doctors and upgrade facilities, among other things. VA wants to transfer $830 million from the $5 billion fund to its a construction project in Aurora, Colorado. The agency estimated the project would be completed in 2017 and cost more than $1.7 billion. The Army Corps of Engineers took over construction of the hospital, after VA’s contractor walked off the job last year. (Federal News Radio)

  • The Veterans Affairs Department extended its program for veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury. The program was slated to end last year. It will now go through October 2017. The TBI program gives assisted living services to eligible veterans. VA places those veterans in private TBI residential care facilities. Some veterans participate in team-based care to improve speech, memory and mobility. Dr. Carolyn Clancy is VA’s interim undersecretary for health. She said the program enhances veterans’ rehabilitation, community integration and quality of life. About 100 veterans are participating in the program. (VA)
  • Office of Special Counsel Chief Carolyn Lerner said her staff is overwhelmed with the number of whistleblower complaints coming in from Veterans Affairs employees. They’re still rolling in nearly a year after the issue of long medical appointment wait times first surfaced. She said complaints have not abated even though Congress passed a bill giving VA $16 billion to fix the problem. VA complaints alone accounted for 40 percent of the cases coming into the OSC. Lerner said her office is handling 110 whistleblower cases from VA, after settling 45 of them. (Federal News Radio )
  • A federal judge ended one of the longest running stories of the Iraq war. He handed out long prison sentences to the former Blackwater guards convicted in the deaths of Iraqi civilians. Nicholas Slatten received a life sentence. Paul Slough, Evan Liberty and Dustin Heard each received 30 years. The four fired rifles and grenades into a crowd from a helicopter in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square in 2007. They were protecting State Department employees trying to get back to the Green Zone. The guards argued they were reacting to a tense and dangerous situation. Prosecutors argued the shootings amounted to an unprovoked ambush. The incident touched off an uproar that engulfed the Blackwater company itself. Defense attorneys said they planned to appeal. (Federal News Raido)
  • Science writers found themselves stonewalled by the Obama administration. In a survey, writers said the public affairs offices of science agencies tightly restrict access to federal scientists. They frequently sit on interview requests, demand questions in advance, or substitute for the requested interviewee. Six in 10 writers believed the barriers meant the public wasn’t getting all the information it needs. The survey was conducted by the Society of Professional Journalists and Center for Science and Democracy at the Union of Concerned Scientists. About 250 writers responded. (SPJ)
  • Pentagon brass said the Islamic State is shrinking thanks to U.S. bombing and Iraqi ground forces. Spokesman Col. Steve Warren said the Islamic State militants have lost between 25 percent and 30 percent of their territory, or about 6,000 square miles. He stopped short of saying the tide was turning against the terror army. Warren said U.S. and coalition forces have pushed the militants back in a somewhat meaningful way. Its front line has moved west and south, freeing up Iraqi territory around important cities such as Erbil, Babil and Baghdad. Warren said the push back has hindered the enemy’s ability to hold territory and to have freedom to maneuver. (DoD)

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