Monday federal headlines – December 29, 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.

  • The Merit Services Protection Board said the General Services Administration went too far in its decision to fire two senior officials. MSPB ordered GSA to reinstate Paul Prouty and James Weller to their former positions and give them back pay. Both were fired during the GSA’s conference spending scandal back in 2012. (Federal News Radio)
  • The Veterans Affairs Department sustained another data breach. This one potentially exposed personal information of 7,000 veterans using its telehealth services network. VA learned of the potential flaw from a contractor in early November. But it only notified affected veterans just before Christmas. They’ve been offered free credit monitoring. The VA said its policy is to notify veterans of data privacy breaches within 60 days. A new law updating cybersecurity practices requires agencies to notify Congress within a week. (Federal News Radio)
  • The Merit Systems Protection Board upheld the firing of Sharon Helman, director of the VA’s Phoenix medical center. Phoenix was at the heart of a patient care scandal that ultimately cost the job of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki. But the MSPB judge deciding the case said the VA failed to make the case that Helman had anything directly to do with the scandal. Instead, Judge Stephen Mish said VA was right to fire Helman because she took illegal gifts worth more than $13,000 from a would-be contractor. In a statement, Helman’s lawyers said the MPSB’s decision sets the story straight: Sharon Helman did not kill veterans. (Federal News Radio )
  • The Defense Department launched its annual Year in Review and Year in Photos special reports today. Both are designed to showcase the work and accomplishments of the department’s military and civilian workforce in 2014. Highlights from the year in review report include sequestration and the department’s Ebola response. It also covers some more poignant moments, like the 2014 Warrior Games. The Year in Photos special showcases military photographers’ work, from combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan to wildfire fighting in California. John Valceanu, chief of the Defense.gov news content management and digital print teams, called this year’s gallery “by far, the best one we’ve done.” You can view the full gallery on Defense.gov. (DoD)
  • The Navy is marking a milestone in unmanned aircraft. It’s been flying a full- sized, remotely controlled helicopter on and off the deck of a ship. The Virginian-Pilot reports civilian pilots from Northrop Grumman completed 32 takeoff and landing cycles of the chopper from the missile destroyer Jason Dunham. They also completed three flyaways and returns. The Navy said its goal was to assess the unmanned helicopter’s capabilities in different wind conditions and to see if it could land on a ship going at various speeds. The Navy has been using the unmanned helicopter since 2009, but never from a ship. (Navy)
  • Stephen Burns will become chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Jan. 1. He’ll replace Allison Macfarlane, who is leaving the agency to become a professor at George Washington University. Burns has been with the NRC for 33 years, serving in a variety of legal positions. He was named by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the Senate as a commissioner in November. He’s the second general counsel to become chairman. His term is scheduled to run to the middle of 2019. (NRC)
  • Hundreds of New Englanders are sounding off about a Coast Guard plan to update its coastal foghorns. The Coast Guard’s plan is to get horns from Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Mistake Island, Maine, overhauled by the end of 2015. It wants to replace 1970s technology, which the Coast Guard said has gotten more expensive than replacement. The existing systems automatically sound when there’s fog. The new ones will be activated via radio signals by users of marine radios. That will mean fewer soundings. A spokesman said Coast Guard people will spend the year visiting towns with foghorns to explain what’s going on. (Federal News Radio)

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