Friday federal headlines – April 17, 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 Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity passed an amendment that puts a limit on the number of Senior Executive Service members who earn an excellent performance rating at the VA. The committee’s bill lets the VA give 10 percent of its SES workforce the highest rating. (Federal News Radio)
  • The Homeland Security chief has told Congress that talking about low morale is only making it worse. Secretary Jeh Johnson met with Reps. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) and Gerry Connolly (D-Va.). Their subcommittee on government operations held a hearing later that day on the worst places to work in the federal government. An OPM survey found DHS tops the list of worst big agencies. But Johnson said the way to boost morale is to stop telling workers they have lousy morale. He said he’s putting together a plan to improve transparency, hiring and mentoring at his agency. (Federal News Radio)
  • Hate where you work? Got a fresh horror story? Now you’ve got a place to sound off. A House subcommittee has established a tip line for federal employees to share their work-related concerns. It’s the brainchild of Rep. Mark Meadows (R- N.C.), head of the Government Operations panel of the House Oversight Committee. He said members will use the input to help improve engagement and morale. Meadows announced the tip line during a hearing at which he questioned managers from agencies ranked as the worst places to work. (Federal News Radio )
  • The Senate confirmed a new undersecretary of management for the Homeland Security Department. Russell Deyo was confirmed on a vote of 95 to 2. Chris Cummisky is serving as acting undersecretary for management. He assumed that role after Rafael Borras left the position more than a year ago. Deyo worked with Johnson and Johnson for 27 years. He was also a partner at a major U.S. law firm. (Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs)
  • Auditors found the government isn’t saving as much as expected on IT projects. Agencies predicted in 2013 they’d save at least $5.8 billion in two years. But the Government Accountability Office found the new estimate is just $2 billion. The savings would come from Portfolio-Stat, which requires that agencies review their IT investments each year. Auditors said inconsistent reporting measures are one of the reasons the estimates changed. The Defense Department said in 2013 it planned to save $3.2 billion on IT. But last year, it changed that figure to just over half a billion. (GAO)
  • Nobody ever said the federal government is simple. Maybe that’s why it takes a 75-page book to describe the vacation and sick leave options for federal employees. A new guide from the Office of Personnel Management does just that. Published this week, it’s designed to help both regular employees and human resources managers understand all of the possibilities. The new guide devotes lots of space to family leave options, including time for taking care of a new child. OPM said the guide comes in response to a January White House memo calling for agencies to give employees six weeks of advance sick leave for family matters. (OPM)
  • The Office of Government Ethics has published a guide to help federal employees navigate the rocky shoals of social media. The Standards of Conduct generally call for people to separate their personal and official lives when posting things on social media sites. The standards are written to take into account the vagaries of social media, such as the fact that many of them generate automatic messages on, say, birthdays. But in general, they warn employees to avoid using social media in such as way as to imply official endorsement. The guidelines recommend using disclaimers informing visitors the views expressed are those of the individual. (Federal News Radio)
  • The Army might create a cyber career field for civilians. The military branch already has a cyber field for soldiers. Lt. Gen. Edward Cardon heads the Army Cyber Command. He said creating the cyber career field isn’t difficult. But recruiting and retaining civilian cyber talent could be a challenge. Cardon blamed that on compensation compared to the private sector and a slower hiring process. The Army says it needs 3,800 military and civilian personnel with core cyber skills. (Army)
  • Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said the F-35 should be the Navy’s last manned fighter to drop a bomb. He added pilots might still be needed for dogfights, but not for bombing strikes. Defense News reports Mabus made his remarks at the Sea Air Space conference. Mabus also announced the formation of a new Navy staff office to focus on unmanned weapons systems. It would be headed by a deputy assistant secretary. The Navy is shutting down its Unmanned Combat Air System demonstration program, having proved unmanned aerial refueling can work. Mabus called unmanned systems, especially autonomous ones, the new normal for many Naval operations. (Defense News)

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