Congressional Spotlight 
Top News
- IRS to pay $70M in bonuses, Grassley says
- Small companies won't feel effect of lowered contractor pay cap
- Senators push Tangherlini for assurances GSA is improving
- As VA works to eliminate one backlog, one more might emerge
- BRAC-like commission proposed to hunt down government cost savings
- Sequestration claims another conference: DHS's GFirst cyber event
- Postal Service closing Capitol Hill post offices in 'symbolic' move
- Senators seek cost cuts for F-35 fighter jet
- Fed pens new furlough song
- Web guru Dorris brings new life to government websites
- EPA CIO Jackson returning to private sector
- Navy strikes enterprise licensing deal with Oracle
- Contractors with security clearances lack path to report problems
- NSA leak case gives vendors reason to reevaluate personnel
- 8 contract executives guilty of 8(a) contracting fraud
- Whistleblower suit leads to $12M false claims settlement by SAIC
Federal judges sue to win promised pay increases
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in October ordered Congress to pay six federal judges years of back pay.
Obama meets with Rice, signs Russian trade bill
President Barack Obama is meeting privately with U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, a day after she withdrew her name from consideration to be the next secretary of state.
Fiscal Cliff, Freddie, Fannie & Jobs
On this week's Bloomberg Government Capital Impact show, analysts will discuss how the fiscal cliff crisis is impacting businesses. Also, what does the future look like for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae?
December 13, 2012
GOP decries looming 'regulatory cliff' in new term
While the "fiscal cliff" of looming tax increases and spending cuts dominates political conversation in Washington, some Republicans and business groups see signs of a "regulatory cliff" that they say could be just as damaging to the economy.
Sequestration worse than thought, Pentagon frets
As planning begins for sequestration, the military may have to cut billions more than previously imagined. DoD, like all agencies, is waiting for instruction from the OMB on how to reduce their budget.
In deficit talks, fed groups fear alternatives could cut benefits
Many in government are worried about the threat of sequestration, the across-the-board budget cuts set to take effect in January unless Congress and the White come up with an alternative deficit-cutting plan. But federal employee groups and sympathetic lawmakers are also concerned about such alternatives -- if they contain changes to federal employee pay or compensation. Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and a slate of federal-employee unions and groups are warning of such proposals in the deficit talks to replace sequestration.
Federal Drive Interviews -- Dec. 12, 2012
Dr. A. Hunter Fanney talks about a house the NIST Engineering Lab is using to study green technologies. Dr. Cheryl Martin discusses the Energy Department's recent round of grants to foster new technology. Financial Planner Arthur Stein discusses the impact of FERS over the last 25 years. Pete Kasperowicz of The Hill newspapers reviews upcoming legislation on Capitol Hill.
Senators press Army on suspension and debarment delays
A bipartisan group of senators has written to top Army officials to express concern about delays in the suspension and debarment process that leave the service open to contracting waste and fraud. In a letter to Army Secretary John McHugh and Chief of Staff Raymond Odierno, the senators questioned "significant time lapses" between referrals for suspension and actual debarment of contractors in Afghanistan.
Navy, Air Force CMOs decry 'blunt, formulaic' cuts to civilian workforce
Senate-passed annual authorization bill for DoD would require a 5 percent cut in non-uniformed employees. Chief management officers from two military services say mathematical cuts to a workforce that's "under siege" would be unwise.
Lawmakers laying odds against sequester taking place
Sens. Mark Warner and Bob Corker and Rep. Chris Van Hollen all believe there is at better than a 50 percent chance Congress and the White House will agree on a budget reduction plan before Jan. 1. But federal pay and benefits, and contract spending remain on the table to be part of the cuts.
How far over the 'fiscal cliff' could they go?
The dealmakers who warn that a year-end plunge off the "fiscal cliff" would be disastrous don't seem to be rushing to stop it. Why aren't they panicking?
Senate's defense bill cuts civilian workforce, caps contractor salaries
The Senate approved a $631 billion annual defense policy Tuesday that would require the Defense Department to reduce its civilian workforce by 5 percent over the next five years and impose a strict cap on government-funded contractor salaries. With the White House threatening to veto the Senate version its current form, the bill now heads to a House-Senate conference committee where differences between the two chambers' bill will be hammered out.
IT reform bill would cull the CIO herd, give them more power
Rep. Darrell Issa said agencies need a lot more agility in their IT spending, but a lack of budget authority and a proliferation of accountability among bureau-level CIOs gets in the way.
Back to budgets, Ryan returns to comfortable topic
Paul Ryan is getting his groove back.
A last-minute and very real pension threat
The next couple of weeks will be make or break time for federal workers and retirees as Congress flounders for a way to put the brakes on before the government goes off the infamous fiscal cliff. Among the endangered species: your future retirement benefits, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Senate OKs Obama's choice for Afghan commander
The Senate approved Gen. Joseph Dunford, the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, to be the top commander in Afghanistan.
Senate unanimously passes Hatch Act update
On Friday, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill updating the Hatch Act, the law that restricts the political activities of federal employees.
Partisan split over UN Ambassador Rice widens
Republicans continue to argue that U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice is unfit to be secretary of state. Democrats say the criticism is unfair.
Veterans' gun rights sticky issue in defense bill
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) sought to amend the bill to stop the Veterans Affairs Department from putting the names of veterans deemed too mentally incompetent to handle their finances into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, which prohibits them from buying or owning firearms.
IRS struggling to tackle massive surge in identity theft
Faced with declining resources, the Internal Revenue Service has diverted resources from elsewhere inside the agency to try and head off skyrocketing cases of identity theft stemming from tax refunds.
