Monday Morning Federal Newscast – January 10th

OPM proposes new rules for bonuses, Postal Service makes streamlining moves, CFC falls short of goals

The Morning Federal Newscast is a daily compilation of the stories you hear Federal Drive hosts Tom Temin and Amy Morris discuss throughout the show each day. The Newscast is designed to give FederalNewsRadio.com users more information about the stories you hear on the air.

  • House members of both parties will hold a rare joint meeting Wednesday to discuss security measures, especially when members are away from Capitol Hill. The chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Connecticut Representative John Larson tells USA Today that their primary goal is to ensure that lawmakers are coordinating their efforts with local law enforcement. The question of permanent security changes falls to the House Administration Committee, which has jurisdiction over the 1,800 member U.S. Capitol Police Force. Committee Chairman Dan Lungren of California says that the Arizona shooting probably won’t result in personal security for all 535 members of the House and Senate, and that Capitol Police routinely coordinate with local police to assess threats and provide security on an as-needed basis.
  • OPM is proposing new rules to crack down on bonuses that are aimed at finding and keeping good talent. The proposal would require agencies to annually review recruitment bonuses for hard-to-fill jobs. The rules would also require new hires who get relocation payments to live in the new locale for the duration of their service agreements. Agencies would also need to review all retention bonuses every year. Right now, they only need to review incentives that are not tied to service agreements. The proposal is open for comment through March 8.
  • Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe has made a series of moves to streamline and cut costs at the Postal Service. He’s reducing the officer ranks by 16 percent and closing one area office. Donahoe says improving customer service is the main goal. He wants a flatter management structure that’s more aligned to the falling mail volumes handled by the Postal Service. And he wants USPS to improve its package business. Now a single vice president of domestic products will oversee services offered in the United States. And a vice president for Consumer and Industry Affairs will look after customer interactions. Gone is the title, senior vice president.
  • The federal government has beefed up its inventory of leased space. Federal Times reports agencies expanded that space by 96 million square feet in 2009. Most of that comes from the Navy, which has privatized much of its military housing. The government is in the middle of an effort to shrink its property portfolio.
  • Joint Forces Command may be closing, but many of its functions are sticking around. A spokesman for Virginia Senator Mark Warner says that state’s Congressional delegation and Governor have secured an agreement that would downsize the command rather than close it. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says about 50 percent of the JFCOM capabilities will be kept and assigned to other organizations. Much of that activity should stay in the Norfolk-Suffolk, Virginia area, where JFCOM is headquartered.
  • The shooting of Representative Gabrielle Giffords has left NASA reeling: Her astronaut husband was due to rocket away in just three months as perhaps the last space shuttle commander, and her brother-in-law is currently on the International Space Station. Shuttle commander Mark Kelly is with his wife, while his twin brother Scott is being updated regularly through Mission Control, the Internet, and the phone aboard the space station. NASA officials say it is premature to speculate on whether Mark Kelly will step down as commander of the April flight of the shuttle Endeavour. There is no precedent for anything like this at NASA. Astronauts have had to bow out of space missions over the decades, but never a commander so close to flight and never for something so brutal.
  • The National Capital Region is not the only one to miss its Combined Federal Campaign fundraising goal for 2010. Federal Times reports, the Overseas CFC will raise 10 percent less than its goal of $15.7 million dollars. The Chesapeake Bay Area CFC is 14 percent below its goal. CFC campaigns in Chicago and Los Angeles are also missing their targets. The National Capital region raised 55.7 million dollars as of last Thursday. OMB granted the CFC an extra month to try and reach its goal of 67 million. The deadline is January 17.
  • Extortion artists are posing as Food and Drug Administration special agents. They’re phoning people who have purchased prescription drugs using telepharmacies or online. The scammers say that such purchases are illegal, then try and get people to pay fines. It’s all an attempt to get money, credit card numbers, and personal information. The FDA warns, in some cases people are threatened with having their homes searched if they don’t pay up. Money seems to be moving through the Dominican Republic, but calls are rigged to they appear to originate in the United States.

More news links

Consumer Product Safety Commission to launch public database of complaints (WashingtonPost)

Arizona tragedy gives Congress a moment to pause

Iceland summons US envoy over WikiLeaks probe

Winter weather slams South with snow, icy roads

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