TSP's G Fund Helps Delay Debt Ceiling
Sequester Hits Disaster Relief
Feds Respond to Oklahoma Tornadoes
Making Government 'Simpler'
OK Senator Wants Aid Offset by Budget Cuts
Boldly Go Where No Fed's Gone Before
AUTHOR ARCHIVES
Brittany Ballenstedt
Blogger
Brittany Ballenstedt writes Nextgov's Wired Workplace blog, which delves into the issues facing employees who work in the federal information technology sector. Before joining Nextgov, Brittany covered federal pay and benefits issues as a staff correspondent for Government Executive and served as an associate editor for National Journal's Technology Daily. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from Mansfield University and originally hails from Pennsylvania. She currently lives near Travis Air Force Base, Calif., where her husband is stationed.
TSP board rejects divestiture proposals
June 19, 2007 The board that oversees the federal employee Thrift Savings Plan on Tuesday expressed strong opposition to legislative proposals that would require divestiture of companies that do business in countries supporting genocide and terror. At their monthly meeting, members of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board expressed concern over the precedent ...
Auditors uncover fraud in federal benefit programs
June 18, 2007 Recent investigations into health insurance and prescription drug providers for federal employees have uncovered improper charges, illegal kickbacks and other cases of fraud, resulting in the recovery of more than $106 million for the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. The Office of Personnel Management inspector general's semiannual report, which was ...
House blocks funding for DHS personnel reforms
June 15, 2007 The House passed a measure Friday that would block funding for the Homeland Security Department's new personnel system, following similar action in the Senate at the committee level on Thursday. The House-passed $37.4 billion fiscal 2008 DHS spending bill would eliminate funding for the department's personnel system, formerly known as ...
Senators urge appropriators to boost SSA administrative funds
June 15, 2007 The Social Security Administration needs $430 million beyond President Bush's fiscal 2008 budget request, in order to reduce a significant backlog of disability claims, three senators said earlier this week. In a letter to leaders of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, and Max Baucus, ...
Survivor Savings
June 14, 2007 There's little doubt that the Thrift Savings Plan is a highly valued and attractive investment program for federal employees. But should participants pass away, their spouses might not see the full benefits. Currently, a surviving spouse beneficiary must either accept the assets of the TSP account as a lump sum, ...
Panel approves student loan forgiveness for public servants
June 14, 2007 A House panel on Wednesday approved major college aid legislation that would provide student loan forgiveness after 10 years for people who pursue careers in public service. The bill (H.R. 2669), sponsored by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., includes language that would make it easier for college graduates who have high ...
House appropriators approve 3.5 percent civilian pay raise
June 12, 2007 A House panel late Monday backed a bill granting civilian federal employees a 2008 pay raise of 3.5 percent, a figure equal to the adjustment already authorized in the House for the military. The House Appropriations Committee approved the raise in the markup of the fiscal 2008 financial services appropriations ...
Employee groups back automatic TSP enrollment, new default fund
June 12, 2007 A federal Thrift Savings Plan advisory panel decided Tuesday to back proposals for legislation allowing automatic employee enrollment in the plan and changing the default fund for indecisive investors. At a biannual meeting of the Employee Thrift Advisory Council, representatives from labor unions and other federal employee groups expressed support ...
Homeland Security launches graduate academy
June 11, 2007 The Homeland Security Department is expanding graduate education opportunities for its employees by establishing a new academy near Washington, the agency announced last week. The department launched the Homeland Security Academy on June 6 at the Office of Personnel Management's Eastern Management Development Center in Shepherdstown, W. Va. The full-time ...
Firm outlines steps to successful workforce reforms
June 8, 2007 Federal agencies must start treating employees as a critical variable as they tackle staff shortages, seek to increase job satisfaction and forge stronger links between policy and practice, according to an upcoming report from global management and technology consulting firm Accenture. The report, which will be released in July, identifies ...
