Tangherlini Tapped to Stay On at GSA
Video: Stephen Colbert on the Census Bureau
Lawmaker: Don't Furlough Weather Service Now
Making Government 'Simpler'
OK Senators Leery of Unfunded Tornado Relief
Boldly Go Where No Fed's Gone Before
AUTHOR ARCHIVES
Acquisition panel considers ethics in contracting
February 28, 2005 Members of the Services Acquisition Reform Act Advisory Committee, a group assigned under the 2004 Defense Authorization Act to examine government procurement practices, debated their priorities in a meeting Monday at the Interior Department. Carl DeMaio, a panel member and president of the Performance Institute, an Arlington, Va.-based think tank, ...
Labor union looks north for new members
February 25, 2005 Under pressure from new limits on collective bargaining, federal employee unions are turning to one place the Bush administration can't reach them: Across the border. New personnel systems for the Homeland Security and Defense departments restrict collective bargaining, the traditional way that unions negotiate on behalf of employees. Other Bush ...
Congress, Pentagon continue to fight over health care provision and job competitions
February 24, 2005 Several lawmakers are continuing to raise objections to a provision in the 2005 Defense Authorization Act that requires the Pentagon to consider health insurance costs in job competitions. The act says the department cannot give an advantage to contractors that reduce costs by offering less comprehensive health coverage than that ...
GAO issues last financial systems checklist
February 22, 2005 The Government Accountability Office released its final checklist for federal financial systems requirements last week, signifying the end of an era in financial systems certification. Last December, the officials in charge of the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program, the organization responsible for certifying federal such systems, signed an agreement that ...
Agriculture employees win job competition through cost adjustments
February 17, 2005 Agriculture Department employees won a recent competition at a Beltsville, Md., facility even though their offer of $57.4 million was $2 million higher than the private sector bid, according to documents obtained by Government Executive under the Freedom of Information Act. The in-house team was able to win the competition ...
Officials warn that more financial controls come with a price
February 16, 2005 Federal executives and independent analysts warned lawmakers against requiring more financial reporting without additional funding at a House Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Efficiency and Financial Management hearing on Wednesday. They also said that the costs of internal control audits can sometimes outweigh their benefits. "In some areas, frankly, there's ...
Postal Service boosts internal controls
February 15, 2005 When the Postal Service decided to add functions to employees' Blackberrys, it turned to Peg Weir to make sure it was properly securing the wireless devices. As a result, when the new gadgets are rolled out next month, they will have internal controls in place, including password requirements and automatic ...
OMB may add 'strategic sourcing' to management agenda
February 14, 2005 The Office of Management and Budget is considering adding "strategic sourcing," a technique aimed at improving agencies' purchasing processes, to the President's Management Agenda. OMB's Office of Federal Procurement Policy is drafting guidance that asks agencies to identify three commodities that could be purchased using strategic sourcing, said OFPP chief ...
Industry group defends interagency contracting
February 11, 2005 A leading representative of government contractors expressed concern that interagency contracts are being underutilized and that agencies do not accurately measure acquisition costs. Stan Soloway, president of the Professional Services Council in Arlington, Va., told reporters that he's concerned that agencies, particularly within the Defense Department, are "increasingly pressuring their ...
Lawmakers seek earlier financial audits, fewer improper payments
February 10, 2005 Lawmakers and high-ranking federal executives said that agencies need to start preparing audits earlier and beef up efforts to stop improper payments during a hearing Wednesday of the House Government Reform Subcommittee on Government Efficiency and Financial Management. Rep. Todd Platts, R-Pa., said he was concerned by the large number ...
