News Briefs

THE DAILY FED

News Briefs

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The following news summaries are from OPM AM, the daily newsletter of the Office of Personnel Management. OPM AM is available on OPM Mainstreet, the agency's electronic bulletin board, at 202-606-4800.

THE DEFENSIVE OFFENSIVE--"The Defense Department hopes to set up a special three-level personnel system for its 790,000 civilians. The plan, which must get White House approval before going to Congress, would give Army, Navy, Air Force and other Defense agencies streamlined authority to hire, fire, pay and promote workers" (The Washington Post).

THE APPROPRIATIONS PICTURE--"Already well on the way toward completion of its 13 spending bills for next year, Congress returns this week from its month-long summer recess to finish the job--with a fair to good chance of getting most if not all of the bills signed into law by the start of the new fiscal year Oct. 1" (The Washington Post).

FOOD RECALL--"The Clinton administration proposed legislation giving the Agriculture Department and the FDA authority to order recalls of tainted food and fine violators as much as $100,000 a day" (The Wall Street Journal).

CONFERENCE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Access America Conferences

The National Performance Review (NPR), will launch a series of informational conferences aimed at providing government employees and private industry IT officials with techniques and strategies for implementing the goals of Access America, an NPR report outlining steps to increase access--via the Internet--to government services. The first conference will be held September 25 in Baltimore, Md. and then will travel to other cities across the country. Expert panels will discuss IT topics, including Internet/Intranet successes, the future of Distance Learning and collaboration, IT acquisition and procurement reform, and privacy and security.

DTIC Annual Conference

The Defense Technical Information Center is presenting its Annual Users Meeting and Training Conference on Nov. 3-6, 1997 at the DoubleTree Hotel, National Airport, Arlington, Va. The conference theme is Information in the New Millenium. Contact Ms. Julia Foscue at 703-767-8236 or by e-mail at jfoscue@dtic.mil.