Defense
Navy divers begin search and underwater survey in Maui
The Defense Department now has 572 people supporting relief efforts after devastating fires.
Defense
Meet the tiny State Department offices clearing billions of dollars’ worth of weapons for Ukraine
They’ve handled a 150-fold increase in work by doing in hours what used to take months.
Workforce
6 places where federal employees actually work in swamps
A tour of government-owned wetlands.
Management
Biden looks to ramp up federal involvement in extreme heat response
Amid record heat waves and calls for more federal action, FEMA will host an extreme heat summit next week.
Management
EEOC finalizes electronic filing options for feds
Although the agency that investigates complaints of workplace discrimination has offered the option to file documents and track cases online for years, its regulations now finally endorse the current system.
Defense
Despite major reform to military justice system, Navy still leaves public in dark
A new law enacts sweeping changes to make prosecutions for serious offenses like sexual assault or murder more fair. The Navy is still fighting a ProPublica lawsuit to make those court cases public.
Tech
The Agriculture Department is taking a ‘cautious’ approach to generative AI
The agency’s data “also needs to be in a condition… to support those kinds of tools,” according to USDA chief data officer and responsible AI officer, Chris Alvares.
Management
Slashing the federal workforce and eliminating agencies: Takeaways from the first Republican presidential debate
Eight Republican candidates for president shared their ideas for reforming, and shrinking, government.
Oversight
DEA has regularly hired applicants it flagged as lying on their polygraphs
The agency also faces allegations of nepotism in its lie detector testing and a watchdog is saying the issues require "immediate attention" from management.
Pay & Benefits
Lawmakers urge OPM to expand FEHBP infertility coverage for LGBTQ+ feds
A group of 30 congressional Democrats called out “outdated” gaps in how the federal government’s employer-sponsored health insurance program covers infertility treatments, particularly for employees in the LGBTQ+ community.
Management
The painful pandemic lessons Mandy Cohen carries to the CDC
Cohen has been criticized for North Carolina's failure to get COVID tests to the most vulnerable residents, during her leadership of the state's pandemic response.
Management
CISA director touts hiring progress
The agency’s culture has been key to its hiring successes, Jen Easterly says.
Pay & Benefits
Do you know what your TSP is for?
When you were first hired, your retirement benefit may have been described to you as a three-legged stool: pension, Social Security, and TSP savings. One financial planner advises feds not to shortchange the last leg.
Workforce
Despite hiring efforts, 92% of VA facilities report severe nursing shortages
While the department has made strides filling vacancies, VA's health care centers are struggling to find candidates in occupations across their workforces.
Pay & Benefits
OPM clarifies pay rules for teleworkers who must travel during work
Guidance aimed at stipulating when employees must be paid for their travel to traditional work sites comes ahead of an expected push by agencies to increase the amount of “meaningful in-person work” this fall.
Oversight
FEMA’s disaster relief fund is running low on cash. What happens now?
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief fund is facing at least a $4 billion deficit.
Defense
Women face misogyny, barriers to promotion in special operations forces, US Army study says
The “very small percentage” of respondents who espoused such views included officers and senior enlisted leaders.
Defense
Army launches the second phase of its ad campaign amid recruiting slump
New ads continue Army’s focus on the needs of Gen-Z.
Oversight