Tech

Login.gov to add facial recognition tech

The General Services Administration is changing its digital identity service to allow users to authenticate themselves by matching against a previously submitted government ID.

Management

Senate lawmakers float plan to revamp agencies’ customer service

The Improving Government Services Act would require agencies to develop plans to implement private-sector customer experience best practices into how they interact with members of the public.

Workforce

The latest GOP speaker nominee has a history of targeting federal employees

Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, has orchestrated shutdowns and called for drastic reductions in federal agency rolls.

News

House stalled again after rejecting Jim Jordan as speaker a second time

Jordan plans to talk with the Republicans who voted against him and hopes to win those who flipped Wednesday back to his side.

Management

COVID relief payments triggered feds to demand money back from Social Security recipients

House and Senate members have called for action on problems at the Social Security Administration.

Tech

IRS announces 13 states where taxpayers could use its Direct File pilot

The agency has yet to commit to a long-term product for the in-house filing tool.

Pay & Benefits

Pay Agent: Locality pay increases, when implemented, need to be calculated specifically to job skills

But annual pay adjustments by profession is a long-running organizational idea that has been too difficult to actually implement, one expert says.

Defense

Budgetary limbo could cost the Navy Department $26B in missing or ‘misaligned’ funds

Comptroller lays out the price of a full-year continuing resolution if Congress can’t pass a 2024 budget.

Oversight

GAO: Army Corps’ cleanup of Manhattan Project-era sites suffers from management, cost uncertainties

Although the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ cost estimate of contaminated sites associated with the early decades of nuclear weapons manufacturing sat at $2.6 billion at the end of fiscal 2022, that number could easily grow substantially over time.

Workforce

Federal agency accused of tolerating employees who distributed Nazi propaganda and harassed colleagues

One worker greeted coworkers with a Nazi salute and praised Hitler, a lawsuit alleges, while supervisors declined to take action.

Management

OIG: Eligibility gaps are a major challenge for SBA next year

A report outlining ongoing management and performance challenges for the Small Business Administration includes critiques of set-aside contracts versus the amount of contracting dollars actually headed to small businesses. 

News

Ohio’s Jim Jordan fails in bid for U.S. House speaker, leaving chamber paralyzed again

Jordan was unable to clinch the votes needed to hold the gavel amid concerns about his agenda and frustrations with his history inside and outside of Congress.

Workforce

What are federal agencies doing to fill out the cyber workforce?

New numbers released Monday show that employers posted over 572,000 cybersecurity jobs in a 12-month period starting in September 2022.

News

Jim Jordan gains support as vote nears for U.S. House speaker, but outcome still in doubt

The Ohio congressman will need the backing of nearly all the chamber’s 221 GOP lawmakers in order to hold the highest office in Congress.

Workforce

Agencies have hired nearly 5,500 feds to implement Biden's bipartisan infrastructure law

The Biden administration has surpassed its infrastructure law hiring goals, and plan to bring on another 1,000 personnel next year.

Workforce

Meet the winners of this year’s ‘Oscars’ of public service

The recipients join the over 750 awardees of the Partnership for Public Services’ recognition program since it began in 2002.

Tech

OPM puts data at the center of human capital modernization

Contractors should focus on data standards as they develop solutions, a senior Office of Personnel Management official says.

Oversight

With so many billions in buying, procurement needs a better dashboard

COMMENTARY | Procurement executives need a holistic view of their organizations' performance, argues one observer.

Workforce

House Republicans want answers on agency spending on Biden’s federal climate corps

The lawmakers launched the probe in part to understand how the administration will recruit 20,000 individuals into government and other roles.

Workforce

Senate bill would codify remote work, increase telework reporting

The Telework Reform Act also would authorize noncompetitive hiring of military and law enforcement spouses into remote work positions.