Workforce
9/11 First Responder Brains Are 10 Years ‘Older’ Than Normal
First responders who were at the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001 are at risk of developing dementia, two new studies show.
Oversight
GovExec Daily: Election Security as November Approaches
The Alliance for Securing Democracy's David Levine spoke to the podcast about how to keep voters – and votes – safe at the polls.
Route Fifty
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown Says Many Federal Officers Will Leave Portland
STATE AND LOCAL NEWS ROUNDUP | A couple states report surprisingly good tax receipts in July … Tennessee governor OKs resumption of high school football … Florida marks 5,000 Burmese pythons removed from Everglades.
Route Fifty
States Warn Residents About Unsolicited Seed Packages Sent From China
People have received the mysterious shipments in at least 22 states. The seeds could pose threats to the environment and agriculture. Federal authorities are investigating.
Management
Expanded Telework Could Save Individual Feds $2.5K-$4K Annually
Lessons from the pandemic have big implications for federal offices and employees, lawmakers and experts say.
Workforce
USCIS Pleads for Money to Avoid Furloughs, Democrats Float Making the Funds Contingent on Policy Changes
"Don't send us home," employee implores lawmakers at hearing.
Pay & Benefits
Feds' Chances For a Bigger 2021 Pay Raise Wane, and a Renewed Push for Coronavirus Hazard Pay
A weekly roundup of pay and benefits news.
Nextgov
GAO: More Than Half of COVID-19 Government Contracts Not Competitively Awarded
While some of that spending went through existing IDIQs, some $7.7 billion in new contracts were awarded “using the unusual and compelling urgency exception.”
Nextgov
Facial Recognition Algorithms Struggle to Detect Faces Under Masks, NIST Study Finds
A new study from the National Institute of Standards and Technology found facial recognition algorithms developed pre-pandemic struggle to identify masked faces.
Workforce
Coronavirus Roundup: Senate Republican Says It Might be Time to Update Telework Policies; IG Flags Fraud Concerns with SBA Loans
There's a lot to keep track of. Here’s today’s list of news updates and stories you may have missed.
Management
After Months of Negotiations, Postal Service Reaches Agreement for $10B Loan From Treasury
Congress authorized the loan in March, and USPS has since said additional relief is necessary.
Defense
Raytheon CEO Projects Three-Year Coronavirus Downturn
It’s "a hell of a lot worse than what we originally projected," says the head of the new company formed by the United Technologies-Raytheon merger earlier this year.
Nextgov
How the Energy Department Is Powering NASA’s Soon-to-Launch Mars Rover
Undersecretary for Science Paul Dabbar offered a glimpse into the agency’s efforts beyond Earth.
Tech
GovExec Daily: Vaccine Progress, Oversight and Operation Warp Speed
Courtney Bublé joins the podcast to discuss the government involvement in the search for coronavirus treatment and vaccinations.
Route Fifty
In California, State Lawmakers Propose $100 Billion Stimulus Plan
The proposal calls for offsetting reduced federal unemployment benefits and a program to incentivize early tax payments.
Route Fifty
Food Stamp Use Could Skyrocket With Loss of Enhanced Unemployment Benefits
Even with the expanded benefits for out-of-work people, millions of families had to sign up for food stamps during the early months of the pandemic. Now even more people are expected to need the assistance.
Management
Lawmakers Look to Ease Promotion Process for Foreign Service Employees
Measure would particularly help disabled diplomats.
Management
Senate GOP’s Coronavirus Relief Package Would Fund Controversial Plan to Rebuild FBI Headquarters in D.C.
The Trump administration in 2017 scrapped a decade-long plan to reconstruct the facility in the Washington suburbs.
Route Fifty
A Government-University Partnership to Train Students as Contact Tracers
Students at Dominican University in San Rafael, California, can learn to be contact tracers and get on-the-job training in pandemic response with the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services.
Nextgov