Route Fifty
For the First Time, a State Will Mandate Severance Pay During Mass Layoffs
Inspired by the closure of Toys ‘R’ Us amid bankruptcy, New Jersey passed a law to protect employees during large-scale cutbacks.
Pay & Benefits
Postal Service Exaggerated the Savings It Collected From Cutting Employee Compensation, Audit Finds
The agency hasn’t accounted for the costs associated with cutting pay and reducing benefits, GAO says.
Route Fifty
State Lawmakers Backtrack on a Tax Code Revamp
Utah officials say they plan to scrap a law they passed just last month after it attracted widespread public opposition, in part because of a tax hike on groceries.
Oversight
Watchdog Finds Serious Staffing and Leadership Problems at State Department
Officials still feel the ramifications of the Trump administration’s 16-month hiring freeze.
Route Fifty
Law Enforcement Will Have a Harder Time Seizing Property In This State
New Jersey approved two major changes to their civil asset forfeiture laws.
Defense
The Torturers Wanted to Stop, but the CIA Kept Going
An interrogator testified that even after prisoner Abu Zubaydah started cooperating, the waterboarding continued.
Nextgov
Robocalls Reached New Highs in 2019. Can We Expect Fewer in 2020?
Each person in Washington D.C. received an estimated 600 calls, or 1.6 per day.
Pay & Benefits
Your 2020 To-Do List
These resolutions could lead to a more financially secure retirement.
Nextgov
JEDI’s Legal Challengers Make Their Next Moves
Amazon Web Services asks a federal judge to stop work on the cloud contract and Oracle knocks back assertions that the procurement was fair because Microsoft won.
Oversight
House Committees Demand Documents on EEOC Official Time Proposal
Federal employee unions and Democratic lawmakers have criticized a proposed rule that would strip union employees from the right to official time when aiding a colleague to prepare a discrimination complaint.
Route Fifty
A Plan to Expand Workers Comp Benefits to First Responders with PTSD
The Wisconsin Senate this week approved a bill that would extend benefits available to full-time law enforcement officers and firefighters, but not apply to volunteers or EMTs.
Pay & Benefits
Senators Look to Identify Tax Delinquent Feds
IRS hasn't compiled such a list in years, but previously used one to prioritize debt collection.
Tech
Who’s Afraid of the IRS? Not Facebook.
The social media behemoth is about to face off with the tax agency in a rare trial to capture billions that the IRS thinks Facebook owes. But onerous budget cuts have hamstrung the agency’s ability to bring the case.
Management
The GREAT Act: Scaling the Tower of Babel
A bewildering array of forms and data elements across multiple agency reporting systems needlessly complicates grants management. That’s about to change.
Defense
As Toll Mounts, Trump Downplays Injuries Suffered in Iranian Attack
The president's dismissive statements about the brain trauma suffered by U.S. troops at Al Assad may reflect a considered attempt to de-escalate – or not.
Nextgov
How the Pentagon’s JAIC Picks Its Artificial Intelligence-Driven Projects
The organization is looking for developed technology it can deploy right now.
Management
Donald and Ivanka Trump Were Involved in Inauguration’s Inflated Payments to Family Business, New Suit Says
“Members of the Trump family were aware of and involved in the negotiation of this unconscionable contract,” the District of Columbia’s attorney general wrote in the suit.
Route Fifty
Fighting Wildfire With Fire: New Study Looks at Barriers to ‘Prescribed’ Burns
Researchers say that millions of acres of California forest is in need of preventative measures to help lower wildfire risks.
Nextgov
Security Clearance Backlog Hits Long-Awaited ‘Steady State’
The backlog of background investigations has leveled off at a sustainable 200,000, according to lawmakers.
Management