Management
Study: Federal Workforce Is on the Verge of Catastrophe
Without a significant overhaul, agencies may fail to provide adequate services when they are needed most, researchers found.
Nextgov
VA’s Health Record Overhaul Could Get Even More Expensive, Officials Say
The agency’s acting deputy secretary called the project’s $16 billion price-tag “an educated guess.”
Oversight
Republican Lawmakers Challenge GSA Watchdog's Trump Hotel Probe
Document demand says IG offered “no evidence” of political interference with agency.
Pay & Benefits
Federal Agencies Can Fire Employees for Accidentally Using Marijuana, Federal Court Rules
Court sets new precedent in saying employee was rightfully fired, even if he didn't realize he was eating a pot brownie.
Management
Agencies Ramp Up Classified Plans to Protect 2020 Elections
Homeland Security and Justice deliver review of meddling during 2018.
Management
The GS System Fails in Today’s Labor Markets
Companies understand that you get what you pay for.
Tech
The Teams Who Test U.S. Cyber Defenses Aren’t Being Tough Enough: Pentagon Report
Overworked trainers and penetration testers can’t properly simulate the worst real-world threats, leaving operators “overconfident.”
Oversight
Play of the Day: Who Will Be The Designated Survivor Tuesday Night?
It can't be Wilbur Ross or Matt Whitaker.
Route Fifty
Camp Fire’s Dispersed Survivors Plot Their New Homes on a Map
STATE AND LOCAL ROUNDUP | Political turmoil continues in Virginia … Hawaii’s mainland prison inmates … and email scammers using Fla. mayor’s name.
Route Fifty
Where Millennials and Seniors Have Moved Since the Recession
Young adults are heading to knowledge-based metros, while Arizona and Florida remain retirement hubs, the Brookings Institution found in a new analysis.
Management
USDA Economists Seek to Unionize Amid Relocation Effort
Employees at the Economic Research Service describe the plan to move the agency outside of D.C. and under the Office of the Chief Economist as an "existential threat."
Defense
Senators Seek Pentagon Reassurance on Department’s Financial Audit
The bipartisan group is worried that the expanded duties of Defense CFO David Norquist could delay reports to Congress.
Management
Dozens of Shutdown-Impacted Workers Will Accompany Lawmakers to State of the Union
Members bring guests to highlight those who went without pay for 35 days.
Nextgov
The Navy Needs 2 Tons of Storage Devices Burned to Ash
Researchers at the Naval Surface Warfare Center have a lot of classified information stored on digital devices and issued a solicitation to literally watch it all burn.
Route Fifty
Survey Technique Shows Way to Better Understand Scope of Local Opioid Abuse
In one West Virginia county, 1,857 people are estimated to have injected drugs in the last six months.
Oversight
119 Agency Officials Noted for Visiting Trump Properties
Ethics group CREW researched president’s 1,400 "known conflicts of interest."
Management
Getting Close With Employees Can Backfire On Bosses
New research reveals potential problems with bosses and employees becoming too close and how to avoid them.
Defense
Trump Administration Downplays Fears of Post-Treaty Arms Race
"Nothing the U.S. is currently looking at is nuclear in character,” a senior administration official says, after announcing INF withdrawal.
Management
Trump’s End Run Around Senate Cabinet Confirmation
In a wide-ranging TV interview, the president explained why he prefers acting secretaries over permanent ones—an arrangement that flouts the U.S. Constitution.
Management