Congress
Education Department staff cuts have hurt service rather than streamlined bureaucracy, say opponents on 1-year mark of RIFs
Lawmakers and education advocates at Wednesday’s press conference also emphasized that the department has hired back some employees, and Congress rejected many proposed funding reductions at Education.
Bipartisan bill would authorize the Secret Service to reimburse state and local police for assistance
The Fraternal Order of Police said in a statement that local law enforcement often work with the Secret Service but have to rely on their own resources.
Kristi Noem misled Congress about top aide’s role in DHS contracts
Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Noem denied that Corey Lewandowski had any role in approving contracts. But internal DHS records and interviews with current and former agency staffers contradict her testimony.
Homeland Security Department is stonewalling watchdog investigations, GOP senator alleges
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said that he would procedurally obstruct the legislative process until officials respond to his questions about department oversight.
Congress searches for shutdown off-ramp as DHS employees start missing pay
Republican leaders hope a new vote this week, and pressure from war in Iran, will help spur a breakthrough on DHS funding.
Bipartisan lawmakers worried about shaky progress on modernized government worker background check system
The IT system undergirding the overhauled background check program is nearly a decade behind schedule and billions over budget.
Trump uses State of the Union to call for end of DHS shutdown, declares ‘war on fraud’
The president also promised to expand the type of retirement savings account currently available to federal employees to the general public.
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The Trump administration wants to recruit more Peace Corps volunteers with fewer agency personnel, puzzling Democratic lawmakers
Twenty-one members of Congress urged the Peace Corps to pause workforce layoffs and restructuring until officials can show that the agency will still be able to fulfill required activities and protect volunteers who are serving internationally.
Trump promised to ‘reclaim power’ from civil servants in his 2025 speech to Congress. Here’s what has changed since
The administration has made strides on several of the federal workforce goals that the president laid out in his speech to Congress last year.
Democrats sound alarm on Interior reorg's impact on wildfires, land management
Unauthorized shifts to staffing could leave DOI agencies underresourced for critical duties, lawmakers say.
Lawmaker pitches blueprint for post-DOGE privacy overhaul
Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., wants to redo the government's main privacy law to ensure people’s information is “handled responsibly” when in government hands.
Unions oppose a Trump labor nominee over lack of experience, hostility toward bargaining
Conservative lawyer Charlton Allen has no prior experience in labor-management relations, but said he opposed collective bargaining rights for state workers in North Carolina as a political candidate in 2012.
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‘My dream job has turned into a nightmare’: Ex-feds and public service experts testify to Congress on how to rebuild government post-Trump
Some recommendations that several Democratic lawmakers and advocates brought up included overturning Schedule Policy/Career, restoring collective bargaining rights for the federal workforce and increasing congressional oversight.
DHS to shut down after lawmakers, White House fail to reach agreement on funding and reforms
Most non-ICE, non-CBP employees are now facing potentially delayed paychecks.
Dem lawmakers propose 4.1% raise for feds in 2027
The annual reintroduction of the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates Act aims to set a baseline for negotiations around federal employee compensation for the coming year.
DHS implies it will stop certain oversight investigations, senator alleges
A Homeland Security Department official stressed in a statement that the secretary has the authority to pause some inspector general inquiries.
House panel advances bill to update federal worker buyout caps
Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments offered to federal workers during agency downsizings, have been capped at $25,000 since the 1990s. Newly advanced legislation would tie maximum payouts to half of an employee’s annual salary.
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Democrats ask watchdog marked by past controversy to expedite reviews of ICE, CBP
Misconduct allegations against Homeland Security Department inspector general Joseph Cuffari were substantiated in 2024, but President Joe Biden did not remove him.
House Democrats call for Kristi Noem’s firing in rally outside ICE headquarters
Congressional Democrats continued to keep up the pressure on the Homeland Security secretary Tuesday in the wake of the shooting deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti at the hands of federal agents.
Congress guarantees furloughed feds’ back pay despite continued White House maneuvering
The Office of Personnel Management removed citations of the 2019 Federal Employee Fair Treatment Act from its shutdown guidance last month, as the Trump administration continues to insist that the law guaranteeing all federal employees back pay after a shutdown doesn’t.
Employees begin furloughs as lawmakers hope to end shutdown Tuesday
The unusual nature of the funding lapse has led to some confusion for impacted federal workers.
