Pay & Benefits
White House, Democrats Reach Deal to Provide Paid Family Leave to Feds
A tentative agreement on the fiscal 2020 National Defense Authorization Act would provide all federal employees with 12 weeks of paid family leave each year.
Oversight
Analysis: Courts Have Avoided Refereeing Between Congress and the President, but Trump May Force Them to Wade In
President Trump refuses to provide information to lawmakers in the impeachment inquiry. But courts have been reluctant to take such cases for fear of upsetting the government's balance of power.
Management
Senate Committee Considers Trump’s Deregulation Crusader for Top Regulatory Role
At the same time, one of the administration's key initiatives to cut red tape is being challenged in court.
Oversight
Viewpoint: The Obscure—but Critical—Rules the Trump Administration Has Sought to Corrupt
I was part of a team that carefully developed a rule-making process in compliance with both the Constitution and Congress’s laws. Can the same be said now?
Management
Watchdog: Proposed OPM-GSA Merger Continues to 'Evolve' Despite Lack of Legislation
Officials have continued to examine moving portions of OPM to GSA piecemeal, and still lack documentation for the legal authority and cost benefit analyses, the inspector general said.
Pay & Benefits
Feds Are Unlikely to Get Christmas Eve Off This Year
Presidents do not typically grant extra vacation time when Christmas falls on a Wednesday.
Management
OPM: Agencies Can Implement Workforce EOs at Some Agencies Without Bargaining
The Office of Personnel Management said agencies may unilaterally implement the provisions of three controversial executive orders, provided workers are operating under a contract that has been automatically renewed.
Management
Trump Administration Urges Supreme Court to Maintain Strict Burden in Age Discrimination Cases
The case, involving a VA pharmacist who claims the department discriminated against her based on age and gender, has implications for the entire federal workforce.
Defense
Viewpoint: How Trump Turned the Military Against Itself
The president’s repeated interference in a Navy SEAL’s case shows that he cares about only one kind of military discipline—obedience to Trump.
Oversight
Viewpoint: As the Rich Get Richer, the Ambassadors Get Worse
Gordon Sondland embodies an age-old problem—one that the flood of donor money into American politics is only exacerbating.
Oversight
Presidential Candidate Klobuchar Would Reform Election-Related Agencies
The Democratic senator and 2020 contender has been an election reform advocate in Congress and the few times the topic has come up during the primary debates.
Management
Senate Democrats Push for Union Protections in Spending Package
Language in a House-passed appropriations bill blocking implementation of union contracts imposed by a federal impasses panel remains subject to negotiation.
Oversight
Senator Calls on State Dept. to Investigate Appointees’ Use of Personal Devices for Work
Impeachment hearing revelations highlight a larger security problem, Democrat says.
Workforce
Analysis: Trump’s War on Expertise Is Only Intensifying
But his attacks on career government officials could backfire with an ever more educated electorate.
Oversight
Report: Trump Administration Has Made Significant Changes to LGBTQ Content on Federal Websites
Language, resources and content have been changed since January 2017.
Oversight
Viewpoint: Look Who’s Trying to Seize Private Property
The Trump administration wants to use eminent domain to build the border wall.
Management
Analysis: The Bureaucrats Who Defied the President
In the Watergate era, high-level aides prevented Nixon’s abuses of power.
Management
Top Democrats Call for Emergency Review of DHS Appointments
This is the latest in a series of legal quandaries surrounding the department’s line of succession.
Oversight
Trump’s Anger With IG Over Impeachment Role Highlights High Watchdog Vacancy Rate
There is “a long history of resistance” to inspectors general from the administrations in which they serve, says Paul Light.
Management