Pay & Benefits

Open season and tax savings

Monday is the last day to enroll in or make changes to your benefits for 2025. What are you doing this weekend?

Management

Trump names financial tech CEO to lead Social Security

The appointment would mark Frank Bisignano's first foray into government following a career at banks and financial technology companies.

Management

Trump signals new direction for IRS as he announces atypical plan to replace its leadership

The agency is mid-transformation thanks to an unprecedented cash infusion, but those efforts are now in doubt.

Management

GSA begins process to reduce government’s footprint by 1.5 million square feet

The agency began the process to offload eight federal facilities across as many states as part of the effort to “right-size” the federal government’s physical footprint following telework’s expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tech

House passes agency software licensing bill

Saving on software licensing appears to also be on the radar of the new DOGE caucus.

Management

New data shows why it's taking the Senate longer to confirm presidential appointees

President-elect Trump is already pressuring senators to let him bypass, under certain conditions, the Senate’s oftentimes lengthy confirmation process for appointees.

Management

Trump’s agenda will face hurdles in Congress, despite the Republican ‘trifecta’ of winning the House, Senate and White House

Six straight presidents have begun their terms with party control of the White House and Congress, but that hasn't always made it an easy path for governing.

Pay & Benefits

Last-minute advice for the 2025 open season

Things you need to consider before the annual window when federal employees can enroll in or make changes to their health benefits closes on Dec. 9.

Management

Trump opts for conventional DOJ screenings of nominees and transition team members

The president-elect delayed the process but now says it is a key step for deploying his team into federal agencies.

Oversight

Despite critical report, Biden hasn’t taken disciplinary action against DHS watchdog

It’s been about two months since an oversight committee substantiated allegations that DHS inspector general Joseph Cuffari abused his authority, with no word of potential White House action.

Pay & Benefits

Wildland firefighters face up to $20,000 pay cut if Congress doesn’t act − that’s taking a toll on a workforce already under stress

COMMENTARY | The fate of three-year-old pay raises meant to retain federal wildland firefighters again hangs in the balance while Congress hammers out another budget deal.

Management

House Republicans set the stage for expanding private care for veterans

President-elect Trump could once again seek to shift veterans away from VA for health care and the top Republican on the issue just laid out a blueprint for doing so.

Management

New IRS funding boosted tax enforcement and improved taxpayer services during the Biden administration

The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act allocated $80 billion in new funding for the IRS over 10 years. Congress later reduced that sum to $60 billion.

Workforce

White House, agencies warn of hiring freezes without ‘anomalies’ to upcoming spending bill

Agencies, already slashing workforce costs due to a constrained budget environment, are now reckoning with yet another short-term funding measure.

Pay & Benefits

Nearly every TSP fund rebounded in November

Only one of the portfolios in the federal government’s 401(k)-style retirement savings program lost value last month.

Tech

Lawmakers want to enhance HHS cyber engagement with health care orgs

The bipartisan proposal, introduced by Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., came out of the efforts of a working group focused on protecting medical institutions from digital attacks.

Tech

Could states’ cyber get trickier under a Trump administration?

Some Republicans have proposed eliminating CISA altogether, which could complicate information sharing efforts. More pressing, though, is the ending of federal cyber grants.

Tech

GSA plans new federal employee travel system with $930M IBM contract

The General Services Administration expects 124 civilian agencies to transition to the new system by June 2027.

Management

As Trump’s teams get set to deploy to agencies, concerns remain over his transition approach

The president-elect is still sidestepping many of the procedures typically required for presidential transitions, but Biden's White House says its hands are tied.

Exclusive Management

O'Malley: SSA’s 2024 progress refutes government doubters

Under the commissioner’s tenure, Social Security has seen marked improvements in its customer service metrics despite continually mounting workloads and dwindling funding.