Oversight

GOP-Led Committee Advances Nomination of Special Pandemic Recovery IG

Meanwhile, Democrats unleash a slew of proposals related to strengthening IGs and protecting their independence.  

Pay & Benefits

House Democrats Urge Leadership to Begin Paid Parental Leave for Feds Early

A group of 12 lawmakers said the new benefit for federal workers, currently slated for implementation in October, should apply retroactively to December.

Management

Good Government Groups Are Skeptical of Republican FEC Nominee

A Senate committee voted along party lines to advance the nomination of Trey Trainor to the agency that enforces campaign finance laws.

Defense

Trump's Intelligence-Chief Nominee Vows to 'Speak Truth to Power'

GOP lawmakers are seeking to speed up Rep. John Ratcliffe’s nomination, but his careful answers did not appear to satisfy skeptics.

Management

Legislation Would Designate a Civilian Official to Oversee Acquisition of Medical Supplies, Bolster Transparency

Process of getting equipment to front-line workers during the coronavirus pandemic has been “absolute chaos” so far, bill sponsor says. 

Defense

Pentagon's 'Willingness to Kiss the President's Ass' Worries Top Lawmaker

"I am worried about a culture developing," says House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., after the latest delay in Navy captain’s fate.

Oversight

Did He Talk About Her? VA Secretary Changes His Story Amid Allegations He Sought Dirt on House Staffer.

Robert Wilkie is under investigation after a complaint that he sought information to discredit a House staffer who said she was sexually assaulted in a VA hospital. Wilkie denied discussing her with Rep. Dan Crenshaw. But an email indicates he did.

Oversight

House Approves Creation of a Select Panel to Oversee Pandemic-Related Spending and Response 

Critics have said the committee will be duplicative, but one transparency expert said that "overlapping oversight jurisdictions can be a good thing if managed correctly."

Oversight

GovExec Daily: Removing Barriers to Innovation in COVID-19 Legislation

Stan Soloway joined the podcast to explain how the pandemic is an opportunity for legislation modernizing some aspects of government.

Workforce

Senate Democrats Propose Creating Hundreds of Thousands of New National Service Jobs

Proposals would expand the public health workforces across federal agencies to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.

Oversight

Congress Is Investigating Whether a Ventilator Company Is Gouging the U.S. — and Why the Government Is Letting It Happen

A congressional subcommittee is questioning a federal decision to pay quadruple the price for the commercial version of a ventilator Royal Philips N.V. had developed with taxpayer funds.

Oversight

GovExec Daily: Overseeing Agencies' Pandemic Response

Katherine McIntire Peters and Courtney Bublé join the podcast to discuss how IGs, agencies and Congress can account for the money in the CARES Act will be

Management

Democratic Senators Demand Answers on Trump’s Secretive Border Expulsions

After ProPublica’s report, Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee ask the Department of Homeland Security to explain why it thinks emergency powers granted to the CDC allow it to bypass existing asylum laws.

Oversight

How OSHA Has Failed to Protect America’s Workers From COVID-19

Efforts to create a federal rule to protect workers from infectious diseases were put on ice in President Donald Trump’s first year in office.

Management

Industry Groups Welcome Stimulus Provisions for Federal Contractors

Agencies may reimburse contractors for paid or sick leave if they can’t telework.

Oversight

‘I'll Be the Oversight,’ Trump Says as His Political Appointees Protect Wall Street, Real Estate

Banks, real estate investors and large corporations all got help even before President Donald Trump signed the COVID-19 stimulus package, as bank regulators quietly handed billions to Wall Street.

Oversight

Reports of the Death of Congressional Oversight Are Greatly Exaggerated

Congress wanted an aide to President Trump to testify; Trump ordered him not to. Congress went to court over it, and the court told both sides to leave the courts out of it and negotiate a solution.