Management

Controversial OPM Nominee Confirmed Mostly Along Party Lines

Senate approves Dale Cabaniss despite concerns regarding her past governmental experience and plans to merge the agency with the General Services Administration.

Management

House Democrats Urge Leadership to Stand Firm on Union Protections in Spending Bills

More than 200 lawmakers insisted that appropriators protect a House-passed provision blocking agencies from implementing union contracts mandated by the Federal Service Impasses Panel.

Management

Budget Talks Will Break Down if White House Bypasses Congress to Cut Foreign Aid, Pelosi Warns

The Democratic leader stresses that the State Department must be allowed to continue spending money while Congress considers any rescission request, per a GAO legal analysis.

Pay & Benefits

What Needs to Happen for Civilians to Get a 2020 Pay Raise

Trump is likely to announce by the end of August his intent to institute a pay freeze, and Congress would need to override him.

Management

Bipartisan Bill Would Restore Administrative Law Judges to Competitive Service

President Trump last year signed an executive order moving ALJs into the excepted service, claiming it was required to comply with a Supreme Court decision. But stakeholders argued it politicized the job.

Management

Republican Lawmaker Seeks to Outlaw Official Time for Union Representational Work

Bill would end the longstanding practice by which union officials can do representational work during duty hours, although chances of it becoming law are low.

Management

Senate Panel Advances Key Labor Authority Nominee

One week following Catherine Bird’s confirmation hearing, a key committee voted along party lines in favor of her nomination.

Oversight

Bill Advances That Would Deny Bonuses to Feds Found to Have Engaged in Misconduct

Employees would be barred from bonuses for five years following adverse findings in an investigation.  

Defense

Esper Confirmed As Defense Secretary, Despite Opposition from Some 2020 Dems

The 90-8 vote ends the longest period in history that the Defense Department has gone without a confirmed leader at the helm.

Tech

Did the U.S. Invent Lyme Disease in the 1960s? The House Aims to Find Out

A decades-old conspiracy theory says Cold War bioweapons research is sickening tens of thousands of Americans a year.

Management

Viewpoint: The Debt Ceiling And Why We Should Kill It

The U.S. hit the debt ceiling in March and is expected to run out of ways to get around the new $22 trillion limit by September. An economist explains why the ceiling is a dysfunctional relic.

Management

Unions Consider Next Steps Following Workforce Order Ruling

The injunction blocking three controversial executive orders by President Trump will remain in place for 45 days to allow unions to consider an appeal.

Management

Esper Assures Wary Senators He'll Keep Military Out of Politics

During his confirmation hearing, the SecDef nominee was asked about Trump, China, and Russia — and not Afghanistan, ISIS, or al-Qaeda.

Management

Labor Authority General Counsel Nominee Vows Impartiality, But Unions Cry Foul

Federal employee unions oppose the nomination of Catherine Bird to vet complaints before the FLRA, citing her work in collective bargaining negotiations on behalf of management.

Defense

Sen. Warren Spars with Defense Secretary Nominee Over His Lobbyist Work

The Democratic presidential candidate said that Mark Esper, who has declined to recuse himself from Raytheon-related decisions, should not lead the Pentagon.

Management

House Passes Defense Policy Bill with Provision to Block OPM-GSA Merger

The must-pass legislation also includes amendments granting paid family leave and protecting feds’ health insurance during shutdowns.

Management

House to Consider Blocking OPM Merger, Other Workforce Proposals Through Defense Policy Bill

Proposed amendments to the annual must-pass Defense authorization bill include measures to safeguard federal workers’ insurance during shutdowns, ban the box in federal hiring and protect whistleblowers.