Federal Drive with Tom Temin

The omnibus appropriations bill recently passed by Congress is so large, it took a week to stuff it into whatever antiquated electronic system the Congress operates. At 5,600 pages, do you think any given member even knows what it says? Well not all federal documents are so fat and bloated. In fact, many agencies place sharp limits on the page counts of contract bids. Federal Drive with Tom Temin had more on that from procurement attorney Joseph Petrillo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Efforts to increase the number of female, minority and disabled employees have taken place across the intelligence community. But over an eight year period, the Government Accountability Office found the results have been modest and lower than federal standards call for. For more, Federal Drive with Tom Temin turned to the GAO's director of Defense Capabilities and Management Issues Brian Mazanec. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A National Academies panel commissioned by the State Department shed new light on a disturbing and still mysterious episode. Employees in the Cuban embassy reported headaches, pressure, nausea, strange piercing noises, and cognitive problems seeming to emanate from a directed source. Commerce Department employees in China also had similar experiences. Some still haven't fully recovered from the 2016, 2017 and 2018 occurrences. For more on the panel's charter and what it found, Federal Drive with Tom Temin gave a wide ranging interview to the committee chair, of which you're about to hear an excerpt. Dr. David Relman is a professor at Stanford Medical School and chief of infectious diseases at the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs health system. He discussed some of what hampered the investigation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Although not the best known federal agency, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has had a busy period the last couple of years. It's reorganized, established a new division and pursued a record setting agenda. For more, we turn the CFTC chairman, Dr. Heath Tarbert. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's hard to tell, but it's likely a mad scramble going on among federal information security officers as the extent of the SolarWinds hacking becomes more visible. For some likely scenarios, we turned to the former National Security Agency chief security officer, now with Fidelis Cybersecurity, Chris Kubic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Postal Service is wrapping up a year that has stretched the agency to its limits. It handled a surge in packages and a record volume of mail-in ballots, all while dealing tens of thousands of employees having to quarantine. And all before Christmas. But new challenges lie ahead for in 2021. Federal News Network’s Jory Heckman joined the show with more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Missing the guard rails by inches, the nation's careening political apparatus has managed to fund the government for fiscal 2021. But 2021 approaches with a lot of risk. The government's cybersecurity situation is in the danger zone. Only nine months remain to carry out the year's program plans. For one view of how to proceed, we turned to the president and CEO of the Professional Services Council, David Berteau. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2020 began like any other year. It's ending like no other. Telework has been the big story of the year for many federal employees. Some started 2020 with little telework experience. Now most have been working remotely since March. This all comes as the White House has been especially busy this year putting out new executive orders and memos. Many had a direct impact on federal employees from their paychecks to their diversity and inclusion training programs. Federal News Network's Nicole Ogrysko joined the show to recap a whirlwind year for federal employees. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imagine having served honorably in the military, winning medals and the nation's gratitude but having no bank account. Yet that's the case for an estimated quarter million veterans. Now the Veterans Benefits Administration has partnered with several external groups to improve the banking services available to veterans. With more, the VBA's senior advisor for fiscal stewardship, Joseph Gurney. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Its sand is nearly out of the hourglass. Soon the 116th Congress will be history replaced by the 117th. Notwithstanding, but most of the 535 faces are returnees. There is a careful process that marks the congressional transition. With a review of the 116th and how it becomes the one 17th, Bloomberg Government editorial director Loren Duggan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When it comes to federal technology and procurement, a nearly hundred billion dollar item, 2020 will be remembered for many things. But maybe topping the list was the year telework became the norm across the government. The year that is almost over also proved urgency and emergency can drive agencies and vendors to get hardware and software in place in record time and within federal rules. Federal News Network executive editor Jason Miller joined the show with the top technology and procurement stories of 2020 and what to expect in 2021. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pandemic has caused office building vacancies to rise in many markets, in some cases to double-digit percentages. As the country's largest renter, the federal government will have some big decisions to make about real estate. Joining the show with an assessment, the managing directors for government investor services at Jones Lang LaSalle, Art Russell and Lucy Kitchin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress has at last finalized an omnibus spending package for the fiscal year that started back in October. The $1.4 trillion bill has some important provisions for federal employees and next year's paychecks. And it encompasses several spending and policy priorities for federal agencies. Federal News Network's Nicole Ogrysko joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin to explain what made the cut - and what didn't - in the 2021 bill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It didn't take long for agencies to feel the brunt of how serious lawmakers want them get on board with the Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions contract. The lack of EIS progress dropped two agencies a whole letter grade on the 11th Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act (FITARA) scorecard. Scores came out from the House Oversight and Reform Committee yesterday. Federal News Network Executive Editor Jason Miller - who loves this stuff - joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin for the latest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you get what you reward, then restoration of the Presidential Rank Awards should be high on the list of the incoming Biden administration's list of priorities for the workforce. For a few more ideas, Federal Drive with Tom Temin turned to American University Key Executive Leadership Program professor Bob Tobias. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices