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• Four Marine Corps commands either overspent or underspent at least $5 million on civilian personnel in 2019. A report from the Government Accountability Office says the Marine Corps needs to update its budget policies regarding civilian personnel, as well as reconcile differences between its internal data and the data the Defense Department comptroller uses to formulate the Marine Corps annual budget request. (Government Accountability Office)

• Postmaster General Megan Brennan will retire from the Postal Service early next year, after spending the past five years trying to put the organization on firmer financial footing. The agency’s board of governors will name a successor in the coming months. Board Chairman Robert Duncan said USPS expects a “seamless transition in leadership” following the holiday season. Brennan will stay on in her current role through January 2020. (Federal News Network)

• Federal contractor Leidos is parting ways with Angie Heise, the head of its civil group. The company announced its decision as part of its filings with the Security and Exchange Commission. Heise has been with Leidos since 2016, coming over to the company after spending 19 years with Lockheed Martin. Jim Moos will be the acting president of the civil group, which is a $3.7 billion, 9,500-person business providing advanced science, engineering, and technology solutions across commercial, federal, and international customers. Washington Technology first reported Leidos’ decision to part ways with Heise.

• Another leading voice in the federal technology contractor scene is leaving. Bobby Kilberg, president and CEO of the Northern Virginia Technology Council, said she’ll retire after more than 20 years leading the group. She’ll depart this coming June 30. Under her leadership, the NVTC has grown to more than 1,000 companies with 350,000 employees. Kilberg’s long career dates to the Nixon administration, where she served on the president’s domestic policy council. She also held advisory positions in both Bush administrations. (PrWeb)

• The Senate voted to confirm a new secretary of the Air Force. Barbara Barrett will be the third woman in a row to lead the Air Force. She replaces Heather Wilson, who stepped down in May to become the president of the University of Texas at El Paso. Barrett was previously the U.S. ambassador to Finland. Before that, she was the Federal Aviation Administration’s deputy administrator. (Federal News Network)

• The Army said it wants to collect a lot of data on its soldiers as it implements its new human resources strategy. The data will help the Army pair soldiers with units and the career paths that fit them best. The service will try out the pairing system during the coming permanent change of station season. Army Human Resources Command said so far about 6,000 of the 14,000 soldiers moving this season have already put their attributes in a web portal for the Army to use. (Federal News Network)

• A bill to instruct the Department of Veterans Affairs to review the accessibility of its websites for veterans with disabilities, cleared the House. It’s one of four veterans bills that passed this week. Members of Congress said they want to find out what sites aren’t in compliance with the Rehabilitation Act, and why. The VA Website Accessibility Act requires the department to collect the results and submit a report to Congress. (House Veterans Affairs Committee)

• The American Federation of Government Employees wants Congress to look into collective bargaining practices at the Social Security Administration. The AFGE Council of SSA field locals wrote to members of Congress and the Congressional Black Caucus. The union said its new contract represents a breakdown in culture at SSA. The union also said the new agreement will harm SSA’s diverse workforce, and the agency’s telework and transit subsidy program. The AFGE-SSA agreement was finalized days before the injunction on the president’s bargaining and official time executive orders lifted.

• Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) has died at the age of 68, he passed away early Thursday morning. His office said he was suffering from complications concerning long-standing health challenges. Cummings has been out of office for a period of time due to a medical procedure. Doctors anticipated he would return to work this week, but he never did. Cummings was first elected to his seat in 1996 and had recently become a key figure in government oversight, as chair of the House Oversight and Reform committee. (Federal News Network)

• Rep. Will Hurd (R-TX) seeks to roll out a National Artificial Intelligence Strategy before leaving the House. In order to keep the U.S. at the forefront of AI research Hurd said he’s working on the plan with Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), and will release it next May. The strategy will look at ways to remove regulations that hinder AI research and innovation. (Federal News Network)

• DoD’s supply chain maturity model may be moving to the civilian sector. The Information and Communications Technology Supply Chain Risk Management Task Force at DHS will receive a briefing from the Defense Department next week on its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification or CMMC. Bob Kolasky, the deputy director of the National Risk Management Agency, told House Homeland Security Committee lawmakers that the task force wants to see if DoD’s model could be applied to the civilian sector. Kolasky said the task force is interested in learning more about possible incentives for companies to add more rigor to their supply chain processes. (House Homeland Security Committee)

• A federal appeals court will rehear a Trump Hotel lawsuit that a three-judge panel threw out this summer. The full court of 15 judges from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals will rehear an emoluments lawsuit that the district attorneys for Maryland and the District of Columbia first filed in 2017. The hearing is scheduled for Dec. 12. (Federal News Network)

• EPA’s inspector general says it will be evaluate the consolidation of some of the agencies labs. The plan involves six labs located in Georgia, California, Oregon, and Michigan. The OIG says it wants to determine if the consolidation efforts are within cost and on schedule. The EPA’s plan has drawn ire from some unions and members of Congress. (Environmental Protection Agency Office of Inspector General)

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