Beth Farrell and Jim Schweiter from McKenna Long and Aldridge LLP will discuss the impact of sequestration. August 14, 2012(Encore presentation September 4, 2012)
Per diem rates for work-related federal travel in 2013 are frozen at 2012 levels, according to the General Services Administration. GSA sets the allowances for lodging, meals and other incidental expenses for federal employees who must travel for work. The standard per diem rate is $123 ($77 lodging, $46 meals and incidental expenses).
The Federal Aviation Administration is slated to lose $1 billion from its budget if Congress does not act to prevent sequestration, according to a study released by the Aerospace Industries Association. But the cuts would ripple throughout the nation's economy. About 100,000 jobs throughout the economy would be lost.
Sens. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) sent a letter to the Defense Secretary Panetta and Secretary of State Clinton asking them to consider further actions against contractor Pratt & Whitney Canada. P&WC pleaded guilty in June to illegally exporting military software to China.
The Project on Government Oversight evaluates whether defense contractors would be hit hard by sequestration. Plus, what are best practices for creating PDFs that are accessible by people with disabilities?
Vietnam Veterans of America alleges the Veterans Affairs Department's service-disabled veteran-owned business set aside program is keeping legitimately qualified companies from competing for VA contracts. The group advocates loosening a rule that requires service-disabled veterans maintain unconditional control of all business decisions.
The General Services Administration's new System for Award Management (SAM) is not running smoothly one week after it launched. GSA told IBM to fix the system or face possible penalties.
The Project on Government Oversight reviewed the size of five of the largest defense contractors and found three of the five were reducing their workforces even as the Defense Department's procurement budget ballooned between 2006 and 2011.
The goal is for federal websites to accept third- party ID management credentials. The Federal Cloud Credential Exchange (FCCX) Tiger Team wants to know more about existing commercial products and services that can help.
Army says 130 companies have expressed interest in building renewable facilities on military installations so far. Winners will be picked by the end of the year.
Kevin Youel Page, deputy commissioner for the Office of Integrated Technology Services, will talk about the agency's goals and initiatives. August 7, 2012
Rep. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio) believes a VA contracting program that requires service-disabled vets control 100 percent of their company's decision-making to qualify is too onerous. And he wants to ease the requirements.
Too often Congress is left "in the dark" when it comes to inspector general investigations of agency misconduct, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee wrote in a letter to 73 inspectors general. Issa said he wanted to "establish an understanding between Congress and the IG community" for more rapid reporting of agency misdeeds uncovered by their offices. In his letter, Issa asked the inspectors for more information about their reporting practices to Congress and whether any serious problems were ever not shared with lawmakers.
A memo by a government watchdog group finds the General Services Administration's ethics program received high marks in a November 2010 study from the Office of Government Ethics. The report was issued shortly after GSA threw the lavish Las Vegas conference that has led to the firings of top officials and the resignation of Administrator Martha Johnson and a slew of congressional hearings.
The rule, aimed at preventing fraud in the VA service-disabled veteran-owned small business program, requires that veterans control 100 percent of company decisions, even if they maintain just partial ownership. VA is taking suggestions for changing its rules.