Budget

• Sheila Weinberg: The federal deficit explained

  What is the real federal deficit and should you care? Sheila Weinberg from Truth in Accounting says a debate over spending has to at least start with agreement on the basic facts. She joins Federal Drive with Tom Temin to sheds some light on the subject.

  Federal Drive

  January 22, 2016
• Charles Tiefer: A few examples of DoD’s most wasteful spending

  Defense spending seems to have a life of its own. Neither the Secretary of Defense nor experienced members of the Armed Services Committees can stem the tide of wasteful spending. That's according to Charles Tiefer, professor at the University of Baltimore law school and former soliciter and deputy general counsel for the House of Representatives. He joins Federal Drive with Tom Temin with what he sees as some of the more egregious examples of DoD waste coming up in 2016.

  Federal Drive

  January 22, 2016
• USPS: Time has long passed for postal reform

  Postmaster General Megan Brennan told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Congress needs to pass legislative reforms to her agency, now.

  Congress

  January 21, 2016
• Attorney General lays out price tag, plan to support Obama’s gun violence reform

  Attorney General Loretta Lynch testified before the Senate appropriations subcommittee on the plan to expand the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, the hiring of 200 special agents and investigators for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, as well as the investment in the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network and National Firearms Act applications.

  Management

  January 21, 2016
• Green is Navy’s new color with fleet initiative

  The Navy launched its year-long green initiative that will use alternative fuels and procurement practices to make the service more fuel efficient.

  Defense

  January 20, 2016
• Watchdog sees huge uptick in VA whistleblower cases

  The Office of Special Counsel says it's been a "victim of its own success" in fiscal 2015, thanks to more VA whistleblowers coming forward.

  Management

  January 20, 2016
• Scott Maucione: DoD’s current acquisition plans will peak at $191B

  The Congressional Budget Office says the Defense Department is about to hit a bow wave of expenses toward the end of the future years defense plan just about by 2020. CBO says DoD’s current acquisition plans will increase by 11 percent from 2020 to 2023 reaching a peak of $191 billion. Federal News Radio's Scott Maucione joins Federal Drive with Tom Temin. with more about where that money is going and where other funds are going in DoD.

  Federal Drive

  January 20, 2016
• Pentagon civilian workforce cuts on-target, contracting on the rise

  Although the Defense Department is meeting its goals to cut spending by reducing its civilian workforce, the Pentagon is expected to increase its spending on contracting.

  Defense

  January 19, 2016
• Jared Serbu: Air Force faces 20 percent gap in facilities upkeep funding

  Even though Congress gave the Air Force every dollar it asked for in its 2016 budget for facility upkeep, the service estimates it will have 20 percent less funding than it needs. Leaders say it’s enough to patch and mend their existing facilities, but that approach will only work for so long. Federal News Radio’s Jared Serbu provides all the details for Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

  Federal Drive

  January 14, 2016
• House chair pushing comprehensive budget reform for 2017

  Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), chairman of the House Budget Committee, said he's working on reforms to the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. The goal is to draft legislation by 2017, which he hopes a new president would sign into law.

  Budget

  January 13, 2016
• Mac Thornberry wants DoD to start failing

  House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry singled out new acquisition reform goals and a possible Defense Department reorganization for the 2017 Defense authorization bill.

  Defense

  January 13, 2016
• Federal waste: DoD spends $1.1M to peek inside puppies’ heads

  Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Jan. 7 unveiled his fourth installment of his "America's Most Wasted" report, a tribute to former Sen. Tom Coburn's (R-Okla.) annual report on wasteful spending.

  Management

  January 13, 2016
• Cabinet secretaries fan out to highlight, promote Obama initiatives

  President Barack Obama’s final State of the Union speech offered few details on new programs or initiatives for federal managers and contractors. But the President did announce a new public-private sector effort to find a cure for cancer, led by Vice President Joe Biden.

  Management

  January 13, 2016
• Congress, OPM cyber breach and more

  Katie Maddocks, deputy director of Government Affairs at the Federal Managers Association, joins host Mike Causey to discuss the Wounded Warrior project, the OPM data breach, and more. January 13, 2016

  Your Turn

  January 12, 2016