DoE has implemented changes to improve its energy sustainability efforts in support of greenhouse gas reduction goals.
The agencies are making $30 million available for companies to investigate the possibilities for creating military biofuels. The projects could help achieve the President's energy goals, military energy security and rural economic improvement.
The BRAC Commission of 2005 had estimated one- time costs would be $21 billion. The actual cost was $35.1 billion. In contrast, DoD spent $25 billion for the four previous BRAC rounds combined, GAO said.
Employees in the Pentagon will be able to access their postal mail via a web-based interface and decide how to handle each envelope.
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee approved six bills that would affect the day-to-day workings of the federal government.
The administration has set steep goals in slashing the number of excess federal properties and the costs associated with operating them. But the main resource for tracking federal properties is plagued by unsound data collection efforts, inconsistent standards and inaccuracies, according to a new Government Accountability Office review.
Lawmakers at a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee held at the Georgetown Heating Plant, blasted the General Services Administration for its handling of excess federal properties.
Federal agencies released FY 2011 sustainability scorecards indicating overall progress.
The four acquisition decisions the service will make in the coming months are the first fruits of a task force the Army created to pursue large-scale solar, geothermal, wind, biomass and waste-to-energy facilities on its bases.
Agency aims for better metrics to guide future facility closings, consolidations. The FAA has about two weeks to submit a report to Congress with recommendations to close facilities.
The creation of sustainable installations will be largely dependent on future base realignment and closures or BRAC, said Dr. Dorothy Robyn, the department's deputy undersecretary for installations and environment.
In a broad move to wring more savings from real estate costs, the IRS announced it will close 43 small offices over the next two years and reduce space at many other larger facilities.IRS also plans to consolidate multiple offices "within the same commuting area" and will increase the use of desk-sharing and telework to save space at other offices.
In a letter to Acting Administrator Dan Tangherlini, a bipartisan group of senators called for an evaluation of the structure of GSA's Public Buildings Service, tying it to the wasteful spending of the Las Vegas scandal.
The Federal Drive talks to Susan Grundmann, the chairwoman of the Merit Systems Protection Board, about changes to federal employment cases. Plus, interviews with top officials from the Broadcasting Board of Governors and GSA's Public Buildings Service.
Under the one-year contract, Big Blue will develop a system to collect data for the Public Building Service to analyze to find areas to become more energy efficient.