Postal Service ordered to sever ties with Staples

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

In today’s Top Federal Headlines, the National Labor Relations Board orders USPS to stop outsourcing certain mail duties to the office supplies chain Staples.

• The Postal Service will no longer be outsourcing some of its work to the office supplies chain Staples. The decision comes after the National Labor Relations Board adopted an administrative law judge’s ruling on the matter last year. The relationship must now be severed by March 2017. (American Postal Workers Union)

• Crowding at the Food and Drug Administration’s headquarters leads to poor security, a Government Accountability Office audit has found. GAO points out that FDA handles high-risk public health projects and materials. But the number of cars and people jammed into the White Oak, Maryland campus prevent the required degree of security. (Federal News Radio)

• The Air Force is creating a new digital service to work on software problems. The entity will be part of the Defense Department’s Digital Service, which found success around the Pentagon. The Air Force is currently making a list of programs the digital service will work on. No timeline yet on when the list will be finished. (Federal News Radio)

• The Air Force stands up a new office to protect its weapons systems from cyber attack. Officials say the Cyber Resiliency Office for Weapons Systems — or CROWS — was born out of the idea that the cyber protections that may work for traditional IT systems don’t necessarily apply to platforms like fighter jets. The organization, based at Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts, will conduct cyber risk assessments on existing and future systems based on current intelligence assessments and build cyber into the systems engineering phase of new acquisitions. Among other activities, they’ll also attempt to push the Air Force toward more modular systems that are adaptable and resilient against future cyber threats. (The Air Force)

• DHS has made a major decision in light of the report on Russian hacking. The Homeland Security Department has designated election systems as a critical infrastructure. The decision by Secretary Jeh Johnson means DHS will make cybersecurity services for these systems a priority on a more formal and on an enduring basis. Johnson said election systems infrastructure means storage facilities, polling places and centralized vote tabulations locations used to support the election process. DHS also will provide support for information and communications technology to include voter registration databases, voting machines, and other systems to manage the election process and report and display results. (Department of Homeland Security)

• We will have to wait longer for the Federal Aviation Administration to issue regulations on the commercial use of drones flying over people. International Business Times reports FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, speaking at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show, said they’re working on new rules, but the current state of safety science will only support minimal operations over people. (Yahoo News)

• The consulting firm McKinsey and Company gets swept up into Congress’s investigation of the Defense Department’s attempt to bury an internal study on administrative waste. House Oversight Committee members want to know what role McKinsey played in the study. It found the ways the Pentagon could save $125 billion, but was reportedly hidden by defense officials. (House Oversight and Government Reform Committee)

• Look for the Trump administration to start taking shape quickly. The Senate will begin nomination hearings this week. By all accounts, the Republican-controlled chamber will work quickly to confirm as many as nine high-level appointments. The first hearing, to consider Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) for attorney general, takes place Tuesday. Five more are scheduled for Wednesday. They’ll include hearings on Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State and Rep. Mike Pompeo as CIA director.

• The National Treasury Employees Union and Senior Executives Association both reveal they’re planning education campaigns this year. The goal is to help the new administration and Congress better understand what federal employees do. SEA said it wants to be more proactive in 2017 and offer constructive policy ideas right out of the gate. SEA President Bill Valdez civil service reform will likely be front and center in those conversations. (Federal News Radio)

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