A new one-stop shop for federal inspectors general reports

To listen to the Federal Newscast on your phone or mobile device, subscribe on PodcastOne or iTunes.

• There’s a new one-stop shop for inspectors general reports. The new website Oversight.gov has launched. It contains a growing library of public reports and investigations from federal inspectors general. The site offers visitors the ability to search reports based on geographic location, as well as report type, agency, and using keywords. (Oversight.gov)

• The Homeland Security Department will launch the federal continuous diagnostics and mitigation (CDM) dashboard later this month. Close to 20 agencies have launched their own versions of the dashboard so far. DHS will see threat feeds from each agency dashboard in near-real time. DHS Assistant Secretary of Cybersecurity and Communications Jeanette Manfra said it will help DHS determine how to best direct its resources to strengthen agency systems. (Federal News Radio)

• A modernization effort is coming to how you get paid. Over the next year, the Unified Shared Services Management Office will work with the Office of Management and Budget, the General Services Administration and the five current payroll providers on a new approach. The USSM will lead an effort to develop a blanket purchase agreement for modernized payroll, and time and attendance services. The solicitation is expected to be issued in 2018. OMB led the effort to consolidate payroll providers from 26 to five starting in 2004. Agencies currently run over 100 different time-and-attendance systems across government.

• Cyber training will be a standard in Marine Corps boot camps in the future. The service is creating a program to teach Marines cyber best practices throughout their military career. The decision comes as phishing and social engineering tactics continue to threaten the security of Defense Department networks. (Federal News Radio)

• A lawsuit claims the Defense Department suppressed information about an accident involving radiation. The claim, filed by attorneys with Vietnam Veterans of America, has to do with a midair-collision between two Air Force planes flying over Spain in 1966. According to the plaintiffs, one of them was carrying hydrogen bombs that scattered radioactive materials across the countryside, and the airmen sent to clean up the wreckage were exposed for months at a time. They claim many of those service members later developed severe illnesses, but were denied veterans benefits because DoD has refused to release medical records connected with the incident for the past 50 years. (Federal News Radio)

• One of the leading companies providing reverse auction services to agencies is getting swallowed up. Compusearch is buying FedBid. The terms of the acquisition were not made public. Compusearch provides a contract and grant support system called PRISM to more than 100 federal agencies. FedBid provides a reverse auction platform to more than 75 federal, state and local government agencies. (Compusearch)

• Many senior executives said they lack the tools they need to drive transformational change across their agencies, and government in general. A new survey from Deloitte and the Senior Executives Association found 61 percent of senior executives said they feel empowered to make a change, but 52 percent said they have the flexibility to shift their job responsibilities to respond to new ideas. (Federal News Radio)

• More leadership appointments by the Trump administration. The president has nominated David Ryder to lead the U.S. Mint. Ryder was director of currency for Honeywell Authentication Technologies. Also, Mitchell Zais has been picked as the next deputy secretary of the Education Department. Zais was recently South Carolina’s state superintendent of education. (White House)

• It used to be the email that gotcha. Now it’s the tweet. Or in U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s case, the retweet. She repeated a tweet from President Donald Trump endorsing a congressional candidate, using her personal Twitter account. But the Office of Special Counsel found the tweet violated the Hatch Act. Haley’s account identified her as the ambassador. It used her official portrait and White House pictures. Her handle was included on the official website. Haley deleted the tweet. (Federal News Radio)

Copyright © 2024 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.