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• Safety inspectors with the Federal Aviation Administration improperly cleared aircraft for takeoff. An agency whistleblower, and the Office of Special Counsel said inspectors failed to review critical safety information that would have kept some planes from flying. OSC also found a lack of oversight of the Civil Aviation Registry led to aircraft flying without valid registration. The Transportation Department issued recommendations to the FAA following the OSC report. (Office of Special Counsel)

• Four senators asked the Veterans Affairs inspector general to review VA’s implementation of the Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act. The senators said they’re concerned by stories from VA employees about the new law’s impact on performance management at the agency. They’re also frustrated by the lack of data they’ve received from VA. The department was supposed to provide more detail on the number and scope of disciplinary actions it’s made. Senate Veterans Affairs Ranking Member Jon Tester is among the four members asking for an IG review. (Federal News Radio)

• Two senators want to know why the Coast Guard wasted tens of millions of dollars on a contract to modernize its medical records. Senators Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) want to know who the Coast Guard will hold accountable for problems with the contract after the Government Accountability Office determined the Coast Guard wasted $67 million. (Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee)

• How will the Army’s biggest acquisition reorganization in 40 years affect small business? Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) wants to find out. Cardin asked the Government Accountability Office to look into any issues the Army Futures Command could cause small businesses. Cardin also wanted to know if the Army did any risk assessment before changing its acquisition system. (Federal News Radio)

• The Army says one employee has died following a fire last week at one of its munitions plants. In a statement this weekend, officials identified the man as 42-year-old Andrew Goad. The Dublin, Virginia resident worked as a group leader in the finishing area at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant when a fire broke out in a part of the facility that produces propellant for military munitions. Two other people were injured. The Army and its prime contractor, BAE systems, said the exact cause of the accident is still under investigation, but full production work at the facility is expected to resume today. (Federal News Radio)

• The Navy’s inspector general is investigating the branch’s Master Chief Petty Officer Steven Giordano. Navy Times reports sailors who have worked with him claimed he created a hostile work environment. The accusations include verbal abuse and a passive-aggressive leadership style. (Navy Times)

• GSA gave vendors some food for thought ahead of the next meeting on developing the e-commerce platform. The General Services Administration will host an industry day Thursday to continue to develop its strategy for an e-commerce portal. But before that event, GSA asks vendors and other stakeholders for feedback under two requests for information. The first RFI is for suppliers. In that, GSA asked a number of questions around three focus areas:  Product categories, terms and conditions, and program design. The second RFI is for platform providers. The questions are focused around five areas: Spending trends, data standards, user experience, cybersecurity, and terms and conditions. Responses to both RFIs are due July 21.

• The White House postal task force will issue its report to President Trump later this summer. The group is charged will review the Postal Service’s business model, wrapping up in August. Congress proposed several postal reform bills, but it has not passed legislation on the issue in over a decade. Congressman Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) re-introduced the most recent House postal bill on Friday. (Federal News Radio)

• The Department of Housing and Urban Development told representatives from its employee unions they can no longer use federal facilities or federal resources for union work. HUD asked the American Federation of Government Employees and the National Federation of Federal Employees to vacate federal space by July 15. AFGE called the request illegal and said it flies in the face of the recent executive order signed by President Donald Trump. (Federal News Radio)

• AFGE is the latest federal union to seek an injunction blocking the implementation of one of the president’s workforce executive orders. It filed a motion with federal district court. The union was the first to sue the Trump administration over the president’s executive order on official time. The National Treasury Employees Union and a coalition of 13 other unions also filed injunctions to temporarily block the executive orders from being implemented.  (American Federation of Government Employees)

• The Trump administration withholds funding for a small but controversial agency. An online database called the National Guidelines Clearinghouse (NGC) will go dark July 16. Its parent bureau at Health and Human Services, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has defunded it. The database contained detailed treatment guidelines for thousands of maladies. The medical news site Stat first reported the cancellation. Detractors said the database let the government track private doctors and promotes rigid procedures. (STAT News)

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