Federal Newscast

OPM asks agencies to review 2024 special salary rates

The Office of Personnel Management’s annual data call asks agencies to take a look at any jobs that might need a higher salary than General Schedule rates.

Michele Sandiford

September 23, 2024 11:42 am

< a min read

Agencies have another chance to review and request special salary rates for hard-to-fill positions. The Office of Personnel Management’s annual data call asks agencies to take a look at any jobs that might need a higher salary than General Schedule rates to help with recruitment and retention. Agencies will also have to consider any positions that currently have a special salary rate, but no longer need one. Agencies have one month to submit their needs to OPM, who will then review and decide which salary requests it will grant for 2025.
(2024 annual review of special rates - Office of Personnel Management)

Small businesses in socioeconomic programs are one step closer to seeing a significant increase in the amount of sole source contracts they are eligible to win. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), chairwoman of the small business committee, got her bill to increase sole source thresholds for the 8(a), women-owned small business and HUBZone programs added to the 2025 defense authorization bill. The provision would increase from $4 million to $8 million for non-manufacturing contracts. For manufacturing contracts, the provision would increase the sole source threshold from $7 million to $10 million. This was one of four small business-related provisions Sheehan got added to the Senate's version of the National Defense Authorization Act.
(Chairwoman Shaheen secures inclusion of key small business provisions in Senate NDAA package - Senate Small Business Committee)

A bill to make federal telework data more readily available is gaining momentum. If enacted, the Telework Transparency Act would require agencies to report how telework impacts customer experience, cybersecurity, recruitment and retention, and more. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee advanced the bipartisan legislation last week. The committee had initially postponed the bill’s advancement in May after several members called for even more telework reporting requirements. The bill ultimately moved to the full Senate for consideration in a vote of 12-2, with no amendments.
(Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee - Telework Transparency Act advances out of HSGAC in 12-2 vote)

It’s getting late in the current congressional session, but House lawmakers are still trying to advance some new IT and supply chain legislation. The House Oversight and Accountability Committee approved the Federal Acquisition Security Council Improvement Act last week. It would strengthen the FASC’s authorities and move it under the executive office of the president. The committee also approved the Federal Improvement in Technology Procurement Act which would allow agencies to make advance payments for cloud services. And the panel unanimously advanced the SHARE It Act. The bill would require agencies to share their custom developed software code with each other.
(House lawmakers advance bills on acquisition security, IT procurement - Federal News Networks)

The Government Services Administration makes hundreds of new awards under its OASIS Plus contract vehicle. The General Services Administration is adding 767 new contractors to its OASIS Plus professional services contract vehicle. GSA picked 309 vendors under the women-owned small business pool. It chose 345 firms for its service-disabled veteran-owned small business category and another 113 small businesses for its HUBZone pool. GSA said it will issue the notice to proceed at the end of the month for these three pools if there are no protests. In July, GSA made the first set of awards under OASIS Plus to almost 1,400 small businesses. Those awards, however, are currently on hold as GSA is facing protests from six unsuccessful bidders.
(GSA announces three OASIS+ socioeconomic set-aside award decisions - GSA Interact)

The Space Force is standing up a Space Acclimation Course for new civilian Guardians. Similar to the recently launched Officer Training Course, the Space Acclimation Course will provide new civilian personnel with a strong foundational knowledge. The Space Force plans to launch the first course within the next month. Meanwhile, efforts are underway to develop a tailored training pipeline for enlisted Guardians, aimed at deepening the technical expertise.
(Space Force to launch Space Acclamation Course - Air & Space Forces Association Conference)

The Defense Department has awarded fourteen Defense Community Infrastructure Program grants, totaling approximately $100 million. These grants, managed by the Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation, are designed to improve infrastructure that supports installation resilience and quality of life for service members and their families. This year's grants are part of the fiscal 2024 funding. They also leverage an additional $31.5 million in non-federal funding, creating a total investment of $131.1 million. The DCIP is a competitive program that allows states, territories and communities to enhance infrastructure linked to local military installations.
(DoD’s new grants to improve infrastructure for installation resilience - Defense Department)

Federal agencies have limited insight into whether the consultants they use are also working for China. That’s according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office. GAO found the Defense Department and other agencies are late in implementing new laws to address potential conflicts of interest in contracting. Lawmakers have raised concerns about the national security risks of consultants that work for both the U.S. and Chinese governments. Federal agencies spent more than half a trillion dollars on consulting services between 2019 and 2023.
(Federal Contracting: Timely actions needed to address risks posed by consultants working for China - Government Accountability Office)