DHS, HHS, Interior and USDA all are on board to try out the Total Workplace initiative that focuses on open spaces, hotelling and mobile employees. GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini said a new approach to office space will save money and improve how agencies meet their missions.
A roundtable sponsored by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee explored how public-private partnerships could work to get rid of federal property more quickly.
Top officials at the Treasury Department and the General Services Administration say budget cuts being considered by House lawmakers - and that have since adopted by the House Appropriations Committee - would erode their agencies' missions. In sharply divided vote mostly along partisan lines Wednesday, the committee approved the fiscal 2014 Financial Services and General Government appropriations bill.
A group of Democrats and Republicans, called the No Labels Caucus, plans to introduce nine bills this week focused on government effectiveness and efficiency. The strategic sourcing legislation would require agencies to save at least $10 billion a year. Senators say agencies need the right incentives to buy smarter.
The top spots at a few key federal agencies are now officially filled following Senate confirmation votes this week. The Senate voted unanimously Thursday to approve Dan Tangherlini to be the administrator of the General Services Administration and Howard Shelanski to serve as the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs in the Office of Management and Budget. Senators also OK'd Brian Deese to serve as OMB deputy director for budget.
In his Inside the Reporter's Notebook feature, Executive Editor Jason Miller shares news and buzz in the acquisition and IT communities that you may have missed this week.
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee members support Dan Tangherlini to be the permanent administrator of the General Services Administration. Lawmakers, however, wanted more answers about the troubled SAM program and the recent IG report on management interference of contract negotiations.
The review comes in the wake of the agency's recent inspector general report that revealed management interference on schedule contract negotiations. Acting Administrator Dan Tangherlini said the review will ensure the agency's contracting work is "performed with transparency and honesty."
Anne Rung will take over for Kathleen Turco and continue to be the agency's chief acquisition officer.
Today's guests on the Federal News Countdown include Jason Miller, Federal News Radio's executive editor, and Francis Rose, host of In Depth on Federal News Radio.
President Barack Obama will nominate Dan Tangherlini, the acting administrator of the General Services Administration, to officially fill that position. Tangherlini stepped into that post amid the April 2012 conference spending scandal at the agency.
Mid-career employees are a scarcity in government. While agencies are awash with employees at the early career stage and those with 20-plus years of federal service, there aren't enough in the middle stages, and that has federal managers worried. Agencies like EPA and HUD are taking matters into their own hands. Both are launching new efforts aimed at keeping mid-career feds from leaving government for the private sector.
Tom Sharpe, the commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration, is focusing on 10 areas to make the organization more responsive and efficient. Sharpe also plans to meet with vendors and employees to improve their satisfaction with FAS.
For the third year in a row, Congress is unlikely to give GSA enough money to repair and maintain federal buildings. Acting GSA Administrator Dan Tangherlini told House lawmakers Tuesday that the government isn't spending the 2-to-4 percent industry average to keep buildings operating well.
In a memo to employees, the acting administrator signals he's in for the long term by outlining six areas to focus on in 2013 and beyond.