Senate
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Congress approved a bill Friday to eliminate expanded financial-disclosure reporting requirements for Senior Executive Service members, just days before the new requirements were to go into effect. Both the House and Senate approved the measure by unanimous consent. The expanded reporting requirements were set to go into effect Monday.
April 12, 2013 -
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) has written to Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry, saying the office should take steps to offload federal workers and contractors who don't show up for work, aren't performing official duties or "are simply not working at all." In the letter, Coburn, the ranking member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, said doing so could prevent the need to furlough critical employees under sequestration.
March 29, 2013 -
The cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service announced last month it would end Saturday delivery of first-class mail. But a new legal decision from the Government Accountability Office seemed to offer more questions than answers.
March 21, 2013 -
The House voted today to approve a measure to fund federal agencies through the remainder of fiscal 2013. The bill averts a government shutdown but extends the freeze on federal employees' pay through the end of 2013. The bill now heads to President Barack Obama for his signature.
March 21, 2013 -
When it comes to the federal workforce, the competing House and Senate budget plans differ greatly in tone and style. But when it comes to making the federal government run more efficiently and finding cost-savings in federal operations, the two plans are more alike than you might think.
March 14, 2013 -
Senate Democrats and Republicans released a 2013 government funding bill Monday that includes language to extend the federal pay freeze through the end of the calendar year, while providing additional funding for domestic priorities like health research and highway projects.
March 12, 2013 -
Congress missed the deadline to avert sequestration last week. And now a deadline to prevent a government shutdown at the end of the month is barreling toward lawmakers. But members of both chambers and from both sides of the aisle say they're confident they can work out a deal to keep the government running.The likely sticking point is how the the automatic budget cuts, known as sequestration, will continue to play out. House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R- Okla.) discuss the continuing resolution and sequestration on In Depth with Francis Rose.
March 07, 2013 -
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is concerned new regulations may make whistleblowers even more reluctant to report tax fraud to the IRS. OMB Controller Danny Werfel says $85 billion in cuts under sequestration would hurt every state. Maj. Gen. Brett Williams says the U.S. Cyber Command is trying to figure how to normalize operations alongside air, land and sea capabilities. Lynn Singleton, director of environmental services at Lockheed Martin, talks about helping agencies move their email to the cloud. Dr. Milton Corn explains why The National Library of Medicine is monitoring social media.
February 25, 2013 -
Obama administration officials are painting a bleak picture of how federal agencies would fare under sequestration, the automatic budget cuts slated to go into effect in two weeks. The Senate Appropriations Committee heard testimony from several Obama administration officials about the consequences of the cuts, which are set to take effect March 1. However, Danny Werfel, controller of the Office of Management and Budget, emphasized to the committee that employee furloughs would not be immediate.
February 14, 2013 -
The U.S. Postal Service's worsening financial situation led Postmaster General Pat Donahoe to announce last week the agency would end Saturday mail delivery beginning in August. But lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee were divided over Donahoe's announcement. The postmaster general told the committee during a hearing Wednesday the decision was necessary to save $2 billion a year and to begin shoring up the service's funding shortfalls.
February 13, 2013 -
Republicans on the House and Senate Armed Services Committees have proposed an alternative to the automatic budget cuts set to go into effect next month that includes reducing the size of the federal workforce by 10 percent through attrition.
February 06, 2013 -
By voice vote, the Senate passed the bipartisan measure that would give the department the authority to use surplus funds that are no longer needed in Iraq, where the United States has scaled back operations. The bill now goes to the House.
February 05, 2013 -
Thanks to congressional redistricting, many members of the House of Representatives have jobs for life if they choose to keep running for reelection. Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wonders: Is it maybe time for term limits for everybody?
February 01, 2013 -
This is the Federal Drive show blog. Here you can listen to the interviews, find more information about the guests on the show each day and links to additional resources. Today’s guests: Melinda Wharton acting…
January 30, 2013 -
House and Senate lawmakers have called on President Barack Obama to fill inspector general vacancies at six large agencies, including open spots at the Departments of Homeland Security and State.
January 25, 2013