This is the Federal Drive show blog. Here you can listen to our interviews, find more information about the guests on the show each day, as well as links to other stories and resources we discuss.

Brian Friel
Analyst
Bloomberg Government

        Learn how DLA, GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service and the State Department are modernizing their contract and acquisition processes to make procurement an all-around better experience for everyone involved.

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The federal government spends $132 billion a year on indefinite delivery indefinite quantity multiple-award contracts. That amount may grow as budget constraints continue to be an issue for agencies. Brian Friel, an analyst at Bloomberg Government, joined Tom and Emily to discuss the future of MACs. Friel is participating in a panel discussion today on the same topic.

Steve Goss
Chief Actuary, Social Security Administration
Certificate of Excellence in Accountability Reporting award winner

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How is government accounting like the Olympics? It’s not a competition, but success does take commitment, strategy and teamwork. It has its own medal ceremony too. The Association of Government Accountants handed out 20 Certificates of Excellence in Accountability Reporting to federal agencies yesterday. The Social Security Administration was one of those award winners. Steve Goss, chief actuary at SSA, spoke with Tom and Emily about how SSA has been able to win the award 15 years in a row.

        Read more: Federal Drive

Major General John Thompson
Program Executive Officer for Tankers, Tanker Directorate
Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base

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Earlier this month, Air Force Chief of Staff Mark Welsh told the Senate that the KC-46 refueling tanker is the Air Force’s number one modernization priority. The Air Force is planning to buy 179 of the new tankers from Boeing, but the first ones won’t arrive until 2017. Some tankers in the existing fleet are nearly 50-years-old. The KC-46 is one of three successive tankers planned to replace the existing fleet over the next several decades. Major General John Thompson from the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio spoke with Tom and Emily about the progress being made on the project.

From Our Reporters:

• Lawmakers say the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is moving too slowly to consolidate its offices. A House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee wants to know why NRC spent millions of dollars to renovate office space it may never use. Federal News Radio’s Jason Miller spoke with Tom and Emily about the committee’s frustration with NRC and the rest of government when it comes to real estate consolidation. Listen to the interview and read Jason’s article.
• The Defense Department is still a long way off from picking a successor to its aging electronic health records system. But the Pentagon says whatever it settles on, it’s committed to open data standards and proprietary solutions are off limits. Federal News Radio’s Jared Serbu says while DoD decided to go with a competitive bidding process, it’s leaving the door open to adopting a variant of the VistA system the Veterans Affairs Department uses. Read Jared’s story or listen to his report.
• The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s technology budget for fiscal 2013 is more than $30 million less than it was in 2012. But, Russ Pittman, FDIC’s chief information officer, is happy about that. In fact, he requested the decrease. Pittman spoke with Executive Editor Jason Miller about how FDIC is still improving its systems with a smaller IT budget. Read Jason’s article or listen to his interview.

More News:

• Katherine Archuleta chosen as next OPM director
• Tangherlini to be nominated as permanent head of GSA
• Data breach puts DHS workers at risk of identity theft
• VA needs to improve program management and provide more timely information to students
• Report on the Commission of the Theft of American Intellectual Property
• Budget furloughs won’t impact military sex assault prevention unit
• IRS official pleads 5th, says ‘broke no laws’
• Werfel takes helm at IRS
• Congress urges USPS to delay closures
• KC-46A training, operational bases selected
• Twitter launches optional two-factor authentication login

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