Federal Newscast

President Joe Biden is recognizing 236 federal employees across 30 agencies for their exceptional leadership and accomplishments. The Office of Personnel Management announced the winners of the 2024 Presidential Rank Awards on Thursday.

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Two government contractors agree to pay a total of $4.3 million to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act and forced the Army to overpay for IT hardware. The Justice Department says Dell Technologies and Iron Bow will each pay more than $2 million to resolve a Qui Tam lawsuit. DoJ says Dell and Iron Bow allegedly conspired to collude on solicitations under the Army's AMDC-3 contract. Justice says from 2020 to 2024 Dell operated a deal registration program, whereby it gave advantageous pricing to Iron Bow to sell certain Dell computer hardware products and then also submitted their own direct bids on the same solicitations that were more costly.

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At least one member of Congress wants to do away with the Pentagon's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program. Alabama Republican Gary Palmer has submitted a joint resolution of disapproval to overturn the CMMC rule.

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The White House-led initiative to overhaul the security clearance and personnel vetting process has entered a new phase. The Performance Accountability Council in its latest report on “Trusted Workforce 2.0 says agencies have updated all major policies related to personnel vetting. The PAC is now entering phase three of Trusted Workforce implementation. That includes expanding continuous vetting shifting to more shared services and speeding up the clearance process to get people to work faster. 

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OMB Director Shalanda Young says in the coming days the White House will send Congress a comprehensive disaster package to replenish funding for agencies ranging from FEMA to SBA to EPA to the Transportation Department.

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Congress already passed legislation in Veterans Affairs to fire employees accused of misconduct in 2017, but federal courts and the MSPB block the law from covering VA's workforce.

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The Food and Drug Administration is having trouble retaining employees who inspect drug manufacturers. The vacancy rate for these FDA investigators nearly doubled between November 2021 and June 2024. The agency tells the Government Accountability Office that travel … pay … and work-life balance are contributing factors to turnover. Investigators can spend up to 75% of their work hours on travel. The FDA paused many inspections of drug manufacturing facilities height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

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The new organization isn't an official department. It is charged with working from the outside of the government to offer the White House “advice and guidance."

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The agency's Payroll and Compensation Branch tells FEMA's inspector general that it will complete all premium pay reconciliations for 2021 by January 31. 

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Navy Admiral Alvin Holsey officially assumes duties as the new commander of U.S. Southern Command, making history as the first Black commander of SOUTHCOM since its inception more than six decades ago.

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