GovExec Daily

The professional competitive civil service is often under attack, with many criticizing the federal workforce as just paper pushers or members of a nefarious "Deep State." But, the import of the professional civil service is often underrated and all one needs to do is look at the era just before the 19th century Pendleton Act was passed to codify the competitive civil service.

Tom Shoop is editor at large and the former executive vice president and editor in chief at GovExec Media. He has a post on GovExec.com headlined "That Time Reformers Took on Cronyism, Nepotism and Alcoholism in the Federal Workforce. He joined the podcast to discuss his post and the professional civil service.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

We see the evidence of the climate crisis in many ways, from flooding in Pakistan to the droughts and wildfires in the American west. Congress and the Biden administration have promised to enact and administer policy to combat it, but the need for action is great.

As part of Government Executive's Climate Summit event recently, GovExec Daily host Ross Gianfortune spoke to Samantha Medlock, Senior Counsel with the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. In this episode, you'll hear their conversation about recent government action on climate change, how it will be administered and the future of climate policy.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

Recently, President Joe Biden announced the U.S. Department of Education will cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for Pell Grant recipients and up to $10,000 for non-Pell Grant recipients. The announcement was a culmination of a campaign promise, though the news caused the websites of loan providers and a federal agency to crash in response to an influx of web traffic.

Ben Kaufman is the Director of Research & Investigations at the Student Borrower Protection Center. Prior to joining SBPC, Ben worked as a Financial Analyst at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and in investment banking at JPMorgan. He joined the show to talk about the Biden student debt forgiveness plan.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control announced new guidelines regarding COVID-19 safety rules. According to the White House's Safer Federal Workforce Task Force, agencies can now pause asking or requiring current or potential federal employees to provide information about their vaccination status.

Stephanie Rapp-Tully is a partner and federal employment attorney with Tully Rinckey PLLC's Washington, D.C. office. She joined the podcast to talk about how the new CDC guidelines will affect the federal employee vaccine mandate.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

In September of last year, President Joe Biden put forward Executive Order 14042, which put in place a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for federal contractors. Last week, however, a court partially lifted the ban, prompting the administration to pivot its message to contractors.

Courtney Bublé is a reporter at GovExec. She joined the podcast to discuss the contractor vaccine mandate and the court decision.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to bring 100,000 new cases each week in the U.S. and the disease has taken the lives of more than one million Americans. Earlier this month, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that her agency must pivot much of its pandemic strategy and learn from the many mistakes it has made in the past few years.

Dr. Julie Swann is the department head and A. Doug Allison Distinguished Professor of the Fitts Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at NC State. She joined the podcast to discuss the potential CDC restructuring and how the agency can go forward.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

The recently-passed Inflation Reduction Act has provisions in it to hire tens of thousands of new IRS employees over the next decade. Supporters of the plan have called the surge necessary to restore the IRS after massive cuts over the last decade and to crack down on high-earning tax cheats and the Congressional Budget Office estimated it would raise more than $200 billion in tax revenue, or a net of $124 billion. Opponents have warned of burdensome tax audits for Americans as IRS staffs up.

Diana Furchtgott-Roth is an adjunct professor of Economics at George Washington University, the former chief of staff of President George W. Bush's Council of Economic Advisers and has held multiple positions at the Department of Labor. She's also the author of seven books. She joined the podcast to talk about IRS enforcement and the Inflation Reduction Act.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec

In January 2016, a group of far-right militia members invaded the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in eastern Oregon. The group occupied the site for nearly six weeks before law enforcement made arrests. The entire ordeal is the subject of a GovExec post headlined "That Time Armed Militants Occupied a Federal Building (Not the Capitol)."

Tom Shoop is editor at large and the former executive vice president and editor in chief at GovExec Media. He joined the podcast to discuss his post about the Malheur occupation.

***

Join GovExec live on Twitter this week! https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1BRJjngVAbBJw/peek

Voice of America broadcasts in dozens of languages to millions of people worldwide. As an arm of American diplomacy and as a journalistic enterprise, VOA has to thread a very complex and specific needle that most agencies – and news organizations – can sidestep. As journalists covering the American role in global politics, the war in Ukraine and other global instability, VOA staffers worldwide have a difficult and often dangerous job.

Recently, GovExec correspondent and frequent GovExec Daily guest Courtney Bublé interviewed Yolanda López, acting director of Voice of America. In this episode, you'll hear Courtney's interview with López on how she leads the agency in an increasingly complex time for global media.

***

Join GovExec live on Twitter this week! https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1BRJjngVAbBJw/peek

Death data in the United States are collected and maintained by state vital records offices, but the information is needed for federal agencies like the Social Security Administration to identify eligible individual survivor benefits and prevent improper payments to dead people. According to a recent report from the National Academy of Public Administration, agencies are still fighting over this data.

Natalie Alms is a staff writer at FCW covering federal technology policy, service delivery, customer experience and the government's tech workforce. She joined the podcast to discuss the report and her story headlined "Agencies Are Still Wrangling Over Death Data" about the report.

***

Follow GovExec on Twitter! https://twitter.com/govexec