FederalDaily - January 21, 2008

DHS Puts Personnel System on Hold

In a federal court filing, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) admitted that it has put on hold plans to further implement its proposed new personnel system, the Human Capital Operations Plan (HCOP). Parts of the plan have been ruled illegal in court, and in a Jan. 16 status report, DHS attorneys pointed out that the FY 2008 omnibus appropriations bill provided zero funding for the DHS personnel plan. The funding bill essentially bars the department from implementing key elements of the system, formerly known as MaxHR. DHS attorneys told the court that DHS and the Office of Personnel Management had put things on hold. “As of this time, the agencies have made no decision as to whether to revise or abandon these regulations,” the filing said. The status report was filed in connection with a lawsuit brought by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), which has conducted an ongoing campaign against the new system. NTEU President Colleen Kelley said that since funding for HCOP has been eliminated this year, DHS should take the next step and walk away from the system entirely. It is more important, Kelley said, for DHS to address morale problems among its work force. To see more, go to: www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1204.

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ATF Adds Staff at Border to Stem Illegal Firearms Traffic

In an attempt to disrupt the flow of illegal firearms into Mexico, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) said it will add additional staff members—including 35 special agents and 15 industry operations investigators—along the southwest border. ATF said it also will assign three additional ATF intelligence research specialists and one investigative analyst to the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) in Texas, and hire an intelligence research specialist for each ATF field division on the U.S.-Mexico border to focus on firearms trafficking. The moves are part of an anti-trafficking effort named Project Gunrunner. “ATF is deploying its resources strategically on the Southwest Border to deny firearms, the ‘tools of the trade’ to criminal organizations in Mexico and along the border,” said ATF acting Director Michael Sullivan. To see more, go to: www.atf.gov/press/2008press/011608proj_gunrunner.pdf.

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Groups Launch Effort to Recruit 14,000 New Feds

The Partnership for Public Service (PPS) and IBM on Jan. 17 launched a new effort to recruit private sector workers and retirees to fill an anticipated 14,000 mission-critical federal jobs that will become vacant over the next two years at the Treasury Department. The demonstration project, FedExperience Transitions to Government, will focus on attracting current and recently retired IBM employees to the federal work force, the groups said in a statement. PPS and IBM said an estimated 7,950 openings for IRS agents and tax examiners will need to be filled, as well as a large number of procurement, information technology and accounting positions. The groups said they intend to expand the effort to other agencies in the future and to encourage other corporate leaders to join. PPS has also released a new report, A Golden Opportunity: Recruiting Baby Boomers into Government, which offers suggestions to reduce the barriers baby boomers may encounter when seeking federal job opportunities. To see more, go to: www.ourpublicservice.org/OPS/pressroom/releases/release_080117_fedexperience.shtml.

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