Federal Daily - September 15, 2009
Interagency Cooperation Lacking in Security Exercises, GAO Says
DoD needs to implement a more complete set of rules and protocols to promote interagency cooperation among the federal components that participate in the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) national security training exercises, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. Released Sept. 9, the report looked at the how well DoD was integrating its partners in National Exercise Program (NEP) events meant to test and strengthen homeland security. GAO found that while DoD understood that federal agencies and state and local governments must integrate disaster response planning and exercises to ensure an effective response, improvements are needed. Nineteen federal agencies and organizations and 17 states and the District of Columbia have participated in one or more of the seven large-scale exercises that NORTHCOM has conducted since September 2005, GAO said. However, NORTHCOM faces challenges in involving the states—as well as federal agencies—in the planning and assessment of its exercises, the report said. For example, the NEP Implementation Plan does not clearly state the extent to which federal agencies are required to follow the Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program plan, leaving agency officials at odds over requirements. A DoD Joint Staff official told auditors that NEP guidance does not require agencies to use the Homeland Security Exercise Evaluation Program; meanwhile Federal Emergency Management Agency officials told GAO that federal agencies in fact should use the program. “Although NORTHCOM has made some progress in developing a comprehensive exercise program,” said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, “this report demonstrates that NORTHCOM needs to do more to collect and share lessons learned from other federal, state, local, and tribal governments.” To see more, go to: http://homeland.house.gov/SiteDocuments/d09849.pdf or www.gao.gov/new.items/d09849.pdf.
:: Back to Top ::
House Set to Vote on USPS Financial Relief Bill
The House is scheduled to vote this week on legislation that would reverse a law that requires the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to “prefund” retiree healthcare benefits—a requirement that threatens to drive the USPS into insolvency. The House is set to vote on Sept. 15 on H.R. 22, which would provide USPS with short-term relief from severe financial difficulties. However, amendments have reduced the scope of the bill, said American Postal Workers Union (APWU) President William Burrus. Those changes shorten the period over which USPS would be allowed to pay for future retiree healthcare benefits from a postal retirement fund —rather than from its operating budget. The current prefunding mandate forces USPS to pay more than $5 billion each year for 10 years for future retirees, in addition to $2 billion per year for current postal retirees, Burrus said. “While the substitute bill provides less relief than the original version of H.R. 22, its enactment would help the USPS survive the most devastating economic downturn since the Great Depression,” Burrus said. APWU and the National Association of Letter Carriers are urging lawmakers to pass the bill. To see more, go to: www.apwu.org/news/webart/2009/09-108-hr22-090911.htm or www.nalc.org/depart/legpol/index.html#GOPHR22.
:: Back to Top ::
NFFE Applauds USDA Nomination
The National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) on Sept. 11 applauded the nomination of Harris Sherman to the position of under secretary for natural resources and environment at the Department of Agriculture. NFFE—which represents about 25,000 permanent and seasonal USDA employees—said it specifically will seek to work with Sherman to address morale problems affecting its members in the Forest Service. In a recent government-wide survey, the Forest Service ranked 206th out of 216 agencies, said union President William Dougan. “We are very concerned about the low morale in the Forest Service,” Dougan said. “We stand ready to work with Sherman to address this problem.” Sherman has served as executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, NFFE said. Sherman’s nomination was sent to the Senate on Sept. 10. To see more, go to: www.nffe.org/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/15572.
:: Back to Top ::
8 Reasons Why the Government Hiring Process Doesn’t Work
Federal Computer Week—What a scenario: The federal government, according to a recent report, needs to hire as many as 11,000 IT professions within the next couple years, yet according to many readers of Government Computer News, the government hiring process is bureaucratic to the point of being dysfunctional … To read this article, go to: http://fcw.com/articles/2009/09/11/fcw-insider-8-reasons-government-hiring-broken.aspx/
:: Back to Top ::
|
