It's the Friday of Sunshine Week, and a top house lawmaker is putting the spotlight on Freedom of Information Act staffing at agencies. Representative Gerry Connolly of Northern Virginia says the Trump administration threatens FOIA, but challenges with FOIA backlogs and staffing actually stretch back years. For the latest, Federal News Network's Ju…

Cities across the country have become dotted with unsightly homeless encampments. They're in parks, along beaches, under bridges. President Trump has ordered the camps in Washington D.C. swept away. What exactly is a good way for cities and the federal government to deal with the homeless...and the encampments. For one view, we turn to the founder …

Many groups have launched lawsuits against the Trump administration in recent weeks. Among them, the Electronic Privacy Information Center and others has sued over DOGE access to the Treasury Department payment apparatus. For why it brought suit, EPIC's senior counsel John Davisson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoic…

After years of pushing for reforms, federal wildland firefighters have just secured a permanent pay increase. Part of the continuing resolution Congress passed this week included legislation to create a new pay system for front line workers. But federal union leaders are still looking at a number of other challenges facing wild land firefighters he…

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Inside one of the lawsuits against Trump administration actions How cities and the federal government can deal with homeless encampments Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesDe către Federal News Network | Hubbard Radio

The deal for civil service used to be, lower potential lifetime earnings in exchange for job security and retirement benefits. Now a new job insecurity has emerged. Feds need to change their thinking and prepare for loss of income and annuity. Advice now from certified financial planner Art Stein of Arthur Stein Financial. Learn more about your ad …

Few systems make it to the battlefield without first having been prototypes. Yet too many prototypes don't make it to production. Procurement analysts at George Mason University's Baroni Center have completed a detailed look at the power of prototyping and how to get more out of it. For highlights, we turn to senior fellow Stephanie Halcrow. Learn …

Like it or not, fraud is part of life for government as much as for any other sector. For the government, fraud claims hundred of billions of dollars a year. TransUnion has completed a comprehensive study of the sources of fraud. The company's director of research and consulting, Greg Schlichter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoic…

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Military prototypes work great if you know how to use them We now know the source of the most fraud against federal programs How to deal financially with your emerging federal job in security Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

A little walk down cloud memory lane. The federal government's move to the cloud didn't start with the December 2010 Cloud First policy. You can trace the idea of third party application and data hosting back to the 1990s. Still as part of Federal News Network's 25th anniversary celebration, we chose the White House cloud first to cloud smart polic…

The Pentagon would get more than $100 billion in additional funding through budget reconciliation aimed at 2026 budget talks. But members don't really agree where the money should go, or even on the amount. For that matter, one member of the House Armed Services Committee says it should not be funneled into major defense programs. Federal News Netw…

When the White House froze the government's credit cards, it really gummed up the works. The long running purchase card program has saved untold millions of paperwork hours and saved the government billions of dollars. Here to inject some rational thinking about card usage, long-time federal procurement executive, and now a consultant, Shauna Weath…

The IRS is reinstating thousands of fired, probationary employees. Many returnees doubt they'll stay, though that's because the agency is looking at more workforce cuts at the end of the tax filing season. Federal News Network's Jory Heckman has the latest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices…

The Defense Department is planning to spend billions of dollars on satellites that communicate by laser. But officials at the Space Development Agency can't say for sure whether space laser communications works. Or at least all of its contractors haven't shown this capability. More now from the director of the contracting and national security acqu…

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Time to restore some rationality to government purchase card policy Before spending billions on this technology, the Defense Department should make sure it works The best thing about other-transaction-authority acquisitions may not be there after all Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.co…

The Trump administration has aimed its cross hairs at yet another group of federal executives, Chief Human Capital Officers. The Office of Personnel Management recommends that agencies designate their CHCOs as general rather than career reserved, and that would open up many human capital leadership positions to becoming political appointments. Here…

It's no secret the Defense Department and other agencies have been using other-transaction-authority acquisitions more than more. One reason is they help agencies get things done faster. And easier without the conditions of regular buys under the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Plus, OTA acquisitions come without the headaches of protests. Or do t…

Tens of thousands of federal employees who were fired during their probationary periods have their jobs back on paper anyway. In a court filing last night, the Trump administration detailed the process agencies have gone through to reinstate those fired workers in the aftermath of a judge's ruling that found the terminations were illegal. But the a…

Lawsuits targeting the Trump administration's personnel activities are piling up. Now a group of unions is suing the Transportation Security Administration over cancelation of collective bargaining rights. It came straight from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Federal News Network's Justin Doubleday has the latest. Learn more about your ad …

You may never have heard of the Open Government Federal Advisory Committee. Too late. Operating under the auspices of the General Services Administration, it's another casualty of the Trump administration. For one view of what the committee did and why this matters, we turn to the executive director of the American Governance Institute, Dan Schuman…

Administrative law judges who rule on immigration proceedings they work for the Justice Department. Justice, under attorney general Pam Bondi, has decided that rules protecting administrative law judges from removal are unconstitutional. This as immigration court backlogs stretch out for decades. Analysis now from University of Pennsylvania law pro…

Among its many struggles, the Bureau of Prisons has trouble retaining correctional officers. Recently, the Justice Department ended a long-running incentive pay plan cutting officers' and other employees' pay by up to 25%. The cuts are supposed to go into effect this month. For a reaction and update, we turn to the president of one Bureau of Prison…

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Bureau of Prison employees try to deal with agency-side pay cuts Is government accountability in shrinking mode? Is Justice going after its own immigration judges? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesDe către Federal News Network | Hubbard Radio

Somehow, by the magic of politics, Congress managed to pass a continuing resolution to get the government funded. So the lights will stay on until September 30th at least at the offices the Trump administration doesn’t close and sell off. Congress has a lot more to do, though. We get the rundown from Bloomberg deputy news director Loren Duggan. Lea…