Federal Drive with Tom Temin

Perhaps this is the big moment for the African American Federal Executive Association. The group has been advocating on behalf of black federal civil servants for nearly 20 years. For what progress it has seen and the challenges yet ahead, we turn to AAFEA president Dr. Reginald Wells. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Army is feeling the effects of COVID-19 on recruiting. Still, brass think they'll slide in under the wire for this year's enlistment goals. Meanwhile, the National Guard is preparing for hurricane season, which will put more stress on an already busy force. Federal News Network's Scott Maucione joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin for an update on a very busy week in the Defense Department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The National Defense Authorization Act for 2021 is starting to gain weight as measures and amendments get added. One of them from Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst would require recipients of Defense Department grants to publicly disclose how they spend the money. Justin Goodman is interested in spending on animal experiments. He is vice president for advocacy and public policy at the White Coat Waste Project, and he joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin for more discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Department of Veterans Affairs was on track to start up its new electronic health records system in Spokane, Washington, next month. The pandemic response may have delayed that. But the crucial work of system configuration continues. After taking a look at VA configuration decision-making, the Government Accountability Office had a recommendation. The GAO's director of health care issues, Debra Draper, joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin for more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A $5 billion overhaul of one of the Navy's aircraft carriers is going better than anyone expected. That's thanks to the young assistant program manager who's leading the project. Now he's a finalist in this year's Service to America Medals program. Mark Andrew Braza joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The National Nuclear Security Administration, which has had success with in-person job hiring fairs, will go virtual. It will hold an online fair Wednesday for some one hundred positions across the country. For details, the Federal the NNSA's associate administrator for management, Frank Lowery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The idea behind the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program, or FedRAMP, is simple. A cloud services provider gets certified for its security. Then each agency wanting buy that service can avoid having to do its own certifying. Nearly a decade in, several voices are calling for FedRAMP reform. Among them, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Here with more, ITIF's research analyst Michael McLaughlin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since April, the Veterans Affairs and Defense Departments have been fielding what they call bi-directional health records sharing with outside health care providers. This against the backdrop of both departments developing compatible electronic health records using the same vendor, Cerner. For an update, the Federal Drive with Tom Temin spoke to Cerner's vice president of government services, Julie Stoner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Defense Department has a new weapon right out of special operations. It's not hardware or software, but meatware. A new chief data officer who will work right in the secretary's office. For this and other developments in DOD, Federal News Network's Scott Maucione and Jared Serbu joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration bowed to pressure late last week, and said they would be more transparent about who received money under the Paycheck Protection Program. Some experts say the fact Treasury and SBA backed down is a win for oversight and accountability under the $2 trillion stimulus program. But it's only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to recipient reporting. In his weekly feature the Reporter's Notebook, executive editor Jason Miller writes about is growing concern in the federal oversight community and at the state and local level that the administration is not following the spirit or intent of Congress when it comes to recipient reporting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Both the House and Senate are in session this week. Imagine that. They'll be dealing with a lot of topical issues like D.C. statehood and police reform. But amendments and political concerns are likely to hold up budgetary talks for next year. Joining the Federal Drive with the latest, Bloomberg Government editorial director Loren Duggan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the government on an endless skirmish with nations around the globe, the captains of industry are a little anxious. Now one group has issued five recommendations for improving policy making, trade and national security. Joining the Federal Drive with the whys and wherefores, the CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council, Jason Oxman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Does systemic racism exist within the senior executive ranks of the federal government. A statement from the Senior Executives Association points out, the non-SES portion of the federal workforce is 18% black, but the SES is less than 11% black. Now the association has pledged to do something. Joining me with more, SEA vice chair Margaret Williams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With billions of dollars in CARES Act funding yet to be spent, it’s way too early to tell how effectively the Defense Department is spending its share of the disaster funding. But according to the Pentagon’s inspector general, DoD and its auditors have more than enough experience to know the potential pitfalls of contracting during an emergency. In a new special report, OIG tries to outline what it considers best practices for contracting under time pressure. For those lessons learned, Federal News Network’s Jared Serbu spoke with the assistant inspector general for audit acquisition, contracting, and sustainment, Theresa Hull. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Postal Service has good and bad news. The bad news is how the pandemic has worsened its already-difficult financial situation. The good news, USPS is finally getting a full complement of leadership. The Senate recently confirmed Donald Lee Moak and Bill Zollars to the Postal Service’s Board of Governors. They’ll restore the quorum the board lost earlier this month when Deputy Postmaster General Ron Stroman stepped down. They’ll join Louis DeJoy, who recently took over last week as postmaster general. For more on the challenges they’ll all face, Federal News Network’s Jory Heckman spoke with the manager of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service, Art Sackler. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices