People

Group charges State with penalizing officers seeking mental heath treatment

A group of current and former State Department employees say the department's security clearance revocation process unfairly penalizes Foreign Service officers for seeking mental health treatment.

People

OPM reports progress on hiring reforms

Agencies are making progress in streamlining the federal hiring process as they field plans to eliminate unnecessary paperwork and cut the amount of time it takes to fill vacant positions.

Digital Government

Tax cheats take note: Federal jobs may require audits

Senator proposed legislation to make anyone with seriously delinquent tax debts ineligible for a federal job.

Digital Government

Henry heads to FBI cyber crime branch

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Ideas

Iran, State, an App and Fingerpointing

Technology designed to circumvent Internet censorship by Iranian officials has been found to be riddled with security loopholes, raising questions on how the State Department could have approved it for distribution in Iran.

Digital Government

Can technology erode a mountain of classified documents?

DARPA solicits bids for new technologies to help declassify the mountains of U.S. government classified data.

Digital Government

Progress is slow on harmonizing government cybersecurity policies

A task force created to bring security policies and practices for national security and non-national security systems into line with each other as produced an initial set of common standards, but much work remains before the full benefit of the process is realized, according to the GAO.

Acquisition

House passes bill to keep GSA skeds open to state, local agencies

The House backs programs that open schedules contracts to state and local governments in case of emergencies.

Digital Government

CBP wants system to detect ultralights smuggling drugs

Officials report an increase in the number of attempts to move narcotics into the United States using the small aircraft, which avoid radar detection by flying low.

Digital Government

European Union project to boost computing power

The European Union announced on Tuesday a new project this week aimed at giving European researchers more computing power to help tackle a broad range of complex issues from the environment to energy to health.

Digital Government

How a lawn mowing contract is changing Defense acquisition

One way the Pentagon will meet Secretary Gate's goal to cut $100 billion in spending will be to replicate the Naval Sea Systems Command's standard solicitations for services, which increase competition and save money.

Digital Government

Turning to Interns

<em>Government Executive</em> <a href=http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=46112&dcn=todaysnews>reports</a> the Army is looking to hire hundreds of entry-level and midcareer contracting specialists and insource more than 4,000 acquisition-related jobs during the next five years.

Ideas

RAT Board Proposes ID System

Digital Government

Health IT Group Urges Restraint

As the government considers which "quality measures" to include in the second round of meaningful use requirements for electronic health records, members of a federal health IT policy committee are urging restraint.