Veterans Affairs is getting a new permanent watchdog
Veterans Affairs is getting a new permanent watchdog. The Senate confirmed senior VA advisor Cheryl Mason to serve as the next VA inspector general. President Trump fired the last VA inspector general, Michael Missal, in January along with 16 other agency IGs. Mason previously served as the first woman to chair the Board of Veterans Appeals.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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It’s National Whistleblower Day and OSC is recognizing some public servants
In honor of National Whistleblower Day, the Office of Special Counsel is recognizing two federal employees with outstanding public servant awards. The two whistleblowers who earned this year’s award come from the Mine Safety and Health Administration. The employees had reported over 50 active mines in the Pacific that hadn’t been inspected since 2016 due to a clerical error. From the whistleblowers’ actions, it became clear the agency had incorrectly classified the mines as abandoned and inaccurately reported complete inspections. OSC’s whistleblower awards are issued each year in celebration of the first whistleblower protection law, dating back to 1778. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is getting new leadership
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is getting new permanent leadership. The Senate confirmed President Donald Trump’s pick Susan Monarez to serve as CDC director. She’ll be the CDC’s first director without a medical degree in more than 70 years. CDC laid off about 2,400 employees in April. But the agency reinstated about a third of them. Nearly 600 employees took voluntary incentives to leave the agency and will be off its rolls by the end of the year.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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TSA seeks private sector solutions to enhance airport security and passenger experience
The Transportation Security Administration wants to use artificial intelligence and other private sector technologies to streamline airport screening. Under a recent request for information, TSA asked for feedback on turnkey solutions that could be used at airport checkpoints. The deadline to respond is August 1. The RFI was issued through TSA’s Screening Partnership Program, which allows airports to contract for private security screening services. TSA says it’s particularly interested in tech that can reduce manual labor and improve the passenger experience.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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TSP closes out June with just over $1 trillion in assets
The Thrift Savings Plan closed out the month of June with just over $1 trillion dollars in assets, across 7.2 million TSP participants. Officials on the TSP board say that high number shows a strong level of trust among participants in the TSP. Board officials are also reporting high levels of satisfaction among TSP participants. For the last 12 months, more than 93% of TSP users have consistently said they’re satisfied with the TSP's offerings. Satisfaction among callers to the TSP’s customer service phone line also remain high.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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