Federal Drive with Tom Temin
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He might be one of the most enduring federal inspectors general having served Justice Departments under the Obama, Trump, Biden and second Trump administrations. He's also been a regular guest here on the Federal Drive. Joining me for my final interview with him, Michael Horowitz. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The State Department has launched a comprehensive reorganization. Secretary ofState Marco Rubio says the changes will focus the department on the Trump administration's foreign policy. Well, now an unsigned draft executive order would shake up life for Foreign Service, workforce, people. Federal News Network's Jory Heckman has the latest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Temporary Aid for Needy Families, or TANF, is a $16.5 billion a year government grant program managed by the Department of Health and Human Services. GAO recently reported that HHS needs to do a better job managing the program. Federal News Network’s Terry Gerton dug into the details with GAO’s Director of Financial Management and Assurance, Jim Dalkin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Some 50,000 federal employees are on track to see their civil service protections removed. That's right, the Trump administration is pushing forward with converting employees who shape federal policy into at will employment status. New proposed regulations from the Office of Personnel Management bring the Trump administration's effort a step closer to reality, Federal News Network's Drew Friedman has more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Department of Government Efficiency says it's cancelled $33 billion in grants. And more are likely to come. Just what privileges does the government have in revoking grants, and do grantees have any recourse? Some answers from Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin How the Justice Department inspector general stays ahead of the storm The risks created by 57 material weaknesses in a government audit Grant cancellations are happening across the government, what can grantees do Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Education Department has canceled more than $3 billion in contracts or threatens to. Contractor services company TechnoMile finds that one in five contractors have their entire Education business at risk. Details now from TechnoMile's senior vice president Kevin Brancato. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin After decades of critiquing this agency, now he's helping run it Contractors hit hardest by contract cancellations at the Education Department Industry has something to say about that rewrite of the buying rules Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The General Services Administration is reviewing a second round of submissions from some of the top vendors, the ones who provide consulting services to the government. GSA is looking to them to find ways to trim contracts and save money. 10 vendors, which include some of the big names like Accenture, Deloitte and SAIC, had until Friday to submit fresh suggestions. GSA called the first data call unimpressive and, to quote, insufficient to the point of being insulting. Federal News Network's executive editor Jason Miller joins me with more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
What's it like to spend literally decades trying to understand, decode and interpret a federal agency and then joining it at the executive level. We're about to find out. Larry Allen spent years as a federal sales and marketing consultant after a stint as president of the Coalition for Government Procurement. He was also a regular guest here on the Federal Drive. Last month he joined the General Services Administration as associate administrator for the Office of Governmentwide Policy. Larry Allen joins me now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
A federally funded cyber security program used by organizations throughout the world nearly shut down. Last week, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency finally inked a last minute contract extension to keep the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures program up and running. Well now the cyber security community itself is debating whether reforms are needed to that CVE system. Federal News Network's Justin Doubleday joins me with what's going on here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The now infamous rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, all 2,000 pages of it, the government has a lot of work to do. But the result will have the most effect on contractors. For whether they'll have any say in the rewrite and what they would say, we turn to the executive vice president for policy at the Professional Services Council, Stephanie Kostro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
So fed up with the Trump administration, you want a lawyer, well now you might get one for free. Some unions and self styled good government groups have put together a network of attorneys who will give free legal support for people fired or otherwise impacted by current actions. Federal News networks Drew Friedman joins me with the details and this project. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The House of Representatives consists of more than its 435 members. It also has a workforce numbering just under ten thousand. Staff do everything from helping constituents with flags and Social Security questions to drafting legislation and helping members understand the issues. For what's going on with this highly specialized federal workforce, we turn to its chief human capitol officer, John Salamone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Here's one federal staff that's not getting cut Industry wonders whether the Pentagon will ever reform its budgeting system The to-do list for Congress gets longer over recess Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Defense Department's planning, programming, budgeting and execution system it looks pretty much like it has for decades. This, more than a year has after a Congressionally-chartered commission came out with a long list of ways to reform it. This year, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at least paid lip service to the idea of PPBE reform. So what's going on? We turn to the CEO of the Society of Defense Financial Management, Rich Brady. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Trump administration, as you know, has made a return to the office a top priority for federal employees. Well now, in a parallel effort to cut federal real estate by 50% the General Services Administration is setting a higher minimum office occupancy standard underutilized buildings would get the ax, Federal News Network's Jory Heckman has the latest. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Members of Congress are back in their home districts, but the list of things they’ll have to tackle when they come back keeps getting longer. A budget reconciliation bill is top priority, but now they also have to think about how presidential executive orders, DOGE-directed closures, and tariffs are affecting their constituents at home. Federal News Network’s Terry Gerton got the details from Bloomberg Government Senior Reporter Jack Fitzpatrick. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Trump administration nominated, and Congress approved, at least one experienced hand to the Veterans Affairs Department. Paul Lawrence became deputy secretary last month. During the first Trump administration, he ran the Veterans Benefits Administration. Now he's got to find new health and benefits executives. For an update on this and other matters, Paul Lawrence joins me now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Is the goal of reducing the federal workforce by 10% wrong? Or just the way the Trump administration is going about it? And what about the five-bullet email? Some perspective now from retired federal manager Abe Grungold of A-G Financial Services. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Pentagon's hiring freeze has at least one unintended, or maybe intended consequence, one that could affect readiness of the armed services. For one thing, it has reversed years of progress the Air Force made in expanding Child Care Access. Federal News Network's Anastasia Obis has more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Trump administration has mounted an attempt at the biggest overhaul of the Federal acquisition process since the 1990s. Two executive orders from President Donald Trump this week kicked off a rewrite and slimmed down of the Federal Acquisition Regulations the far it will renew the mandate to buy commercial products and services wherever possible. And for more on what they're up to Federal News Network's executive editor Jason Miller, got an exclusive interview with the Office of Management and Budget's Senior Advisor leading the FAR overhaul, Kevin Rhodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin An experienced hand returns to the executive levels at Veterans Affairs A federal retiree looks in amazement at what's going on Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin Preventing EFT payment fraud in Medicare and Medicaid What contractors need to do now to prepare for terminations for convenience TSP tanking? Job in danger? Take a deep breath Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Pathways program came from a simple need to replace the government's old internship programs, but it quickly turned into an opportunity for agencies to completely rethink how they hire early career employees. Pathways has had its fair share of challenges over the years, but with the latest changes from the Trump administration, the future of the federal workforce is murky, you might say. Here with the latest Federal News Network's Drew Friedman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Homeland Security Department has canceled a Federal Workforce Initiative for Neuro diversity. The move ends a years long effort to accommodate people with conditions like autism as part of federal recruiting and retention. The initiatives were aimed at filling gaps in crucial fields like cyber security. For the latest, Federal News Network's Justin Doubleday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
With Thrift Savings Plan accounts nose-diving and DOGE possibly coming for your job, no wonder federal employees are on edge. Times like these demand your calmest and clearest thinking. Here to help, certified financial planner Thiago Glieger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Department of Health and Human Services IG recently recovered $27 million in fraudulent payments made through electronic funds transfers. There are steps that would improve payment security, but the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid may not have the bandwidth to help state agencies comply. Federal News Network’s Terry Gerton dug into the details with the regional Inspector General for Evaluation and Inspection for HHS, Brian Whitley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When the government terminates a contract for convenience, the contractor has rights and responsibilities. To find out how contractors can prepare in the current environment, Federal News Network’s Terry Gerton spoke with Contract Attorney with Rogers Joseph O’Donnell, Stephen Bacon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Institute of Museum and Library Services has been around for nearly 30 years. It only has about 75 employees and the Trump administration wants to cut that in half. The move isn't sitting well with libraries who receive federal dollars via the IMLS. For why it's suing to restore the agency, the American Library Association's policy chief Alan Inouye. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
