By Justin Doubleday, Federal News Network -

President Joe Biden has set new deadlines for defense and intelligence agencies to follow cybersecurity requirements included in an executive order last year, while further centralizing oversight of those agencies’ cybersecurity at the National Security Agency.

By Jory Heckman, Federal News Network -

The Department of Veterans Affairs is processing its backlog of disability claims faster than ever before, but is looking to accelerate this pace through an automation pilot it launched last month.

By Jared Serbu, Federal News Network -

The government has been running under a continuing resolution for three and a half months now, and at the moment, there aren’t any clear signs of a spending agreement that would head off a full-year CR. Pentagon leaders say that would be extremely bad news for the military. Rather than just keeping 2022 spending levels the same as last year, they say it would actually reduce DoD’s available funding by more than $20 billion this year.

By Eric Katz, Government Executive -

Agencies across the Biden administration are beginning to move to more severe forms of punishment for employees who fail to comply with the president’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, advancing a process that could result in thousands of civil servants losing their jobs.

By Eric Katz, Government Executive -

The Biden administration is warning Americans they could experience significant difficulties during the upcoming tax season, saying staffing and other resource shortages will impair full functioning at the Internal Revenue Service.

By Erich Wagner, Government Executive -

According to the federal government’s HR agency, roughly half of the federal government’s 2.1 million employees were engaging in telework six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, a development that saved the government $180 million.

By Amelia Brust, Federal News Network -

New fiscal year data shows 2020 had the highest rates of telework participation and eligibility in nearly a decade, due mostly to the COVID-19 pandemic. But the Office of Personnel Management is seeing other upward trends in the data beyond sheer telework activity.

By Erich Wagner, Government Executive -

The Office of Personnel Management is set to publish regulations implementing a 2021 law aimed at improving agency accountability for acts of discrimination and whistleblower retaliation against federal workers.

By Ralph R. Smith, FedSmith -

The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) has provided a more secure retirement for federal employees. As of the end of December 2021, there were 112,880 TSP investors who are now members of the TSP millionaires club.

By Erich Wagner, Government Executive -

The Office of Personnel Management is set to propose regulations that would rescind policies established during the Trump administration aimed at making it easier to fire federal workers.

By Jared Serbu, Federal News Network -

After having spent several years tinkering with the Defense Department’s acquisition rules, Congress is turning its attention to one of the other main factors that bogs down the DoD procurement system: The byzantine apparatus the Pentagon and lawmakers use to actually fund each military program.

There is no new guidance on reentry to workplaces, other than updates to reflect the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations.

Courtney Buble, Government Executive

As coronavirus cases rise dramatically nationwide with the Omicron variant, individual federal agencies still have the discretion to determine who does and doesn’t have to come into the office, the Biden administration said Tuesday.

President Biden on Wednesday finalized a 2.7% pay raise for civilian federal employees in 2022. That figure is the average boost employees will receive, but the exact amount will vary depending on where they live.

So how will you figure out your personal raise for next year? The Office of Personnel Management has released pay tables that will allow you to look up what you can expect to receive.

Staff Cuts and Budget Increases Are Both on Tap for 2019

By Eric Katz, Government Executive

The Trump administration has provided federal agencies with the latitude to request up to a 5 percent funding boost in fiscal 2019, saying the White House may accommodate a “limited number” of programmatic increases in its final blueprint.

Generally, Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said in a memorandum to department and agency heads, agencies should keep their 2019 spending requests in line with what the White House spelled out in the fiscal 2018 budget submission. They should also, however, “identify additional investments in effective programs that further support their mission and fill a clear federal role.”