Management
Why the federal government needs to stop obsessing over process
COMMENTARY | Government performance systems often reward documentation, activity and procedural defensibility more than real-world impact. Federal managers must ask three critical questions to eliminate counterproductive rules.
Pay & Benefits
OPM to FEHB carriers: Cut costs, MAHA style
In the federal HR agency’s annual letter to insurers, officials called for the end to cash incentives for childhood vaccine adoption and urged insurers to require therapy before prescribing GLP-1 drugs to combat obesity.
Pay & Benefits
DHS employees to begin receiving paychecks this week
The Homeland Security Department is still shut down but Trump has ordered immediate back pay anyway.
Workforce
OPM wants federal workers’ medical records
A proposal would require insurers to turn over detailed, identifiable health data on 8 million feds and their families.
Sponsor Content
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Tech
VA’s FY27 budget proposal seeks funding for additional AI adoption
VA’s decision intelligence and automation activities would see a 10.9% increase over FY26 enacted levels, with the growth “driven primarily by the AI Infrastructure solution.”
Management
Insights from the inside: How former feds think we ought to reform the federal government
COMMENTARY | A report by seven former senior federal employees shows what DOGE done right would look like.
Management
Privatization, eliminations and consolidations: Major reforms from Trump's budget
The president's fiscal 2027 blueprint contains significant overhauls to the work carried out by federal agencies.
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Management
IRS can’t fully verify in-person work compliance, IG says
The agency identified just 30 employees out of compliance with its return-to-office directive, even as investigators cited gaps in how compliance is verified.
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Workforce
Ex-VOA employees challenge last year’s buyout and retirement offers
Four former U.S. Agency for Global Media employees seek class certification from the Merit Systems Protection Board, arguing that the March invalidation of Kari Lake’s actions atop the agency should also apply to agreements reached under the Deferred Resignation Program and other buyout authorities.
Tech
Agencies could be required to move loan systems to 1 platform under bipartisan bill
COMMENTARY | A push to centralize federal lending would force agencies to rethink contracts, staffing and control over their systems.
Defense
Trump vows to find ‘leaker’ who publicized search for second downed airman in Iran
Asked whether the war in Iran is winding down or ramping up, the president said, “I don’t know.”
TSP TICKER
FUND
G
F
C
S
I
APR 08 CLOSE
$19.8107
$20.9869
$108.8662
$103.4568
$60.2016
DAILY CHANGE
0.0024
0.0511
2.6635
2.6165
2.5493
THIS MONTH (%)
0.10
0.46
3.92
4.31
6.52
FUND
L 2070
L 2060
L 2050
L 2040
L 2030
L INCOME
APR 08 CLOSE
$13.0809
$22.0733
$42.6683
$69.4916
$59.3692
$29.7401
DAILY CHANGE
0.4006
0.6758
1.0915
1.5673
1.0434
0.2672
THIS MONTH (%)
4.83
4.83
4.02
3.55
2.76
1.44
FUND
APR 08
CLOSE
CLOSE
DAILY
CHANGE
CHANGE
THIS
MONTH
MONTH
G
$19.8107
0.0024
0.10
F
$20.9869
0.0511
0.46
C
$108.8662
2.6635
3.92
S
$103.4568
2.6165
4.31
I
$60.2016
2.5493
6.52
L 2070
$13.0809
0.4006
4.83
L 2060
$22.0733
0.6758
4.83
L 2050
$42.6683
1.0915
4.02
L 2040
$69.4916
1.5673
3.55
L 2030
$59.3692
1.0434
2.76
L INCOME
$29.7401
0.2672
1.44
Workforce
See where Trump is looking to make staffing cuts next year and where he wants to grow
The White House wants to stabilize the size of the federal workforce overall in FY27, though some agencies would still experience large reductions.
Tech
The IRS wants to shrink its workforce by nearly 4,000 — and use technology to make up the difference
“Without modernization, the IRS would be unable to sustain performance with a reduced headcount,” the budget document says.
Management
Scammers posing as federal officials drive complaints up and rack up $800 million in losses
The scams, some of which were fueled by AI, can be especially effective because they exploit the built-in authority and urgency people associate with institutions.
Tech
Cuts hit CISA, NIST and IRS in Trump’s FY27 budget
The proposal shifts funding away from cybersecurity, standards and tax enforcement while boosting AI, quantum research and VA modernization.
Pay & Benefits
OPM leans into 'well care' as it reshapes federal health plans for 2027
OPM’s annual guidance to federal health plans outlines a shift toward preventive, whole-person care in 2027, along with changes to coverage, obesity treatment and gender-affirming care.
Management
DHS to fold intelligence office into headquarters under Trump's 2027 budget plan
The plan to restructure the Office of Intelligence and Analysis would require congressional approval and could reshape oversight of domestic intelligence-sharing.
Management
Civilian agencies face 10% cuts in Trump’s 2027 budget
Dozens of programs and grants face elimination, although proposed cuts to non-defense agencies are smaller than last year and a Defense boost would raise overall spending.
Updated
Pay & Benefits
Trump’s budget calls for 2027 pay freeze
Though the president’s fiscal 2027 budget proposal calls for a 7% pay raise for military service members, it fails to mention civilian federal employee compensation.
Management
Trump plan to shift student loan oversight to Treasury draws Senate Democrats' backlash
Senate Democrats urge Education and Treasury leaders to rescind the agreement, warning the transfer of loan management responsibilities would worsen dysfunction and increase costs in the $1.7 trillion federal student loan system.
Tech
Old-school spycraft could make a comeback as AI undermines trust
An article in the CIA’s Studies in Intelligence journal argues that artificial intelligence may erode confidence in certain electronic communications and further revive centuries-old human intelligence techniques.
Workforce
Interior incentivizes more staff departures after already cutting 20% of its workforce
The department becomes the first to offer a widespread "deferred resignation" this year.
Pay & Benefits
Trump says he’ll pay all DHS workers after House again fails to end 48-day shutdown
The House was expected to pass the Senate’s measure funding most of the Homeland Security Department through September on Thursday morning, but didn’t take action.
