Management
Plan to break up the Education Department would strain other agencies, Democrats and students warn
Lawmakers and student leaders say shifting major Education Department programs to other federal departments after deep layoffs and downsizing would create service gaps, weaken oversight and leave vulnerable students without support.
After NASA shed 4,000 employees, Trump’s pick to lead space agency vows to attract new talent
A "reinvigorated culture" focusing on the "near-impossible" will allow NASA to rebuild its workforce, Jared Isaacman says.
CISA tells staff to not speak with reporters, internal email shows
“CISA does not comment on leaked internal emails, especially when they’re about leaking internal emails,” CISA Director of Public Affairs Marci McCarthy told Nextgov/FCW when asked for comment.
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Amid unprecedented hiring push, ICE and CBP both lose HR chiefs
One of the executives was fired without explanation, while the other voluntarily moved to a different agency.
Agencies will have to contend with tight budgets even after Trump, contracting association predicts
While agencies are currently facing reduced budgets, the Professional Services Council expects that trend will continue due to the potential exhaustion of Medicare and Social Security funding.
FEMA’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad year
On its third acting administrator this year, the disaster management agency has faced workforce cuts, leadership instability and an uncertain future in the Trump administration.
Trump says he is voiding Biden executive actions signed with autopen
In a social media post, the president declared any Biden-era orders, pardons or laws authorized with an autopen “terminated,” leaving legal authority unclear and federal agencies uncertain about whether any directives are actually affected.
OPM reassures managers of ‘extremely narrow’ liability in performance management actions
The federal government’s HR agency reminded federal supervisors that they can be partially reimbursed for insurance against lawsuits that may arise from taking adverse actions against subordinates.
Suit to block Education Department closure expanded amid agency transfers plans
A cadre of unions and school districts seeking to stop the White House's plan to shutter the Education Department have now added to their ongoing lawsuit interagency agreements transferring department operations to other offices.
Bureau of Prisons to ‘suspend operations’ at California penitentiary
Federal Correctional Institution Terminal Island needs more than $100 million in repairs, including decaying concrete ceilings in some maintenance tunnels.
Trump’s disregard of presidential transition requirements shows need for reform, experts argue
A new Center for Presidential Transition report found that the Trump transition team’s refusal of certain assistance reduced time for agencies to prepare for a new administration and created ethics and security concerns.
Federal agencies and Congress hold the keys to success as states take on SNAP and Medicaid
COMMENTARY | While Congress and federal agencies still set the rules and enforce performance, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act gives states much more responsibility for running key safety-net programs. And they’ll feel the fallout if the system breaks.
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Civilian agency spending cratered during shutdown
October spending during the shutdown dropped by as much as 80% for some agencies compared to October 2024.
DOGE no longer has ‘centralized leadership’ under White House tech team, personnel head says
The team that was altered to house DOGE — formerly the U.S. Digital Service — is also still doing its own technology work across agencies.
Ex-feds join forces to reimagine government post-Trump
The nonprofit Democracy Forward has tapped more than a dozen former government workers as fellows to generate proposals to improve their former agencies’ effectiveness.
House Science Dems call for investigation into NASA Goddard cuts
The administration’s ongoing push to close labs and facilities at the Goddard Space Flight Center “risks permanently degrading Goddard’s scientific and technical capabilities with these moves,” Democratic members of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee wrote.
New federal student debt rule seen as tool to enforce Trump agenda
A new Trump administration rule, set to take effect in July, restricting eligibility for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program has drawn multiple lawsuits.
Agency layoff rules to get an overhaul under nearly finalized Trump administration proposal
OPM’s reduction in force revamp plan will put performance ratings over tenure and strip some employees of protections.
CFPB to issue mass furlough by year's end and transfer outstanding cases to DOJ
The initiative marks the latest effort by the Trump administration to close the bureau.
Exclusive
Trump admin acknowledges difficulties in transferring Education programs to other agencies, internal documents show
The work Education has done so far is "minuscule" compared to what's to come, department says.
Democrats try again to reestablish legal deference to agencies on regulations
The bicameral bill also seeks to limit the ability of businesses to influence the rulemaking process.
