Oversight

Federal performance officers stretched too thin, study says

PIOs don’t have adequate resources or time to identify poor-performing employees, report finds.

Oversight

Van Hollen rips Ryan budget

Maryland House member gives few details of Dems' alternative but vows to restore Clinton-era tax rates.

Oversight

Budget cutting a difficult task

Composition of cuts in budget agreement shows the difficulties of reducing spending for the White House and Congress.

Oversight

What's in the spending bill?

Labor, health, and education programs were cut by $5.5 billion; Defense got a raise.

Oversight

Death Wish?

Republicans pushing to revamp Medicare could find themselves voted out of office in the next election.

Oversight

Legislation would reorganize Federal Acquisition Institute

Bipartisan bill has FAI reporting directly to the Office of Federal Procurement Policy.

Defense

Drug cartels seek to exploit corrupt federal agents

Homeland Security has enough challenges in border enforcement without officers taking bribes.

Oversight

Lawmaker proposes extending probation for new federal employees

Rep. Ross would double current one-year period and define performance criteria more precisely.

Oversight

Budget deal faces one last hurdle

Lawmakers still have to formally vote on handshake agreement reached at midnight Friday to fund agencies for the rest of fiscal 2011.

Oversight

Under OMB order, agencies stayed open despite late House vote

Memo was designed to make sure agencies didn't begin shutting down at midnight.

Oversight

Done deal: Congress, White House keep government open

Negotiators reach last-minute agreement on funding deal for rest of fiscal 2011.

Defense

Shutdown could spell trouble for contractors

Contracts not related to exempt activities or funded through annual appropriations could be halted.

Oversight

Nuclear agency expected to stay open during any government shutdown

Contractors and federal employees would continue to work, Energy Department says.

Oversight

Muted abortion response speaks volumes about budget talks

The GOP reaction suggested a shrugging acceptance of one more round of talking points before the final brokering.

Oversight

Cantor says short-term funding bill likely needed after any deal

House majority leader says 'bridge' is a possibility to keep government from shutting down.

Oversight

Would you have been furloughed?

Federal employees sent updates Friday on their status and that of other employees in their agencies.

Oversight

Where the cuts would have come: agency-by-agency furlough counts

Estimates show large numbers of employees would not have been permitted to work if government had shut down.

Oversight

Brink of a shutdown: How did it get to this point?

Those Americans who disdain government in the abstract are about to have their contempt put to the test.

Oversight

Political insiders view shutdown as likely

As of Thursday afternoon, Capitol Hill operatives think both sides still had reason to hold their ground.

Oversight

Four budget developments you need to know

Some of the key differences between the parties involved in discussions.