Federal Newscast

The Department of Veterans Affairs approved nearly $600 million in infrastructure improvements during the second quarter of this fiscal year. That’s just part of the nearly $5 billion the VA is spending on non-recurring maintenance this year. The spending is going toward updating infrastructure systems in medical facilities and building upgrades for elevators, electrical systems and boiler plants. The funding is also going toward preparing VA medical facilities for the rollout of a new Electronic Health Record system.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Despite some hiring occurring across agencies, overall employment in the federal government is continuing to decline. That's according to the latest jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. BLS reports that in April, federal employment numbers decreased by another 9,000 jobs. Since peaking in October 2024, the federal sector's numbers are now down by 11.5% or 348,000 jobs.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nearly 12,000 new retirement claims entered the Office of Personnel Management’s systems last month. Coupled with OPM’s processing of about 17,000 retirement applications, the agency managed to reduce its inventory by several thousand claims. April was the first time OPM’s retirement backlog has dipped below 50,000 claims in more than five months. Currently, digital retirement claims are also being processed in about two-thirds the time of traditional paper applications.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Federal workers’ compensation is getting an overhaul from the Trump administration. The Labor Department says it’s expanding the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act to cover more types of beneficiaries and compensation programs. That includes claimants under the Black Lung Benefits Act and the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. Labor Department leadership says the goal is to improve drug pricing transparency, as well as promote cost savings.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Trump administration’s Tech Force program has made its first official hire. Yasmin Maksutova will be joining the Office of Personnel Management as an IT specialist in data management. Agencies are expected to onboard more Tech Force recruits in the coming weeks. The hiring initiative is designed to recruit temporary tech talent, with a focus on early-career employees.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Defense Department’s personal property activity has launched a new website to streamline the military moving process for service members, their families and industry partners. The website provides step-by-step moving guidance and checklists for every stage of the relocation process, information on permanent change of station moves and resources for filing claims and shipping privately owned vehicles. The platform also features a centralized library of printable tools and guides. PPA.mil will supplement Military One Source, which will continue to have information about the moving process. The website replaces multiple fragmented platforms with a more user-friendly experience.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Every fund in the Thrift Savings Plan rebounded in April to not only move into the black, but most posted significant month over month increases. Half of all funds increased by at least 9%, with the C Fund seeing the biggest 30-day increase, 10.49%. So far in 2026, the I Fund continues to be the big winner, increasing 11.12%, including rising 9.1% in April. The F fund is seeing the smallest growth with a month over month increase of just 0.12% and only going up 0.16% for all of 2026.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Pentagon is seeking to expand protections for military families living in privatized housing who report unsafe or inadequate living conditions. In a legislative proposal sent to Congress earlier this month, the Defense Department called for allowing tenants to report housing issues not just to landlords or their chain of command, but also to Defense Department housing officials, inspectors general and members of Congress. Currently, tenants are not protected from retaliation by the landlord if they report housing problems to an inspector general or a member of Congress. The proposal would expand the channels through which tenants can safely report their housing issues. The Defense Department says the proposal would not require additional funding. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Trump administration's overhaul of federal employees' performance management won’t apply to political appointees. A memo from the Office of Personnel Management excludes all Schedule C and Schedule G appointees from the stricter performance metrics. OPM says political appointees are already at-will workers, so decisions on whether they should be kept or removed from their jobs do not depend on formal performance evaluations.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers is seeking to expand both financial and non-monetary incentives to help the Air Force retain pilots and other in-demand Airmen. A new bill, dubbed the Retention Enhancements for Tactical Aircrew Initiative, or RETAIN Act, would require the Air Force to pay maximum aviation incentive pay, increase retention bonuses up to $100,000 and allow Airmen to transition indefinitely to non-combat aviation career paths. Meanwhile, the Fighter Aircrew Career Flexibility Act would allow service members to take a one-time break from active duty lasting four months to one year. The measure would also allow aviators to spend time in the civilian workforce and return to active duty afterward.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Army is changing when soldiers can request voluntary retirement. Under the new policy, soldiers can submit voluntary retirement requests at least 12 months, and no more than 24 months, before their preferred retirement date. Army officials say the change will allow the service to better predict personnel losses, synchronize personnel movement cycles and support soldiers transitioning out of the military. Soldiers who are being considered for a new assignment or have received official orders for a permanent change of station will not be able to submit a voluntary retirement request. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Twelve companies have been selected by the Space Force to develop a space-based interceptor system for President Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense initiative. Through its acquisition arm, Space Systems Command, the service awarded 20 Other Transaction Authority agreements with a potential combined award value of up to $3.2 billion. The service said the system should be integrated into the Golden Dome architecture by 2028. The announcement comes after Gen. Michael Guetlein, Golden Dome's program manager, said that space-based interceptors might not make it into the final design due to high costs.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

House lawmakers are looking to beef up protections against fraud risks across government. A new bipartisan bill would create a standardized training program for federal employees to learn how to identify and root out fraud. Sponsors say federal employees are not currently equipped with consistent training on fraud prevention. The lawmakers say that has led to higher vulnerabilities in government programs.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Coast Guard is partially reopening the National Maritime Center. In a notice this week, the Coast Guard said NMC civilian staff have returned to work, as the Department of Homeland Security taps into emergency funds during the partial government shutdown. The NMC will process applications for merchant mariner credentials, medical certificates, and course approvals on a first-in and first-out basis. But Regional Examination Centers will continue to be closed to walk-in customers. Last week, Coast Guard leaders told Congress there’s a growing backlog of 18,000 merchant mariner credentials due to the shutdown.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

House Republicans are proposing a billion-dollar cut to IRS funding next year. A fiscal 2027 spending bill introduced by members of the House Appropriations Committee would give the IRS a $10.2-billion budget next year. The Trump administration proposed more severe IRS cuts in its budget proposal, closer to a $1.5 billion cut. Funding for public-facing taxpayer services would remain untouched, but IRS enforcement would see the deepest cuts under the plan from House Republicans.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A new House bill would establish a permanent Inspector General for Fraud, Accountability and Recovery. The Fraud Prevention and Accountability Act, introduced by Texas Republican Pete Sessions last week, would ensure the permanent IG assists other inspectors general in detecting and mitigating fraud in federal awards over $50,000. The bill also would require the Treasury Secretary to make recommendations for anti-fraud resources in any future emergency relief or recovery appropriations packages. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The number of so-called “TSP millionaires” is trending downward. As of April 1, there were about 185,000 Thrift Savings Plan participants with accounts totaling over $1 million. Compared with the previous fiscal quarter, that means there are now about 10,000 fewer TSP millionaires. Latest reports show that million-dollar accounts make up about 2.5% of the nearly 7.3 million total TSP accounts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Space Force has laid out a vision for how it plans to operate in space over the next 15 years. In two highly anticipated documents, service officials describe how they think the space environment will evolve by 2040 and the capabilities the service will need to keep pace with emerging threats. Service officials estimate the U.S. could operate around 30,000 satellites by 2040 and that artificial intelligence and autonomy will transform space operations.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A federal union is raising alarms about the Trump administration’s planned reorganization of the Forest Service. The National Federation of Federal Employees warns that the agency’s plan to move its headquarters to Utah and eliminate regional offices, will hurt the ability to effectively combat wildfires. The Forest Service reorganization will impact about 6,500 federal employees. Union officials say the relocations will almost certainly lead some of those employees to quit their jobs.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today is the deadline for the tax filing season. But the IRS is giving more help to those who filed an extension. The IRS will have special Saturday hours this weekend at some of its Taxpayer Assistance Centers across the country. The IRS says TACs will be open in dozens of states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The IRS will also have extended hours for in-person help on weekdays through April 30.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.