President Biden Signs Executive Order on Policing Reform, Accountability
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden signed an executive order (E.O. 14074) mandating policy and procedure reform among federal law enforcement agencies to advance accountability.
Detention Facility Wins Contract Extension Despite Executive Order
On September 21, 2021, the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE) announced the GEO Group (GEO) and U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) settled a six-month contract extension to keep the Western Region Detention Facility (WRDF) open.
Executive Order Mandates Enhancing Threat Communication, Modernizing Cybersecurity Infrastructure
President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday to improve national cybersecurity in an effort to combat future cyberattacks. The order follows the SolarWinds and Microsoft Exchange cyberattacks impacting federal agencies as well as the recent Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack that caused states of emergency in several states.
Biden Issues Executive Actions Promoting Criminal Justice Reform, Combating COVID-19
President Biden has issued many executive actions within his first week in office. Several of these actions relate directly to criminal justice reform and immigration policy.
Trump Issues Executive Order to Give Law Enforcement and Families Greater Protection
On January 18, 2021, then-President Donald Trump issued an executive order (EO) that aims to protect law enforcement officials and their families. The order intends to allow qualified active and retired law enforcement officials to carry concealed firearms.
Biden Administration Requires Mask Usage on all Federal Property
President Joe Biden issued an executive order on his first day in office that requires anyone on federal property to wear a mask. This mandate includes federal employees and contractors, as well as anyone inside a federal building or on federal land.
Federal Employees to Receive 1% Pay Raise in 2021
President Trump recently signed an executive order granting federal employees a 1 percent pay increase in 2021. The order does not affect locality pay rates.
Executive Order Creates New Class of Federal Employees
President Trump signed an executive order on October 21, 2020 creating a new classification for federal employees. Per the order, employees that are in confidential, policy making positions would be categorized as Schedule F employees and would not be subject to traditional Title 5 workplace protections. These employees would also be barred from organizing against or appealing the administration. The order grants agency leaders broad discretion to hire and fire individuals in this schedule.
Payroll Tax Deferral Program Leaves Federal Employees Seeking Answers
The White House recently announced an executive order that authorizes employers to defer the Social Security payroll tax from September 1, 2020 through the end of the year for employees who make less than $3,999 per biweekly pay period, known as a payroll tax deferral. This new order has left many agencies and employees with various questions like whether employees can opt-in or out of the program and what happens to federal employees who leave their agencies before or during the window of repayment.
OPM Issues Memo on Implementing Federal Hiring Executive Order
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has released a memo to agency leaders regarding the implementation of the Trump Administration’s June executive order (EO) on reforming the federal hiring process to increase use of skills assessments and interviews with subject matter experts.
White House Issues Executive Order on Federal Hiring
On Friday, President Trump signed an executive order on Modernizing and Reforming the Assessment and Hiring of Federal Job Candidates. The order calls upon agencies to increase use of skills assessments and interviews with subject matter experts in the hiring process, with less of an emphasis placed on degree requirements. The goal, according to the Trump Administration, is to broaden the pool of potential candidates and create a more equitable hiring process.