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THE FEDERAL NEWSCAST, (length about seven minutes), is a daily Monday through Friday, high-information compilation of nine 40-second news stories and news packages, generated by the non-partisan, non-political, private-sector team of reporters at Federal News Network. Federal News Radio Producer/Newscasters Eric White and Michele Sandiford assemble and read the stories on the THE FEDERAL DRIVE with TERRY GERTON, the weekday morning-drive program, heard from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. (ET) on the Federal News Network app (and website), on any smart speaker, and on WFED 1500 AM, a 50,000-watt 'Class A' powerhouse radio station in the nation's capital. The podcast is most popular with FNN's audience of highly educated listeners, who conveniently access THE FEDERAL NEWSCAST, 24/7, on any podcast platform . Listen to it (as just mentioned) or read the stories each weekday morning at FederalNewsNetwork.com, where the news items contain hyperlinks for those who want more information on a given story.
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Federal employees at the Department of Health and Human Services are calling for the resignation of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. A letter signed by more than 1,000 HHS workers warns that Kennedy’s actions this year have endangered the nation’s health. Most recently, Kennedy fired the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The employees say the secretary has also been spreading inaccurate health information. Earlier this year, HHS laid off thousands of employees in a reduction in force.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The House Homeland Security Committee wants to reauthorize and reform the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act of 2015. The law expires at the end of this month. On Wednesday, the committee passed a bill that would extend the law for another 10 years. It would also update the law to account for advances in artificial intelligence and require the Department of Homeland Security to improve its outreach on emerging cyber threats. The bill is advancing in the House, but its path forward in the Senate remains unclear as the law’s expiration nears.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
All 16 funds in the Thrift Savings Plan posted positive results in August. New data from the Federal Thrift Investment Retirement Board shows that the S fund had the largest month over month increase of just over 4%, while the I fund also continued its strong performance. Every fund is positive year-to-date with 11 funds posting double digit returns for 2025. The I fund continues to earn the biggest returns with a 21.5% gain for this year while all the L funds are seeing returns over 10% over the last eight months. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security are teaming up to enforce compliance with trade laws. DHS and DoJ have launched a Trade Fraud Task Force to pursue enforcement actions those who try to evade tariffs and other duties. The cross-agency group will rely on the Tariff Act of 1930, the False Claims Act, and Title 18’s trade fraud and conspiracy provisions. The task force is asking for tips from any domestic industries that are harmed by unfair trade practices and trade fraud. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
An appeals court might be reconsidering its recent decision that sided with the Trump administration in orders to terminate federal union contracts. One of the judges on that appeals court panel has called for a vote to decide whether to re-hear arguments in a lawsuit against the White House’s orders. The American Federation of Government Employees is suing the administration, arguing that Trump’s directive to end collective bargaining retaliates against unions that have exercised their First Amendment rights. Attorneys for AFGE and the Trump administration have until Sept. 15 to submit arguments on whether or not the case should be re-heard. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is warning about another China-linked cyber espionage campaign. In a joint advisory yesterday, CISA and partner agencies said Chinese state-sponsored actors are exploiting vulnerabilities in routers used by telecommunications providers and other infrastructure operators. They say the campaign’s goal is to gain long-term access to critical infrastructure networks around the world. The advisory includes several recommendations to guard against the hacking spree. The threat groups highlighted in the advisory include Salt Typhoon and other advanced persistent threat actors. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Veterans Affairs says it’s now guaranteed 29 million home loans for service members and veterans. That’s more than $4 trillion dollars in loans issued over the history of the program. More than four million service members and veterans have active home loans guaranteed by the VA. The department’s Home Loan Guaranty Program began in 1944 as part of the G.I. Bill of RightsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
After a high-profile hack, Senator Ron Wyden is calling for an independent review of cybersecurity in the U.S. courts system. In a letter to Chief Justice John Roberts, Wyden says the federal Judiciary has fallen short in protecting its sensitive IT systems. He pointed to a recent intrusion of the courts’ case management system. Hackers reportedly took advantage of vulnerabilities that were brought to light five years ago after a separate hack of the case management system. Wyden says Roberts should commission a National Academy of Sciences review of the two security incidents. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
House committee Democrats are raising alarms about the Agriculture Department’s relocation and reorganization plans. In a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, lawmakers from the Education and Workforce Committee warned that USDA’s plans would lead to worsening services. They’re calling on Rollins to explain the rationale for relocating thousands of USDA employees in the D.C. area. They’re also pressing for answers on which, if any, officials or stakeholders USDA consulted with before moving forward with its plans. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Senate will vote on its version of the 2026 defense policy bill on Sept. 2. The House has not yet scheduled a floor vote on its version of the National Defense Authorization Act, though the House Committee on Rules has set an Aug. 28 deadline for lawmakers to file NDAA amendments. The Senate bill authorizes nearly $925 billion for national defense, while the House version aligns with the White House’s $883 billion request. Congress has passed the NDAA every year for the past 64 years.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 reverse cuts at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The FEMA Critical Staffing Act would require the agency to reinstate employees fired under the Trump administration. It would also require FEMA to bring back the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program and the flood mitigation assistance program. The bill is being sponsored by several House Democrats. It comes as Congress and the Trump administration consider broader reforms to FEMA. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Federal employees traveling for business will not see an increase in the rates the government will pay for hotels, meals and incidentals in fiscal 2026. The General Services Administration says the per diem rates for the continental United States will stay the same for next fiscal year. GSA says the decision not to increase the rates reflects the government’s commitment to being a responsible steward of taxpayer dollars, ensuring that federal funds are utilized appropriately, cost-effectively and for core mission-related activities. The standard rate applies to most of CONUS, which for lodging is $110 dollars. There are 296 non-standard areas with individual rates that are higher than the standard rate. The meals and incidental rates range from $59 to $92.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Air Force has paused some permanent change of station moves due to personnel budget shortfalls. It’s unclear how many Airmen are affected, but the delay only applies to moves within the United States and does not impact Space Force Guardians, reservists, Guard members, and Airmen relocating overseas. Earlier this spring, the service also delayed issuing some retirement and separation orders due to similar budget constraints. In May, the Defense Department instructed the service branches to develop a plan to reduce permanent change of station “discretionary move” budgets.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Employees from the Department of Veterans Affairs are rallying across the country today in protest of the Trump administration’s changes to the VA. The agency workers, who are represented by a range of federal unions, warn that staffing reductions and erosion of collective bargaining at the VA will hurt the agency’s ability to support veterans. The rallies come after the VA canceled virtually all of its union contracts last week. VA union members are gathering in more than 10 cities today to sound the alarm and press the Trump administration to reverse course.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Veterans Affairs is setting a new record for the number of disability and pension claims processed in a single year. The VA has gone through more than two and a half million claims so far in fiscal 2025, surpassing last year’s total. The department says it’s shrunk the claims backlog by 37% since President Donald Trump took office. The backlog increased under the Biden administration when more veterans became eligible for VA benefits under the toxic-exposure PACT Act. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
A federal appeals court is giving the Department of Government Efficiency access to sensitive data at several agencies. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit overturned a lower court’s ruling that barred DOGE from accessing records at the Treasury Department … the Education Department … and the Office of Personnel Management. Appeals court judges ruling in favor of DOGE cited a recent Supreme Court ruling … that allowed DOGE officials access to Social Security Administration data on millions of Americans. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Administrative Office of the United States Courts says it’s strengthening cyber protections after hackers hit the Judiciary's electronic case management system. The Judiciary says most documents are already available to the public, but that it’s putting in place more rigorous procedures to restrict access to sensitive documents under carefully controlled and monitored circumstances. Politico reported last week that a sweeping cyber intrusion may have exposed sensitive court data across multiple U.S. states. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Federal employees’ COVID-19 vaccination status will soon no longer appear on their personnel documents. The Trump administration is directing agencies to scrub vaccination information from federal HR files. That includes erasing any instances of employees not complying with vaccine mandates, or requesting exemptions from any mandates. The Office of Personnel Management says no information related to vaccines can be used in decisions on hiring, promotions, discipline or terminations. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
House Democrats are pushing for details on the Department of Agriculture’s major relocation plans. The lawmakers say testimony from USDA leadership last month did not clarify how well the agency had planned ahead before announcing the relocations. The agency also failed to estimate how many employees would leave their jobs as a result of the move, according to the Congress members. In a letter to USDA, the Democrats requested the agency turn over all documents and communications related to the relocation plans.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Federal employees submitting their retirement paperwork may have to wait longer to get their claims processed. The Office of Personnel Management reported that during July, it took the agency 59 days, on average, to process a federal employee’s retirement package from start to finish. That’s two weeks longer, on average, than it took OPM to work through cases in June. Another 8,300 federal employees sent their retirement paperwork to OPM last month. All combined, that adds up to nearly 37,000 feds who have submitted a retirement claim since April. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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