Weekly Roundup: April 7-11, 2025

Submitted by on Fri, 04/11/2025 - 17:48
Friday, April 11, 2025
Michael J. Keegan
Articles & insights of interest in public management & leadership for the week ending April 11, 2025

Workforce

OPM Deploys AI to Correct Records Kept on Federal Workers. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) said in a memo published that beginning this year, it will use AI to analyze and verify the accuracy of data on Federal workers contained within the electronic Official Personnel Folder system (eOPF). The electronic system also maintains records for non-Federal employees managed by Federal agencies.  The move marks a significant step in the Federal government’s use of the technology in accessing sensitive personally identifiable information, which has previously left some concerned about the security of that access.  

Feinberg Issues New Guidance to Restructure DoD Civilian Workforce. Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg rolled out new guidance this week to advance the Pentagon’s plans to restructure, consolidate, and reduce its nearly 900,000-member civilian workforce as part of the department’s Workforce Acceleration and Recapitalization Initiative. DoD launched the initiative to streamline the DoD’s civilian workforce by consolidating duplicative roles, cutting bureaucracy, and automating routine tasks to better align with future needs. “I will lead the DoD effort to rebalance and optimize its civilian workforce to urgently rebuild our military, revive the warrior ethos, and deliver maximum deterrence,” Feinberg wrote, adding that the initiative will begin with a detailed analysis of each component’s organizational structure.

GSA preps for layoffs at TTS. The General Services Administration intends to send reduction in force letters to some staff in its technology branch soon, following a warning in early March that the agency planned to eventually cut half of the staff in that office. The head of the Technology Transformation Services, Thomas Shedd, wrote in an email to staff that some employees would be getting an “intention letter” for a reduction in force, or layoff. The agency’s cross-government tech group has already seen its workforce slashed during the first couple months of the Trump administration.

IT Security

New FedRAMP Group Eyes Automation for Ongoing Risk Monitoring. The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) held a kick-off meeting for its new Continuous Reporting Community Working Group, which will look to leverage automation to support a future state where ongoing risk monitoring is enforced, validated, and reported continuously.

Defense

Joint Chiefs Nominee Urges Changes in DoD Budget, Requirements Process. Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan Caine, the nominee to be the next Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, told lawmakers today that the Department of Defense’s (DoD) budget and requirements process need significant reforms to better address evolving threats facing the U.S. “We must have a sense of urgency related to the budget. I think it comes down to ultimately finding more deployable or allocatable capital,” He emphasized the need for a reevaluation of DoD spending priorities, focusing on cost savings, reprogramming funds, and securing a larger budget to meet national security needs.

GAO Pushes DoD to Create Framework for CJADC2 Investments. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is pushing the Defense Department (DoD) to create a framework that will guide investments in its Combined Joint All-Domain Command and Control (CJADC2) project and warned of trouble ahead if it does not do so. In its new report, GAO said DoD “has attempted to define and guide CJADC2 efforts since its inception,” but that the Pentagon “has yet to build a framework that can guide CJADC2-related investments across DoD or track progress toward its goals.”

Trump Signs Order to Overhaul Defense Acquisition, Threatens Program Cuts. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday aimed at modernizing the Department of Defense’s (DoD) acquisition process – an overhaul that could lead to the cancellation of costly or delayed military programs. The order directs the defense secretary along with other Pentagon leaders, to complete a comprehensive review of all major defense acquisition programs (MDAPs) within 90 days. Under the order, any program more than 15 percent behind schedule or 15 percent over budget will be considered for cancellation. Additionally, any program “unaligned” with Hegseth’s mission priorities will also be at risk of being canceled.

Navy Sailing to Enhanced Readiness, Lethality by FY2027. The U.S. Navy is leveraging its existing capabilities and adaptive acquisition framework to accelerate progress to meet the service branch’s fiscal year (FY) 2027 goal to boost readiness and lethality. In 2024, Adm. Lisa Franchetti, former chief of Naval Operations (CNO), established a guiding “north star” to direct Navy operations, focusing on achieving readiness for sustained high-end joint and combined combat by FY2027. To support this vision, the Navy is prioritizing the accelerated delivery of new capabilities through the strategic use of existing resources and ongoing activities, according to Vice Adm. James Pitts, the Navy’s deputy CNO for Warfighting Requirements and Capabilities.

Treasury

Treasury eliminates offices and outsources work, with more layoffs coming. The Treasury Department has begun slashing some offices as part of President Trump’s efforts to reduce the federal workforce, adding several divisions of the Bureau of Fiscal Service to the cut list. The department is outsourcing the work at the bureau’s Servicing of Savings Bonds, Debt Cross-Servicing Program and Paper Check Printing and Ancillary Services offices. The exact number of employees impacted was not immediately clear but multiple employees familiar with the matter expected it to be hundreds. “As part of the Executive Order Optimizing the Federal Workforce, Fiscal Service must reduce its workforce and operational footprint,” bureau leadership said in a message to staff on Thursday. Impacted employees were told their jobs were being eliminated in a town hall meeting this week. Employees are expected to still have the option to apply for early retirement, buyouts or the so-called “deferred resignation” program that, if accepted, would allow them to remain in paid leave status through September. 

GAO  

GAO Wants 15% Budget Jump for Staff Adds, Fraud, Cyber Work. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is looking for a 15 percent year-over-year budget increase for fiscal year (FY) 2026 and plans to use the higher funding to restore depleted agency staffing levels and to pursue several major lines of work including in the areas of science and technology, fraud prevention, and cybersecurity. It would use $72 million of offsetting receipts, reimbursements, and collections, according to testimony today by Gene Dodaro, who is comptroller general of the United States and head of GAO.

NASA

NASA Nominee Suggests Parallel Moon, Mars Landing Pushes. Jared Isaacman, the nominee to become the next NASA director, told lawmakers this week that the agency should aim to both return humans to Earth’s moon and make the first manned visit to Mars. Isaacman told lawmakers he is committed to NASA’s Artemis lunar exploration program, despite President Trump’s emphasis on shifting the space agency’s focus to Mars. “It is a fundamental requirement for NASA to inspire the next generation and the best way to do that is to complete its missions – go back to the moon and then on to Mars,” Isaacman said.

THIS WEEK @ THE CENTER 

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