DoD Head says Furloughs Need to Be Consistent – Plus the DorobekINSIDER’s 7 Stories

On GovLoop Insights’ DorobekINSIDER:

• The Centers for Disease Control have launched a new app – Solve the Outbreak – to help teach people about disease outbreaks. The interactive game allows users to track, solve and prevent future outbreaks. Find out why they’ve turned to gamification for education. Click here for the full recap.

The SEVEN Stories You Need to Know

1. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says furloughs need to be consistent across DoD. Federal Times says he has rebuffed calls to give the military services the flexibility to reduce or eliminate furloughs for civilian workers on their own.
2. President Obama plans to nominate venture capitalist Thomas Wheeler to head the Federal Communications Commission, White House officials said. Federal Times reports Wheeler, managing director at Core Capital Partners, a venture-capital firm based in Washington, D.C., also has worked at several start-up companies and has been a top lobbyist for the wireless and cable industries.
3. Fifteen federal buildings have earned top scores for energy efficiency in a national competition. A federal courthouse in Newark, N.J., and the San Antonio Federal Building in Texas made the top 10 out of more than 3,000 entries in the 2012 Energy Star competition. Both buildings reduced their energy use by more than 30 percent. Thirteen more buildings cut their energy use by a fifth. The General Services Administration says it is using advanced meters and smart building technology to monitor improvements. It says together, the buildings have saved nearly $1 million in energy bills. – Reports Federal News Radio.
4. The House Homeland Security Committee plans to hold the first congressional hearing next week examining the Boston Marathon terrorist attack and what it says about the state of the nation’s post-Sept. 11 security infrastructure.
5. Rep. Melvin Watt (D-N.C.) is poised to take over the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. White House officials told the Associated Press President Barack Obama plans to nominate Watt today to replace Edward DeMarco. Watt has represented the Charlotte-area in Washington for 20 years. He is a senior member of the House Financial Services Committee. He played a key role in the 2010 financial regulatory overhaul legislation.
6. Two former commerce agents accused of publicly smearing superiors pleaded guilty on Tuesday to filing false expense claims and committing attendance fraud, according to the Justice Department. The Washington Post reports, Rachel Ondrik, 35, of Frederick, and Kirk Yamatani, 38, of Ashburn, who both worked as special agents for the Commerce Department’s inspector general’s office, sought payments for more than $36,000 apiece in false relocation expenses, according to their plea agreements.
7. And on GovLoop, you can now register for the May 15th DorobekINSIDER Live panel. This time around we are talking about the one year anniversary of the Digital Government Strategy. The free online webinar will feature government and industry experts.

Related Links:

• GovLoop’s Leadership Hub
• GovLoop’s Leadership Guide: 10 Traits to a Great Government Leader
• Happiness is a Balance: A Framework for Success

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