White House Unveils Budget Plan – Plus the DorobekINSIDER’s 7 Stories

On GovLoop Insights’ DorobekINSIDER:

• The government is changing the way it buys things. That much is clear. Multi-award contracts are in and prime contracts are out. So how do you navigate the new trend? Insights from Bloomberg’s Brian Friel.

The SEVEN stories that impact your life

1. President Barack Obama has sent his 2014 budget request to Congress, two months late. Federal News Radio reports, the budget proposes a combination of tax hikes and modest reductions in spending growth to reduce the deficit. The administration’s budget plan is radically different from one that passed the Republican-controlled House. The Senate has passed a third version. Debates will likely start this summer.

2. Included in the budget is a hike in employee retirement contributions. Federal Times reports, feds would be asked to contribute 1.2 percentage points more, phased in over three years, as part of his fiscal 2014 budget. GovExec reports, This would bring the contributions of Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) workers up from 0.8 percent to 2.0 percent, and Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) employees’ contributions up from 7 percent to 8.2 percent. Obama proposed the same increase last year, as part of his fiscal 2013 budget request.

3. On the other hand President’s budget does propose a one percent pay raise for federal employees. GovExec reports, If Congress agrees, a raise would lift the current civilian pay freeze, now in its third year.

4. Despite the pay freeze the Office of Personnel Management reports pay, on average, went up a bit last year. Federal News Radio reports, the average salary of full-time, permanent workers was just over $78,000 as of September. That’s about $700 more than the year before. OPM also says the government gained about 10,000 workers last year, half of them full-time permanent employees.

5. The Government Accountability Office has presented a grim picture of duplication and waste across the federal government. In its third of three annual reports to Congress, GAO identified 17 new missions in which agency efforts overlap. It found another 14 areas where agencies simply missed opportunities to economize. GAO says agencies need to plan their activities better, then measure them more carefully.

6. Like the other armed services, the Navy is undergoing an operational transformation of sorts to accommodate cyberspace as the newest military domain. But unlike the others, the Navy must cover land and sea, its networks scattered across oceans and continents, reports FCW.

7. And on GovLoop. You can now register for the April edition of DorobekINSIDER Live. We’ll be talking citizen engagement. Register for the free event here.