18F denies data breach reported by agency watchdog

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive.

• 18F, the General Services Administration’s tech squad, says “What data breach?” The agency has responded to a recent GSA Office of Inspector General report saying it exposed employees sensitive information on the messaging application Slack. 18F said its own investigation found no information was inappropriately shared, and that it actually fixed the problem back in March. (18F)

•  A two-year-old settlement with its unions is costing the Postal Service some big bucks.
  In 2014, the USPS and its unions agreed on how to limit bargaining unit work done by management. Supervisors who do more than 15 hours of union work in a week would trigger payments to union members. The Postal Inspector General found in a nine-month period last year that postal management paid out more than $11 million. One clerk received $31,000. (USPS OIG)

• A former government contractor has pleaded guilty to bribing two GSA managers who have already done the same. The Justice Department said between 2007 and 2009, Moustafa Ibrahim paid at least $15,000 in bribes to the two managers in the Washington, D.C. metro area for construction and contract awards to his general contracting company. His sentence hearing is scheduled for this September. (Justice Department)

• The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has set up a new office to help find ways to apply its technology and capabilities to the entire geospatial community. The NGA Research Office looks to support research at national laboratories, commercial businesses, and universities. It says this is part of a restructuring initiative at NGA. (NGA)

•  Open military service by transgender people would cause few difficulties, according to one think tank. The Rand Corporation study commissioned by the Pentagon was leaked to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal ahead of it being made public. It said no one knows how many transgender people might be serving now. But it concluded a policy under consideration to let them service openly would have at most a small impact on costs, readiness or cohesion. (New York Times)

• The Army is seeking greater use of unmanned aircraft and ground vehicles. It asked the Science Board for product descriptions of robotics, vehicle navigation systems, autonomous capabilities and any plans for future development. (Federal Register)

• Federal inspectors general are pushing the Senate to give them more access to agency records — and soon. Justice IG Michael Horowitz, chairman of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency, said some IGs are still getting pushback from agencies when asking for documents. The council said a bill in the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is the only way to make sure that stops. The bill was introduced last year. (IG Net)

• The long-awaited contract to change the way agencies buy human resources services is finally here. The General Services Administration awarded the Human Capital and Training Solutions, or HCaTs, contract to 109 vendors yesterday. The 20-year HCaTs contract has a ceiling of $11.5 billion and replaces the Training and Management Assistance contract run by the Office of Personnel Management for the last two decades. OPM has been trying to replace TMA with a new vehicle since 2012 only to outsource it to GSA in 2015 as part of the category management initiative. (Federal News Radio)

• A fight over TRICARE enrollment fees may be coming in Congress. The Senate version of the defense authorization bill increases annual enrollment fees for working-age military retirees. The House version expands enrollment fees to family members of active duty military. The House bill is expected to pass tomorrow. The Obama administration says it would veto the House version. (Federal News Radio)

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