Navy’s highest-ranking woman gets nod to lead naval forces in Europe

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

• President Obama has nominated the Navy’s highest-ranking woman to lead naval forces in Europe. Adm. Michelle Howard got the nod to be the next head of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa and Allied Joint Forces Command. Howard would be the first woman to reach the rank of four-star admiral. The President also gave his personal doctor, Navy Capt. Ronny Jackson, a promotion to rear admiral). (DoD)

• Contractors will need to register to the System for Awards Management before making offers under a new proposed rule. The Federal Acquisition Regulation Council said the rule will clear up previous instructions which said registration just needed to be completed by the time of the award. (Federal Register)

• The White House said it will veto a bill that cuts the fiscal 2017 budget for the VA and blocks senior executive bonuses within the agency. The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, would slice next year’s proposed VA budget by $1.5 billion. The bill would also prohibit bonuses for SES employees, which the White House said will decrease morale among the department’s workforce and possibly prevent the agency from recruiting top talent. The Senior Executives Association is also urging members of Congress to vote no on the bill. The full House is expected to consider the bill in late May. (White House)

• A pair of senators have  introduced a bill to give nearly 30,000 federal employees enhanced retirement benefits. The Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act, introduced by Sens. Cory Booker and Barbara Mikulski, would allow federal law enforcement officers classified as GS – 0083 the ability to retire after 20 years of service at the age of 50, or after 25 years at any age. (Sen. Booker)

• OPM has announced when the company WageWorks will be taking over the Federal Flexible Spending Account Program. FedSmith reports Sept. 1, 2016 will be the official transition date. There will be a blackout period for claims submissions starting July 30, 2016 until that start date.(Fedsmith blog)

• Roughly 50 percent of federal managers and contractors in the cybersecurity field said the 30-day sprint agencies went through last summer hasn’t done much to improve their organization’s vulnerability. A new survey out from (ISC)² and KPMG suggested about 35 percent feel they’ve put a bigger emphasis on security protocols after the OPM cyber breaches. But a quarter of respondents said their agencies haven’t made any changes. (Federal News Radio)

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