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DOJ pushes to restart White House ballroom project after shooting
23 hours ago•Source: Reuters
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5.16 min•8 days ago
Bipartisan BUILD America 250 Act lines up historic five-year infrastructure push
House Transportation and Infrastructure leaders released the text of the BUILD America 250 Act, a bipartisan five-year surface-transportation bill that would fund major upgrades to roads, bridges, transit, rail, and safety programs. The plan includes the largest-ever investment in bridges (over $50B), expands passenger rail and safety measures, creates an autonomous commercial vehicle framework, and strengthens the Highway Trust Fund with new revenue. The lawmakers say the bill emphasizes efficiency, innovation, and faster project delivery, with hearings held and markup planned before the current authorization expires in September 2026.
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USPS Seeks Congress-Sponsored Fixes to Avert Cash Crunch
Federal News Network•17 days ago
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Nebraska board approves tax incentives for Omaha stadium and Lincoln volleyball complex, nine bids denied
Nebraska Examiner•18 days ago
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State Department finalizes hundreds of layoffs as it pushes reorganization
State Department has finalized separation notices for roughly 250 Foreign Service employees and about 30 civil-service staff who were on paid administrative leave, completing layoffs that were announced last summer as part of a broad reorganization to streamline functions; the agency also launched a Foreign Service recruitment drive, drawing criticism from AFSA and some lawmakers who say experienced staff are being cut while vacancies remain.
USDA Expands Reorganization, Shifting Hundreds of DC Staff to Regional Hubs
USDA announced a broader expansion of its post-DC reorganization, moving hundreds more employees to regional hubs. FSIS will relocate about two-thirds of its DC-area staff to new sites, including a National Food Safety Center in Urbandale, Iowa and a Science Center in Athens, Georgia, with roughly 200 DC FSIS workers moving and frontline inspectors largely unaffected. ERS, NIFA, and NASS staff will shift to Kansas City and St. Louis, while ARS will decommission the Beltsville campus and relocate research nationwide. About 100 roles remain in DC for policy and congressional work. The move continues reforms begun under the first Trump administration and aims to modernize operations and better connect researchers with producers.
DOJ IG Probes Epstein Files Transparency Act Compliance
The Justice Department's internal watchdog is examining how the department identifies, redacts, and releases records under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, amid criticism of how Epstein-related materials and victims’ personal information were handled; a public report is expected, with ongoing inquiries and international investigations.
FSIS Reorganization Establishes Iowa Hub and Georgia Science Center to Boost Food Safety
USDA announced a major FSIS reorganization to modernize operations, creating a National Food Safety Center in Urbandale, Iowa (about 200 staff) and a Science Center in Athens, Georgia to expand microbiology, chemistry, and epidemiology work; roughly two-thirds of FSIS’s National Capital Region workforce will relocate to these mission-critical locations, with about 200 positions moving from Washington, D.C. and 100 remaining to support policy and coordination, plus a presence in Fort Collins, Colorado for international activities. The frontline inspection workforce (~85% of FSIS staff) will not be reduced, and all inspections will continue uninterrupted as the agency streamlines administration and strengthens public health protections.
USDA Overhauls REE Mission Area to Boost Efficiency and Bring Research Closer to Farmers
USDA announced a major reorganization of the Research, Education, and Economics (REE) Mission Area to streamline operations, strengthen leadership accountability, and move many positions from the National Capital Region to closer to farming communities. The plan relocates ERS and NIFA staff to Kansas City, shifts NASS positions to St. Louis, decommissions the Beltsville ARS site and relocates ARS programs nationwide, and expands the REE Business Center, while preserving the Office of the Chief Scientist to ensure science-based, farmer-focused results.
Virginia court halts voter-approved Democratic congressional map amid referendum challenge
A Virginia court in Tazewell County halted the referendum on a Democratic-drawn congressional map, ruling the vote invalid and blocking the state from enacting new districts that could have flipped four Republican House seats; the Republican National Committee challenged the referendum, and Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones said his office would appeal the ruling.
Georgia Declares 30-Day State of Emergency as South Georgia Wildfires Rage
Governor Kemp declared a 30-day State of Emergency for 91 Georgia counties to bolster response to ongoing South Georgia wildfires, mobilizing the National Guard, air assets, and state agencies; a burn ban is in place, with FEMA-approved Fire Management Assistance Grants for two fires and federal support for a coordinated response.
DOJ Delays ADA Web Access Deadline for Public Higher Education
The Department of Justice has extended the deadline for meeting the updated Web Content Accessibility Guidelines under the Americans with Disabilities Act for public colleges, universities, and other public entities, pushing compliance back about a year due to concerns over staffing and resources. The interim final rule aims to reduce litigation risk and give institutions time to implement accessible PDFs, captions, alt text, and accessible interfaces across web pages and third‑party platforms. Disability advocates criticized the delay as a setback, while institutions are urged to maintain momentum on accessibility efforts; the rule is open for public comment through June 22, and the original deadline was slated for April 24 with some regional exceptions for smaller governments.
GSA's FAS Gets Interim Leader as Gruenbaum Exits
Josh Gruenbaum is leaving as GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service commissioner; Laura Stanton, the FAS deputy, will serve as acting commissioner starting today until a permanent replacement is named. Stanton has nearly 29 years at GSA, and sources say Gruenbaum’s next move may be with White House foreign-affairs work. OneGov, the agency’s IT-contract consolidation program, continues under Stanton, with GSA citing more than $1.1 billion in savings and participation from at least 16 CFO Act agencies.
Forest Service Unveils Broad Reorganization, Moving HQ to Utah and Shrinking Research Footprint
The Forest Service unveiled a sweeping reorganization that would move its headquarters to Salt Lake City, shutter 57 of its 77 research facilities and all nine regional offices, and relocate hundreds of staff, with the agency saying it will press ahead even without Congress approval. The plan would affect thousands of employees—about 6,500 tied to the HQ move and 2,700 to closures—while a FY 2027 budget would cut roughly 800 of its 1,110 research scientist positions, prompting union and lawmaker concerns over details and staffing impacts. The agency argues the changes would shift resources toward on‑the‑ground forests, with some staff potentially absorbed by states or universities, and a related study on consolidating wildland firefighting across agencies is planned after prior congressional pushback.