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States, cities and businesses should not expect to be rescued by the federal government if a flu pandemic strikes, warns a draft of the latest national response plan, one already under fire from critics who say federal preparations are moving too slowly.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is closing its long-term recovery office in New Orleans, claiming local officials failed to meet their planning obligations after Hurricane Katrina.

Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff said Tuesday he is "very confident" that federal officials are ready for the upcoming hurricane season.

A Senate committee on Tuesday brought the General Services Administration's ongoing internal reorganization one step closer to completion, according to GovExec, by unanimously approving a House bill that would merge the agency's two separate revolving funds.

Unions and some legislators are supporting a bill that would prevent the Army Corps of Engineers from outsourcing 2,000 jobs involving work on nearly 200 dams across the country, reports GovExec. The 2006 Federal Locks and Lock and Dam Facilities Act introduced last week would define as "inherently governmental" the operation and maintenance of locks and dams. That designation would prevent the Army Corps from conducting a public-private job competition under the rules of the Office of Management and Budget's Circular A-76.

He is the new face of the Pentagon. And between the National Security Personnel System, the war on terror, and Iraq, the new press secretary at the Defense Department, Eric Ruff says he's already hit the ground running.

Does the judicial branch of the federal government needs its own inspector general? Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, thinks so, and has introduced legislation creating the position. According to FederalDaily, the new IG would provide credibility and accountability to the judicial branch, Grassley said.

President Bush said he will nominate Sheila Bair, a Treasury Department official in the early years of his administration, to head the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

A Homeland Security Department press aide has waived extradition on charges of sexually preying on a Polk County detective who was posing on the Internet as a 14-year-old girl, authorities said.

How about this for a hedge against inflation _ a postage stamp that stays valid for mailing a letter no matter how much rates may go up.

Security & Defense

The government has drawn up its first strategy aimed at limiting terrorists' ability to travel, though acknowledging the U.S. could be years away from successfully clamping down on the threat.

The federal government may ask contractors to help pay for processing security clearance applications for their workers, industry sources said following the Defense Department's recent decision to temporarily stop processing clearances for contractors, according to WashingtonTechnology.

The Bush administration is seeking to develop a powerful ground-based laser weapon that would use beams of concentrated light to destroy enemy satellites in orbit, reports the New York Times. Last week a House Armed Services subcommittee moved unanimously to cut research money for the project in the administration's budget for the 2007 fiscal year. The full committee is expected to take up the budget issue today. (registration required)

Although the Pentagon has strengthened the armor on more than 50,000 Humvees and other military vehicles throughout Iraq and Afghanistan, roadside bombs have killed more U.S. troops this year, Pentagon records show. USA Today reports most are dying in their Humvees.

Chief Master Sgt. Rodney McKinley has been tapped as the next chief master sergeant of the Air Force, reports Stars & Stripes. As the service's top enlisted airman, McKinley becomes the official "voice" of the enlisted corps and represents its interests before other Pentagon and government departments, Congress, and the American public.

Pay and Benefits

The National Treasury Employees Union is calling for an increase in the rate at which federal employees who drive personal vehicles on government business are reimbursed for the miles they travel, reports GovExec. The current rate of 44.5 cents per mile is inadequate, due to a recent rise in gasoline prices, said Colleen Kelley, the union's president.

Credit history will no longer be a mandatory factor in the criteria for a federal employee obtaining a purchase card. FedNews reports OMB Acting Director Clay Johnson says the change more accurately reflects current policy and legislative intent. The new rules also allow centrally-billed travel accounts and purchase card accounts to be treated the same as purchase card accounts.

One of the complaints against Washington-based politicians is that they can't make up their minds. FederalNewsRadio's Senior Correspondent, Mike Causey says that may or may not be right.

Congressional support for a higher-than-requested pay raise for military troops - from 2.2 percent to 2.7 percent - has some federal employee advocates arguing for a similar raise for civilians. FederalTimes reports the House Armed Services committee is scheduled to vote on the bill today. The average pay gap between civil service and private-sector employees is 13 percent, nearly three times higher than the military's, according to the Office of Personnel Management.

U.S. troops stationed throughout continental Europe can expect to see a bit more money in their next paycheck, reports Stars & Stripes, as the cost-of-living allowance was increased for the first time since March. Some will see a roughly 16 percent increase. COLA adjustments for civilians are determined by the U.S. State Department. New rates for the May 1 pay period have yet to be posted on the agency's Web site.

Management

Charges against two Marines accused in a drill instructor's drowning should be dismissed, an investigator ruled, because the death was the result of "an institutional failure."

When mistakes occur, managers commonly make things worse by taking actions to ensure that a similar mistake "never happens again." But infallibility is an impossible goal. GovExec has a case in point for managers.

Not that it's anyone's goal, but the Baltimore Sun has a sure fire way to cost your agency years of experience and talent.

Procurement

What do a foreign entrepreneur, a casino owner, and Tom Ridge have in common? TWIC. WashingtonTechnolgy reports several U.S. biometric ID card companies are urging Congress to overturn a law that would award of a significant part of the upcoming Transportation Workers Identification Credential a sole-sourced, noncompetitive contract to a company backed by an foreign entrepreneur and casino owner, and subcontracted to a company whose board of directors includes former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.

The Government Accountability Office on Tuesday urged the Pentagon to delay its purchases of a General Dynamics combat vehicle, according to MarketWatch, saying the $12.6 billion program is too risky to move forward. In a new report, GAO said the Pentagon didn't test the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle enough during its design phase.

Technology

Radar and radio, used since World War II to track aircraft from the ground, will eventually give way to a new satellite-based navigation technology, the FAA said Tuesday.

Yellowstone National Park officials, criticized for marring the landscape near Old Faithful geyser with a cellular phone tower, are quietly preparing a plan to cover any expansion of wireless towers, antennas and TV and radio services in the popular park.

And Finally...

During its short existence, TSA has been mocked in newspaper columns, editorial cartoons, comic strips, a parody song, even a Super Bowl commercial. Screeners themselves maintain a Web site that collects cartoons, satirical articles and parody images and songs. Most of the jokes on the screeners' site involve complaints about management.

(Compiled by the staff of FederalNewsRadio, 2006. Suzanne Kubota, editor.)