Federal Newscast

The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs passed a reconciliation bill to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection for fiscal year 2026. The bill includes $9.5 billion for CBP recruitment and nearly $7.5 billion for ICE recruitment for fiscal 2026. It also includes about $3.5 billion for other CBP operations funding through fiscal 2029, including procurement and implementation of artificial intelligence and machine learning for mission support. The bill passed with a vote of 8 to 5. The reconciliation bill comes after Congress shut down the Department of Homeland Security for a record-breaking 76 days earlier this year.
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The Postal Service could offer more government services by partnering with state, local and tribal governments, but the service hasn’t established a formal strategy to take advantage of this. The USPS inspector general says in a new white paper that USPS hasn’t explored these opportunities even though the Postal Reform Act of 2022 gave it the authority to partner with non-federal governments to expand service offerings. The OIG suggests expanding service offerings using the USPS’s already substantial infrastructure, including implementing identity verification for aid programs, DMV and IRS kiosks for assistance and fingerprinting for professional licenses. Post offices could even use their roofs to install internet equipment in disconnected communities and use data sensors on delivery trucks to collect data on road and air quality. The OIG says USPS can look to other countries, like Australia and France, that have successfully developed similar initiatives.
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Tax delinquency rates among federal employees and retirees have been increasing since 2021. That’s according to a new report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration that finds about 50,000 federal employees failed to file a tax return for multiple years, including 122 employees who have not submitted one for eight or more years. TIGTA says the suspension of some collection programs during the COVID-19 pandemic is partly to blame for this increased delinquency. The program that collects this information, the Federal Employment/Retirement Delinquency Initiative, saw a staff reduction of 50% last year. TIGTA didn’t include recommendations in its report, but says it has referred cases to IRS Criminal Investigations.
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Senators have unanimously agreed to a resolution that would withhold their paychecks during future government shutdowns. The bipartisan resolution comes amid increasingly longer and more frequent shutdowns. Historically, lawmakers continue getting paid during a funding lapse, while many federal employees have to endure the financial strain of missed paychecks. The Senate resolution will take effect after the general election on November 3rd. It does not apply to the House.
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House lawmakers are pushing to bolster the Transportation Security Administration’s budget by ending the diversion of airline ticket fees. Lawmakers on the Homeland Security Committee this week introduced a bill that would require the 9/11 Passenger Security Fee to be solely dedicated toward aviation and airport security. Since 2014, roughly $15 billion in fees have been diverted to the Treasury for deficit reduction. TSA officials have said allowing the agency to use all of the fee revenue would speed up airport security technology upgrades.
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