FederalDaily - July 12, 2005
EEOC Plans Reorganization of Field Offices
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted 3-1 last week to
approve a plan to make changes to the agency’s field offices. According
to EEOC, under the plan, no jobs will be lost, no offices will close and two
new offices will be opened, in Las Vegas, Nev., and Mobile, Ala. The plan reduces
the number of managers and administrators and increases front-line staff. “All
current offices will continue to provide a full range of services, and two
new offices will be opened in areas that need more service,” said EEOC
Chair Cari M. Dominguez.
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Curbing FEMA’s Fraudulent Payments
After finding that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) paid citizens
for fraudulent claims, Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Joseph Lieberman,
D-Conn., have made recommendations to the agency to help prevent wasteful spending.
The senators also released findings of an investigation by the Senate Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs Committee into FEMA's administration of its
disaster relief program during the 2004 Florida Hurricane Season. In a letter
to FEMA Director Michael Brown, Collins and Lieberman said FEMA needs to put
controls in place to ensure that assistance is provided to only those eligible
who have disaster-related needs.
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Air Force Contractors are Illegal Aliens
Almost 50 illegal aliens who worked as unauthorized contractors at the Seymour
Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina were recently arrested by special
agents of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The ICE led investigation
revealed that the workers had been hired by independent contractors who, in
turn, provided them to Parsons Evergreen and the Air Force base. The workers
allegedly used counterfeit identity documents to gain employment with the contract
companies, and ultimately gain access to the Air Force base. Those arrested
by ICE were charged with administrative violations of immigration law and will
be placed in deportation proceedings. Their home countries include Mexico ,
Honduras , El Salvador and the Ukraine.
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FAA Struggles with Air Traffic Control
Attempts to modernize the nation’s air traffic control (ATC) systems
by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are lagging, according to a report
released by the Government Accountability Office. Several problems cited in
the report have drawn the attention of House leaders, who are concerned that
the FAA is not doing enough to manage the implementation of several key systems. “Today’s
report…finds that while FAA has taken steps to address the challenges
associated with the acquisition of ATC systems, FAA still has more to do before
it’s cleared for take-off,” said Rep. Thomas M. Davis, R-Va., chair
of the House Government Reform Committee. Davis cited FAA problems keeping
the systems within budget and meeting scheduling and performance targets as
significant areas of concern, especially as the agency’s funding is set
to be trimmed by $2 billion over the next four years.
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