Federal Daily - August 15, 2008

GAO: Army Making Headway on Ft. Monmouth Move

The Army is making progress in ensuring it does not lose intelligence-gathering capabilities when it moves high-tech intelligence jobs from Fort Monmouth, N.J., to Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., said a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. The report, dated Aug. 13, looked at the challenges the Army was facing in moving its Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) jobs to Maryland. The move is part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) recommendations and must be completed by Sept. 15, 2011. While the report was positive, GAO noted that some challenges remain. For example, the Army must hire a projected 3,700 federal civilian employees to fully reconstitute its expected workforce authorization of about 5,100 civilians at Aberdeen. Additionally, the Army must obtain personnel security clearances for nearly all of its newly hired employees in a timely manner. The Army also faces infrastructure challenges in completing the construction of facilities to accommodate C4ISR personnel, and handle relocation of personnel and equipment to Aberdeen, the report said. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., called the report “a reaffirmation of the BRAC recommendations to consolidate missions at Aberdeen Proving Ground,” and said it “provides assurance that plans are in place to support the smoothest possible transition” of missions and jobs between the two locations. To see more, go to: www.gao.gov/new.items/d081010r.pdf.

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More Wrongdoing May Emerge at MMS, Top Deputy Warns

One former special assistant within the Mineral Management Service (MMS) has pleaded guilty to felony charges, but more wrongdoing at the agency may be announced in his wake as other investigations wrap up, said Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). On Aug. 13, PEER posted on its Web site an all-workforce email that MMS Director Randall Luthi sent out last week to tell employees to brace themselves for the possibility of other similar announcements of illegal activity within the agency. Luthi was reacting to the guilty plea last month of former Associate Director of Minerals Revenue Management Jimmy Mayberry, who admitted that he violated the conflict of interest law governing post-employment work. According to plea documents in the case, Mayberry and his supervisor explored ways Mayberry could return to work for the department after his official retirement. This resulted in the creation of a consulting position which—although required by law to be won through open competition—was designed to guarantee that only Mayberry could win it, according to the documents. Mayberry faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, and a fine of $250,000. In the email, Luthi noted: “I understand there are more possibilities of similar announcements as some IG and other investigations are wrapping up.” He also pointed out that “little attention is given to the thousands of employment contracts that are properly secured and the 1,700 plus employees who do their jobs every day without the specter of impropriety.” To see more, go to: www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row_id=1090, www.peer.org/docs/doi/08_13_8_mms_all_employee_e-mail.pdf or www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/July/08-crm-672.html

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Army Announces ROTC Critical Language Incentive

The Army on Aug. 13 announced the launch of a financial incentive pilot program for recruiting new college Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets who take courses in critical foreign languages such as Arabic and Chinese-Mandarin—and make a military commitment. New ROTC cadets who sign a contract to enter the Army are eligible for the new Critical Language Incentive Pay Program starting this fall. The program pays $100 a month for the first year of participation, $150 a month for the second, $200 a month for the third, and $250 a month for the fourth. The payments cap at a maximum $3,000 over an academic year. In addition to Arabic, Persian and Chinese, other languages covered by the program include Korean, Pashto, Urdu, Indonesian, Swahili, and Hausa, which is spoken in west and central Africa, the Army said in a statement. In addition to standard classroom-based college language courses, the program also covers participation in language immersion and study abroad programs. The incentive plan is part of an overall pilot program Congress approved to help the Army recruit officers. To see more, go to: www.army.mil/-newsreleases/2008/08/13/11649-army-announces-critical-language-incentive-pay-program.

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