Article Title: Social Security, best day to retire and other life questions
Snippet of Article: "...The answer to this question for 2017 (and for most years) is Jan. 3, whether or not it is at the end of a pay period. However, in some years the leave year ends on a date before..."
Article Title: Workers’ Comp for Federal Employees
Snippet of Article: "...What Benefits Can A Federal Employee Obtain For an Injury...Benefits For Medical Treatments...Temporary Total Disability...Permanent..."
Article Title: FBI agent charged with acting as agent of China
Snippet of Article: "...A veteran FBI electronics technician – who had top secret clearance – was charged by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s office on Monday with acting as an agent of China.
The man was identified as Kun Shan Chun and also went by “Joey Chun..."
Article Title: FBI investigates hacking of Democratic Party organization
Snippet of Article: "...Emails among DNC employees were released by anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks over the weekend appearing to expose favoritism for presumptive Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over her chief rival in the primary contest, Senator Bernie Sanders.
The correspondence prompted the resignation of DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz on Sunday..."
Article Title: Trump could seek new law to purge government of Obama appointees
Snippet of Article: "...If he wins the presidency, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump would seek to purge the federal government of officials appointed by Democratic President Barack Obama..."
Article Title: Attorney general faces questions on Bill Clinton meeting, email probe
Snippet of Article: "...Goodlatte said the ensuing recommendation not to prosecute is 'uniquely troubling in light of' the 'secret meeting.'
'Were a rank-and-file federal employee to do what Secretary Clinton did, they would face severe punishment, including termination, revocation of security clearances, or criminal prosecution,' Goodlatte said in opening remarks at the hearing. 'Even Director Comey acknowledged this fact at a recent congressional hearing. But Secretary Clinton is not facing prosecution for her actions... Frankly, the FBI’s conclusion leaves many more questions than answers.'..."
Article Title: House Advances Feds’ Pay Raise, as Well as a Bonus Ban
Snippet of Article: "...Obama has already threatened to veto the House’s version of the spending bill, citing several areas of perceived underfunding and the blocking of many of the president’s policy initiatives..."
Article Title: Clinton sought secret info on EU bailout plans as son-in-law's doomed hedge fund gambled on Greece
Snippet of Article: "...newly released emails from 2012 show that she and Clinton Foundation consultant, Sidney Blumenthal, shared classified information about how German leadership viewed the prospects for a Greek bailout. Clinton also shared “protected” State Department information about Greek bonds with her husband at the same time that her son-in-law aimed his hedge fund at Greece...sharing such sensitive information with friends and family would have been highly improper. Federal regulations prohibit the use of nonpublic information to further private interests or the interests of others. The mere perception of a conflict of interest is unacceptable..."
Article Title: TSP’s 418 homegrown millionaires
Article Title: Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments
Snippet of Article: "...The Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment Authority, also known as buyout authority, allows agencies that are downsizing or restructuring to offer employees lump-sum payments up to $25,000 as an incentive to voluntarily separate. When authorized by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), an agency may offer VSIP to employees who are in surplus positions or have skills that are no longer needed in the workforce who volunteer to separate by resignation, optional retirement, or by voluntary early retirement, if approved. By allowing employees to volunteer to leave the Government, agencies can minimize or avoid involuntary separations through the use of costly and disruptive reductions in force (RIFs). Agencies such as the Department of Defense that have been granted agency-specific VSIP authority are not required to seek OPM approval for their use of this option..."
Article Title: Sanders campaign jumps on Obama's push to expand Social Security
Snippet of Article: "...The Sanders campaign quickly jumped on the President's remarks, sending out a news report about the statement to the reporters who cover the campaign.
"I applaud President Obama for making it clear that it is time to expand Social Security benefits," Sanders said in a statement. "Millions of seniors, disabled veterans and people with disabilities are falling further and further behind on $10,000 or $11,000 a year Social Security," he added..."
Article Title: The Generations: Which Generation Are You?
Snippet of Article: "...Gen Z: Born between 1995 and 2015, Gen Y: "The Millennials" Born between 1975 and 1995, Gen X: Born between 1961 and 1981, Baby Boomers: Born between 1945 and 1964, The Silent Generation: Born between 1923 and 1944, and The Greatest Generation: Born between 1910 and 1925..."
Article Title: Weak U.S. employment report dims prospect of Fed rate hike
Snippet of Article: "...The U.S. economy created the fewest number of jobs in more than 5-1/2-years in May as manufacturing and construction employment fell sharply, suggesting slippage in the labor market that could make it harder for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates...."
Article Title: Civil War battlefield looted, described as 'crime scene'
Snippet of Article: "...The park service says looting a federal battlefield is a crime, and violators can be fined as much as $20,000 and face two years in prison.
The siege of Petersburg is known as the longest military event of the Civil War, pitting Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant against Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee..."
Article Title: Bill to Require OPM to Report Annually on Official Time Moves Ahead
Snippet of Article: "...there is movement in Congress to learn more about how much time is used by federal employees who are paid their full salary and benefits while representing a union. A bill has now been referred to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union. The bill, as amended, would also require additional information on the amount of space provided for union..."
Article Title: FBI agents wounded in bid to nab reputed gang member; suspect dead in Park Forest
Snippet of Article: "...The deceased suspect was a reputed high-ranking member of the Black P Stone Nation street gang, according to a federal law enforcement source. FBI agents had gone to the home in the south suburb of Chicago to arrest him on charges of narcotics trafficking, part of a gang sweep involving several other ranking members of the gang..."
Article Title: Senate Passes Bill That Would Expose Saudi Arabia to Legal Jeopardy Over 9/11
Snippet of Article: "...A bill that would let the families of those killed in the Sept. 11 attacks sue Saudi Arabia for any role in the terror plot passed the Senate unanimously on Tuesday, bringing Congress closer to a showdown with the White House, which has threatened to veto the legislation..."
Article Title: Beware what you post: Federal employees may face government snooping on social media
Snippet of Article: "...The hearing comes as the Obama administration is preparing to announce a policy that officials have hinted will open the door to more searches of social media during those background checks .
The administration last month announced plans to test how the government could use such searches in those investigations, which determine eligibility to get–and keep–the security clearances that are required for many federal jobs..."
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Article Title: Former FBI agent admits to stealing money seized in drug probes to buy cars and plastic surgery
Snippet of Article: "...An FBI agent since 2005, Bowman was a member of an anti-gang task force that worked in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, according to his plea agreement filed in federal court..."
Article Title: Feds & Social Security: Have at least one Plan B
Snippet of Article: "...Although they were outside of the Social Security loop for decades, virtually all federal and postal workers hired since the mid-1980s now pay into and will receive Social Security when they retire. It is an important component of the FERS (Federal Employees Retirement System). Most retirees will live off their Social Security monthly benefit, their FERS annuity (which is about half of the CSRS benefit it replaced) and income from their Thrift Savings Plan..."
Article Title: Donald Trump's foreign policy: 'America first'
Snippet of Article: "...no American citizen will ever again feel that their needs come second to the citizens of foreign countries," Trump said.
He added, "My foreign policy will always put the interests of the American people and American security first."
..."
Article Title: Feds Seize Tons of Cocaine, Marijuana in Longest Cross-Border Drug Smuggling Tunnel Ever Discovered in California
Snippet of Article: "...the 13th sophisticated secret passage found along California’s border with Mexico since 2006, including three on the same short street in San Diego that runs parallel to a border fence with a densely populated residential area on the Mexican side. The unusually narrow tunnel was only about three feet wide, equipped with a rail system, lighting and ventilation..."
Article Title: Feds’ Long Term Care Insurance Premiums Will Rise Sharply in 2016
Snippet of Article: "...A new contract awarded Tuesday to John Hancock Life and Health Insurance Co. will result in larger out-of-pocket costs for Federal Long-Term Care Insurance Program enrollees in the fall of 2016, as first reported by Federal News Radio. OPM is still working with John Hancock to finalize the new rates..."
Article Title: Metro will resume rail service at 5 a.m. Thursday
Snippet of Article: "...Washington’s Metro system will resume rail service at 5 a.m. Thursday after an emergency one-day shutdown that caused disruption and anxiety in the region.
Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld said that inspectors had identified 26 areas where electrical cables ..."
Article Title: Postal employee deaths at Pontiac facility raise questions
Snippet of Article: "... This site is considered a brownfield. Brownfields are former
industrial or commercial sites where future use is affected by environmental
contamination. Brownfield sites are converted into usable space under the supervision
of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)..."
Article Title: Police Shooting of Oregon Occupier Declared Justified, but F.B.I. Faces Inquiry
Snippet of Article: "...Neither of the shots by the F.B.I. struck Mr. Finicum, investigators said. Rather, Mr. Finicum was shot and killed by three rounds fired by Oregon state officers, all of which struck him in the back, they said ..."
Article Title: FERS Annuity Supplement and Calculation
Snippet of Article: "...The FERS annuity supplement is paid in addition to gross monthly Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) annuity benefits. It represents what you would receive for your FERS civilian service from the Social Security Administration (SSA) and is calculated as if you were eligible to receive SSA benefits on the day you retired. If you retire voluntarily on an immediate annuity which is not reduced for age, you may be eligible for the annuity supplement..."
Article Title: Economists see mixed signals in latest U.S. jobs report
Snippet of Article: "...for an overall look at the labor market you need to dig deeper and see the labor force participation rate, how many people are long-term unemployed, how many are involuntarily in part-time jobs but looking for full-time jobs, how many are too discouraged to look for work and even participate in the labor market."
The number of long-term unemployed (2.1 million) has not changed substantially since June, according to the BLS ..."
Article Title: Governments, corporations and others really do have apps and tools to follow you
Snippet of Article: "...let’s take a look at some of the apps and tools used on the show, all of which actually exist and which you could also use..."
