Another in Understanding Government’s “Public Service Announcement” series profiling the careers and challenges of notable government employees

By Norman Kelley

Einstein once remarked that it is more important to have an imagination than knowledge. In the case of Markham K. Smith, now a program manager with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), one led to the other.

As a child, Smith’s imagination was spurred by his mother’s admonishment not to lift the lid of the pot that was cooking rice, his favorite food.

“She would always say, “Don’t lift the lid off the pot! Do not touch the pot!’” he remembers.

Intrigued, Markham wondered why he could not lift the cover to see inside. “So, as a little kid I had the idea that I was going to invent see-through cookware so I could see what going on in that pot while that rice was cooking.”

Little did he know that his mother’s command was actually stirring the pot of his imagination, leading him years later to work for the Defense Dept., managing programs devised to thwart chemical or biological Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs). Working at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) at Ft. Belvoir, Virginia, Smith is one of the people protecting America’s armed service members from chemical and biological weapons, a job that could have important implications if the U.S. faces a terrorist or military attack.

DTRA was organized in 1998 as part of the U.S. Strategic Command to help face the threat of weapons of mass destruction. The agency’s brief includes detecting, stopping, and providing protection in the event of chemical and biological attacks on American military forces or the US public at large. DTRA’s mission is to think through possible threat scenarios and devise ways to neutralize them.

“We are the science and technology arm of the Chemical and Biological Defense program,” explains Smith. (more…)

The U.S. Census Bureau Tries to Manage an Unprecedented Hiring Blitz

By Matthew Blake

Heading into March, the current unemployment rate hovers near double digits, with almost fifteen million  Americans jobless. These numbers will be a little less grim this spring – temporarily, at least – when the U.S. Census Bureau goes on a six-week hiring blitz.

The Commerce Department, of which the Census Bureau is part, is touting these job creation statistics: because of the Census, Commerce says, 800,000 jobs will be created, the unemployment rate will go down, and the economy will even grow. Here in Chicago, the possibility of earning $18.25 an hour to ask people how old they are has raised the spirits of some of the city’s unemployed and underemployed. “It’s not really taxing, it’s flexible and the pay is decent,” says Noah Lepawsky, 32, of Chicago, a recent applicant for a census-taker position. There are lingering concerns, though, about whether the Obama administration is up to the task of what Census Bureau Director Robert Groves calls “the largest non-military mobilization in the United States.” (more…)

Credit card debt is an embarrassment, but it’s a reality for many Americans, me included.   So it’s nice to see that what the White House and Congress vowed to do is actually happening.  Government has changed the way banks calculate credit card debt and has made it harder for them to keep you on the hook by camouflaging usurious practices.  Consider these sensible sentences I got in the mail this week from my good friends at Chase: (more…)

Washington Post

At health-care summit, Obama tells Republicans he’s eager to move ahead – Shailagh Murray and Anne E. Kornblut report on the extraordinary public meeting that highlighted philosophical differences between parties; Obama and Democrats say they will move on health care legislation with or without Republican support

Professor Obama schools lawmakers on health-care reform – Dana Milbank says the president’s skills were on display as he took command of meeting

Rep. Rangel’s trips broke congressional gift rules, panel says – Paul Kane reports on House ethics panel’s finding, five other Congress members cleared

Senate demands that FAA make reforms in the way pilots commute to work – The Associated Press reports that Senators pressed regulators to prevent pilots from commuting long distances, factor in commuter crash in Buffalo last year

Prominent Harvard law professor joins Justice Department – Carrie Johnson reports that constitutional law scholar and Supreme Court practitioner will focus on legal services for the poor

Hillary Clinton criticizes former Fed chairman Alan Greenspan’s oversight – Reuters reports on the Secretary of State’s strong rebuke of Greenspan at congressional hearing on State Department’s budget

Probe: Did big U.S. banks contribute to the financial crisis in Greece? – Neil Irwin and Zachary A. Goldfarb report that the Fed and the SEC are investigating whether Goldman Sachs, other companies hid Greece’s debt, sign of country’s financial instability

FDIC to test principal reduction for underwater borrowers – Renae Merle reports that the FDIC is considering “earned principal forgiveness” plan for homes worth less than outstanding mortgage; move follows government’s lack of success in reducing foreclosures

Lawmakers question GMAC rescue – Binyamin Applebaum reports that panel overseeing bailout called into question government’s bailout of auto financing company

VA to reopen Gulf War vets’ files – Kimberly Hefling of the Associated Press reports that the Veterans Affairs Department will take a new look at claims that illnesses were tied to Gulf War

Direct student loans: a better way to invest in education – The Secretary of Education advocates for administration’s proposal to cut money to banks servicing student loans and instead spend it on the loans themselves

Coffee Party activists say their civic brew’s a tastier choice than Tea Party – Dan Zak reports on counter-movement that seeks to engage, rather than fight government

Hope, worry about settlement of discrimination suit with black farmers – Krissah Thompson reports on the hard part following successful lawsuit against the government – getting Congress to cough up the money

New York Times

Uniting Democrats is challenge at health forum – David M. Herszenhorn comments on Democrats’ challenge on health care – getting centrists within their party to support it

In tax law, an overdue overhaul a step, with miles to go – Floyd Norris reports on unusual bipartisan effort to remove tax giveaways, finds opening in debt-conscious Congress

4^th-quarter growth stronger than first estimated – The Associated Press reports on Commerce Department data showing end of 2009 growth strongest in six years, but analysts don’t expect it to continue

A.I.G. reports $8.87 billion loss in 4^th quarter – The Associated Press reports on bailed out insurance company’s SEC filing; company says it might need additional government help

Wall Street Journal

Push to oversimplify at climate panel – Jeffrey Ball and Keith Johnson explain challenge of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change:  translating complex information accurately and without pushing an agenda

Obama makes pick for debt commission – The Associated Press reports on selection of former Fed vice-chair, others to panel recommending debt reduction measures

Illinois seeks to boost taxes, cut spending – Amy Merrick looks at Governor’s plan to address state’s financial crisis

Biden to announce proposal to protect retirement savings – Henry J. Pulizzi reports that the Vice-president will recommend measures for Labor Department action, result of Middle Class Task Force

– compiled by Marci Greenstein

Gov. Pat Quinn

The Wall Street Journal’s Amy Merrick has a good piece on the budget deficit facing Illinois. The state faces a $13 billion deficit, an astounding figure since the state’s annual budget is about $26 billion. One way that Gov. Pat Quinn is trying to “solve” the deficit is citizen involvement:

In the Web posting, the governor’s office encouraged residents to offer their own budget fixes. “We want them to be engaged in the budget process,” said Kelly Kraft, a spokeswoman for the governor’s office of management and budget. (more…)

The Washington Post’s Carrie Johnson reports that Harvard law professor Laurence Tribe — who has been occasionally rumored for a Supreme Court position — will actually take a position in the Justice Dept. to work as an advocate for legal access to the poor. Perhaps Tribe can give visibility to the plight of public defenders who often handle 100 cases at a time  — representing accused criminals who cannot afford a lawyer. Or maybe we’ll never hear from Tribe again. But it’s a sign that the administration is committed to improving the Justice. Dept. civil rights division.

Here is an innovative government contracting reform policy proposal from the Obama administration that A.) might improve the lives of millions of workers and B.) might actually get enacted. The New York Times’ Steven Greenhouse reports:

By altering how it awards $500 billion in contracts each year, the government would disqualify more companies with labor, environmental or other violations and give an edge to companies that offer better levels of pay, health coverage, pensions and other benefits, the officials said.

Because nearly one in four workers is employed by companies that have contracts with the federal government, administration officials see the plan as a way to shape social policy and lift more families into the middle class. It would affect contracts like those awarded to make Army uniforms, clean federal buildings and mow lawns at military bases.

These changes could happen via executive order. The George W. Bush administration abandoned requirements that government contracting companies should not have past environmental and labor law violations, absent Congressional approval. The Obama administration could bring them back and more.

Here’s one reason for these changes: The number of federal employees has stagnated at 1.8 million for decades — these employees are unionized and get decent wages and generous benefits. Then there is the 7.5 million shadow government workforce of private contractors who do essential  government tasks but are all over the map in terms of wages and benefits. In the name of equality and workplace morale it makes sense to have civil servants and contractors — who often work side-by-side — to have similar wages and benefits.

Washington Post

Obama may compromise on consumer agency to pass financial regulation – David Cho and Brady Dennis report that the administration is no longer insisting on a separate consumer agency; proposal to limit bank investments a hard sell

At Toyota hearings, auto safety agency feels the heat – Kimberly Kindy reports that Transportation Department’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration was roundly criticized for failing to do its job at high profile hearings about Toyota defects

Senate easily approves jobs bill; House passes health insurance anti-trust bill – Ben Pershing and Perry Bacon, Jr. report on passage of popular measures, but antitrust reform not likely to move forward in crowded agenda

At Homeland Security, contractors outnumber federal workers – Ed O’Keefe reports that DHS Secretary blames numbers on agency’s quick start-up, government hiring process

Bernanke seeks to preserve Fed’s power by compromising with Congress – Neil Irwin reports that the Fed Chairman’s tone and compromise proposals seek to derail efforts to limit his authority

Hoping to prevent stock meltdown, SEC passes short-selling rules –Zachary A. Goldfarb reports that the agency voted along party lines to limit practice that depresses stocks already in decline

A viewer’s guide to the health-care summit – Ezra Klein cuts through the posturing to point out the key issues in today’s health-care summit

Washington rancor angers bipartisan minded Pennsylvania town – As the bipartisan health summit is about to begin, Paul Kane looks at one town’s view of Washington politics

Officials puzzle over millions of dollars leaving Afghanistan by plane for Dubai – Andres Higgins reports that U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration suspects huge amount of cash includes drug money from opium trade

Alleged Stanford fraud victims want money that was given to campaign committees – Dan Eggen reports that a court will decide whether swindled investors can recoup campaign contributions made with their money

New York Times

Health executive defends premiums – Robert Pear reports that health insurance executives justify rates hikes, say legislation would make matters worse

C.I.A. and Pakistan work together, but do so warily – Mark Mazzetti and Jane Perlez report on the uneasy alliance of CIA and its Pakistani counterpart

Radiation errors reported in Missouri – Walt Bogdanich and Rebecca R. Ruiz report that over-radiation of patients is widespread; hospital says FDA’s proposed oversight not tough enough

As U.S. aid grows, oversight is urged for charter schools – Sam Dillon reports that Congress wants more oversight as federal dollars for charter schools increases

Vermont Senate votes to close nuclear plant – Matthew L. Wald reports that state is running against the tide of on nuclear energy because of plant leaks, Nuclear Energy Commission to investigate misstatements by plant operators

For donors to Governors’ association, cash buys a seat at the table – David D. Kirkpatrick follows the money and influence of political donations by corporations, unions

As Senate majority shifts, so does view of a procedural power play – Jackie Calmes explains how budget “reconciliation” process may move major legislation

Sago, four years later – Times Editorial Board urges Congress to reform mine-safety inspections

Wall Street Journal

Toyota parts seller probed – Jeff Bennett and Peppi Kiviniemi report that the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division is coordinating investigation of  auto supply “cartel” with Europe, Japan, unrelated to Toyota safety issues

Illegal workers slip by system – Louise Radnofsky and Miriam Jordan report that Department of Homeland Security program to catch illegal workers falls short, research group says

Defense Department restarts aerial-tanker contest – Ann Keeton reports that the Pentagon revised bidding rules for $35 billion contract for refueling tankers, but only Boeing may qualify

U.S. refines quake alerts – Gautam Naik reports on progress of National Earthquake Information Center, agency of U.S. Geological Survey, in monitoring earthquakes

– compiled by Marci Greenstein

USA Today’s Alan Levin reports on a three-day hearing by the National Transportation Safety Board into the safety of metro public transit systems (a hearing brought about by last June’s subway crash in Washington):

Peter Goelz, the NTSB’s former managing director, said systems such as Washington’s Metro have no incentive to improve safety. “What’s going to happen to them?” Goelz said. “It’s not like an airline and you can ground them.”

Unlike heavy rail, airlines and highway transportation, safety on the nation’s 40 subway and light-rail systems is overseen by state agencies, not the federal government. More than 4 billion passengers a year travel on these systems, according to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

The Tri-State Oversight Commission, which oversees safety in Washington’s subway system, has six employees, five of whom have other duties and work part time on the issue.

Last fall, the Obama administration proposed tightening the rules to give the Federal Transit Administration greater control. States could continue to oversee transit safety but would have to follow new federal regulations. States could opt out of oversight and turn that responsibility over to the federal government. Legislation that would require the changes was introduced in the Senate on Monday.

This nicely illustrates how public transit safety is a secondary concern. The use of public transit has never really been part of a national transportation plan that is mostly focused on planes and cars. So it does make sense that regulation is de-centralized. By that logic, new federal regulations would suggest an acknowledgment of public transit’s national importance.

The Wall Street Journal’s Louise Radnofsky and Miriam Jordan report that E-verify, the Dept. of Homeland Security program to catch illegal immigrant workers, isn’t catching illegal immigrant workers. E-verify’s social security check was only able to catch 1 in 2 illegal workers. E-verify is now required for all businesses that contract with the government. Other companies that want to show they’re on the up-and-up have also started using the program. You might be excited, upset or ambivalent about illegal immigrant workers. Regardless, the touted federal program to track these immigrants doesn’t work.