'In tone and substance, the speech was the polar opposite of Biden’s inaugural address just 20 months ago. Then he pledged to bring the country together, using “unity” or similar words 15 times, as in this sequence: “My whole soul is in this: bringing America together, uniting our people, and uniting our nation.” ...'
'...US employers added 315,000 new jobs in August, far fewer than in July, as fears rise that the labour market is heading for a slowdown. The jobless rate rose to 3.7% from 3.5%, according to the figures from the US Labor Department....'
'Billionaire George Soros claimed the policies by the soft-on-crime district attorneys he supported are "popular." ...Billionaire George Soros, who’s funneled millions to district-attorney candidates that promise to keep criminals out of prison...He sees policing as something harmful that needs to be addressed. ...lawbreakers pay no price for their actions.'
'...That letter in almost all cases has repeated the raise proposal the President originally made in the early-year budget message to Congress—in this case for 4.6 percent....'
'...Trump said the search at his home amounted to "prosecutorial misconduct," that "such an assault could only take place in broken, Third-World Countries" and the U.S. is now "corrupt at a level not seen before." "I'm telling you, you're playing with fire," Rubio said. "This is dangerous, because someone else will be in power one day, and now you have created the precedent for them to do this back to you. ...'
'...If that happens, it will be the first time the COLA has reached double digits since it hit 11.2% in 1982, according to the Social Security Administration. This year’s COLA of 5.9% is the highest since 1981. As recently as last year the COLA was only 1.3%. If inflation runs “hot” — or higher than the recent average — the 2023 COLA could be 11.4%, said Mary Johnson, the Senior Citizens League’s Social Security and Medicare policy analyst. That would be the second-highest COLA since the SSA began ...'
'...Border authorities registered more than 239,000 encounters in May, as a growing number of migrants from Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, as well as Russia and Ukraine, sought to enter the country...'
'...The Postal Service reform legislation that President Biden signed into law on April 6 will involve changes to employees’ health and retirement benefits. USPS understands that employees have many questions, so here are a few things...'
'...Unfortunately, you may get a busy signal or unintentionally disconnected from your call while you are speaking with or are on hold for a representative...'
'...The financial disclosures contain a wealth of previously unknown information. For example, the Fauci household’s net worth exceeds $10.4 million...'
'...The Postal Service Reform Act repeals the burdensome 2006 mandate for the USPS to prefund its retiree healthcare benefits and aligns retiree healthcare with the best practices in the private sector that lower premiums for NPMHU members and our fellow postal employees as well as safeguarding benefits. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the legislation will save the federal government over $1.5 billion over the next ten years. ...'
'...WASHINGTON — Federal employees and military service members would receive average raises of 4.6 percent next January under...'
'...Black and Brown employees of federal contractors are expected to see as much as $3,500 per year in pay increases due to a Biden Administration executive order that took effect on Sunday. Many federal contractors who...'
'...The company can't blame the hike on financial hardship, at least. Amazon's net profit jumped nearly 57 percent in 2021 to $33.4 billion — the lingering COVID-19 pandemic has been good for Amazon's core shopping business....'
New Year. New Law. Beginning January 1, 2022, new federal protections will shield millions of consumers from surprise medical bills. Surprise medical bills – unexpected bills from an out-of-network provider, out-of-network facility or out-of-network air ambulance provider – is common among those with private insurance. Nearly one in five patients who go to the emergency room, have an elective surgery, or give birth in a hospital receive surprise bills, with average costs ranging from $750 to $2,600 per episode.
Learn about how the No Surprises Act can protect you from surprise medical billing. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
'...This report describes recent trends in the characteristics of annuitants and current employees covered by the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and the Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) as well as the financial status of the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund (CSRDF). ...'
'...President Biden pushing a radical plan to overhaul elections is nothing but a "power grab." "This is nothing but a power grab to take the right at the constitutional authority of states to manage their own elections, and it's a federal takeover of our elections...'
'...Inflation is soaring, and voters blame President Biden. A Morning Consult poll in late October showed 62 percent of registered voters believe Biden’s policies are to blame for rising prices on everything from turkeys to gasoline to apartment rents. Guess what? They should. ...'
'...The underlying issue is that while an individual’s locality pay rate is based on the location of the official duty station, for nearly two years many federal employees have been working exclusively, or nearly so, from other places—in some cases where the locality pay rate is lower, yet they continue to receive the higher rate. ...'
'...New data shows an uptick in errors...'
'...counseled federal employees who are completing their retirement applications and getting ready to transition from employee to annuitant, there are some important reminders I make sure to tell them. Here are the top three pro tips that every retiring federal employee should know:...'
'..."It's a group formed from several of us sheriffs all across the country," Arnott told the News-Leader. "It's a grassroots organization that is basically telling the American citizens that we need to stand up and that the sheriff is the last line of defense." The group is headed by Mark Lamb...'
'...“This is a real concern because what this is going to do is it is going to increase the number of infections because people are going to come back and they are still infectious,” said Sara Nelson, the President of the Association for Flight Attendants. “There’s no way of confirming they are not because there aren’t testing protocols. This is going to perhaps give a short-term relief to the staffing of these flights over this holiday season. But a long-term extension of the pandemic because of the change in policy.”...'
'...During the interview on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” host Margaret Brennan asked her about the one national security threat that keeps her up at night worrying. “Frankly, one of them is our democracy. ...'
'...Since Christmas falls on a Saturday this year, feds are likely to just get off that Friday. ...'
'...Rationing the sale of mayonnaise in South Korea was a factor in a federal union losing representation rights...'
'...To support the administration’s vaccination efforts, the Office of Personnel Management would like to remind agency human resources offices and the federal workforce of the leave policies associated with getting the booster shot.” Agencies must grant federal employees up to four hours of administrative leave to receive a vaccine booster shot...'
'...This mandate could result in more than a hundred thousand people being disciplined or fired for refusing to comply, even if those workers are otherwise excellent employees or if their loss will severely disrupt the government’s ability to function. ...'
'...Federal retirement claims processing is almost back to its pandemic peak. In August, claims took an average of two-and-a-half months — 93 days — to process, compared to 91 days in July and 78 days in June. This is the second-highest monthly processing time since...'
'...his comments were overwhelmed by protesters who accused him of being "a disgrace" and "a racist." Among the phrases hecklers hurled at Sharpton were "Why are you stoking racism where it doesn't exist?" and "How much money are you making out of this?" "Del Rio is not a racist city," someone shouted. "Del Rio is a loving, caring community. We don't want your racism in Texas. Get out of here! Nobody wants to hear your racist nonsense in Del Rio!...accused Sharpton of inciting 'violence and riots'...'
'...In a new revelation within the plan, the Postal Service said it will resume closing some of processing centers it never got around to shuttering after it paused the closures in 2015. USPS will use “data-driven analytics” to “strategically implement some of those consolidations where facilities remain underutilized...'
'...Normally this time of year, the issue of a federal pay raise in the following January is sort of a big deal. In a presidential year Democrats would often be pushing it big time while even conservative Republicans might look the other way or even join in to okay it...'
'...The White House directive was drafted in response to reports that mandatory trainings told employees in executive agencies that "virtually all white people contribute to racism," that racism is "embedded in the belief that America is the land of opportunity or the belief that the most qualified person should receive a job," or forced them to admit they "benefit from racism."...'
'...Claiming they are denied promotions and pay, reservists and guard troops are suing their civilian employers under a federal law designed to protect their civilian careers...'
'...Middle-class incomes are stagnant Despite gains in national income over the past half-century, American households in the middle of the distribution have experienced very little income growth in recent decades...'
'...Republican Sen. Susan Collins, of Maine, and Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, of Ohio, introduced legislation they call the “All-American Flag Act” that would require the government to buy flags produced entirely with U.S.-made materials. The flags would also have to be manufactured in the U.S...'
'...New withdrawal options are first up on the to-do list for the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB), the agency that administers the TSP. The new withdrawal flexibilities will be available for participants starting Sept. 15...'
'...The Relocation Expense Parity Act will ensure that all federal employees who qualify to have their moving costs reimbursed by the government are also repaid for the taxes owed on relocation reimbursements. “Straddling our loyal public employees with part of the cost of their employment-related relocation is not just wrong, it’s also a disservice to our workforce,” said Sen. Warner...'
'...do away with the FERS supplement for workers forced to retire before age 62, when Social Security kicks in. The Trump administration also proposed reducing payments to retirees by basing annuities on the average of workers’ highest five years of salary...'
'...More than nine out of 10 working Americans will make less than $132,900 this year, and will therefore be paying into the system on every dollar they earn. Mind you, only the self-employed will owe the 12.4% rate. If you're employed by someone else, you and your employer split the payroll tax liability down the middle, 6.2% each. This means just a single-digit percentage of the working population will sidestep paying tax on a portion of their earnings. But, in 2016, this "portion" equaled $1.2 trillion in earnings . At the 12.4% rate, that's $148.8 billion (nearly $150 billion) in revenue that Social Security is missing out on each year...'
