NEWS: March 4, 2011

Public Workforce | The Nation
Congressman Vows Performance Pay for Feds
U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., who chairs the House panel that oversees federal workforce issues, said he aims to establish a pay-for-performance system for federal employees and that a hearing planned for next week will be his first step toward that goal.
>> Federal Times
California State-Worker Unions Sue to Stop Furloughs
Five California state-worker unions asked an Alameda County judge to order Gov. Jerry Brown to stop what they say are illegal three-a-per-month furloughs, arguing that the furlough policy exceeds limits set by the legislature.
>> Sacramento Bee

Public Pensions | The Nation
Economists: Public-Pension Shortfalls
Understated by $1.5 Trillion
The pension funds for state and local workers are understating the amount they will owe workers by $1.5 trillion or more, according to some economists. Doubts about government pension accounting have been voiced by analysts for years, and a push to refigure pension-fund shortfalls has gained political momentum.
>> Washington Post

Charlie White

Ethics | Indiana
Secretary of State Indicted
for Voting Fraud, Theft
Despite pressure from people in both parties, including Gov. Mitch Daniels, Republican Secretary of State Charlie White refused to step down after he was indicted by a county grand jury on felony charges of voting fraud, theft and perjury.
>> Indianapolis Star

The Military | The Nation
Censure of Four Top Officers Sought
over Raunchy Enterprise Videos
The chief of the Navy's Fleet Forces Command brought the hammer down on those who helped produce or knew of the controversial "XO Movie Night" video skits aired on the aircraft carrier Enterprise, recommending that the Navy secretary censure two admirals and two of the carrier's former executive officers.
>> Navy Times
'Don't Ask' Repeal Bringing ROTC Back to Harvard
The Reserve Officer Training Corps' four-decade exile from Harvard University campus is ending with an agreement that was spurred by a congressional vote allowing gays to serve openly in the military.
>> Boston Globe

Efficiency | Chicago
$400,000 in Savings Touted
from City's Car-Sharing Deal
Prodded by Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel, Mayor Richard Daley's administration entered into an agreement with the car-sharing giant Zipcar that city officials say will remove more than 100 vehicles from service and save $400,000 in fuel and maintenance costs by the end of 2012.
>> Chicago Sun-Times

Technology | The Nation
Federal Agencies Admit Poor Records Management
Four federal departments--Agriculture, Education, Justice and Transportation--rated themselves at high risk of failing to manage and preserve official records in 2010, according to a mandatory self-assessment survey of 270 agencies released by the National Archives and Records Administration.
>> Federal Computer Week
Congressional Leaders Push to Revive Real ID
Senior U.S. House Republican leaders called on the Obama administration to set a May 11 deadline for states that have not rejected federal rules requiring standardized digital identity cards to comply with the so-called Real ID rules.
>> CNET News
DHS Tested Covert Body-Scanning Technology
The Department of Homeland Security paid two contractors millions of dollars to develop and study surveillance systems that could covertly track pedestrians and check under people's clothing with airport-style body scanners, a privacy-rights group reported.
>> USA Today

Mary Malatesta

Public Officials | Denver
City Loses Third Safety Chief in a Year
Denver Manager of Safety Mary Malatesta is resigning from the position, citing personal reasons. It is the third resignation in less than a year by people holding the job, which oversees the police, fire and sheriff's departments.
>> Denver Post

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SPONSOR

VIEWPOINT
Economic Development
Michael Kinsley
Movie
Math Magic
New Mexico was a pioneer in state subsidies for film and television production. Now, 42 states have followed its lead. In less than a decade, the absurd notion of welfare for movie producers has evolved from the kind of weird thing they do in France to an unshakable American tradition. The statistical claims are suspect, to say the least.
>> Los Angeles Times

DATAPOINT
$6
Amount of economic activity in Michigan generated by every $1 the state gives up in film-tax incentives, according to a study commissioned by convention and visitors bureaus in four cities
>> Detroit Free Press

QUOTABLE
“Hideaway in Rockford!”
Title of a promotional campaign by the city of Rockford, Ill., an effort to capitalize on the national attention the city has received from hosting 14 Wisconsin Democratic state senators who fled their state in an effort to block a vote on Republican Gov. Scott Walker's proposal to slash public employees' collective-bargaining rights
>> The Daily Caller

UPCOMING
National Association of Counties
Legislative Conference
March 5-9 | Washington, D.C.

National Association of Attorneys General
Spring Meeting
March 7-9 | Washington, D.C.

Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education
Program on Crisis Leadership in Higher Education
March 7-10 | Cambridge, Mass.

Center for American Progress and Rutgers University School of Management
Discussion of the Present and Future of Workforce Development
March 8, 10 a.m.-noon ET | Washington, D.C.

Governing magazine
Webinar on a Simpler Approach to Business Intelligence: Lower Costs and Better Decisions
March 9, 2 p.m. ET

INPUT
Webinar on FY2010 Federal Budget Request: Insights and Implications
March 10, 2 p.m. ET | Washington, D.C.

American Society for Public Administration
Annual Conference
March 11-15 | Baltimore

>> Full events listings