State & Local Pension Investments Grow, Recovery Continues, & GovCon Prospects Improve

Deltek Sr. Analyst Chris Cotner reports. The U.S. Census rather quietly produced a report this month on public employee retirement systems. Overall, pension news is very good and improving, with balances improving in FY 2010 after two straight years of losses. For FY 2010, cash and investment holdings for state-administered pensions increased to $2.2 TrillionRead… Read more »

Beyond Granite Design Competition Announced

From the National Capital Planning Commission: “The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC), in cooperation with the General Services Administration (GSA), is sponsoring a design competition for a new temporary outdoor commemorative installation in Washington, DC with the goal of enhancing a prominent but underutilized public space in the city’s monumental core while fostering a publicRead… Read more »

Your Brand Sucks

Do a quick google search for the strongest brands in the world and you’ll find Google, IBM, and Apple near the top. All three of these companies demonstrate how a good brand can go a long way towards building up a lifetime of goodwill with customers. So it made me wonder: Are agencies missing anRead… Read more »

Fluent in Mandarin? Consider a Consular Adjudicator Limited Non-Appointment with the U.S. Department of State

U.S. citizens who are fluent in Mandarin have an opportunity to apply to become a Consular Adjudicator. Work in U.S. embassies or consulates in China for up to five years. Learn about the possibilities. Visit http://goo.gl/EiLZ and apply no later than February 29 at Midnight EST. U.S. citizenship is required. The U.S. Department of StateRead… Read more »

Sunlight Foundation: 2Day in #OpenGov 1/30/2012

Policy Fellow Matt Rumsey wrote this post. Here is the week’s first look at transparency-related news items, congressional committee hearings, transparency-related bills introduced in Congress, and transparency-related events. News Roundup: Campaign Finance Democratic politicians have assaulted Republicans over their use of “unlimited secret money” in recent days. At the same time, the party has beenRead… Read more »

Aging locks and dams – a ‘scary’ situation for Pittsburgh area #WRDA

The lack of funding for our nation’s inland navigational arteries is reaching a point of crisis. Much of the nation’s critical inland navigation infrastructure is crumbling, and not much is being done to resolve the funding shortfall needed to upgrade old locks and dams. Western Pennsylvania’s 23 locks are old and, in some cases, crumbling,Read… Read more »

Want to do usability testing on your federal website but don’t have funds or staff?

You could win a free usability test through GSA’s First Fridays Product Testing Program.“Win a Free Website Usability Test” Video Contest Details at go.usa.gov/n3e – Enter now till February 29Submit a video (two minutes or less) addressing why your governmentwebsite or web application is a good candidate for a free usability test. We want toRead… Read more »