After several months of negotiations, we are proud to announce the 2022 National Agreement Consolidated Pass-Through Provisions memorandum. We are grateful to Chief Human Capital Officer Kevin McIver, Director of Labor/Employee Relations & Negotiations Christina Ballance, the Human Capital Advisory Council, and the Human Capital Board for their time and consideration in hearing PMA's concerns and reviewing our suggestions.
Too often, our members are told that "managers do not have any rights." This is false. While there are some flexibilities in leading the non-bargaining unit (e.g., BODs may have different policies relating to voluntary relocations), our members are still civil servants. OPM regulations, such as those related to travel comp, apply to everyone. The same goes for IRS workforce policies in IRM 6. In addition, we now have a written commitment from the agency that specific provisions of the National Agreement pertain to our members.
The 2022 pass-through memo is the most comprehensive in recent history with portions of 13 additional articles passing through to the non-bargaining unit. That's more than double the total number of articles than were added in the last 15 years combined.
Thank you to all of our active members who participated in this year's board election. We are excited to announce our new slate of directors for the upcoming board term, which begins on July 1st.
Congratulations to our incumbent directors Jeffery Eppler (W&I), Shari Ketterman (HCO), and Carlos Zepeda (LB&I) who were reelected to serve another term on our board. We warmly welcome two new directors to our board - Pamela McBride (W&I) and Linda Ortiz (EDI). One of our current directors, Teresa Adams (Appeals), will be taking a break from board service and we look forward to her joining us again in the future. You can still read the winners' candidate statements.
Our National Board will meet at the end of June to transition, review our annual budget, and discuss some of our large-scale initiatives for the next fiscal year. We can't wait to share what we have in store for our members as we wrap up our 40th anniversary celebration.
Some of our members delay retirement because they are afraid they will be bored, while some of our lifetime members are looking for ways to use their deep knowledge of tax administration. They love feeling engaged and helping others tackle a challenge.
If this sounds like you, or like someone you know, please come to our webinar on Thursday, June 9th, at 2PM Eastern. You can learn more about opportunities for former IRS leaders, examiners, agents, and criminal investigators with the Treasury Department's Office of Technical Assistance (OTA), PMA's newest partner.
OTA is a unique part of our government that provides support and coaching to developing and transitioning countries around the world to help them become self-sufficient. In turn, this helps nations rely less on foreign aid and it provides an opportunity for our members and lifetime members to use their wealth of knowledge to give back in a rewarding way - all while earning extra money in retirement.
This Zoom webinar is free and open to all. PMA recommends using your personal device for the best experience. We encourage you to share this information with your network to help get the word out about these exciting projects. Register today!
This year, the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) will begin earlier with the aim of improving participation. We strenuously encourage all of our members to participate in FEVS and to please encourage your teams to participate as well. FEVS participation was at its lowest in 2021 and we need to hear from as many people as possible in order to improve the IRS, and the federal government.
We acknowledge that the FEVS process sometimes doesn't lead to changes as immediately as we would like to see and that this can cause people to disengage from participating. However, PMA works very closely with OPM and they make decisions and allocate resources based upon FEVS results. The scores may not lead to immediate change but they are very, very important to our work. Please be sure to keep an eye out for those invitations beginning next week. Read more on IRS Source
It's not too late to join #TeamPMA as we continue to celebrate our official charity's 36th anniversary. We have just over a week left to make an impact. The Federal Employee Education & Assistance Fund's (FEEA) Feds In Motion Challenge is all about moving in your favorite way — walk, run, bike, swim, or roll on your favorite route — to reach the goal of 36 miles (or more!) in 36 days. Click here to register for the celebration. If you have coworkers or friends who haven't registered yet, please share far and wide. All are welcome on #TeamPMA and thank you to all who've joined the team so far!
Challenge registrants will receive t-shirts, participation medals, digital bibs, an easy tool to upload your mileage anytime to the leaderboard, digital finisher certificates, fun digital badges for mileage milestones and fundraising achievements, special Wellness Wednesday events with prize drawings, other cool swag from FEEA's sponsors, and prizes for top fundraisers. Be sure to sign up today! We are also using this as an opportunity to raise some money for FEEA to help Feds in need. Consider making a tax deductible donation.
PMA has been hard at work in DC this month on a number of different topics as we try to improve conditions for the Civil Service. It's appropriations season for FY23 so we will soon release our letters and testimony to appropriators regarding IRS needs and what we would like to see for your pay - adoption of the FAIR Act (5.1% increase).
We met with OPM on Friday and confirmed that they will, in fact, continue the Long Term Care Insurance program for another seven years with John Hancock as its underwriter. If you have a policy, you will receive a notice in the next week or two warning of a possible premium increase. OPM is currently negotiating the pricing of the contract and we will keep you updated as we learn more.
We met with the House minority last week and had a very positive conversation around the Chance to Compete Act, which will help to streamline the hiring process and improve IRS recruiting. We anticipate that Congress will pass this bill in the current session.
We also endorsed four pieces of legislation under consideration in the House that we believe will help to enhance the Service and our members' abilities to lead the agency:
• H.R. 6104, the Building the Next Generation of Federal Employees Act, will streamline the federal hiring and internship processes and make it easier, fairer, and advantageous for Americans to join public service and help the IRS recruit young people to federal service.
• H.R. 7683, the Artificial Intelligence Training for the Acquisition Workforce Act, will ensure that IRS procurement workers have the up-to-date technical knowledge required to make efficient, effective contracting decisions for AI technology.
• H.R. 4176, the LGBTQI+ Data Inclusion Act, would provide consistent, reliable Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) data for the federal workforce and will help the Service track retention and recruiting challenges for people experiencing bias in the workplace.
• H.R. 7331, the Improving Government for America’s Taxpayers Act, would centralize GAO's recommendations and require them to report the budgetary implications of those recommendations. This will help Congress understand the business case for IRS modernization more clearly as GAO has repeatedly echoed PMA's position that the IRS is an excellent investment.
Are you a federal worker or contractors applying to obtain or maintain a security clearance? An applicant for a “sensitive positions” in the federal government? An individual required to complete a SF-85 for federal or contract employment? A contractor attorneys or human resources professional advising applicants on completing SF-86 and SF-85 applications? Then you don't want to miss this presentation.
Join PMA's General Counsel, Shaw Bransford & Roth, on Wednesday, June 29th at 11AM Eastern to learn how to avoid the most common mistakes people make when completing their SF-85 or SF-86 that can delay or disqualify you from your job. Learn more and register. This event is open to all, presented via Zoom, and tickets are $30. Learn more
The CXO Fellows Program is a virtual professional development program that engages the next generation of federal leaders in acquisition/procurement, financial management/budget, human capital, information technology, and data. Throughout the year-long program, CXO Fellows have the opportunity to grow professionally and build a diverse network of rising leaders from across the federal government.
There is no cost to participate in this program. All CXO Fellows remain in their current positions at their home agency and come together approximately three times a month, from October to September, as a cohort for developmental sessions in leadership, cross-functional and interagency collaboration, and career development. In these sessions, CXO Fellows meet with leaders in the federal management community and gain valuable insight into innovative initiatives and best practices.
There are some participation guidelines for those who are considering applying. The following checklist offers the basic requirements for consideration:
• Candidates must be a GS 9-GS 13 (IR 5-IR 9) or equivalent;
• Candidates must work in acquisition/procurement, financial management/budget, human capital, information technology, or data;
• Candidates must seek supervisory approval to apply; and
• Candidates must be able to dedicate 10-15 hours a month to the program as sessions are held on Fridays.
To prepare for the CXO Fellows Program application, review the nominee questionnaire. Beginning May 1, 2022, apply online - eligible candidates have until June 10, 2022 to submit your application. For additional information on the program, review the digital brochure and see the CXO Fellows website. For questions, please contact cxofellowship@gsa.gov.
The Individual and Business Master Files (IMF, BMF) celebrate their 60th birthday this year! PMA wants to help Congress and the American public appreciate how badly the IRS needs modernization funding. Part of our IMF/BMF@60 campaign will feature facts and context to help frame the true age of our primary computing database. As a reminder, the IRS still relies on the oldest continually operating database in the entire federal government.
Feeling safe while traveling in our cars is something we often take for granted. When cars first became ubiqutious in American culture, they were thin on safety devices and design - and there were no regulations for uniform traffic signage, signals, or even how lines were painted on road surfaces. Through the 1950s, road fatalities were a public health crisis. In 1966, Congress established what is now the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to empower the federal government to regulate vehicle safety features and to create uniform standards for roadway design and markings. The agency began operating in 1970 and has contributed to a 58% decrease in traffic fatalities.
Finding seat belts in a car or truck is something we expect and it's difficult to recall a time when seat belts were an option from the dealer (and an unpopular option at that). Our computing databases are older than this period. Congress addressed the road safety crisis more than four years after we completed our first nationwide filing season using the current IMF/BMF. Seat belts became mandatory equipment in vehicles in 1968 - more than six years after the computing system you are currently using was implemented. Our databases had been operating for nearly a decade before we had uniform paint colors on road surfaces in our nation.
Join PMA's partner, the American Management Association, for a complimentary series offered from 12-12:30PM Eastern. If the day or time doesn't work for you, register anyhow - you can view a recording of the webcast afterward at your convenience.
• Coaching in a Virtual Environment on June 7th
• Communicating Effectively in a Virtual Environment on June 28th
• Best Practices of Managing a Virtual Workforce on July 19th
Last week, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja authorized a special CFC solicitation period that will open the CFC online donation portal through June 30, 2022. This special solicitation provides an opportunity for Federal employees, members of the military, postal workers, and retirees to create a new gift or an extra gift to support their favorite CFC-participating charities online or through the CFC mobile giving app. (The list is limited to the charities accepted by the CFC in 2021).
This special solicitation will provide for the following:
• One hundred percent (100%) of the gifts made in this campaign will go to charities (without a distribution fee).
• Funds pledged will be paid out to charities by the 15th day of the month following receipt of the pledge by the CFC Central Campaign Administrator.
• Any employee who did not pledge via payroll deduction in fall 2021 can make a payroll-funded gift through the CFC.
• Existing donors who pledged by payroll allotments in the fall of 2021 can make additional donations with electronic credit, debit, or ACH gifts on the CFC giving platform or the mobile app. (2021 Payroll pledges cannot be increased at this time.)
Donors can pledge to their choice of the more than 5,000 charities that were on the CFC Charity List. Many of these 501(c)(3) organizations are now working overtime, assisting refugees who need food, medical attention, housing, relocation, and other day-to-day needs. The CFC is uniquely positioned to supplement the Federal government’s overall response by allowing employees to pledge additional resources to charities and to those that are actively responding throughout the world. As a reminder, PMA's official charity, FEEA is CFC #11185.
