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Jory Heckman

@jheckman.bsky.social
322 followers 178 following 68 posts

Senior reporter at @GovExec covering the federal workforce & federal government | jheckman@govexec.com | Signal: jheckman.29 www.govexec.com/voices/jory-heckman…

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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
www.govexec.com/management/2...
govexec.com
Judge considers temporary pause in USDA relocations in new lawsuit
A federal judge in San Francisco said an administrative stay “doesn't say anything about the merits" of the case, but would give him more time to “adjudicate this properly.”
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
A federal judge in San Francisco says he's inclined to grant an administrative stay and temporarily block USDA from moving forward with imminent employee relocations. USDA's reorg was originally challenged in AFGE v Trump, but is now spun off as a new lawsuit w/ a new judge
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Reposted by Jory Heckman
Hansi Lo Wang (he/him) @hansilowang.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
BREAKING: Trump admin proposes major #2030Census changes that would reshape voting maps, including no race & ethnicity questions and excluding non-U.S. citizens without a green card from a count that 14th Amendment says must include “whole number of persons in each state” www.npr.org/2026/09/09/n...
npr.org
Trump officials propose sweeping changes to the census that would reshape voting maps
A Trump census proposal would stop asking about race and exclude millions of U.S. residents from a count that the 14th Amendment says must include the "whole number of persons in each state."
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Reposted by Jory Heckman
Natalie Alms @almsnatalie.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
The federal government’s landlord, is looking to increase its hiring after going through significant staffing cuts last year. “They realize they let go of too many people and were inundated, because the kids at DOGE didn’t know what they were doing,” one employee said.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
CDC is looking to rebuild trust in a workforce spread thin by staffing cuts. Its new director Dr. Erica Schwartz tells employees “there is no retribution for honest thought and honest conversation” under her leadership www.govexec.com/management/2...
govexec.com
New CDC chief looks to rebuild a workforce fearful of retaliation
On Wednesday, Dr. Erica Schwartz told staff “there is no retribution for honest thought and honest conversation” under her leadership.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Senior administration officials told reporters in June that 8K senior-level federal employees would get the Schedule P/C designation - far less than the 50K previously expected. Now State is look at converting lower-grade GS-13 & GS-14 positions www.govexec.com/workforce/20...
govexec.com
State Department expands push to reclassify employees as at-will workers
An expanded search for more Schedule Policy/Career conversions is still in its early stages, but a department employee says the effort is “moving relatively fast.”
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
The State Department is expanding its search for employees to reclassify as at-will workers under the Trump administration’s rebranded version of Schedule F, suggesting agencies didn’t target enough workers on the first round
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
Thanks for sharing! And thanks again for the interview
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Chris Marcum 📖 @csmarcum.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
@denicewross.bsky.social and I spoke with @jheckman.bsky.social about demystifying Federal data with the federaldatafieldguide.us: federalnewsnetwork.com/big-data/202...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Federal data guide aims to demystify ‘patchwork’ of laws governing data sharing | Federal News Network
The field guide outlines the breadth of data the federal government collects and makes available.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
Per Foreign Service officers, junior staff were asked to accept lower scores, to the point where they are no longer in a position to be considered for promotions, but ensured higher scores are available for more senior staff competing for performance pay federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
State Dept directs managers to ‘revise and recalibrate’ scores for employee evaluations they’ve already submitted | Federal News Network
Foreign Service officers warned that colleagues competing for a finite number of top scores could jeopardize the collaborative nature of diplomatic work.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 14/05/2026
The State Department is directing some managers to go back and revise annual performance evaluations they've already submitted to give employees lower scores. Under a 1-5 scoring system, State is telling managers to “strictly adhere to an average rating cap of 3.25” ⬇️
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
Latest from me on this: After mass-cancelling existing reasonable accommodations that include telework, HHS faces a backlog of 9,000 RA cases that will take months for a workforce rocked by staffing cuts to process federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
CDC eases telework restrictions for disabled employees, as HHS faces 9,000-request backlog | Federal News Network
Statements from department officials and the Office of Personnel Management suggest HHS may have gone too far in restricting medical telework.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
NY Times picks up & credits a story I've been following for a few months now: The CDC is top among agencies cracking down on workplace flexibilities as a reasonable accommodation for employees with disabilities ⬇️ www.nytimes.com/2026/05/07/h...
nytimes.com
Employees With Medical Conditions Challenge C.D.C. In-Office Requirement
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Layoffs have also been finalized for about 30 civil service State Department employees
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
One separated Foreign Service officer told me his exact role is up on USAJobs right now. The posting says there are "MANY vacancies" the department is looking to fill
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Impacted employees said the State Department was waiting to see whether Congress would include additional layoff protections in a recently passed spending bill that ended the DHS shutdown federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Amid hiring push, State Dept finalizes layoffs for nearly 250 Foreign Service officers | Federal News Network
Despite a recent recruitment campaign, the State Department has not allowed laid-off Foreign Service officers to compete for vacant positions.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Today @state-department.bsky.social finalized layoffs for ~250 Foreign Service employees who have been on paid admin leave since July 2025. It rolled out this recruitment campaign last month for new hires. Officials recently told lawmakers that laid-off staff can't compete for these vacant positions
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
IRS officials say employees are welcome to apply to other jobs if they are unsatisfied with their current assignments, but said they cannot go back to their previous roles in the agency’s IT and HR shops federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Most IRS staff involuntarily detailed to taxpayer services put on extended tour of duty | Federal News Network
IRS officials said employees may see their details extended for a third time, depending on how quickly they clear a "huge" backlog of amended tax returns.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Most IRS employees (from HR & IT) involuntarily covering frontline filing-season work will remain on their temporary reassignments for 120 more days. Maybe another 120 days after that, depending on how quickly they clear a backlog of amended tax returns ⬇️
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Ben Mullin @benmullin.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
NPR: Employees may NOT bet on the Tiny Desk!!
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
Last year’s mass exodus came from IRS employees taking the "Fork in the Road" or retiring. But it threatened layoffs on several occasions. “Nobody’s going to really like hearing this, but it was good, because they wanted to retire, that’s fine.” federalnewsnetwork.com/management/2...
federalnewsnetwork.com
‘Less people and better results:’ IRS CEO says filing season goals met after 27% staffing cut | Federal News Network
IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank Bisignano said his goal is “creating a digital IRS” that can help more taxpayers online, shifting the burden off its phones.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank Bisignano told @senatefinance.bsky.social this was the "most successful filing season in IRS history," and demonstrated that the agency can have both “less people and better results.” The agency lost 27% of its workforce last year ⬇️
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Greg Folkers @gregfolkers.bsky.social · 08/04/2026
Federal News Network: CDC eases telework restrictions for disabled employees, as HHS faces 9,000-request backlog by Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social bit.ly/4cxZQLF
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
That's considerably more than what a GSA-led audit rounded up last summer. At that time, agencies planned to delete ~332 dot-gov sites (about 5% of the 7,200 that were under review at the time) federalnewsnetwork.com/it-moderniza...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Agencies plan to decommission hundreds of .gov websites following GSA review | Federal News Network
Thomas Shedd, commissioner of GSA's Technology Transformation Services, directed agencies to eliminate the “low-hanging fruit” of unnecessary federal websites.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 06/04/2026
Interesting tidbit from the FY 2027 budget proposal: White House says it's eliminated 1,200 "redundant" federal websites so far in the Trump administration.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
NEWS: The Interior Department is giving employees a third opportunity to accept voluntary incentives to leave their jobs or retire early, ahead of a long-awaited department reorganization. federalnewsnetwork.com/reorganizati...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Interior Dept gives employees third shot at voluntary incentives to leave their jobs | Federal News Network
Interior is looking to shrink its headcount ahead of a “strategic initiative to improve resource management and the delivery of critical resources."
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Some impacted IRS employees told me they're worried because remaining in good standing with their tax obligations is a requirement for their jobs federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
IRS tells some employees to file amended tax returns after miscalculation on overtime wages | Federal News Network
With tax filing ending on April 15, the IRS acknowledged that "many employees may have already filed their returns," raising fears around federal compliance.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Scoop: The IRS is telling some of its employees, in the final weeks of the filing season, that their overtime wages were miscalculated on tax forms, and that they may need to submit corrected returns ⬇️
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
Meanwhile, the IRS tech shop is back in hiring mode, after losing more than 40% of its workforce
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 30/03/2026
Treasury is about to send reduction-in-force notices to employees at its Office of Financial Research, created by Congress in the aftermath of the 2008 recession to avoid a similar economic crisis. federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Treasury prepares RIF for office created to avoid financial crisis, IRS IT resumes hiring after mass reassignments | Federal News Network
The Treasury Department is preparing to send layoff notices to employees at its Office of Financial Research, created in the aftermath of the 2008 recession.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
VA had asked the court to clarify what it had to do under this preliminary injunction. But U.S. District Court Judge Melissa DuBose said her ruling was unambiguous, and that the department’s compliance with her injunction “will not be delayed.” federalnewsnetwork.com/unions/2026/...
federalnewsnetwork.com
VA restores AFGE labor contract, but isn’t implementing it, court documents show | Federal News Network
The VA is seeking clarification on what it must do to comply with the preliminary injunction. But a federal court judge says her ruling was unambiguous.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
The Department of Veterans Affairs told a federal judge in Rhode Island yesterday that it complied with a court order to restore its contract covering 300K employees rep'd by @afgenvac.bsky.social, but is under no obligation to carry out its provisions ⬇️
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 13/03/2026
A federal judge found VA Secretary Doug Collins “favored some unions over others,” by selectively enforcing an executive order that barred collective bargaining at many agencies (including the VA) over national security concerns federalnewsnetwork.com/veterans-aff...
federalnewsnetwork.com
VA ordered to restore AFGE contract under federal judge’s temporary order | Federal News Network
The VA is likely to appeal the decision, and an appeals court recently found similar retaliation claims unconvincing in a separate case.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/03/2026
House Democrats say 830K taxpayers are waiting up to 2 months to get their tax refunds. The reason? They normally get their refund as a paper check, but the Trump administration phased those out in favor of electronic payments. federalnewsnetwork.com/management/2...
federalnewsnetwork.com
IRS phase-out of paper checks leaves some taxpayers waiting months for refunds | Federal News Network
The National Taxpayer Advocate estimates that over 10 million taxpayers previously received their IRS refund as a paper check.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Scoop: The Interior Department directed all its bureaus and offices to delete non-English content from their websites by the end of the day Tuesday, according to an internal notice from its IT shop. federalnewsnetwork.com/technology-m...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Interior Dept directs IT shop to ‘scrub’ non-English content from its websites | Federal News Network
A new disclaimer on Interior Department websites states “English is the official language and authoritative version of all federal information.”…
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Thanks for sharing, Natalie! ☺️
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Scoop: One less job for Marco Rubio. He's no longer serving as the acting head of the National Archives and Records Administration. Still dual-hatted as Secretary of State & acting national security advisor federalnewsnetwork.com/people/2026/...
federalnewsnetwork.com
Marco Rubio out as acting head of National Archives | Federal News Network
Before the end of his tenure, Rubio tapped James Byron, senior advisor to the archivist, to serve and perform the functions of archivist.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Thanks Lauren!
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Alt CDC (they/them) @altcdc.altgov.info · 02/12/2025
2/5 HHS is facing a 3,300+ backlog of RA requests, with reviews expected to take 6–8 months. CDC employees with disabilities have been given mixed or incorrect guidance about telework accommodations. ❗ Must read from @jheckman.bsky.social at @federalnewsnetwork.com
federalnewsnetwork.com
HHS faces months-long backlog of reasonable accommodation requests from employees
The Department of Health and Human Services expects it will take six to eight months to clear a backlog of reasonable accommodation requests from employees.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
A VA nurse working in an oncology unit said cuts to support staff mean her coworkers are spending more time on ancillary duties -- at less time with patients.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 08/05/2025
11K+ VA employees in health care-related positions -- including 1,300 nurses, 800 medical support assistants & 200 physicians - applied for "deferred resignation," signed up for early retirement, or voluntarily retired. VA says 'very few' are eligible for separation incentives
federalnewsnetwork.com
Over 11,000 VA health care employees apply to leave, but ‘very few’ eligible for separation incentives
According to an internal dashboard, the Veterans Health Administration has about 63,000 more employees than it did in FY 2019.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 05/05/2025
Went for a run and made a new friend last week. But I’m back on the clock and ready to do some reporting. News tips on what’s happening in the federal government/workforce are always welcome Signal: Jheckman.29 Email: Jheckman@federalnewsnetwork.com
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 23/04/2025
NEW: Layoff notices were scheduled to hit several IRS offices last Friday -- but never came. Rumors spread among employees as to why. But the acting deputy COO says "glitches" and "issues" are to blame. federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
IRS layoff notices to employees delayed by ‘glitches’
IRS employees told Federal News Network that RIF notices slated for several offices didn’t go out last Friday as planned.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
It's hard to overstate how much everyone who worked on IRS Direct File saw it as a new model for government to deliver benefits & services to the public. Almost a 180-degree flip from the 2013 Healthcare. gov crash. federalnewsnetwork.com/management/2...
media.tenor.com
a young man wearing a hat and a jacket looks at something
ALT: a young man wearing a hat and a jacket looks at something
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 14/04/2025
Scoop: As part of its return-to-office plans, OPM is planning to spend more than $42M to relocate approximately 250 employees — or about $166,000 per employee. That's significantly higher than what the average federal employee makes in a year. federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/20...
federalnewsnetwork.com
OPM plans to spend nearly $42 million to relocate a few hundred employees
In February, OPM gave remote employees an ultimatum: relocate within commuting distance of its office space or accept termination.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
@wired.com Big fan of all the reporting you're doing on the federal news beat. I always try to give credit when you're first to a story. Probably a simple oversight, but I'm hoping you're able to return the favor on the SSA/X news I broke this morning federalnewsnetwork.com/agency-overs...
federalnewsnetwork.com
SSA shifts to X posts for official messaging after cuts to communications staff
SSA is once again walking back plans that would have limited the agency's level of phone support to beneficiaries.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
I've heard of cuts to FOIA offices at other agencies, but nothing specific about the team at SSA. I'll let you know if I hear anything about their status.
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Lauren Harper @laurenleharper.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
good thing so many retirees are tech savvy, have X accounts, and are good at spotting misinformation!
federalnewsnetwork.com
SSA shifts to X posts for official messaging after cuts to communications staff
SSA is once again walking back plans that would have limited the agency's level of phone support to beneficiaries.
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Reposted by Jory Heckman
The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 09/04/2025
Breaking news: The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to allow the president to remove a pair of independent regulators whose cases have broad implications for at least two dozen other agencies, including the Federal Reserve Board, and for how the federal government operates.
washingtonpost.com
Trump asks Supreme Court to let him fire independent regulators
The Supreme Court’s decision on whether Trump can remove the pair will test the boundaries of presidential power and have broad implications for at least two dozen other agencies.
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Jory Heckman @jheckman.bsky.social · 09/04/2025
GSA's acting administration recently told employees, "There's nobody working for DOGE here." But DOGE officials dominate a list of vetted personnel granted access to restricted parts of the GSA's headquarters federalnewsnetwork.com/agency-overs...
federalnewsnetwork.com
DOGE officials across government appear on GSA’s shortlist of vetted personnel
DOGE officials across the federal government dominate a shortlist of individuals allowed past security on the sixth floor of GSA’s headquarters.
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