NEWS: Oct. 27, 2016
Public Workforce | Minnesota
Judge Rejects Challenge to Teacher-Tenure Laws
A Ramsey County judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by education-reform groups challenging Minnesota's teacher-tenure laws, rejecting arguments that the laws protect ineffective teachers and deprive low-income and minority students of a high-quality education.
>> Minneapolis Star Tribune
Boston Transit Agency Shakes Up HR over Billing Problems
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority replaced six of its seven top human-resources managers after consultants determined that about 20 percent of its employees were incorrectly billed for health and retirement benefits, a lapse that cost $600,000 to resolve.
>> Boston Globe
Houston Council Backs Mayor's Pension Reforms
The Houston City Council endorsed Mayor Sylvester Turner's public-pension reform package in a 16-1 vote that was not legally required but was intended to signal local support for the proposal, which now will be drafted into legislation and sent to state lawmakers in Austin.
>> Houston Chronicle
The Military | California
Defense Chief Suspends Effort
to Claw Back Improper Bonuses
Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ordered the Pentagon to suspend efforts to claw back tens of millions of dollars in enlistment bonuses improperly given to thousands of California National Guard members during the height of the Iraq war so the Pentagon can review its process for collecting erroneous payments without unfairly burdening those caught in the middle of the debacle. But aides made clear that they didn't intend to offer a blanket waiver as some members of Congress have urged.
>> Los Angeles Times, Government Executive
Pentagon Delays Full Rollout of Child-Care Portal
More than 60 military installations, about 30 percent of the total, will see their inclusion in the Defense Department's new online child-care portal delayed until next year due to the portal's move to a new host, the Defense Information Systems Agency.
>> Military Times
1st 10 Women Complete Army Infantry Officer Course
Ten of the 12 women in the Army's first gender-integrated Infantry Basic Officer Leaders Course graduated from the 17-week course Wednesday at Fort Benning, Ga., the Army announced.
>> Army Times
Higher Education | Jackson, Miss.
University's President
Resigns Amid Finance Issues
Jackson State University President Carolyn Meyer resigned amid questions about the university's finances after an 89 percent drop in its cash reserves over the last five years. JSU has seen significant enrollment increases during Meyer's tenure, and she was selected as the Historic Black Colleges and Universities Digest's Female President of the Year in 2014.
>> Jackson Clarion-Ledger
Utah State University Provost Named President
The Utah Board of Regents chose Utah State University Provost Noelle Cockett as the 28,000-student institution's first female president. Cockett joined USU as an assistant professor in 1990.
>> Salt Lake Tribune
Public Services | California
Computer Outage Cripples DMV Operations
A "perfect storm" of simultaneous hard-drive failures caused a computer outage that has crippled two-thirds of California Department of Motor Vehicles offices this week, DMV officials said. They said experts were working to get repair the system to get office functions back online and that the computers were not hacked.
>> AP/San Francisco Chronicle
The Presidency | The Nation
Clinton Campaign Chairman Tops Shortlist for White House Chief of Staff
Hillary Clinton's campaign chairman, John Podesta, is emerging as the top choice to serve as White House chief of staff--if only for a year--if she wins the election, with Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, former vice-presidential chief of staff Ron Klain and policy adviser Jake Sullivan pegged as likely alternatives.
>> Politico
Trump Official: We're Not Scaling Back Transition Work
A top official with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's transition team denied a Reuters report that the operation was asked to scale back its work to focus on the election as Trump's chances for victory on Nov. 8 appear to dim and said the work is on track.
>> Washington Post
Public Officials | Arizona
Governor Strips Department Chief of Firing Power
Gov. Doug Ducey has stripped Department of Economic Security Director Tim Jeffries' of his power to terminate any more department employees and installed a personnel monitor on the heels of a firing binge at the agency. The department dismissed a record 475 of its workers from Jan. 1, 2015, through this September.
>> Arizona Republic
Oregon's Top Civil-Rights Lawyer Sues AG over Profiling
Erious Johnson, the top civil-rights lawyer for the Oregon Department of Justice, filed a federal lawsuit against state Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum and other key officials, accusing them of racially profiling him when a colleague tracked his social-media messages.
>> The Oregonian
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VIEWPOINT
Ethics | Tommy Engram
The Corruption We'll Weather
In overturning former Virginia governor Robert McDonnell's corruption convictions, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the right of elected officials to peddle influence so long as they do not make a contract to do so. What does that mean for the public administrators who work under the oversight of elected masters? There is no feel-good answer. Corruption involving elected officials will undermine public confidence in government. But we have weathered periods of corruption followed by well-intended, if not misdirected, waves of reform.
>> PA Times | More commentaries
QUOTABLE
“If you want to spread theories about Elvis or Roswell or the moon landing, that's fine, but don't do it about elections. It's shameful behavior that harms a great state.”
Montana's Democratic secretary of state, Linda McCulloch, saying the idea that next month's elections could be rigged, as Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has asserted, is a conspiracy theory comparable to those involving the U.S. government hiding aliens in Roswell, N.M., Elvis Presley faking his death or the 1969 moon landing being a hoax, while acknowledging that there have been no direct claims that her state's election system might be compromised
>> AP/Billings Gazette | More quotes
DATAPOINT
28
Number of Texas' 100 largest public-school districts, including those in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston, that now have Latino superintendents, while only 97 of all 1,012 Texas school districts are led by Latinos and K-12 public-school Latino enrollment now stands at 52 percent, up from 40 percent in 2000
>> Dallas Morning News | More data
UPCOMING EVENTS
BookTalk:
"Designing a New
American University"
TODAY | 1 p.m. ET
Michael M. Crow of Arizona State University will discuss the need for a new model that offers accessibility to a platform underpinned by knowledge production. For more information and to register, click here. The ASPA BookTalk series is made possible through the generous support of Routledge. |
Urban Institute
Discussion: "No Simple Solutions: Lessons from Chicago's Public Housing Transformation"
Today, 4:30-6 p.m. ET, Washington, D.C.
Heritage Foundation and Foreign Policy Initiative
Book discussion: "American Power and Liberal Order: a Conservative Internationalist Grand Strategy"
Oct. 28, 11 a.m.-noon ET, Washington, D.C.
American Public Health Association
Annual Meeting and Exposition
Oct. 29-Nov. 2, Denver
Governing
Summit on Health and Human Services
Oct. 31-Nov. 1, Arlington, Va.
Brookings Institution
Discussion: "Nuclear Arms Control Choices for the Next Administration"
Oct. 31, 2-3:30 p.m. ET, Washington, D.C.
American Society for Public Administration
Webinar: "Recent Changes and Pitfalls in Federal Grants"
Nov. 2, 1 p.m. ET
>> Full events listings
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