• The Pentagon wants to build a new military base inside the United States and is asking states to compete for it. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the base could host up to 25,000 troops and serve as a hub for homeland defense, command and control and cyber operations. He also promises the base will feature cutting-edge technology, first-class barracks and timeless classical architecture. The base would become the first newly built domestic military installation since the 1980s. A plan for that process is due by the end of October.
• A new House bill would require the Federal Emergency Management Agency to develop detailed workforce plans. The Federal Emergency Mobilization Accountability Workforce Planning Act would require FEMA to update a human capital operating plan every three years. The bill would also require the plan be submitted to congressional committees. The legislation, proposed by Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee, comes after FEMA has lost roughly 5,000 employees since January 2025. The Government Accountability Office recently reported that FEMA allowed those cuts to happen without any planning, potentially reducing the agency’s readiness to respond to major disasters.
• Immigration and Customs Enforcement wants to build an artificial intelligence-powered software factory. In a request for information posted Tuesday, ICE said it’s seeking responses from companies capable of providing AI, data and technology strategy services. Part of that work will include maintaining ICE’s existing capabilities, including generative AI chatbots and other AI applications. But the agency also wants to build out what it’s calling an enterprise agentic software factory.
• A federal judge is ordering the Bureau of Prisons to restore its collective bargaining agreement. The decision comes about a year after the BOP terminated its contract with the American Federation of Government Employees. AFGE sued the agency, arguing that the decision violated the Administrative Procedure Act and the First Amendment. The judge's ruling this week comes in one of several lawsuits against agencies that have canceled collective bargaining agreements.
• Federal employees and retirees will once again see health insurance costs rise next year. Starting in January, enrollees in the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) program will see premiums increase by an average of nearly 11%. The rising premium rate for 2027 marks the third year in a row of double-digit premium increases in FEHB. Postal program participants, on the other hand, are set for a 8.2% premium hike next year. After releasing more information about the upcoming plan year, the Office of Personnel Management also encouraged participants to take advantage of this fall’s Open Season, which begins Nov. 9.
• The Pentagon will create an Autonomous Warfare Command to oversee the use of drones in combat. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a four-star general will lead the command, which lawmakers have already proposed in the annual defense policy bill. The new command was one of several changes Hegseth detailed in a speech to troops at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia. The defense secretary also previewed a study on the future of war, led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey and Newt Gingrich, the former Republican Speaker of the House.
• A new federal CIO is expected to be named soon. Carter Farmer will be named the new federal chief information officer. Multiple sources confirmed that President Donald Trump is planning to appoint Farmer, who spent the last 16 months as the CIO at the Environmental Protection Agency, to the top technology role. Multiple requests for comment to the Office of Management and Budget were not returned. Farmer would replace Greg Barbaccia, who left in August after 19 months in the role. Before joining the EPA, Farmer spent seven years at the U.S. Institute for Peace, where he was the director of IT systems and solutions. He also worked in technology roles at Amtrak, Telarix, a voice and messaging company, and Digital Intelligence Systems (DISYS), a technology consulting firm. EPA posted a vacancy for its CIO position on Sept. 28.
• Michael Lynch, the deputy administrator of the General Services Administration, is leaving federal service. Lynch has been with GSA for about 20 months and became deputy administrator in March 2025. Ed Forst, the GSA administrator, said in an email to staff that Lynch will return to the private sector. Lynch played a key role in improving GSA's internal operations and promoting the adoption of technologies like artificial intelligence. He led the “million hours challenge” for GSA staff to use its internal AI tool USAi to automate a portion of their work. Before coming to GSA, Lynch worked in the biotech, aerospace and consumer electronics industries. Before joining GSA, he served as the CEO of Zedsen, a U.K.-based medical diagnostic business that uses AI for early cancer detection.

Copyright © 2026 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.