Shows / The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton provides expert insights on current events in the federal community. Read more interviews to keep up with daily news and analysis that affect the federal workforce. The Federal Drive is found at FederalNewsNetwork.com and 1500 AM in the Washington D.C. region.
Episodes
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
As the U.S. ramps up infrastructure investment, imported cement raises national security concerns
Supply-chain discussions usually focus on advanced technologies. Retired Brigadier General John Teichert says policymakers should pay more attention to a far…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Friday, July 17, 2026
Today on "The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton" The VA wanted a consistent way to determine police staffing levels. An inspector general audit found important…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Democrats demand transparency from White House on Schedule Policy/Career
Dozens of House and Senate Democrats are demanding answers from the Trump administration on its implementation of Schedule Policy/Career. A letter sent to the…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
SDA resumes satellite launches after months-long pause
The Space Development Agency is resuming deployments of its proliferated satellite constellation. The agency had to slow down the pace of its launches due to…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Can the Pentagon's contracting system keep pace with the demands of today's battlefield
Modern warfare puts a premium on speed. A new report argues that when the Pentagon can move quickly from identifying a need to fielding a solution, it can have…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - Thursday, July 17, 2026
Today on "The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton" The Navy wants a larger fleet, but it's not clear that America's shipyards, suppliers and workforce can deliver…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Navy wants a larger fleet, but it's not clear that America's shipyards, suppliers and workforce can deliver it
The Navy's latest shipbuilding plan lays out an ambitious vision for future fleet growth. But every plan ultimately runs into the realities of industrial…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
A surge in publicly available data and AI tools is allowing adversaries to target federal missions
Adversaries are using open source information to target federal missions. That’s partly because of a surge in publicly available data and AI tools that can…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Pentagon suspends CMMC phase two requirements, launches review of program
The Defense Department is pausing the roll-out of contractor cybersecurity requirements. DoD’s top IT official says the current iteration of the Cybersecurity…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
A recent DOJ operation showed what it takes to find online scam networks
Federal investigators say online scam networks operate like organized enterprises, spanning platforms, payment systems and countries. A recent operation worked…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Before policymakers can improve border security, they need confidence in how they're measuring it
Border security may be one of government's most visible missions but measuring what's happening along the border is far more complicated. A new GAO report…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Wednesday, July 15, 2026
Coming up today on "The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton" Online scam networks hide behind layers of accounts, infrastructure and payment systems. A recent DOJ…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
You can't defend critical infrastructure from threats you can't detect
Satellites support everything from communications to navigation, making them an increasingly important part of national infrastructure. But protecting those…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Air Force scrambling after employees experience computer lock-out
The Air Force is scrambling to get its employees back online after scores of people were locked out of their computers last week. Computers across the service…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Trump admin reshaping federal employee discipline, firing rules
The rules governing discipline and removal procedures for federal employees are on track for a major overhaul. A slew of proposed regulations and executive…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
TZA's more active government role in innovation asks how to move faster with accountability
As agencies experiment with new approaches to technology, finance, and acquisition, the rules that govern grants and contracts are changing too. The challenge…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton The federal government is going beyond funding research. It's increasingly helping decide which technologies make…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The federal government is going beyond funding research
For decades, government largely funded discovery and let the market handle commercialization. NSF is now building new pathways to move promising technologies…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The government's role in innovation may be changing from customer to investor
If agencies are no longer willing to wait for markets alone to deliver critical technologies, what comes next? Some are moving upstream, investing in companies…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
DoD class deviation leaves contractors with more questions than answers
The Defense Department is providing little guidance on how firms are expected to comply with a series of restrictions aimed at severing ties with companies the…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Secret Service’s workforce planning gaps highlighted in new reports
The Secret Service has struggled in recent years with understaffing and poor workforce planning. Some of those challenges have precipitated high-profile…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Congress has a lot on its agenda, the harder question is whether everyone agrees on what belongs at the top of the list
Congress has a full plate before lawmakers leave town for August. The problem isn't a lack of important work. It's that competing priorities from the House…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Tens of billions of dollars of federal dollars are spent on university research every year, but taxpayers don't know how
Every year, the federal government spends billions supporting research at universities across the country. That investment helps drive scientific advances, but…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Monday, July 13, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton The VA is reporting record-high rates for suicide risk screening and follow-up Congress has a lot on its agenda…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The VA is reporting record-high rates for suicide risk screening and follow-up
After an Inspector General review identified gaps in suicide risk screening and follow-up, the VA moved to strengthen those processes across its system. The…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
CDC must ‘make hard decisions’ triaging work after elevating Ebola response
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is looking to rebuild its workforce after cutting more than a quarter of its employees last year, according to…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
GSA praised for initial changes to AI draft regs, but more work needed
In the three weeks since the General Services Administration updated its proposed regulations for the basic safeguarding of data within large language model…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
A new OPM rule will expand how federal agencies make workforce decisions
Hiring someone is only the beginning of the government's relationship with an employee. A newly finalized OPM rule expands the agency's authority to pursue…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
For pregnant Medicaid patients, finding care depends on information that's supposed to point them in the right direction
Access to care starts with knowing where care actually exists. New findings from the HHS Inspector General show that the provider information Medicaid patients…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Military mission success depends on understanding what people can do
Getting the right person into the right role has long been one of the military's toughest workforce challenges. The Pentagon is testing new ways to identify…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Friday, July 10, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton In the military, mission success depends on understanding what people can actually do—and matching them to the…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
DoD watchdog urges more transparency in daycare abuse cases
A new Defense Department inspector general report finds that the military services have policies for reviewing allegations of abuse at on-base child…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
OPM finalizes performance review overhaul for federal employees
An overhaul to the federal workforce’s performance management system is now set in stone. A final rule from the Office of Personnel Management removes a…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Federal agencies are being asked to move faster, but speed starts with something more basic: a good business forecast.
When agencies define requirements clearly, industry can respond with better solutions and fewer surprises. When they don't, costs rise and timelines slip. The…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Thursday, July 9, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton The Veterans Health Administration is modernizing everything from clinical systems to care coordination. But the…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
VHA is modernizing, but the real test is whether veterans and providers get a better experience
For years, VA modernization conversations have focused on systems and software. John Bartrum says the more important question is what veterans and clinicians…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
DHS IG investigating reassignments of senior staff under Noem
Last year, hundreds of Department of Homeland Security employees were reassigned to different jobs. Some were shifted over to Immigration and Customs…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Pentagon consistently failed to analyze the impacts of civilian workforce reductions
The Defense Department significantly reduced the size of its civilian workforce in 2025. The department however, started shedding its employees prior to 2025…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Many point to the policy issues with the proposed NDAs for federal employees, but what about the constitutional factors?
The Office of Personnel Management's proposal to institute a standardized NDA that federal workers could be required to sign as a condition of employment has…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
NIST's National Vulnerability Database has largely been a helpful resource, but needs some help to continue that
A list of potential cyber vulnerabilities, rightfully called the National Vulnerability Database, is one of the many ways the National Institute of Standards…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Some federal careers are built to end early, and that changes everything about how you plan the rest of your life
For law enforcement officers and others, retirement can come in the late 40s or 50s with decades still ahead to fund and plan. That shift changes how they…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Today on "The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton" NIST's National Vulnerability Database has largely been a helpful resource, but needs some help to continue that…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
OPM seeks to decentralize, revise governmentwide federal employee survey
The Office of Personnel Management plans to take a more hands-off approach to the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey. A new proposal would make agencies, rather…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
USDA expects ‘significant number’ of staff facing relocation to leave their jobs
Federal unions and nonprofit groups are asking a federal court to temporarily bar USDA from carrying out a reorganization that that will move thousands of…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
For military families with special‑needs children, the Exceptional Family Member Program is essential, but not simple
For families who rely on it, the Exceptional Family Member Program can shape everything from assignments to access to care. Jessica Hulter knows that firsthand…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Tuesday, July 7, 2026
Today on The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton For military families with special‑needs children, the Exceptional Family Member Program is essential, but not…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The practice of project management isn’t static and neither is the exam
The latest version of the PMP exam reflects a shift toward how project work actually gets done today. It puts more weight on real‑world judgment and less on…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
When an agency shuts down, the story usually focuses on policy and program impacts; this one looks at the people
A new study is taking a close look at what happened to the workforce after the closure of the U.S. Agency for International Development, tracking the effects…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
DoD issues guidance as ban on Chinese companies takes effect
Defense contractors face a new restriction. A new law now prohibits the Pentagon from contracting with companies that retain consultants lobbying for certain…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Three proposed changes to the process to remove federal employees
The Office of Personnel Management wants to make easier to remove federal employees for performance or misconduct reasons. In a new 81-page proposed rule that…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Congress returns from recess with a lot of its plate
Congress was sort of stuck in a wait and see mode once the president demanded more attention was directed at passing his election security legislation. An…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
If AI starts doing the work, can people trust the outcome?
Agentic AI systems promise faster, cheaper execution for federal agencies, but they also raise new questions about governance, accountability and trust. We…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - Monday, July 6, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton If AI starts doing the work, can people trust the outcome? The administration’s new AI framework includes…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The administration’s new AI framework includes something the government hasn’t had before
A new executive order sets up a pathway for companies to share advanced artificial intelligence models with federal officials ahead of public release, giving…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Best of "The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton"
Today on "The Best of the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton" we revisit some of our best interviews of the past couple of months. Learn more about what it will…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Ratcliffe details ‘fundamental reshaping’ of CIA tech efforts
The CIA is looking to drastically speed up its acquisition timelines to acquire cutting edge technology like AI. CIA Director John Ratcliffe says the goal is…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Trump administration expands options for firing federal employees deemed ‘unsuitable’
The Trump administration is giving agencies more leeway to remove federal employees deemed “unfit” for their jobs. A new final rule from the Office of…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
Loss of hearing is a problem today’s technology still hasn’t solved, researchers are now taking a different approach
Even advanced hearing aids and implants can fall short when it comes to separating voices from background noise. A new federal research program is looking…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The FAR rewrite is more than just updated rules
We are now starting to see some of the changes to the FAR being implemented in real time. There of course still many questions to be answered during such a…
- The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton
The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - July 2, 2026
Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton The FAR rewrite is more than just updated rules If you’ve ever struggled to hear someone in a crowded room, you’ve…