Legislation has been introduced to strengthen Federal Executive Boards, which rely on voluntary contributions from member agencies, by establishing them via congressional charter and providing them with a set source of funding.
Originally established by President Kennedy in 1961 to help coordinate the activities of federal agencies, FEBs “provide critical support in coordinating emergency preparedness and response efforts, yet they have no institutionalized structure or permanent funding mechanism," said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, the chair of the federal workforce subcommittee.
"With 85 percent of the federal workforce employed outside of the Washington, D.C. area FEBs offer agencies an opportunity to collaborate, share information, discuss challenges, and to come together as a federal community,” he added.
The bill would require OPM to consult with agencies to establish staffing policies for FEBs and designate an agency to staff each FEB, and would require FEBs to relay management initiatives and other concerns from Washington D.C. to the field.
It would also require each FEB to adopt by-laws or other rules for its internal governance, and create a fund for FEB operations to be administered by OPM consisting of OPM contributions to fund administrative and oversight activities, and formula-based contributions from each agency participating in FEBs to fund staff and operations.
