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Show HILLTOP TIMES Hilltop 8 T IMES March 27, 2014 More civilian workforce shaping initiatives to come Programs to meet skill demands for FY2014 will run in parallel with military programs Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs WASHINGTON — Air Force officials announced additional civilian workforce shaping initiatives March 26 in compliance with mandatory funding targets and continuing civilian workforce rebalance to meet skill demands for fiscal 2014 and beyond. The programs will run in parallel with military programs, said Lt. Gen. Sam Cox, the Air Force deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services. The initiatives are part of ongoing military programs designed to maintain a smaller, more streamlined, ready and capable force in the future, Cox said. "We recognize the invaluable contributions of our civilian workforce but must manage within (Defense) Department fiscal constraints to meet the mission needs of the years to come," he said. The Air Force will continue maximizing its Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and Voluntary Separation Incentive Pay in the second round of programs to entice employees who are eligible to leave federal service to do so voluntarily. These programs offer early retirement for employees who are considering life outside of federal service and up to $25,000 for employees whose voluntary separation would save another employee from being involuntarily separated. "The Defense Department is going through an intense period of budgetary challenges and we are using every force shaping tool available on both the military and civilian side to lessen the impacts on our force," said Col. Brian Kelly, the director of force management policy for the Air Force. "And, while aggressive, the plan to reduce the size of the force provides long-term stability beyond (fiscal 2015)." Following the same basic criteria for the earlier round of VERA/VSIP programs announced in December, surveys will again be distributed to a number of employees targeting specific occupations and locations. Additionally, these surveys will expand to reach a broader number of employees potentially impacted by the Secretary of Defense-directed 20 percent headquarters staff reductions. The Air Force is committed to fully exhausting all voluntary workforce rebalancing and shaping programs, including the special authorities associated with a reduction in force, to help avoid involuntary separations, Kelly said. Reduction-in-force authorities allow reassignment flexibility for civilians to be placed at their installations while retaining their grade or pay or both. The authorities also permit managers and hiring authorities to waive qualifications and expand the number of potential placement opportunities for employees currently assigned to abolished positions. Implementing RIF procedures also permits eligible employees who cannot immediately be placed in local vacancies to be registered in the Priority Placement Program to assist in placement in other job positions where they qualify. Kelly noted that the Air Force's strategy to meet civilian pay budget targets does not include a fur- Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs WASHINGTON — By Dec. 31, every Airman will be required to provide their servicing finance office with documentation for all dependents as part of Air Force audit readiness efforts. This one-time, Air Force-wide recertification process will allow the Air Force to validate Airmen's basic allowance for housing entitlements, ensuring every dollar of the $5.4 billion the Air Force spends annually on BAH is fully auditable. "When we say the Air Force is not audit compliant, that doesn't mean that money is missing or being misspent," said Doug Bennett, the deputy assistant secretary of the Air Force for financial operations. "Generally, it means that we lack the required documentation for our spending to be considered auditable. In the case of BAH, we need Airmen's marriage certificates, birth certificates for children and divorce decrees that require child support properly documented by our finance offices to ensure we can audit $5.4 billion in Air Force spending." Beginning this month and continuing through December, Air Force finance offices will contact Airmen across the total force by email to notify them of their responsibility to provide dependent documentation. Their finance office will tell them exactly which documents are required. Additionally, Airmen who recently provided documentation may not be required to do so again. Airmen should wait to be notified by their finance offices rather than bringing in documentation unsolicited, Bennett said. Waiting to receive notification will eliminate unnecessary duplication of effort for some Airmen. Once notified, Airmen will have 30 days to provide the required documents to their servicing finance office or have their housing allowance status reduced to single-rate. Deployed Airmen and those on extended leave or temporary duty will be given special consideration in meeting the 30-day deadline. The push for revalidation of dependent documentation comes as the Air Force prepares to meet financial improvement and audit readiness requirements laid out in the 2010 National Defense Authorization Act. The Air Force currently retains dependent documentation for six years, which is insufficient to meet audit readiness requirements. This one-time revalidation will ensure Air Force compliance with audit requirements, Bennett said. "America entrusts the Air Force not only to spend taxpayer dollars wisely and efficiently, but also to account and justify that expenditure," said Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark A. Welsh III in a recent memo. "Preparation for this important and legislatively-mandated effort rests in the hands of every Airman, not just the financial community." Although revalidation of Airmen's dependents will be a onetime recertification, Airmen will continue to play a vital role in the Air Force's audit readiness. Starting in 2015, independent auditors will visit work stations for Airmen to review processes, procedures and transactions that directly impact the Air Force's financial statements. "Ensuring we have the proper documentation to account for every expenditure in a very large budget is a difficult but essential effort," said Dr. Jamie Morin, the assistant secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and Comptroller. "Becoming audit ready will help us demonstrate to the American public that we are responsible stewards of taxpayer money at a time when we must make every dollar count." News never stops. Neither do we. r.-40. A www. standard.net • Hill AFB Job Openings Site Internal civilian announcements are posted on the USAJOBS web site. Announcements for bargaining unit positions are posted any week day. The website is www.usajobs.gov . On the home page type "HILL" in the box titled "What". In the box titled "Where" type "UT" and hit the Search Jobs button. To view all vacancies that are currently open, under "Refine Your Results", top left hand section, select the "Jobs for Federal Employees" bubble. Airmen must revalidate dependents BY CAPT. ERIKA YEPSEN lough and that involuntary separations from federal service will only be sought as a last resort, if required. "We simply cannot accomplish the mission without our civilian Airmen, and that won't change even after reductions," Kelly said. For information about civilian employment, reduction in force and other personnel issues, visit the myPers website at httpsi/ mypers.af.mil . Buy, Sell, Refi or just-ask VA MIM Mortgage Evaluation FHA MAP TEM (0) Down Conventional LL M Pre-Qual Mortgage Lending Group 801-668-2723 call or text FROM THE WRITER OF TRAINING DAY AND END WATC H "A NON-STOP ADRENALINE RUSH! SCHWARZENEGGER IS BACK, ANB Blf .Gpfl eFTNN LIFE" "PULLS NO PUNCHES. PUSHES ALL LIMITS. WILL BLf2f ,E rg,1,1s alerEB," "PURE ACTION! UNEXPECTR ,TGYE.ANB TONS" MI `ARNOLD IS HACK AND BETTERSalg THAN EVER!" TERRA TV Maria Transportation official urges planning before PCS moves BY AMAANI LYLE American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON — With warmer weather comes peak moving season, so when orders are in hand, people should plan ahead to ensure the most hassle-free relocation, a senior official who oversees personal property moves for military families said in a recent interview Navy Capt. Aaron Stanley, the personal property program director for U.S. 11-ansportation Command's Military Surface Deployment and Distribution Command, told the Pentagon Channel that peak moving season is a moving industry phenomenon in which government and privatesector moves compete for the same resources during busy summer months, typically between the Memorial Day and Independence Day holidays. 'Whether moving this summer or any time, do your homework, be flexible and know what your rights are," Stanley said. The main moving issue is volume, with most families opting to relocate after their children are out of school for the year, he said. Stanley said the Defense Department conducted 520,000 moves last year, with about about 40 percent occurring from May 15 to Aug. 15, with similar numbers projected this year. Stanley encouraged those with a permanent-change-ofstation move on the horizon to propose multiple windows or dates for moving consideration. "By having multiple dates in mind, we have the best chance of getting you the dates you're after," Stanley said. "And because of the busy summer season, the better you understand what the movers are supposed to do on your behalf, the better [prepared you will be] to hold them accountable to do exactly that." By using the online Defense Personal Property System, DOD personnel and their families can selfcounsel and submit their applications online, track their shipments, file a claim and settle directly with the moving company to get full replacement value of lost and damaged goods, as opposed to depreciated value offered in the past, Stanley explained. "There are some changes being made to the claims module that should make it more user-friendly" he added. Officials have been responsive to customer feedback, Stanley said, and he noted that a higher customer survey response rate — currently at about 35 to 45 percent — would improve their ability to see that the best moving companies get the most business in moving military families. "That customer satisfaction survey is the underlying foundation for the program, and its best-value approach accounts for 75 percent of the formulae to allocate shipments for (transportation service providers)," he said. "More feedback means a better program and good shipments to the right companies." 2 ARNOLD SAM SCHWAR1ENOM -IfORTHINSTON 16T OIMA WILLIAMS # ART 1051i MAIVOANIELLO HOLLOWAY Miff a.ac ENOS SA LEAVE NO LOUSE ENDS R T DIRECTED BY DAVID AYER WRITTEN BY SKIP WOODS AND DAVID AYEI? '—`7.= QED C, . II /SabotageMevie #SabotageMovie . STARTS FRIDAY, MARCH 28 OPEN ROAD MILITARY AD CAMPAIGN BWNP DATE DUE: WED. 3/19 (10AM) ISSUE DATE: 3.22"W x 10.5"H BASE: GENERIC OR1041 FINAL 3/18/14 5:35PM aw CREATIVE IM PACT AGENCY |