Defense And Veterans Affairs Scott Craig

Koon, staff weather first storm, get positive feedback

Koon came through his first hurricane as director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management last week with a high regard for the staff at the state command post and the coordination of city, county and federal preparedness workers. Some local civil-defense officials were favorably impressed by the division's work as Hurricane Irene first threatened Florida, then blew past the Sunshine State. "The primary reason I took the job here was because of the reputation of Florida's emergency management agency," Koon said in his small office in the Sadowski Building. "Obviously, it's been through more than any emergency management agency in the world, and I could not think of a better training ground for me, personally, to come in and learn about how state emergency agencies work." Of all the private sector executives Gov. Rick Scott has recruited in his zeal to make government run more like a business, few have as much direct impact on the lives of Floridians as Koon, who is paid $140,000 a year. In a crisis — not just hurricanes, but wildfires, tornados, oil spills, bridge breakdowns, to name a few — the cavernous Emergency Operations Center cranks up to varying levels of operation. "Bryan has done a great job of reaching out to the local emergency management folks," said Richard Smith, Leon County's preparedness chief. "You have to get a level of confidence with someone and that usually means going through an event together, so we were fortunate to have a relatively light one last week. But even a paralleling storm can cause a lot of heartaches."

There were hurricanes, the H1-N1 pandemic, the Iceland volcano, a Chilean earthquake, multiple wildfires and tornadoes, flooding on the Mississippi, the Minneapolis bridge collapse and tsunamis. He said five Walmart stores were hit by tornadoes but none burned in a wildfire on his watch. But even if a Walmart or Sam's Club wasn't damaged, responses had to be coordinated on a community-wide basis.

White House Creates Government Accountability Board | FedScoop

As part of its Campaign to Cut Waste Initiative, the Obama Administration today announced the creation of the Government Accountability and Transparency Board that will focus on making government spending more accessible and transparent for the American people.

“Cutting Waste, fraud and abuse has been something Washington has talked about for decades, but now more than ever, what the American people need is action,” said Vice President Joe Biden. “That’s why we are tapping the top leaders across government who have been most aggressive in cracking down on waste to drive change and make the government work for our nation’s families. With our nation’s top watchdogs at the helm, we will deliver the kind of transparency and accountability for Federal spending that the public deserves and expects.”

Today, the President announced the appointment of the following federal officials to the board:

Earl E. Devaney – Chairman, Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board Ashton B. Carter – Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology & Logistics, Department of Defense W. Scott Gould – Deputy Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Department of Veterans Affairs Allison C. Lerner – Inspector General, National Science Foundation Daniel R. Levinson – Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services Ellen Murray – Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources and Chief Financial Officer, Department of Health and Human Services Calvin L. Scovel III – Inspector General, Department of Transportation Kathleen S. Tighe – Inspector General, Department of Education Daniel I. Werfel – Controller, Office of Management and Budget David C. Williams – Inspector General, United States Postal Service Neal S.

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