Newsletter: No injunction can stop us from caring about casework
Y’all, I love every one of our Casework Navigator webinars, but I have never been as excited as I am to announce this next one.
Please join us next Thursday, April 3, at 3 PM ET, for a conversation with Jeremy Dillard, former Senior Congressional Liaison at the VA’s Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs, about:
what it’s like on the other end of Congressional casework
trends and observations from almost a decade of handling Congressional inquiries
tips on writing/working effective inquiries, and so much more.
Sometimes it feels like sending a casework inquiry is writing into the void — so having the chance to ask questions in a non-confrontational setting, with a former liaison who is free to speak freely, is an awesome opportunity.
(Also, just saying: this would be the hiring coup of the century if one of your offices wanted to snap him up for a policy role.)
As always, if you have questions about our work or suggestions for how we can be helpful, please feel free to reach out by replying to this email, or shoot me a note at anne@popvox.org.
Anne Meeker
Deputy Director
POPVOX Foundation
Webinar: Ask a Congressional Liaison
Casework teams rely on Congressional liaisons at Federal agencies to help solve problems for constituents — but working as a Congressional liaison comes with its own challenges. In this webinar, we are delighted to be joined by former Senior Congressional Liaison Jeremy Dillard, who served almost a decade in the VA’s Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs handling thousands of Congressional inquiries escalated beyond the regional level.
Inside the VA: A Former Congressional Liaison’s Perspective
April 3 at 3 PM EDT
In this webinar, we will share observations and trends from almost a decade of handling Congressional casework requests, including the behind-the-scenes of structural problems that drive casework, tips for writing effective inquiries, and thoughts on how Congress can strengthen liaisons for more effective casework in the future.
Casework News
A reminder that registrations are still open for the UC Berkeley Data Skills for Congress spring course! I know that “data skills” sounds like all policy, but this free and open-to-district-staff course is directly focused on day-to-day work for a Congressional office, including figuring out eligibility for federal programs, managing disaster response, and structuring oversight. This is a great professional development opportunity, especially for any caseworker/outreach staff considering a policy role one day…
The House Office of the Whistleblower Ombuds has two new resources: guidance around laws protecting tech-industry whistleblowers, and a new initiative for House offices to implement a secure Digital Whistleblower Intake Form (also for committees).
This is a neat approach: the Office of Rep. Lori Trahan [D, MA] has announced a Request for Information soliciting ideas and insights into reforming the Privacy Act. Responses are due by April 30.
Nice example of including agency data in a constituent services newsletter from Rep. Chuck Edwards [R, NC] (and we spot the Carolina Cruiser doubling as a press conference backdrop!).
This is one of the first examples we’ve seen of advocacy organizations specifically telling people to open casework as a method of engaging with Congress.
Agency News
SSA
Earlier today, the Senate Finance Committee held a confirmation hearing for President Trump’s nominee to run Social Security, Frank Bisignano.
As SSA speeds up cuts to phone services, advocates are concerned this will reduce available services. We’ll also note that it may also increase the number of cases coming to Congressional offices.
SSA is considering a proposal to halt payments to people whose Representative Payees do not have Social Security numbers. The agency estimates that this would impact 170,000 beneficiaries, including widows of Americans overseas and disabled children of undocumented immigrants.
Some very helpful FAQs on Social Security Fairness Act (WEP/GPO elimination) implementation.
SSA also announced a new AI transcription enhancement for hearings.
SSA will resume Treasury Offset Program collections after they were suspended during COVID. This offset allows SSA to withhold SSA benefits to repay delinquent federal and state debts.
Great reported piece on what one man had to do to correct his file when SSA erroneously marked him as dead.
New bill introduced in the House would limit SSA’s lookback window for overpayments to ten years.
Immigration
The Trump Administration has canceled translation services for immigrants seeking to resolve issues with E-Verify, SAVE, or correct errors on their employment authorizations, and instructs USCIS employees to discontinue a call where they do not speak the caller’s language.
The New York Times shares a draft list of countries that would likely be impacted by a widely-expected executive order sharply restricting immigration later this month.
The Department of State noted in court filings (page 6) this month that it is preparing a Request for Proposals for a single agency to handle all reception and placement services, rather than renewing its existing contracts with resettlement agencies.
New York Magazine has a list of visa/green card holders detained at airports and what we know about each case.
The Trump Administration claims that its invocation of the Alien Enemies Act would allow it to enter homes without a warrant, although the Administration has not indicated that it intends to use this power.
The Trump Administration also closed several DHS sub-agencies with oversight roles in the immigration process, including the office of the USCIS Ombudsman.
IRS and ICE are expected to announce a deal to cross-reference names and addresses of suspected undocumented immigrants with taxpayer databases.
#AfghanEvac has a form for travel-ready visa/green card holders to connect to local support for resettlement and services.
Congressional offices have reported challenges obtaining information from DHS on behalf of detained constituents. We wrote up some thoughts on potential policy solutions here.
Agency staff cuts
It’s been a head-spinning few weeks on court decisions ordering re-hiring. This is a list of how many workers have been re-hired at federal agencies. Some agencies have placed re-hired employees in leave status, which has touched off more legal fights.
IRS announced plans to cut Taxpayer Advocate Service staff levels by 25%. As casework teams know, TAS serves as an extra level of customer service support for tricky or urgent cases, and also directly responds and reports to Congress on individual constituent cases as well as structural issues. It may be worth asking questions about how these proposed cuts will impact casework responsiveness.
Rep. Gerry Connolly [D, VA], Ranking Member of the House Oversight Committee, requested information on federal FOIA officers being fired. This seems to have some parallels with Congressional liaisons likewise being reassigned or RIF’d.
HUD and the Federal Housing Finance Agency have both begun reductions-in-force.
The Trump Administration announced that functions of the Department of Education would be transferred to other agencies, including disability services to HHS and student loan administration and oversight to SBA. SBA is also expected to cut up to 43% of its staff.
The FedFam Facebook group has launched a newsletter and membership program with resources, information, and support for federal employees furloughed or RIF’d.
Administration executive order shifts disaster response to state/local governments
The executive order calls for a review of federal policies around infrastructure, continuity, preparedness, and response to streamline federal regulations and shift authority to state/local governments. Relatedly, the House Oversight Committee is holding a hearing on FEMA’s response to Hurricane Helene in North Carolina on Wednesday, March 26.
VA blocks benefits employees from speaking to counsel
VA Secretary Doug Collins’ office issued a direction that VBA employees should not proactively reach out to the VA’s Office of General Counsel without permission. VBA employees currently consult OGC frequently on issues around how pending litigation affects cases, adjudication decisions, and interpreting new laws.
Bureau of Prisons cuts retention pay
The Bureau of Prisons announced that it would cancel retention pay for 23,000 employees to make up for a budget shortfall. Some facilities report that employees losing this benefit have already resigned. Full list of facilities losing bonuses and some other ways this may impact prison conditions here.
IRS pauses modernization efforts to evaluate potential AI use
The IRS announced a strategic pause on technology modernization efforts to allow the agency more time to consider possible use cases for AI. This pause is not expected to impact day-to-day work for the 2025 tax filing season.
Interior and HUD announce initiative to ID federal land for affordable housing
The Department of the Interior and Department of Housing and Urban Development announced a joint task force to identify “underutilized” federal property that can be turned over to state and local governments for building affordable housing.
Pentagon order banning transgender service members temporarily blocked
A judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking the Trump Administration’s order banning transgender service members from serving in the military. The Department of Defense has been given a deadline of March 21 to inform the branches of the military.
AI use case for helping with legal referrals
Dave Guarino at Propel shares a case study of using AI tools to help streamline the process of making legal aid referrals.
Fired USAID employees still have their work-issued devices
Employees of the shuttered USAID report that they still have US government-issued devices with sensitive information, but have received no guidance on what to do with them.
