This Week In Washington, Feb 13, 2014

This Week In Washington

Top 5 Stories

1.      The debt-ceiling standoff ended this week after the House and Senate passed a measure to suspend the nation's borrowing limit until March 2015, without attaching any conditions.

Look ahead: Several Republican lawmakers concede debt-limit brinksmanship is here to stay, but are accepting the political reality in the short term.

2  2.      Lawmakers voted by wide margins in the House and Senate to reverse cuts to pension benefits for working-age military retirees.

Look ahead: The $6 billion cost of restoring the benefits will be offset by extending automatic reductions to reimbursements for Medicare providers for one year.

3  3.     Obamacare:  The Treasury Department further delayed the employer mandate, saying businesses with 50-99 full-time workers—those working at least 30 hours a week—will not be subject to the penalty until 2016.

Look ahead: Companies with more than 100 workers, which had been required to provide coverage for 95% of full-time employees by 2015 to avoid a penalty, now must extend it to just 70% by next year.

4  4.    The White House unveiled its highly anticipated cybersecurity framework, which is intended to help businesses defend themselves from hackers.

Look ahead: The guidelines are voluntary, and it is unclear how much the government can do to encourage compliance.

5  5.      Roughly 3.3 million people have obtained coverage under the Affordable Care Act, including 1.1 million people who selected plans on the health insurance exchanges in January, according to figures released this week by the Department of Health and Human Services.

Look ahead: While young people are gaining coverage in greater numbers, the number of enrollees between the ages of 18 and 34 continues to lag expectations.

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Meyers Group Welcomes Newest Principal

Washington, D.C. – George Meyers, founder and managing partner of the Meyers Group is pleased to welcome the newest principal Deborah Gunn, to the firm.

Ms. Gunn has over fifteen years of experience working in all levels of the government and in the private sector on a global scale. Throughout her career she honed her ability to analyze marketplaces and recognize new opportunities.

“I am pleased to have Deborah join the firm,” Mr. Meyers said. “Her wide range of experience will be an asset to our clients in assessing opportunities in the Intelligence Community and State Department. Over the course of her career she has increased profits and exposure for organizations; something she will also do for our clients.”

While working for the CIA, her work brought her to the Middle East, Europe and in rotation with the military.  As an Executive Aide to the Governor of Connecticut she worked as the governor’s key organizer and liaison for key projects

Deborah received her M.A. in Security Studies from the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University in Washington, DC and graduated Magna Cum Laude from Simmons College in Boston with a B.A. in political science with a focus on the Middle East.

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George Meyers Speaks at AFCEA NOVA on the Federal Fiscal Environment

Washington, D.C. - Today George Meyers, Managing Partner of the Meyers Group, shared his optimistic view of the federal budget as a panelist at the Air Forces Communications & Electronics Association’s Women in Northern-Virginia Chapter’s FY14 Federal Landscape event.

Mr. Meyers was joined by Lucian Niemeyer, a retired Senior Staffer of the Committee on Armed Services for the U.S. Senate and Sharon Jones, the Director of Small Business Programs at DISA.  

“I was delighted to discuss the opportunities and areas of growth my team and I have identified within the Federal budget with the members of this prominent organization,” Mr. Meyers said. “With our shared intimate knowledge of the federal acquisition process, Lucian, Sharon and I were able to touch on all the factors that impact a company’s federal sales. After the passage of the omnibus spending bill, we all agree it’s a great time to be working with the federal government.”

Among the topics discussed included how the budget process is far from returning to the regular order of individual appropriation bills.  Mr. Meyers said that his firm has successfully used Congress’ unorthodox budget measures, such as continuing resolutions, to their clients’ advantage.  For instance, continuing resolutions give businesses the time to shape opportunities before the come to fruition, thereby increasing the chance that they will win the award.

The private event was attended by nearly 40 members and perspective members, which range in business size from 8a(s) to some of the largest defense contractors.  NOVA is the largest chapter of this international nonprofit professional association. 

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