Over the past few years, it has been so gratifying to see casework start to take center stage in discussions in and around Congress (in think tanks, in the media, in support offices, in committees) about how to strengthen the First Branch of government.

And that’s exciting on two levels: first, that awareness is a critical condition for you to get the support and resources you need to do your work; and second, it’s just nice in a cosmic-justice way to see you all get the recognition and credit for the difficult work you do every day.

So on both of those notes, we wanted to flag two upcoming events from our team on June 24. The first is a panel discussion for your legislative and communications colleagues on the importance of collaborating with casework teams, with insights from teams and staff who do this well. And the second is a party! If you are in DC for the CAO’s fly-in conference, join us at 6 PM after the program wraps for a happy hour in Rayburn. Bonus points if you drag a legislative friend to join — and we have a special party favor (Ethics-approved) for folks who come with a partner from their DC office.

If you have questions about our work or suggestions for how we can be helpful, please feel free to reply to this email, or reach out to me at anne@popvox.org.

Anne Meeker
Deputy Director
POPVOX Foundation

Upcoming Events

Closing the Feedback Loop Through Casework

*Tuesday, June 24, 12-1 PM (Longworth 1539 + Virtual)*
Casework teams have rich insight into program implementation (including direct agency contacts) that can be an important source of information for legislation and oversight, and legislative teams can help contextualize and address the systemic challenges that bog down casework teams. New tools from the House are poised to supercharge this relationship.

Learn More / Register

Celebrating Casework Reception

*Tuesday, June 24, 6-8 PM (Location TBA)*
Join POPVOX Foundation and friends for a reception to celebrate the vital work of constituent services staff! Meet other caseworkers, legislative staff, support offices, and civil society organizations championing casework at a relaxed happy hour. Bonus points (and a special icebreaker activity) for casework and legislative staff from the same office attending together.

Learn More / RSVP

Hearings Roundup

House Veterans Affairs:

Previously: Hearings to examine a handful of VA economic opportunity related bills
Previously: Hearings to examine a handful of VA oversight related bills
Thursday, June 12, 2:15 PM ET: Hearings to examine a handful of VA health related bills

House Appropriations:

House Oversight

Previously: The Federal Government in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

House Education and Workforce

Previously: Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Labor

Casework News

Two nerdy, nerdy academic papers related to casework that we devoured this week: first, a doorstop paper in the Yale Law Journal examining Congressional intervention in BVA appeals. There’s some great data here about what percentage of BVA claims involve Congressional offices, and how that impacts their success. Second, a pilot study from Ghana that utilized citizen satisfaction with government services as a key metric for government quality — caseworkers could tell you the same thing!
Nice comments from Sen. McCormick [R, PA] on the value of constituent services, and hiring good people for difficult roles.

Agency News

Immigration

The Trump Administration announced a new executive order restricting entry to residents of specific countries that it claims are not able to support adequate vetting processes. The EO has two tiers: one group of countries that are entirely restricted, and another with limited restrictions.
The State Department announced it would shift $250 million previously allocated for refugee programs to the Department of Homeland Security to support voluntary self-deportations by undocumented migrants.
ICE rescinded internal guidance to agents advising them to avoid violating state and local laws while carrying out civil immigration arrests, which is likely most applicable to agents in making arrests in and around courthouses.
Kilmar Abrego Garcia was returned to the US to face criminal charges after his mistaken deportation to El Salvador.
The Department of Homeland Security issued an internal memo detailing how the 20,000 National Guard troops it requested for immigration enforcement would be utilized.
The Department of Justice OIG released an audit of the FBI’s role in vetting Afghan evacuees during OAR and OAW.

VA

Look, we’re optimistic on what responsible AI can do for government services — but ProPublica reports that a staffer with DOGE at VA developed an error-prone AI tool to identify VA contracts to be discontinued. It is unclear from the reporting how much this tool was used in identifying which contracts have already been cut.
On that note, that same DOGE staffer recently published a blog on his experience coming into VA, and it’s a thoughtful take on what it takes to modernize agencies.
VA signed an agreement with OPM for technical and administrative assistance coordinating a planned layoff program, ensuring that it complies with laws and regulations around RIFs. VA is currently blocked from carrying out reorganization plans by a decision pending with the Supreme Court.
VA also rolled back a pay bump intended to help recruit and retain HR professionals to support the agency’s efforts to staff up to handle PACT Act workload.

IRS

The IRS issued an After Action Report on the performance of the Direct File pilot for the 2025 filing season. While Direct File has been shut down, the report contains multiple “lessons learned” that the Commissioner indicates will be utilized to strengthen IRS’ other offerings in the future.
IRS leaders say the agency needs 11,000 hires to maintain phone support for the 2025 season. The agency faces additional challenges integrating changes to the tax code in this year’s reconciliation package into its systems and employee training and practices.
Twenty-five percent of the IRS’ IT staff have left the agency, forcing some structural reorganization for the IRS’ tech shop.

FEMA

FEMA released a roundup of emergency readiness resources for town managers. This would be very worth sending out to your local contacts.
Sensational headline aside, this is a good starting point for disaster preparation for constituents. May be helpful to incorporate into PSAs!

Federal Employees

OPM announced its new online portal for federal retirees as a next phase in moving to an entirely-digital federal retirement process this year.
And just in time: federal retirement claims jumped dramatically in May to the second-highest number of claims per month so far in 2025.

More service members screen positive for mental health conditions at separation

A GAO report examining the VA and DOD’s policies and practices around mental health screenings for service members separating from active duty found that 67% of separating service members had at least one positive mental health screen, but raises questions about some outdated or incomplete screening methods.

SNAP recipients are increasingly concerned about EBT theft

A survey from Propel examines the prevalence of EBT theft and SNAP recipients’ efforts to avoid EBT theft. The survey notes that EBT theft is underreported in official statistics, so user-side surveys may be a more accurate measure.

WEP/GPO claims almost completed

The Social Security Administration announced that 91% of Social Security Fairness Act benefit increases and lump sum payments have been processed. The agency notes that it is now prioritizing a remaining 200,000 complex cases that could not be processed automatically — I’d be willing to bet there’s some active casework in that bucket.

Newsletter: People Are Talking About Your Work