Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials discussed the significance of taking a “people first” mentality as the Federal government pursues modernization goals, at the 2021 ServiceNow Federal Forum. […]
President Biden signed a March 7 executive order (EO) directing Federal agencies to aid in increasing voting access. The EO directs the Federal CIO to coordinate the modernization efforts of Federal agencies’ websites and digital services that provide election and voter information. […]
The Senate voted March 6 to approve the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act after a lengthy amendment and debate process that pushed the vote into the weekend. […]
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) released new guidance today on how agencies can implement Executive Order (EO) 14003, which aims to provide protections for the Federal workforce. […]
The Senate as of late Friday afternoon was continuing to debate the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, which contains considerable increases in Federal government funding for agency IT modernization and security upgrades. […]
A bipartisan group of senators led by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on March 4 introduced the Democratic Technology Partnership Act, which would create an interagency effort aimed at forming technology partnerships among democratic countries to counter Chinese tech dominance. […]
Denis McDonough, the secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), said his agency is leading the way in normalizing telehealth for annual visits and mental health services, and it’s not planning on stopping remote health care anytime soon. […]
The Government Accountability Office said in a new report that the 24 Federal agencies participating in the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Data Center Optimization Initiative (DCOI) were expected to achieve the 2019-2020 goal of closing 230 additional data centers and saving $1.1 billion as a result. According to the GAO report on DCOI […]
After some delay waiting for an official bill “score” from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the Senate voted today to begin debate on legislation that embodies the Biden administration’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. […]
President Joe Biden has nominated Dilawar Syed to be Deputy Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), subject to Senate confirmation. […]
The General Services Administration (GSA) released an updated request for information (RFI) searching for guidance on its Best-in-Class Multiple Award Contract (BIC MAC) contract vehicle, which aims to support Federal agencies’ procurement requirements for professional services. […]
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) should develop outcome-oriented performance measures and data collection measures to better position it to assess the effectiveness of its initiatives to diversify its security technology marketplace, and give small businesses better chances in the TSA marketplace, according to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. […]
The Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection (CBP) organization has appointed Sonny Bhagowalia as its permanent CIO, MeriTalk has confirmed, letting him take the word “acting” off his business cards. Bhagowalia had held the position in an acting capacity since last June when former CBP CIO Phil Landfried retired. […]
Working beyond organizational boundaries and improving access to digital services is critical for IT modernization and the Biden-Harris administration’s Federal IT priorities. […]
In a blog post for the General Services Administration (GSA), Commissioner at GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) Sonny Hashmi outlined FAS’ commitment to progressing reform initiatives, administrative priorities, pandemic support, and data management. […]
The Department of Energy (DoE) has appointed Greg Sisson the agency’s permanent chief information security officer (CISO). […]
The Department of Veteran Affairs’ (VA) Office of Information and Technology (OIT) has issued an updated request for information (RFI) searching for guidance on developing its Enterprise Strategic Planning and Governance (ESPG) directorate. […]
Homeland Security (DHS) found that the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency has improved its technology on the U.S. southwest border, but still have challenges to tackle. […]
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has teamed with T-Mobile to deploy 5G capabilities for the Miami VA Healthcare System, providing 5G service to medical staff and patients with capable devices. […]
The Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) would get a $1 billion funding increase in President Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Act, according to a preliminary draft of the Senate version of the legislation obtained from sources by MeriTalk. The Senate will debate its version of the legislation this week. […]
The Federal Communications Commission has voted to formally adopt a Report and Order that establishes the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program. The program uses $3.2 billion in Federal funding to provide qualifying households discounts on their internet service bills and an opportunity to receive a discount on a computer or tablet. […]
The House version of the American Rescue Act – born from President Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief proposal unveiled in January – now features a provision that would provide $2 billion for the Department of Labor (DoL) to use to help states upgrade their unemployment insurance (UI) systems. […]
Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., are introducing legislation that will provide up to $15 billion in matching grants to increase access to broadband services in areas of the United States that are unserved by broadband meeting the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) minimum definition of that service. […]
Vice Admiral Nancy Norton will hand over command of the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) and Joint Force Headquarters Department of Defense Information Network (DODIN) on Feb. 26, the admiral said today. […]
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced today that DHS will increase the required minimum spend on cybersecurity through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) grant awards from 5 percent to 7.5 percent – approximately a $25 million increase across the country. […]
The Department of Labor’s (DoL) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released a report stating the agency is making progress on improving the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program, which has faced billions of dollars in widespread unemployment compensation fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic. […]
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) named Matt Hartman the deputy executive assistant director of cybersecurity at the agency this month, confirmed by Hartman’s LinkedIn profile. […]
The secretaries of Homeland Security and Commerce will work together on the one-year review of information and communications technology (ICT) industrial base supply chains ordered by President Biden earlier this week. […]
Federal leaders agreed on Feb. 24 at a virtual conference organized by FCW that while implementing the Federal government’s Identity, Credential, and Access Management (ICAM) framework can be difficult, ICAM is the key to the government’s digital transformation. […]
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., plans to introduce a bill to ensure the United States will “out-compete China” as a global tech leader and create new American jobs in the tech industry. […]