A new survey found that Federal chief data officers are showing signs of progress in implementing their new responsibilities, while challenges to the full scope of their missions remain. […]
In recent months, the Small Business Administration (SBA) has shifted its IT modernization priorities dramatically to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said. […]
In a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), Democrat House Representatives are asking for a review of the Trump administration’s recent order to have hospital data on coronavirus be reported to a private contractor through the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) rather than through the CDC. […]
Education Department CIO Jason Gray told Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., that the agency does not have the necessary authorities from Congress to set up a working capital fund under the Modernizing Government Technology (MGT) Act, but said if it received that authority the department would use the money exclusively to finance IT modernization projects. […]
Sens. Chris Coons, D-Del., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., announced a bill to increase Federal investment in research and development (R&D) by $80 billion over nine years, and make “American Innovation Centers” in metropolitan areas the recipients of the funding. […]
A half-dozen technology-savvy individuals have been placed with members of Congress through TechCongress, a non-profit founded by a former Hill staffer in order to boost the legislative knowledge of the body on technology issues. […]
An April decision by the Federal Communications Commission to grant wireless service provider Ligado permission to operate in a spectrum band adjacent to spectrum that the Defense Department says is critical for GPS services is not reviewable under the Congressional Review Act, said the Government Accountability Office in an August 13 finding. […]
Leaders on spectrum issues both on and off the Hill praised the Department of Defense’s announcement to make additional mid-band spectrum available for commercial use, lauding the decision’s potential effects for industry and government. […]
To help universities protect COVID-19 research, Reps. Andy Barr, R-Ky., and Frank Lucas, R-Okla., introduced legislation to give those universities and research institutions tools to protect from cyberattacks from foreign cyber actors. […]
House Government Operations Subcommittee Chairman Gerry Connolly, D-Va., asked Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Acting Director Michael Rigas in an August 12 letter to explain the continuing postponement of the 2020 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS). […]
Tasked by Congress with devising an approach to defend the nation in cyberspace, the Cyberspace Solarium Commission submitted its report in March, but Solarium staff said today that the plan for a crucial component of defending the nation in cyberspace is not yet complete. […]
Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., introduced bipartisan legislation to streamline patient electronic health record (EHR) matching among healthcare providers using the United States Postal Service (USPS) address-formatting tool. […]
Sens. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., have introduced legislation to expand the pool of communications service providers who could apply for Federal government funding to remove and replace network equipment made by firms the government judges to be “untrusted,” such as China-based Huawei and ZTE. […]
Sens. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., James Lankford, R-Okla., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., have introduced legislation that would require Federal agencies to maximize telework for Federal employees for the length of the COVID-19 public health emergency. […]
The Government Accountability Office has submitted a new report to Congress regarding facial recognition technology, but its primary recommendation from a 2013 report remains – update the consumer privacy framework. […]
Reps. Will Hurd, R-Texas, and Robin Kelly, D-Ill., have partnered with the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) and the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) to release a new report that calls for Federal investments into AI R&D. […]
Sen. Angus King Jr., I-Maine, defended the Cyberspace Solarium Commission’s key recommendation to create a Senate-confirmed National Cyber Director before his Senate colleagues on Tuesday, finding commonality with the subcommittee chair on the position. […]
When it comes to the security of sensitive information in the energy sector, collaboration between the Department of Energy, intelligence community, and private sector are foundational to these efforts, Senior Advisor at the Office of Policy for Cybersecurity, Energy Security, & Emergency Response Alexander Gates said. […]
The national security community of the United States has found itself in a conundrum in the last few years, warning other countries about the risks of the China-based company Huawei, but unable to provide an American alternative for 5G networks. […]
The Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has released its Mail-in Voting in 2020 Infrastructure Risk Assessment to help with risk management of critical election systems. […]
House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., proposed in a July 31 letter to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to engineer a dramatic, long-term funding increase for the Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) by moving $2 billion of Internal Revenue Service (IRS) IT modernization work to the front of the TMF funding line. […]
In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., 20 Democratic senators plus Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, urged leadership to include maximum telework provisions for Federal employees and contractors in the next coronavirus relief package. […]
Deputy Federal CIO Maria Roat, who began in her current position eight weeks ago after serving as CIO at the Small Business Administration (SBA) during the hectic initial upswing of the coronavirus pandemic, discussed the fast pace of modernization efforts at Federal agencies in recent months, and how critical funding is to keep those efforts going. […]
Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., chairman of the House Government Operations Subcommittee, sounded an upbeat tone on the FITARA Scorecard issued by the House Oversight and Reform Committee today, but pointed to more work that needs to be done across the government and in Congress to spur further IT modernization. […]
The House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress approved a dozen recommendations to improve the continuity of operations in Congress in the event of a crisis. […]
Switching to telework for half of the workweek after the pandemic ends would save Federal employees up to $4,000 each year and the Federal government up to $11 billion annually, per a Global Workplace Analytics calculation discussed at the July 29 Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works hearing on remote work. […]
As the congressionally mandated National Commission on Military, National, and Public Service concludes its three-year effort, several of its cyber workforce recommendations are ripe for legislative action, including the idea of a civilian cybersecurity reserve. […]
A group of six Democratic senators led by Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, introduced legislation on July 29 to establish labor task forces that would provide Federal workers with an outlet to express needs for personal protective equipment (PPE) and establish health precautions for returning to the workplace. […]
Rep. Jim Langevin, D-R.I., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Intelligence and Emerging Threats and Capabilities, voiced support at a July 30 subcommittee hearing for the European Union’s placement of sanctions on Russian, Chinese, and North Korean entities for their role in high-profile cyber attacks. […]
While telecommunications providers in the United States prepare to rip out and replace gear from China-based Huawei and the United Kingdom has moved to eventually ban the company’s equipment from its 5G networks, the German government has officially stated its neutrality in the matter. […]