U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents last week seized more than $2 million worth of illicit narcotics over separate incidents. The first incident occurred on Jan. 18 as officers stationed at the Port of Hidalgo, Texas, encountered a white … Read More
In response to continued illegal border crossings through Otay Mountain near San Diego, the U.S. Border Patrol in October launched an enforcement strategy, called Task Force Otay, which focused criminal organizations that exploit various human smuggling routes along the mountain. … Read More
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) unmanned aircraft system (UAS) Predator B returned to San Angelo Regional Airport for a 14-week deployment on Jan 17. The first UAS deployment at a civilian airport occurred in … Read More
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) recently introduced a bill to require the declassification and release of information pertaining to past terrorist activities of individuals detained at Guantanamo Bay (GTMO) who have been transferred or released since Nov. 8, 2016. Cruz … Read More
U.S. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) called on President Donald Trump to prioritize law enforcement safety, specifically advocating for a reversal of former President Barack Obama’s decision to restrict access to the 1033 Program, which provided surplus military equipment to state … Read More
Battelle, a nonprofit research and development institute, said the key to preparing for the rapidly growing threat of biological or chemical weapons is by developing countermeasures with technology that is tested against live agents. Battelle’s recommendation was directed toward defense … Read More
U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) was recently chosen as chair for the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities for the 115th Congress. Ernst’s responsibilities as chair include overseeing hearings and policy decisions pertaining to intelligence, counterterrorism, and … Read More
The Senate Armed Services Committee, chaired by U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), recently appointed three senators to ranking membership on three different armed services subcommittees. U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) will chair the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces for the 115th … Read More
In response to the rapid increase in attacks on the nation’s cyber infrastructure, the Senate Armed Services Committee recently formed a new subcommittee on cybersecurity for the 115h Congress. U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) was named as the subcommittee’s chair, … Read More
As President Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) provided assistance in securing for the inauguration, along with the inaugural parade. … Read More
States across the nation are making preparations ahead of the development of a new Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network. The First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) in the coming months will select a private vendor to develop and deploy a national … Read More
Research teams at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) and the New York State Department of Health’s Wadsworth Center recently developed a new detection test for Zika virus that is faster and more accurate than contemporary tests. “The new … Read More
Bavarian Nordic A/S announced the appointment of Henrik Birk this week as the company’s new chief operating officer (COO). Bavarian Nordic is a fully integrated biotechnology company that focuses on the manufacturing and commercialization of cancer immunotherapies and vaccines for … Read More
U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) recently sent a public letter to President-elect Donald Trump expressing concern over the continuity of government operations for national security positions in the National Nuclear Safety Administration (NNSA) and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD). … Read More
A team of scientists at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) recently studied a new mouse model that shows how early responses of the immune system can affect the development of the Ebola virus disease (EVD). Researchers … Read More
Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) introduced the Border Security Technology Accountability Act this week, which seeks to improve the management of new border technology acquisitions. The bill originally advanced through the House of Representatives in July … Read More
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Sarah R. Saldaña recently announced her retirement from the federal government. ICE, along with employees from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), joined Director Saldaña’s family at a retirement ceremony held last week … Read More
Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), along with colleague Catharine I. Paules, recently published an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association calling for continued research into the Zika virus … Read More
The U.S.-Israel Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation recently issued a call for proposals of next-generation first responder technologies to promote joint development ventures for first responder training and development. “The BIRD Foundation is happy to accelerate cooperation between … Read More
On the one year anniversary of the implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that Iran had removed excess centrifuges and infrastructure from the … Read More
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) recently announced that the Denver Police Department will receive a $240,000 Countering Violent Extremism Grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for the exclusive use of training and engagement. The grant is part of … Read More
Coast Guard Cutter Tahoma returned to its homeport on Friday after completing a 49-day operation in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea, where it conducted a series of drug interdiction efforts. The crew’s operations centered on strategically intercepting and … Read More
Rep. Dennis A. Ross (R-FL) recently reintroduced the Finish the Fence Act, which would amend the Illegal Immigration and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to complete a 700-mile border fence between the United … Read More
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), in conjunction with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported a record number of seizures of shipments containing goods that violated intellectual property rights throughout FY2016. The agencies reported a nine percent increase in … Read More
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), along with the World Customs Organization (WCO), recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that enhances cooperation to tighten national and international controls on the trade of toxic chemicals. The MOU … Read More
The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) recently implemented sanctions in response to findings that the Syrian government under President Bashar al-Assad used industrial chlorine as a weapon against its own people. OFAC’s conclusions were … Read More
At a recent gathering of students, academics, and government officials at Georgetown University, a group of world health experts spoke on the need for the incoming Trump Administration to plan for an inevitable pandemic. The event was organized by the … Read More
A group of committee chairman with jurisdiction over the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently submitted a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on a plan to regularly reauthorize, reform and improve the department in the 115th Congress. DHS was established … Read More
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently released a report on U.S. Border Patrol’s Consequence Delivery System (CDS), a process that identifies what practices are most effective and efficient to deter illegal border activity, and how useful the system is for … Read More
During a Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing on the nomination of Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-KS) to be the new director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) asked Pompeo a series of questions on cybersecurity and … Read More
Physicians at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine published a case study this week on the first locally-transmitted case of Zika virus. The study, titled Cutaneous Eruption in a U.S. Woman with a Locally Acquired Zika Virus Infection, … Read More
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at the Port of Nogales in Arizona arrested a 21-year-old man from Nogales, Sonora, Mexico on Jan. 9 for attempting to smuggle a large weapons cache into Mexico through the port. During … Read More
Reps. Diane Black (R-TN) and Sam Graves (R-MO) introduced this week the Stop Dangerous Sanctuary Cities Act in the U.S. House of Representatives, which aims to block any grant funding to cities or localities that ignore federal law by withholding … Read More
U.S. Sens. Angus King (I-ME) and Jim Risch (R-ID) this week reintroduced the Securing Energy Infrastructure Act, which seeks to examine solutions to defend the U.S. energy grid by replacing vulnerable computer-connected operating systems with analog and human-operated systems. The … Read More
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) was recently selected to chair the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities in the 115th Congress. The subcommittee is tasked with overseeing counter-terrorism initiatives as well as counter proliferation of weapons of mass … Read More
