Government
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA) announced last week that several key provisions that he worked to advance were included in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
The Taking Back Congressional Authority Over War Authorization amendment prohibits the United States from spending funds that could... Read More »
The Department of Justice said an electrical engineer has been found guilty of violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and faces a maximum prison sentence of 219 years.
After a six-week trial, Yi-Chi Shih, 64, a part-time Los Angeles resident, was found guilty of... Read More »
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) officials said the 2019 Indianapolis 500 aided the department’s nuclear, biological and chemical threat detection process.
During the event, an advanced network of sensors kept continued vigilance, providing security real-time awareness of any... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reviewed reports issued from December 2009 through March 2019 on various biological threats and biodefense efforts.
The agency concluded many challenges remain.
GAO concluded in 2011 that there was no broad, integrated national strategy and... Read More »
The International Atomic Energy Agency recently confirmed Iran violated the restrictions on stockpiling enriched uranium specified in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
In response, three Republican senators sent a letter to President Donald Trump urging the administration to put... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published guidance for first responders and emergency managers on how to respond in the first minutes of a radiological dispersal device (RDD), or “dirty bomb.”
The guidance was developed by the DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate (S&T)... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said an agency waiver would expedite construction of three miles of a new border wall system in the Border Patrol’s Rio Grande Valley (RGV) Sector.
The work would be located west of Roma near Fronton, in Starr County, Texas, with the waiver... Read More »
Immigration and Custom and Enforcement (ICE) Executive Associate Director Nathalie R. Asher recently offered an assessment of the agency’s January-March 2019 enforcement statistics, citing a commitment to arresting unlawfully present aliens.
“During this time period, more than 85 percent of... Read More »
Since the U.S. Army discovered in 1904 that mosquitoes were transmitting yellow fever, malaria, and other diseases, they have been working on ways to protect themselves.
Even in modern times, US troops, deployed to mosquito-infested areas, have been using basic or crude protections.... Read More »
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) is encouraging Florida League of Cities and Florida Association of Counties officials to take advantage of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) resources to bolster cybersecurity efforts.
Rubio recently forwarded correspondence to both organizations in response to... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently introduced legislation designed to direct the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to conduct an annual study of deepfakes and other types of similar content.
Deepfakes are hyper-realistic, digital manipulations of real content depicting events that did not... Read More »
House Republican recently introduced fours bills as part of the Republican’s American Security Agenda.
The agenda is aimed at combating new and evolving threats by providing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with resources, reforming structure and management, and granting the agency... Read More »
The Defense Department’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Association (DARPA) established a program to deliver powerful new defenses against public health and national security threats.
The program -- called the PReemptive Expression of Protective Alleles and Response Elements (PREPARE) –... Read More »
House lawmakers have advanced an emergency spending package containing a provision restoring a robust Customs and Border Protection (CBP) presence along the northern border.
“Restoring hours at these ports is critical to commerce, emergency medical services, and to everyone who lives and... Read More »
Citing it as an investment in the nation’s Intelligence Community, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr (R-NC) and Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) recently commended the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passage.
The NDAA, which addresses fiscal year 2020,... Read More »
The U.S. Senate recently passed the fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that includes $74 million for the National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC) located at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio.
Funding for the base will be used to continue upgrades to... Read More »
The healthcare community needs to address antimicrobial resistance, or future generations will be at risk, a leading health expert said at the first-ever joint meeting of G20 Finance and Health Ministers in Osaka, Japan last week.
Antimicrobial resistance occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi,... Read More »
Dr. Asha George understands firsthand the threats biological agents can cause. George, who is executive director of the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense, served in Operation Desert Storm. She knows what it’s like to be standing on the battlefield wondering whether antimicrobial resistant... Read More »
Marine Corps personnel recently joined the Army and Navy in a joint training initiative designed to increase combat operational readiness in amphibious and prepositioning operations.
Marines with the 2nd Transportation Support Battalion, Combat Logistics Regiment 2, 2nd Marine Logistics... Read More »
The Marine Corps has awarded a $67 million contract modification to BAE Systems and Iveco Defence Vehicles to develop variants for the Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) Family of Vehicles program.
The effort would enhance battlefield situational awareness and firepower, with the contract calling... Read More »
New legislation, recently introduced by U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI), Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), seeks to increase vaccination rates through a campaign of awareness, grants, and research support.
Primarily, under the VACCINES Act, the Centers for Disease Control and... Read More »
Three government agencies are partnering with national and international first responders to address the problem of fires in the wildland-urban interface (WUI).
The WUI is an area between the undeveloped land and urban areas. Fires in the WUI spread quickly and cover acres. Homes in the WUI are... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Defense designated Fort Drum in Jefferson County, N.Y., as an East Coast Missile Defense Site.
U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) commended the choice.
“I am proud to announce that after years of leading the effort on behalf of Fort Drum on the House Armed Services... Read More »
Lockheed Martin has secured a two-year $561.8 million contract to produce Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles for the Army and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers.
“The new-build ATACMS rounds under this contract will include sensor technology that provides the recently qualified... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is acting upon GAO recommendations offered to enhance airport screening tests while also addressing vulnerabilities.
In order to test screening at airports, TSA personnel regularly covert tests to... Read More »
Legislation introduced in the U.S. Senate Tuesday would amend the Federal Employee Compensation Act to make it easier for firefighters who were injured or became ill as a result of their service to be covered by federal workers’ compensation.
Currently, federal law does not recognize certain... Read More »
A new report from U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Tom Carper (D-DE) details the failure of eight federal agencies, over the course of two administrations, to address vulnerabilities in their IT infrastructure.
The senators, who serve as the chairman and ranking member of the Permanent... Read More »
Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA) introduced a measure designed to create minimum standards preventing federal law enforcement officers’ service weapons from becoming lost and stolen.
The Federal Law Enforcement and Public Protection Act stems from the fact in recent years in the Bay Area and... Read More »
Engineering and integrations systems firm BAE Systems has secured a five-year, $90 million contract to modernize and maintain C5ISR systems embedded within vehicles, watercraft, and specialized communications platforms.
The indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity pact spans five years while... Read More »
The fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) includes $1.7 billion in funding to upgrade 165 Abrams tanks and a $249 million for upgrading Stryker Vehicles, a $78 million increase from last fiscal year.
The bill also increases the Abrams tanks’ rate of production in Lima,... Read More »
The program that reimburses state, counties and local jurisdictions for up to 50 percent of the cost of body armor vests purchased for law enforcement officers was included this week will get funded via a House appropriations bill.
The U.S. House approved the Bulletproof Vest Partnership program... Read More »
The Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing (PAHPA) Innovation Act, S. 1379, became law on Monday with the president’s signature, prompting accolades from national stakeholders, company executives and federal lawmakers.
The far-reaching law ensures the United States will be better... Read More »
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) last week seized more than 17.5 tons of cocaine with an estimated street value of $1.1 billion at the Philadelphia seaport.
Agents from the U.S. Coast Guard, CBP and HSI... Read More »
A bill was introduced in the U.S. House to authorize funds for the U.S. Coast Guard through fiscal year 2021.
The Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2019 (H.R. 3409) includes funds to promote the U.S. maritime industry and offshore renewable energy development, authorization of funding to build... Read More »
Science and technology firm Battelle is a finalist in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’s Opioid Detection Challenge.
The $1.55 million global prize competition seeks to develop tools to aid the process of locating illicit opioids in international... Read More »
