Government
On Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard announced its Cutter Healy crew and a number of scientists from the National Science Foundation would take on a mission in the Arctic Ocean.
The mission will take the cutter west from Kodiak, Alaska where the crew and researchers will service the Nansen and... Read More »
In order to fund operations throughout Fiscal Year 2024 and pursue network upgrades, the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet Authority) Board last week approved a $451 million budget package.
This included $95 million for an operating budget, $95 million for reserves and $261 million for... Read More »
The U.S. Navy has awarded Sikorsky, a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, a $2.7 billion contract to build 35 additional CH-53K King Stallion helicopters.
It’s the largest procurement for the aircraft to date, and will see deliveries begin in 2026, divided into three parts. Under the arrangement,... Read More »
The Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC) on Aug. 23 conducted Human Trafficking Awareness Training for state, local and Tribal law enforcement.
The training, which took place in Homestead, Florida, provided law enforcement with in-depth information on what human trafficking is and the... Read More »
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) released new resources for local community leaders this week to help in the face of extreme, record-breaking heat battering at least 17 states so far.
“As extreme heat, worsened by the... Read More »
Through Project NextGen, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded more than $1.4 billion this week to support development of new tools, technologies and trials of vaccines and therapeutics for COVID-19.
Of these funds, the bulk – $1 billion – went to vaccine clinical... Read More »
While lab-based testing has advanced in many ways over the years, sample preservation still relies on refrigerated transport that can cause challenges in remote environments, and this month Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) launched a new program to solicit alternatives.
At... Read More »
Drawing on $288 million in funds from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and General Services Administration (GSA) intend to expand DHS headquarters at St. Elizabeths campus in southeast Washington, D.C.
“Locating more of our agencies together... Read More »
Working through several federal departments, the Biden administration began a new public awareness campaign last week that will highlight federal safety resources for schools and evidence-based practices through SchoolSafety.gov.
The initiative is a joint effort between the departments of... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) awarded a $14 million contract to BAE Systems this week for development of its Massive Cross Correlation (MAX) program.
That program is developing technology related to next-generation sensing, imaging and communications systems, and DARPA... Read More »
Oil from an Iranian tanker off Texas remains in limbo despite its seizure by American personnel, and United States lawmakers from both parties and both chambers of Congress are growing fed up after the months-long delay in transfer.
In a letter to President Joe Biden, led by U.S. Sen. Joni... Read More »
Employees at all levels of the Department of Defense (DoD) will be able to participate in its inaugural talent management program that began earlier this month as an idea generator for how to recruit, retain and promote a diverse workforce.
Hosted by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense... Read More »
Building on more than $60 million in basic and applied research and 20 years of work in the field, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is nearing release of a comprehensive database on explosives.
ExPRT, as the database is known, will assist... Read More »
With the introduction of the Leadership, Engagement, Accountability, and Development (LEAD) Act this week, United States Sens. Mike Rounds (R-SD), Jon Tester (D-MT), and Jerry Moran (R-KS) proposed reforms of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) to crack down on bad actors.
This oversight... Read More »
In a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, a group of five senators raised alarms over illicit trafficking of tobacco products, denouncing them as threats to public health and a significant source of revenue for transnational criminal organizations.
U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy, M.D.... Read More »
Reckoning with the growing attention on and potential of artificial intelligence, the United States Department of Defense (DoD) last week created a generative AI task force to analyze, integrate and responsibly utilize large language models, and more.
These efforts were gathered under the... Read More »
Through the Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB), the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intends to review the targeting of cloud computing, providing recommendations for security among government, industry, and Cloud Service Providers (CSPs).
“Organizations of all kinds are... Read More »
With the release of the 2023 National Intelligence Strategy (NIS) last week, Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines laid out the goals of the Intelligence Community (IC) for the next four years.
“The National Intelligence Strategy articulates what the Intelligence Community will need... Read More »
Global hacker group Lapsus$ took top billing in the latest report from the United States Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB), and though its techniques were found to be simple, its threat is anything but, prompting a series of recommendations for greater protections.
The CSRB operates under the... Read More »
For the first time, New York laid out a range of high-level objectives for its cybersecurity and resilience this week, guided by Gov. Kathy Hochul and backed by $600 million in funding.
With the release of an official cybersecurity strategy, the state laid out various agencies’ roles and... Read More »
With wildfires more aggressive than ever, and climate change threatening worse to come, a bicameral collection of lawmakers introduced the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act (H.R. 5169) this week to boost recruitment, retention and well-being of federal firefighters.
Chief sponsor of... Read More »
Through introduction of the Connecting Oceania’s Nations with Vanguard Exercises and National Empowerment (CONVENE) Act, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) proposed building partnerships with Pacific island nations and gathering allies against China – a proposal that has been included in the National... Read More »
A total of $50 million in awards will be split between 33 states and jurisdictions as an Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR)-led effort to build up the Medical Reserve Corps (MRC) network.
Such was the end result of the first-ever, competitive state, territory and... Read More »
As the State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program (SLCGP) enters its second year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) this week announced a boost to its coffers, amounting to $374.9 million in available funding.
Overall, the program will provide $1 billion in funding over four years... Read More »
As artificial intelligence (AI) advancements continue to develop, a bipartisan group of senators this week proposed a way to keep it advancing while also maintaining safety standards: the Creating Resources for Every American To Experiment with Artificial Intelligence Act of 2023 (CREATE AI... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) and Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) introduced the Fair Pay for Federal Firefighters Act (H.R. 4831) last week, offering a base pay raise for federal firefighters as a stopgap against U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) pay cuts caused by lack of funds.
“Our firefighters... Read More »
Some $7.5 million in grant funding will be awarded to nonprofits and faith-based organizations in Michigan from the United States Department of Homeland Security’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) in the days ahead, to help these organizations secure their facilities.
In recent years,... Read More »
Justice Department officials have detailed two separate cases in which Navy personnel have been charged with espionage and bribery, respectively.
According to the Justice Department, Navy sailor Jinchao Wei, aka Patrick Wei, was recently arrested on espionage charges as he arrived for work at... Read More »
At a school safety roundtable last week, U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) reintroduced the Safe to Tell Act, proposing support for threat reporting programs nationwide.
The bill would provide $25 million in grant funding annually for four years, so the Department of Justice could create... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI), Rand Paul (R-KY), and James Lankford (R-OK) are commending their colleagues for advancing their legislation that would simplify the federal disaster recovery assistance application process.
Specifically, the Disaster Assistance Simplification Act would require the... Read More »
As the United States reckons with its seasonal labor needs and political infighting over immigration, a new bipartisan effort known as the SEASONAL Act seeks to allow governors the ability to push supplemental H-2B visas beyond the national cap of 66,000.
The SEASONAL Act, or the State... Read More »
A years-running bipartisan effort at national security sector investment scrutiny from U.S. Sens. Bob Casey (D-PA) and John Cornyn (R-TX) gained traction this week, as the Senate voted to attach the Outbound Investment Transparency Act to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
At the... Read More »
U.S. Reps. August Pfluger (R-TX) and Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) are seeking insight from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Treasury Department regarding agency efforts to combat illicit cartel and terrorist financing.
Pfluger, chairman of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee... Read More »
The bipartisan Disaster Assistance Deadlines Alignment Act queued up for consideration in the House this week after advancing through the Senate, raising the possibility of a single application deadline for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster assistance programs.
“Survivors of... Read More »
U.S. Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Chris Coons (D-DE) recently introduced legislation equipping law enforcement officers with trauma kits to respond if a civilian or officer experiences traumatic injury.
The American Law Enforcement Sustaining Aid... Read More »
