Government
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Rep. Josh Harder (D-CA) are among a group of lawmakers urging congressional leadership to include a six-month extension for states and local governments to spend their funding allocations provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act in... Read More »
Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Bob Menendez (D-NJ) introduced a measure they said is designed to make it illegal to fraudulently sell firearms and ammunition online by circumventing technology companies’ terms of service.
The Stop Online Fraudulent Sales of Firearms Act is part of a larger... Read More »
National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) plans to replace the W78 nuclear warhead with the W87-1 in 2030 are hamstrung by a lack of formal plans to assess cost, schedule, benefits, or risk, with as much as $14.8 billion on the line, according to the Government Accountability Office... Read More »
The federal government began its rollout of the Abbott BinaxNOW Ag Card rapid COVID-19 test to states this week with the announcement of a national distribution plan meant to support K-12 schools, higher education, critical infrastructure, first responders, and others as needed.
The test is... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) Operational Experimentation (OpEx) Program has launched an effort to evaluate first responder technology solutions.
The OpEx Program has released a Request for Information (RFI) with four Technical Topic Areas... Read More »
With the introduction of the Improving Cybersecurity of Small Organizations Act of 2020 (S. 4731) last week, a bipartisan mix of senators and representatives seek to promote guidance on cybersecurity for small organizations such as businesses, nonprofits and local government agencies.
Among... Read More »
In the aftermath of wildfires that devastated wide swaths of land and communities, senators wrote to President Donald Trump last week requesting additional federal aid for wildfire response efforts and to assist recovery.
The senators requested quick increases to the number of fire personnel and... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives advanced legislation last week that would direct the Federal Communications Commission to issue reports after activation of the Disaster Information Reporting System and make improvements to network outage reporting.
The passage of the Emergency Reporting Act... Read More »
A bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate that seeks to repeal or modify regulations that have impeded the ability of the government to rapidly respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Pandemic Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Act establishes a commission charged with prioritizing regulation... Read More »
Victoria Coleman, appointed as the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) 22nd director, received the oath of office from Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Michael Kratsios.
Coleman, who most recently served as senior advisor on microelectronics... Read More »
The Assure COVID-19 IgG/IgM Rapid Test Device this week became the first antibody point-of-care test for COVID-19 to receive emergency use authorization from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Originally granted authorization for use by certain labs in July, the new EUA allows the test... Read More »
All 64 jurisdictions under the Immunizations and Vaccines for Children cooperative agreement will receive $200 million from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the coming days, as a means of supporting COVID-19 vaccination services.
The money will aid both planning and... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program awarded $1 million to InferLink Corp. to develop a tool for sharing cybersecurity information.
Inferlink, based in El Segundo, Calif., awarded the Phase II contract to InferLink based on the successful... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation to protect public safety communications in the T-Band, used for mission-critical communications, and interoperable communications with other agencies.
The T-Band (470 MHz – 512 MHz) currently operates in 11 major metropolitan areas --... Read More »
Three lawmakers recently forwarded correspondence to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) requesting insight regarding efforts to address foreign biomedical research influence.
Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Rep. Greg Walden... Read More »
Sens. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced Wednesday legislation designed to create a COVID-19 Commission to assess the nation’s preparedness and response to the pandemic while providing guidance regarding future occurrences.
The measure would establish an independent,... Read More »
In an effort to better track COVID-19 infections, the Luminex Corporation and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) have partnered on the creation of a more advanced serology test.
This latest effort is based on the xMAP SARS-CoV-2 Multi-Antigen IgG assay, a... Read More »
Top Trump Administration officials dismissed concerns that approval of a COVID-19 vaccine is being rushed to satisfy the President’s reelection efforts and assured the public they would volunteer to take any vaccine themselves that is ultimately approved by the government.
“We do feel the... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel in Boston, Mass., recently seized a Thailand shipment containing 196 grams of the opioid drug Tramadol.
“Illegal trading of opioids poses a significant health threat,” Michael Denning, director of Field Operations for the Boston Field Office,... Read More »
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) expressed gratitude to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) after the agency officially accepted her request to conduct an independent review of federal agencies' less-lethal weapons use.
Duckworth joined a group of lawmakers requesting the GAO to assess the... Read More »
Democratic representatives and senators have introduced the No Nuclear Testing Without Approval Act to make nuclear testing dependent on Congressional authorization.
The effort comes from U.S. Reps. Steven Horsford (D-NV), Reps. Susie Lee (D-NV), Ben McAdams (D-UT), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), and TJ... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation this week that seeks to improve the Strategic National Stockpile and reduce America’s dependence on foreign sources of critical medical supplies.
The bill – Strengthening America’s Strategic National Stockpile Act (H.R. 7574) – focuses... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending that the Treasury Department work with other federal agencies and sector partners to enhance cybersecurity within the financial sector.
The financial services sector's reliance on information technology makes it a leading target for... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) expanded its partnership with Ortho Clinical Diagnostics to accelerate the development of a COVID-19 antigen test.
The Vitros antigen test is designed for the rapid detection of the virus that causes COVID-19. It is intended for... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, in collaboration with the University of Washington, analyzed kits that could be used as a critical part of a laboratory test used to detect the COVID-19 virus in a sample from an infected person.
“We are pleased the DOE... Read More »
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officials said the department has launched its CIA Labs, its first lab mechanism designed to drive science and technology breakthroughs amid intelligence challenges.
“Some phenomenal innovations have come from CIA over the years, and with CIA Labs, we’re now... Read More »
A group of legislators recently encouraged the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to invest federal funding in wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) with an eye toward low-cost, effective COVID-19 testing.
Rep. TJ Cox (D-CA) recently joined 11 colleagues in forwarding correspondence... Read More »
Republicans on the Homeland Security Committee introduced a bill that reauthorizes the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for two years.
The Keep America Secure Act would reauthorize the DHS and provide $59 billion for FY2021 and $60 billion for FY2022. It includes funding for border... Read More »
Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) have introduced a measure they said is designed to help prevent COVID-19 spread via a pilot program requiring air traveler temperature checks at TSA screenings.
The Fly Safe and Healthy Act establishes a 120-day pilot program via the TSA to... Read More »
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) officials said the agency has posted a request for information regarding portable radio repeater products.
The initiative targets emergency responder community indoor and subterranean environments. S&T’s National... Read More »
In a letter written to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) this week, U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and John Cornyn (R-TX) pressed for details on drug trafficking crackdown efforts targeting the dark web and its users.
Pointing to... Read More »
Under a new agreement with the European Commission, Sanofi and GSK will provide up to 300 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine to the European Union in exchange for manufacturing scale-up support.
The vaccine in question is based on a mix of Sanofi’s recombinant protein-based technology --... Read More »
More than 90 organizations representing scientists, physicians, health providers, as well as patients and medical advocates are urging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to ensure that reviews of COVID-19 vaccine candidates meet all regulatory standards prior to authorization.
“While we are... Read More »
A group of Republican Senators introduced a bill that would create federal penalties for individuals who deliberately target local, state, or federal law enforcement officers with violence.
The Protect and Serve Act would make it a federal crime to knowingly cause, or attempt to cause, serious... Read More »
Reps. Rodney Davis (R-IL) and Darin LaHood (R-IL) announced they would introduce a House of Representatives measure designed to raise police officer salaries and hire more officers.
The David Dorn Back the Blue Act is named in honor of David Dorn, a retired St. Louis Police captain killed on... Read More »
