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A bipartisan group of senators called on the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Committee this week to back U.S. Customers and Border Protection (CBP) with resources for proper staff and security at the U.S.-Canada border.
Led by U.S. Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT) and John Hoeven (R-ND), the... Read More »
Since Oct. 1, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) have arrested 124 people with outstanding warrants.
According to the law enforcement agency, 105 were arrested between October and April 30, 2022, as travelers attempted to enter... Read More »
An effort to net federal firefighters financial support for illnesses and diseases acquired from their duties – the Federal Firefighter Fairness Act – was advanced by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) this week.
“Every day across the country,... Read More »
New legislation introduced by U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), and Marco Rubio (R-FL) last week sought limits on the sale of private data by banning data brokers from selling military personnel lists to U.S.-dubbed adversarial nations.
Citing national security, the... Read More »
With the introduction of the Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit (TCIU) Stipend Act last week, U.S. Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) seek to authorize existing TCIUs into law and get foreign law enforcement teams working with American agencies paid.
TCIUs are teams... Read More »
Amid some nervousness over a monkeypox outbreak this year, Bavarian Nordic A/S announced that it has a new supply contract for its smallpox vaccine meant to help those at risk of monkeypox in the short or medium term.
The country to benefit from that contract remains unidentified at this time.... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, concluded an investigation this week into cryptocurrencies’ role in cybercriminal activities with a new ransomware report.
In “Use of Cryptocurrency in Ransomware Attacks, Available... Read More »
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced last week that 61 active shooter incidents were reported last year, representing a 52.5 percent increase from 2020 reports.
Those numbers also led to 103 deaths and 140 injuries, not including the shooters. This gave 2021 a dubious distinction... Read More »
Worried about personnel shortages at the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit (TCIU) program of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), new House legislation would authorize new incentivization to officers for retention and recruitment... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives put racially motivated extremists, white supremacists, and other purveyors of domestic terrorism on notice last week with its advancement of the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act (DTPA, H.R. 350).
Proponents have sought to push such a bill since at least 2017,... Read More »
Through awards amounting to approximately $577 million, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) is working to create nine Antiviral Drug Discovery (AViDD) Centers for Pathogens of Pandemic Concern, working to develop innovative drugs.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has... Read More »
As fears of Russian cyber threats in reprisal for U.S. support of Ukraine continue to grow across Congress, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) introduced the Industrial Control Systems Cybersecurity Training Act this week to bolster U.S. cybersecurity.
The new legislation would mandate the... Read More »
Over the weekend, 11 people were killed and more injured across two separate shootings in Buffalo, N.Y., and Laguna Woods, Calif., and with them as a backdrop, U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL) says it is past time for a House vote on the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act (H.R. 350).
“The rise... Read More »
Across a series of grant programs, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced last week that it will disperse $1.6 billion this fiscal year in support of state and local officials seeking to plan for, prevent, halt and respond to terrorism and other issues.
Supplementing $405.1... Read More »
At the second Global COVID-19 Summit last week, governments, including the United States, pledged to provide $3.2 billion in additional funds for COVID-19 and other pandemic preparedness needs and committed to expanding and accelerating testing and vaccine access.
This year’s summit was led by... Read More »
For National Police Week this year, the Problem Solvers Caucus endorsed the Invest to Protect Act of 2022 and the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), which pledge to increase federal investment into recruitment and retention efforts at police departments nationwide.
COPS is a part of... Read More »
The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) backed efforts at developing a "variant-proof" COVID-19 vaccine this week, announcing that it will provide up to $19.3 million to an international consortium consisting of Bharat Biotech International Ltd., the University of Sydney and... Read More »
Following the passage of the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022, the Biden administration will find it easier to lend and lease military equipment to Ukraine and other Eastern European countries impacted by the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Signed into law this week, the... Read More »
With the signing of the Better Cybercrime Metrics Act last week, President Joe Biden welcomed a new cybersecurity bill into law, promising improvements to how the federal government prosecutes, measures, and tracks cybercrime.
Backed by the National Fraternal Order of Police and other national... Read More »
A group of legislators recently introduced legislation that would protect domestic technology research from being used by Chinese entities to benefit the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) led colleagues U.S. Sens. Rick Scott (R-FL), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Mike... Read More »
U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Roger B. Handberg announced Wednesday that his work to combat COVID-19-related fraud has been, to date, successful.
Working with federal, state, and local law enforcement, Handberg said his office was able to form the COVID-19 Fraud Task Force to... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, announced Tuesday it had partnered with a number of industry and academic organizations to advance next-gen diagnostics to detect respiratory viruses in a single test.... Read More »
Two bills introduced by U.S. Sen. John Tester (R-MT) would further strengthen and secure the U.S. borders to Canada and Mexico, the senator’s office said Monday.
Tester introduced the Securing America’s Ports of Entry Act, which will require U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) to hire... Read More »
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently announced that the Trusted Traveler Programs (TTP) initiative exceeded 10 million total members during March.
TTP supports the agency's mission to secure domestic borders while facilitating lawful travel and trade - enabling pre-approved,... Read More »
The House last week advanced the bipartisan Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act of 2022 (H.B. 4595), which would temporarily remove some requirements on the president’s authority to loan defense equipment to Ukraine or other Eastern European nations affected by Russia’s invasion.
“I... Read More »
Seeking to expand the domestic response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, United States Sens. John Barrasso (R-WY) and Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced a bill this week that would prohibit both Russian and Belarussian nationals from working in Department of Energy (DOE) research... Read More »
A Lyme disease vaccine candidate for adults and children at least 5 years old produced strong immunogenicity, safety and overall positive results this week in a Phase 2 trial conducted by its developers, Valneva SE and Pfizer Inc.
This marked the first clinical study where VLA15, as the... Read More »
The rapid introduction and expansion of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), or drones, into daily life has created a host of additional safety and privacy concerns as well, and this week those concerns prompted the Biden administration to introduce the first Domestic Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems... Read More »
While adding Paxlovid – nirmatrelvir and ritonavir – to its list of recommended treatments for mild and moderate COVID-19 patients at risk of hospital admission, the World Health Organization (WHO) noted that lack of price transparency at Pfizer Inc. and testing demands before administration... Read More »
The U.S. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) celebrated the completion of the initial design and construction last week for a new ApiJect Technology Development Center that promises greater manufacturing capacity for prefilled injectors used to administer vaccines... Read More »
A joint cybersecurity advisory was issued this week by a collection of various U.S. intelligence and security agencies, as well as international partners, providing a comprehensive overview of Russian state-sponsored and criminal cyber threats to critical infrastructure.
This focus on Russia... Read More »
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced this week the launch of the new Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics (CFA).
The latest addition to the CDC umbrella will focus on improving U.S. capabilities to utilize data, models, and analytics for quicker decision-making... Read More »
In an effort to safeguard information on federal systems, U.S. Reps. Nancy Mace (R-SC), Ro Khanna (D-CA), and Gerry Connolly (D-VA) introduced legislation this week promoting a transition of governmental IT systems to quantum-resistant cryptography.
The Quantum Cybersecurity Preparedness Act... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Young Kim (R-CA) recently introduced the Improving Federal Investigations of Organized Retail Crime Act (H.R. 7499), a bipartisan bill to improve how law enforcement handles organized retail crime.
According to a 2019 report by the Retail Industry Leaders Association and Buy Safe... Read More »
A new avenue of testing for COVID-19 opened last week, with emergency use authorization (EUA) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the InspectIR COVID-19 Breathalyzer, a diagnostic capable of detecting SARS-CoV-2 infection from breath samples.
In less than three minutes, the... Read More »
