Policy
Proposed law changes target drone use
Last month the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) considered a proposed nationwide law change reflecting the impact of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. A ULC committee considered the Tort Law Relating to Drones Act for adoption by state governments. The effort, which provoked controversy across... Read More »
GAO report determines most visas denied in 2017 not due to executive action
Though President Donald Trump signed an executive order in 2017 to restrict the issuance of visas and instigate changes to nonimmigrant visa (NIV) screening and vetting, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently found that 90 percent of visas remained unaffected by this change. Of the... Read More »
FirstNet board approves $84 million budget
The First Responder Network Authority’s board of directors, an independent authority within the U.S. Department of Commerce, recently approved an $81 million budget for operations in fiscal year 2019. The budget will be used for the focus on the deployment of the nationwide public safety... Read More »DHS develops software tool to help fight human smuggling
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate has developed new technology that will assist federal agents in investigating human smuggling. The data analytics software program, called Igloo, is already in use by select units of U.S. Immigration and Customs... Read More »
Lockheed Martin to develop hypersonic weapon prototype for US Air Force
The U.S. Air Force awarded this week a contract to Lockheed Martin Missiles & Fire Control for the development of a second hypersonic weapon prototype. The weapon’s review, testing, and production readiness support will all be provided by Lockheed Martin, as part of the Air Force’s... Read More »
StratCom commander emphasizes need for advanced information, intelligence
Gen. John Hyten, commander of U.S. Strategic Command (StratCom), recently spoke at the 2018 Department of Defense Intelligence Information System Worldwide Conference on integrated command relationships and the role of information and intelligence to combatant commands. Without intelligence... Read More »
National defense funding measure signed into law
A group of lawmakers recently gathered at a military installation to witness President Trump sign the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2019 into law. The bill supports $716 billion in funding for national defense for fiscal year 2019, per officials, and provides service... Read More »
Domestic terrorism suspected captured after 12 years on the run
Federal law enforcement officials said an accused domestic terrorist who spent 12 years on the run is now in custody and slated to face charges in three states. Officials said Joseph Mahmoud Dibee, 50, of Seattle, Washington, was recently apprehended after authorities learned he was traveling... Read More »
DHS’s Nielsen meets with Sen. Hoeven and UAS industry leaders in ND
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen toured the Grand Sky Technology Park in North Dakota last week and participated in a roundtable discussion with unmanned aerial systems (UAS) industry leaders. Grand Sky Technology Park, located at Grand Forks Air Force Base,... Read More »
Defense Secretary Mattis undertakes first South American trip
For the first time since he took office as the United States Secretary of Defense, James Mattis traveled to South America to solidify the Department's strong defense ties with Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Colombia. "These relationships are critical to a collaborative, prosperous and secure... Read More »CDC joins efforts to contain Ebola outbreak in Republic of the Congo
As the World Health Organization (WHO) and health agencies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) seek to clamp down quickly on a new Ebola outbreak in the country, they can now count on the expertise of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as well. The CDC has... Read More »
Valley Fever therapies show potential for humans although long way from market
Researchers are still a decade away from seeing a Valley Fever vaccine realized for humans, who are in recent years being infected at a greater degree with the fungal spores that cause the disease. The illness primarily affects people living in the Southwestern United States. Federal officials... Read More »
GAO urges DHS to share more info on chemical facilities with first responders
Warning of the potential danger presented by attackers targeting hazardous chemical facilities, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is urging the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to share more information with first responders who may need to respond to security incidents.... Read More »
House Homeland Security Committee chairman urges Senate action on cybersecurity
Warning that the cyber threats to the United States are not going away, and in fact continue to grow, House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) has urged the Senate to take action. To make his case, McCaul pointed to three separate bills the House has already advanced on... Read More »
Rep. Denham concludes trip to Mexican border
U.S. Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA) recently completed a multiday, congressional delegation visit to the California-Mexico border. During the trip, the Congress members visited a U.S. Naval Air Station and tunnel site, a U.S. Border Patrol station, the San Ysidro Port of Entry, and the Otay Mesa Detention... Read More »
Military construction projects in New York receive nearly $200 million in funding
Five Military Construction projects in upstate New York have received $199.1 million in federal funding from the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). “New York State is home to some of the nation’s top military installations,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY),... Read More »
Facebook tells DHS, election officials how its combatting malicious actors
In a meeting with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS and the nation’s leading election security officials, Facebook officials discussed the company’s actions to remove inauthentic behavior by malicious actors who seek to undermine democratic institutions. On the call -- attended by... Read More »
DHS releases 2017 figures for foreign admissions to the US
According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), 52,656,022 nonimmigrants visited the country in 2017, and of these, only a small fraction -- 701,900 -- overstayed their original trips. The report based its findings on lack of identifiable evidence of departures, extensions of... Read More »
Air Force exploring Light Attack Aircraft option
The Air Force has crafted a Light Attack Aircraft plan, which they said is the first step toward working with industry to generate the final RFP expected at the end of the year. A draft request for proposal was shared with Sierra Nevada /Embraer and Textron Aviation following the conclusion of... Read More »
GAO warns CBP border barrier evaluation is proceeding without cost analysis
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently began testing eight barrier design prototypes for the U.S. border wall with Mexico, but the Government Accountability Office (GAO) warns they are doing so without an analysis of cost. Topography, land ownership, and other factors all play a part... Read More »
Sen. Murphy honors Connecticut drone manufacturer
Connecticut-based drone manufacturer RADeCO, Inc. was featured this week by U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) as “Murphy’s Monday Manufacturer,” recognition he bestows on select U.S. manufacturers. The RADeCO, which stands for RADiation Detection COmpany, manufactures air monitoring... Read More »
Wiretap investigation yields drug, gambling arrests
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials said the agency’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit recently helped execute a wiretap investigation leading to 32 drug and gambling arrests. HSI’s New York division worked with the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in... Read More »
Democratic Republic of the Congo tests positive for Ebola outbreak
The Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) announced last week that tests of cases in the country’s North Kivu province by the Institut National de Recherche Biomédicale (INRB) revealed Ebola in patients. Though the news came just over a week after the Ministry of Health... Read More »
African delegations trained on counterterrorism
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently provided counterterrorism training at the International Law Enforcement Academy (ILEA) in Roswell, N.M. to law enforcement delegations from six African nations. The participants were judges, prosecutors, and police officers from Angola,... Read More »
Pennsylvania fire department receives FEMA grant
The Reliance Fire Company No. 1 in Berwick, Pa., recently received a $119,610 federal grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) program. Established in 2001, the AFG program provides firefighters and... Read More »
Bill seeks to enhance Russian sanctions
A group of lawmakers recently introduced a measure designed to bolster Russian sanctions, with the goal of applying economic, political, and diplomatic pressure on the Federation. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-AZ) joined Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Bob Menendez... Read More »
DHS S&T organizes First Responder stakeholder summit in Washington, D.C.
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is hosting a summit in Washington, D.C. this week to gather together technology innovators for the first responder industry. The summit will take place on Thursday, Aug. 9, and represents the second... Read More »
August Terror Snapshot highlights Islamic terror threats in United States, Europe
The August Terror Threat Snapshot, released by House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX), found a steady influence of Islamic-driven terrorism in the United States and Europe. The report showed that there have been 157 cases of terrorism in the United States spurred by the... Read More »
Rhode Island fire departments receive nearly $107,000 in FEMA grants
The Rhode Island fire departments recently received $106,668 through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) Program for the purchase of needed equipment and gear. The Central Falls Fire Department was awarded $59,048. It will use the funds to... Read More »
Air Force releases flight plan for next generation ISR dominance
The U.S. Air Force recently released its Next Generation Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Dominance Flight Plan, which is a strategy for maintaining and enhancing competitive advantage in the rapidly changing digital era through 2028. “We need to balance our ISR portfolio... Read More »
Alliance for Biosecurity joins U.S. Chamber in call for Congress to pass preparedness funding
Two national organizations that represent biopharmaceutical and business interests have penned a letter to each member of the U.S. House of Representatives urging lawmakers to approve the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2018, H.R. 6378, before critical public... Read More »
Measure seeks to bolster cyber incident response measures
Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced Wednesday legislation designed to enhance cyber hunt and cyber incident response teams working to prevent attacks on federal and private sector entities. Portman and Hassan said the DHS Cyber Incident Response Teams Act works to... Read More »
Cybersecurity Summit targets defense strategies
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently hosted a Cybersecurity Summit, with the goal of establishing a vision for a defense strategy to protect the nation’s infrastructure. Officials said the effort in New York City united industry and top federal personnel, resulting in a series of... Read More »
Sens. Cotton, Hatch seek reinstatement of repeat offender penalties
U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AK) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) introduced Wednesday the Restoring the Armed Career Criminal Act which seeks to reinstate and enhance penalties against repeat offenders. The initial Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), which passed in 1984, required a mandatory minimum 15-year... Read More »