U.S. Policy
The number of nonimmigrant visa (NIV) applications issue by U.S.
State Department consular officers decreased in fiscal
year 2017 to 880,000 after increasing annually from fiscal years 2012 through
2016, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.
Applications... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Doug Jones (D-AL)
introduced a bill to create pilot scholarship programs for qualified members of
the Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps (JROTC).
The Ceiling and Visibility Unlimited (CAVU) Act is named
after the renowned pilots' acronym to describe ideal... Read More »
A training exercise known as Balikatan is underway in the Philippines this week, assembling forces from the Philippines, United States and Australia to address a multi-faceted range of operations.
Balikatan, which marks the partnership between the Philippines and United States specifically, is... Read More »
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) was appointed to
serve as a commissioner on the Commission on Security and Cooperation in
Europe, or the Helsinki Commission.
The Helsinki Commission, founded in 1976, was
created to advance democracy and human rights through military, economic, and
environmental... Read More »
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday issued a final rule that restricts both the use and distribution of Bacillus bacteria detection devices, which are prescribed to preliminarily identify and diagnose cases of anthrax and other infectious diseases.
“The FDA plays a critical... Read More »
A $96.8 million computed tomography (CT) systems contract from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was awarded last week to Smiths Detection, Inc.
The contract will cover the next five years, over which 300 CT systems and their affiliated equipment will be deployed at various... Read More »
A Mississippi-based ambulance company is espousing the benefits of partnering with the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) to enhance communication and coverage.
AAA Ambulance Service in Hattiesburg, Miss., subscribed to FirstNet to aid in connecting its 24-hour emergency and... Read More »
Marine Corps Logistics Base personnel in Barstow, Calif., recently conducted a training exercise designed to enhance both man-made and natural emergency preparedness.
The Exercise Haber Rail effort involved a simulated rail tanker car carrying thousands of cubic feet of chlorine gas... Read More »
A mission by agents of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) seized more than three tons of drugs from a vessel off the coast of Central America last week.
The drugs, estimated to be worth $17 million, were plucked from a moderately-sized, open-bed fishing... Read More »
A group of Republican U.S. senators sent a letter to the
leaders of the Senate Budget Committee expressing their support for the $750
billion defense request in President Donald Trump’s Fiscal Year 2020 budget.
The senators – including Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Dan
Sullivan (R-AK), Marsha... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) recently led other agencies in conducting an active shooter drill at the airport's Terminal 4.
The CBP's Office of Field Operations at LAX joined forces with other federal and local law enforcement... Read More »
Rep. John Katko (R-NY) introduced legislation to
create a cybersecurity advisory committee to help fight cyberattacks.
The Cybersecurity Advisory Committee (CSAC) would
be comprised of cybersecurity professionals from every major business sector
that are responsible for protecting... Read More »
Air Force officials have selected Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., to house the first operational B-21 Raider bomber and its formal training unit.
Officials also noted Whiteman AFB, Missouri, and Dyess AFB, Texas, will receive B-21s as they become available.
"These three bomber bases are well... Read More »
A U.S. Senate
bill aims to address the growing threat of white supremacists and other violent
right-wing extremists by requiring federal law enforcement agencies to
regularly assess this threat and provide training and resources to officers.
The bill, the Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act,... Read More »
A bill was introduced in the U.S. Senate that would equip
state and local law enforcement with high-tech devices to detect dangerous
drugs like fentanyl.
The legislation – called the Providing Officers with
Electronic Resources (POWER) Act -- would create a new grant program through
the U.S.... Read More »
Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT) recently visited McAllen, Texas, to assess the situation along the southern border, meeting with law enforcement officials, landowners, agriculture producers, and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers.
Challenges and resources needed to secure the border in a... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently questioned the Department of Defense's transfer of $1 billion in military personnel funding to an account designated for border wall funding.
Democratic members of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on... Read More »
The White House appointed this week Hawaii Gov. David Ige as one of the two newest co-chairs of the Council of Governors.
Ige, along with his nine other council colleagues appointed this year, will serve a two-year term in their positions.
“Hawai‘i is home to the U.S. Indo-Pacific... Read More »
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen met this
week with senior officials from Mexico and other central American nations to
discuss border security and immigration.
On March 26, Nielsen met with Mexican Secretary of the
Interior Olga Sanchez Cordero and other senior Mexican... Read More »
A bill recently
introduced in the U.S. House would provide blood testing for military
firefighters who were potentially exposed on the job to toxic chemicals.
The Protecting
Military Firefighters from PFAS Act would test for per- and polyfluoroalkyl
(PFAS) substances during annual physicals... Read More »
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency tested
two Exoatmospheric Kill Vehicles (EKV), which destroyed a threat representative
intercontinental ballistic missile during a test of the Ground-based Midcourse
Defense System (GMD).
One EKV intercepted the target and the
other gathered test data in what is... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Air and Marine Operations (AMO) and Coast Guard personnel recently thwarted an attempt to smuggle 2,513 pounds of cocaine valued at $28.5 million.
Authorities arrested three Dominican Republic aliens found operating the vessel. Bales of narcotics were... Read More »
In an assessment of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’s) annually required reporting on 43 measures of border security effectiveness, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found data limitations and issues with statistical models.
It should be noted: most of what GAO... Read More »
A multi-agency examination
of shipping containers at the Area Port of Philadelphia discovered more than 1,100
pounds of cocaine on March 19.
The cocaine,
weighing 1,185 pounds, was discovered in a shipping container commodity of
natural rubber from Guatemala. The narcotics have a street value... Read More »
While addressing the recent Commander’s Training Symposium (CTS), Navy Vice Adm. Richard Brown urged leaders to transition readiness into lethality, reinvigorate mission command and drive toward a culture of excellence.
“Driving to a culture of excellence is not a top-down management... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science Technology Directorate (S&T) and the Office of SAFETY Act Implementation (OSAI) have helped develop guidelines to aid building owners with operations evaluations.
The entities have partnered with the National Institute of Building Sciences... Read More »
More than 80 local, state, and territorial health
officials met Wednesday with Congress members with the goal of advocating for
public health funding.
The officials told Congress members that investing in public
health agencies is critical to protect and promote health. Federal... Read More »
Following last week’s terrorist attack on two New Zealand
mosques where the shooter live-streamed it on social media, U.S. Rep. Bennie
Thompson (D-MS) is calling on the CEOs of four major social media companies to immediately
remove violent terrorist content.
The request was sent to the CEOs... Read More »
Air and Marine Operations (AMO) personnel are being credited with intercepting an international cocaine smuggling attempt in which the narcotics were valued at over $76 million.
Authorities said officers patrolling the Eastern Pacific ocean aboard a P-3 aircraft detected suspects transporting... Read More »
Department of
Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kirstjen M. Nielsen delivered Monday the 2019
State of Homeland Security Address, which included operational challenges, the ever-changing
security landscape and the department’s strategic plan.
The address also
included the department’s major... Read More »
A recent Senate Defense Appropriations Committee hearing explored the importance of updating the nation’s nuclear forces, developing pilot training programs and advancing the Arctic mission.
Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) reviewed the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 budget with Air Force (USAF) Secretary... Read More »
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo was the topic of a hearing before the Senate Appropriations Labor, Health and Human Services Subcommittee this week, highlighting successes and failures in the fight against it.
Foremost, it was shown that the outbreak not only... Read More »
U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) recently swore in Donald R. Kusser as port director for
the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
In this role,
Kusser is responsible for managing all operational and administrative aspects
of port security and trade facilitation, including air cargo,... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), chairman of the House Committee
on Homeland Security, is requesting a briefing by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) and Justice Department on the threat of domestic terrorism.
“Recent high-profile acts of violence and attempted violence
have... Read More »
Members of the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on
Biodefense praised the passage of legislation that incorporates its
recommendation to direct the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to conduct a
detailed analysis of the Trump Administration's budget for biodefense as part
of the annual budget... Read More »
