U.S. Policy
The New York Police Department (NYPD) announced last week the agency will be launching an Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) program, which will be comprised of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), or drones, and the licensed NYPD officers in the Technical Assistance Response Unit (TARU) who will operate... Read More »
Sens. Mike Rounds (R-SD), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), John Kennedy (R-LA) and Ted Cruz (R-TX) introduced last week a bill that would fully fund the border wall southern section.
The four legislators said the WALL Act also serves as the first bill that will fund the wall by identifying specific funding... Read More »
Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) recently introduced a bill designed to bolster cybersecurity efforts by requiring a cyber-vulnerabilities disclosure program (VDP) to address deficiencies.
The Public-Private Cybersecurity Cooperation Act would require the Department of Homeland... Read More »
BAE Systems recently was awarded two indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contracts totaling more than $150 million with the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWCAD).
Both contracts support the sustainment and rapid integration of command, control, communications, computers,... Read More »
The Senate advanced Wednesday the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act of 2018 (ARIA), which serves as a policy framework to enhance American leadership in the Indo-Pacific region.
The measure, authored by Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO), Ed Markey (D-MA), Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Ben Cardin (D-MD), also... Read More »
Six U.S. senators introduced a resolution Wednesday that holds Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman accountable for contributing for a variety of actions including the unjustified killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Sens. Chris Coons (D-DE), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Lindsey Graham... Read More »
U.S. Reps Jim Langevin (D-RI) and Glenn Thompson (R-PA), introduced legislation Monday that provides resources to develop cybersecurity education programs at technical schools.
The Cybersecurity Education Integration Act would establish a competitive grant program to add cybersecurity into new... Read More »
A coalition of national organizations representing public health, healthcare providers, biotechnology companies, and researchers this week urged congressional leaders to swiftly approve the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation (PAHPAI) Act of 2018 before Congress adjourns... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration released Tuesday its first Cybersecurity Roadmap, a guide that prioritizes the administration’s cybersecurity efforts.
The guide highlights efforts both within the TSA and the transportation systems sector. It is part of the 2018-2026 TSA Strategy... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) announced Tuesday his support for criminal justice reform legislation recently proposed in Congress.
The First Step Act (S.3649) would reduce federal recidivism and crime, prepare inmates for a successful return to society, enhance prison security and officer safety,... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is reaching out to startups as a means of bolstering anti-forgery and counterfeiting capabilities for digital documentation.
The request is being made through a new solicitation, “Preventing Forgery and... Read More »
Army Sgt. First Class Ikaika Erik Kang has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for attempting to provide material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).
Officials said Kang, 35, formerly stationed at Schofield Barracks, was sentenced to 240 months on Counts 2, 3 and 4 to run... Read More »
The Coast Guard Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) Program, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) recently launched two 6U CubeSats as a means of evaluating the effectiveness of space-based sensors in support of... Read More »
Several U.S. senators have expressed concern with President Donald Trump expressed intention to pull the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is an arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, then... Read More »
AAR recently secured a five-year, $51 million U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) contract to perform support services for Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation System Boeing 737 series aircraft.
The agreement covers maintenance and logistical work for the Justice Prisoner and Alien Transportation... Read More »
House lawmakers recently advanced the Federal CIO Authorization Act of 2018, which officials said strengthens national cybersecurity by elevating and reauthorizing the role of the Federal Chief Information Officer (CIO).
House IT Subcommittee Chair Will Hurd (R-TX) and Ranking Member Robin Kelly... Read More »
Andrew Scharnweber, a 22-year veteran of the U.S. Border Patrol, was selected in late November as Deputy Chief Patrol Agent for the agency’s Buffalo sector.
That new authority makes him one of the top figures governing the security of New York’s and Pennsylvania’s ports of entry. It also... Read More »
A group of U.S. Senators recently introduced legislation that would stop the United States from entering into a 21st Century nuclear arms race.
The Prevention of Arms Race Act of 2018 is sponsored by Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Edward Markey... Read More »
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS) is urging progression toward the Navy meeting its goal of a 355-ship fleet, which became policy when President Donald Trump signed the Securing the Homeland by Increasing our Power on the Seas (SHIPS) Act into law last year.
Wicker, chairman of the Senate Seapower... Read More »
Federal officials are pushing for the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2018 (PAHPA), which was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in September, to be signed into law this year.
In a discussion on Wednesday hosted by the Alliance for Biosecurity... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently praised the House advancement of legislation designed to reduce worldwide violence, enhance engagement, and address instability in other countries.
Reps. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Eliot L. Engel (D-NY), Ted Poe (R-TX), Adam Smith (D-WA) and Bill Keating (D-MA) said the... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently issued three recommendations to improve how the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspects air carriers and assesses foreign airports in regards to U.S.-bound air cargo.
The GAO examined the TSA’s screening process to monitor the... Read More »
A global initiative of public and private organizations is needed to eliminate computer-effecting botnets, according to a new paper from the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).
The report was written by Robert Knake, senior fellow for cyber policy at CFR and senior research scientist at... Read More »
Zoobia Shahnaz, from Brentwood, New York, recently pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert to providing material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS).
Between March and August 2017, Shahnaz defrauded numerous financial institutions, according to prosecutors.... Read More »
Reps. Will Hurd (R-TX) and Henry Cuellar (D-TX) and Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) recently secured a $1.6 million federal grant to increase the La Salle County Fire Rescue Department's staffing level.
The lawmakers said funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Staffing for... Read More »
The First Responder Network (FirstNet) Authority’s Public Safety Advisory Committee (PSAC) recently appointed Todd Early as its new chairman.
Early has more than 25 years of leadership experience in public safety. He is Texas’ contact person for public safety communications and is assistant... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate is working with public safety officials in the Houston-area to evaluate first responder technologies.
DHS, along with industry partners and 13 local Houston-area public safety agencies on a HAZMAT-related scenario... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending the Navy conduct a business case analysis as part of an effort to address attack submarine maintenance delays.
The GAO said the effort would assist in pinpointing maintenance workload allocation across public and private... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) outdated BioWatch Program, launched in 2003 as an early warning system for potential bioterrorist attacks in the United States, is being replaced, a federal expert told members of the Blue Ribbon Study Panel on Biodefense on Nov. 14 during a report... Read More »
Dakota State University President José-Marie Griffiths has been selected to serve as a member of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence.
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Chairman Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) recently announced Griffiths appointment to... Read More »
President Donald Trump on Nov. 16 signed into law a bill that creates the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), which establishes a new agency within the Department of Homeland Security to lead the federal government’s civilian response to cyber threats.
The CISA will be a... Read More »
Barnard Construction Company has received a $172 million Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Army Corps of Engineers base contract to build 14 miles of Arizona Primary Pedestrian Replacement Wall.
The total contract value, which includes up to 32 miles and options, is $324 million, with work... Read More »
The Transportation Security Administration recently unveil new Automated Screening Lanes (ASLs) at San Francisco International Airport’s (SFO) Terminal 3.
ASLs moves passengers faster and more efficiently through security checkpoints. The technology does this in several ways. United Airlines... Read More »
A bipartisan group of Senators introduced legislation to ensure Congressional oversight of U.S. policy on Yemen and demand accountability from Saudi Arabia for the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi.
The Saudi Arabia Accountability and Yemen Act of 2018 would suspend weapons... Read More »
Against the backdrop of a spreading Ebola outbreak in Congo, where a worsening war has stymied U.S. aid amid increasing security concerns, the Trump administration is trying to wrap its arms around what is and isn’t working in biodefense against man-made, accidental, naturally occurring... Read More »
