U.S. Policy
U.S. Sens. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Jon Ossoff (D-GA) recently detailed the HBCU National Security Innovation Act, which seeks to connect Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) students to the defense industry and private sector national security and innovation programs.
“As... Read More »
Federal agencies, Congress and the White House must jointly foster improved research and development for pandemic preparedness and response, experts said during a recent webinar hosted by the Capitol Hill Steering Committee on Pandemic Preparedness & Health Security.
“Over the last two... Read More »
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan announced a series of initiatives he said seek to address
violent crime in Baltimore City amid the city exceeding 300 homicides for the seventh consecutive year.
"People are being shot nearly every single day in Baltimore City, and we all have an obligation to do... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ) recently joined first responders in recognizing a pair of achievements they said would aid police and fire personnel.
The group celebrated the signing into law of Pascrell’s Protecting America’s First Responders Act of 2021 (PAFRA), a measure that improves... Read More »
A new report from the CommuniVax Coalition has found that while progress has been made regarding equity in the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, more work is needed.
Led by the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Department of Anthropology at... Read More »
Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and FBI officials said the agencies are encouraging Americans to be aware of critical infrastructure security during the holiday season.
Efforts are being intensified to disrupt the critical networks and systems belonging to organizations,... Read More »
On Monday, U.S. Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) introduced a bill to secure the U.S. southern border.
The Build Better Borders Act of 2021 would increase civil monetary penalties for illegally crossing the border to $450,000. It stipulates that funds collected from those fines be... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently forwarded correspondence to the National Security Council to express concerns regarding nuclear policy.
U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Jim Inhofe (R-OK) joined U.S. Reps. Mike Rogers (R-AL), Michael McCaul (R-TX), and Devin Nunes (R-CA) in sending the letter to... Read More »
With COVID-19 daily emphasizing how critical health care workers are to modern society, a collection of U.S. senators this week proposed a student loan repayment program to drive recruitment and retention in the field of public health.
The BIO Preparedness Workforce Act was introduced by U.S.... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security, praised the Build Back Better Act on Friday, especially for its inclusion of $1.5 billion for investments at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The funding would improve the country’s cybersecurity... Read More »
Huntington Ingalls Industries announced that the company's Ingalls Shipbuilding division has received a $113.6 million Navy contract modification for the
Amphibious Assault Ship LHA 9.
The contract would enable long-lead-time material and advance procurement activities, bringing the total... Read More »
A bicameral effort from United States Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA) rebirthed the Flu Vaccine Act last week, which proposes a $1 billion investment into the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for research of a universal flu vaccine.
Such a vaccine would theoretically... Read More »
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and KIRO-AM 710 announced a joint upgrade effort last week to produce a modern emergency broadcast studio in Seattle focused on improved emergency alert systems.
Deemed critical to the nation’s emergency alert and warning system, the KIRO-AM... Read More »
A bipartisan group including U.S. Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Susan Collins (R-ME), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AR) introduced legislation on Thursday that would bolster the country’s ability to respond to future public health emergencies.
The Bolstering Infectious Outbreak... Read More »
In the wake of the group's creation earlier this year, members of the American Security Task Force recently conducted a roundtable discussion with law enforcement leaders regarding domestic policing.
Task force member participants included U.S. Reps. John Rutherford (R-FL), Michael Guest (R-MS),... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Mike Crapo (R-ID) introduced this week an amendment that would formally authorize the National Guard’s Fireguard program and alter its year-by-year approval structure to a more certain, five-year authorization.
The senators argued... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has identified Anchorage, Alaska, as the sole candidate city to host the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies.
The DoD would continue to navigate the Department of the Air Force Strategic Basing process to evaluate facilities within Anchorage to... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), chairman of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) announced Tuesday that they had introduced an amendment to the national defense bill that will strengthen and coordinate the federal government’s response to drug... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Young Kim (R-CA) recently introduced National Wildland Fire Risk Reduction Program Act amendments to improve wildfire communications and address meteorologist shortages.
The amendments occurred during a House Science, Space and Technology Committee markup on the measure, noting the... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), Gary Peters (D-MI), Rob Portman (R-OH), and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced this week an annual defense authorization bill amendment that focuses on bolstering cybersecurity.
The Cyber Incident Reporting Act and Federal Information Security Modernization Act of... Read More »
Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) is espousing the benefits of varied cybersecurity provisions he spearheaded that will be included in the recently passed infrastructure bill.
Officials indicated the Peters' efforts would provide $1 billion to state, local, tribal and territorial governments as a means of... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Todd Young (R-IN) recently responded to a report alleging the Chinese Communist Party is expressing opposition to his bill he said seeks to invest in technologies aiding in outcompeting China.
Young's rebuttal stemmed from a Reuters report alleging that the Chinese Embassy is... Read More »
Contained within the sprawling provisions of the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act signed into law this week are production-minded provisions that will require federal agencies to focus long-term personal protective equipment (PPE) production on domestic companies.
These... Read More »
Los Angeles/Long Beach Seaport Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel recently detailed record seizures of counterfeit and prohibited merchandise.
During Fiscal Year 2021, which spans from Oct. 1, 2020, to Sept. 30, 2021, trade enforcement seizures increased by 24 percent and the overall... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Steve Scalise (R-LA) and Anna G. Eshoo (D-CA), and U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Ed Markey (D-MA) applauded President Joe Biden signing the Secure Equipment Act of 2021 into law on Friday.
The new law prohibits the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) from reviewing or issuing... Read More »
With cybersecurity professionals in increased demand across the public and private sphere, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) this week launched the Cybersecurity Talent Management System (CTMS) to help it attract, develop and keep talent of its own.
“The DHS Cybersecurity Talent... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced legislation last week to expand upon a career preparation and training program designed to aid service members transitioning to civilian life.
The Onward to Opportunity Act increases the availability of the Onward to... Read More »
President Joe Biden signed the Ensuring Compliance Against Drug Diversion Act (H.R.1899) into law last week, codifying current drug regulations to make it harder for bad actors to create shell companies or transfer registration to evade crackdowns and continue distributing illegal... Read More »
As of Nov. 8, nearly $280 million in assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Small Business Administration has flowed into New York to help those affected by Hurricane Ida.
The September hurricane flooded streets and subway stations and left parts of the... Read More »
President Joe Biden on Nov. 12 announced he will nominate cardiologist Dr. Robert Califf to be the next commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a key role as the government continues to combat the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Current Acting FDA Commissioner Janet Woodcock’s... Read More »
A bill introduced by U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) would provide states with added flexibility to allow members of the National Guard to respond to emergencies.
Specifically, the bill would allow full-time Active Guard and Reserve (AGR) National Guard members with the ability to respond to... Read More »
U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas has issued the agency's fourth National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Bulletin since January 2021.
DHS indicated the country continually faces a diverse and challenging threat environment. Several... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced this week that it will provide $143.5 million to expand community-based efforts at vaccination outreach, specifically to build vaccine confidence and break down barriers to COVID-19 vaccination.
“Today’s investments are part of... Read More »
Block MEMS, LLC has secured a $2,622,082 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) award to develop vehicle-borne explosives detection technology.
The funding, provided through S&T’s Long-Range Broad Agency Announcement (LRBAA) process, would result in... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) and U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) spearheaded a bicameral effort detailing the FIRE Act and the Disaster Equity and Fairness Act -- two bills that address federal wildfire response redesign and efforts to bolster resources when such outbreaks occur.
The FIRE Act... Read More »
