U.S. Policy
A bill introduced by U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Steve Daines (R-MT) recently proposed extending use of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) procurement tool to acquire leading-edge technology from private companies.
The Better Enabling Secure and Trustworthy (BEST) Technology... Read More »
A new bill introduced by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME) proposed protections for servicemembers by requiring the Department of Defense (DoD) to pursue better blast overpressure screening, tracking, prevention and treatment measures.
Blast overpressure is the pressure... Read More »
In a move to improve technology transitions, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) last month launched the Transition Tracking Action Group (TTAG) and granted the new advisory group access to advanced data analytics.
For its part, the TTAG will be charged with establishing a department-wide... Read More »
According to new findings from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the U.S. Coast Guard’s ongoing efforts to modernize its fleet of about 200 aircraft suffer from a major flaw in its lack of analytical data.
The Coast Guard relies on its aircraft to protect the U.S. coastline and... Read More »
Through an exercise known as Poseidon’s Domain, the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve will take crews from three of its Port Security Units (PSU) and put them to the test along the northeast and eastern coasts of Puerto Rico this month.
From April 8 to April 25, crews from PSUs 305, 307, and 309 will... Read More »
After newly hired officers’ benefits were pulled due to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) error that claimed they would be eligible for proportional annuity, federal lawmakers have introduced bills to correct that mistake and renew those benefits.
The U.S. Customs and Border... Read More »
Working together, U.S. Sens. Deb Fischer (R-NE) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) recently introduced the Veterans Assistance Helpline Act, a bill to make a veterans information and assistance helpline a permanent fixture of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
“We owe so much to our veterans for... Read More »
Framing it as a move to strengthen enforcement and support American textile jobs, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently announced a strategy taking aim at illicit textiles and customs violations.
“We are dedicated to ensuring a fair and level playing field for American... Read More »
Working with law enforcement partners, the U.S. Secret Service recently arrested 10 individuals across the state of California and charged them with crimes related to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) fraud, as part of an action dubbed Operation April Fools.
The multi-day operation sought to... Read More »
Troubled by a trend of suspended or delayed reenlistment bonuses, U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) recently wrote to National Guard Bureau Chief Daniel Hokanson urging the service branch to maintain incentive payments for its members.
“In October 2023, over 9,000 soldiers were identified as... Read More »
Building on successful proof of concepts in other cities since 2022, the United States Justice Department announced this week that it will add the cities of St. Louis; Jackson, Mississippi; and Hartford, Connecticut to its Criminal Division’s Violent Crime Initiative (VCI).
“The Justice... Read More »
A bill recently introduced by U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) – the Improving Contracting Outcomes Act of 2024 – aims to shore up federal oversight of taxpayer funds produced by requiring each agency to track their returns on investment.
The bill would create a pilot program dedicated to... Read More »
Following an independent review of the Microsoft Exchange Online intrusion in summer 2023, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) announced that the attack had been preventable, and steps should be taken to do so in the future.
Last summer, Microsoft... Read More »
In a letter to the Governmental Accountability Office (GAO), House Republican leaders of the Energy and Commerce Committee and its subcommittees urged an investigation of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and how it protects research funds from Chinese exploitation.
Accusing China of... Read More »
Beginning this July, the U.S. Air Force will allot special cold weather pay for those eligible airmen and guardians stationed at bases where the temperature drops below -20 degrees Fahrenheit.
As called for in the 2023 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the plan acts as a sort of... Read More »
With the recent release of its Defense Industrial Base (DIB) Cybersecurity (CS) Strategy, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) sought to lay out a means to achieve internal and industry-facing cybersecurity through 2027.
The strategy is split into four goal areas:
Strengthening the DoD... Read More »
As required by the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022 (CIRCIA), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) recently released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on new cybersecurity measures meant to bolster its real-time capabilities.
“Cyber... Read More »
Following the recent passage of the fiscal year 2024 Defense Appropriations Bill, U.S. Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) began a statewide tour of North Dakota, to highlight all the ways the bill benefits the state’s involvement with the U.S military.
Overall, the bill provided a 3 percent boost to... Read More »
With artificial intelligence (AI) the increasing focus of interest for Washington and private companies, U.S. Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) this week wrote to U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm with doubts about her department’s ability to protect research from Chinese interests.
“In the... Read More »
The Senate greenlit the Federal Building Security Act (S. 3613) this week, moving to the House’s consideration a bill that would make federal agencies respond to Federal Protective Services (FPS) security recommendations within 90 days.
“Every day, Americans across the country visit federal... Read More »
A bipartisan group of senators recently introduced the American Economic Independence Act, which would require the president to provide Congress with a comprehensive threat assessment of integrating economically with China.
It would focus on numerous sectors, demanding analysis of both current... Read More »
Citing cases where cyberattacks targeted health care systems in the United States, U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) recently wrote to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) requesting cybersecurity boosts for the... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Justice recently launched a new resource center – the National Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) – to offer training meant to ultimately keep guns away from extreme risk individuals.
Vice President Kamala Harris announced the new resource center at Marjory Stoneman... Read More »
Among the provisions included in the recent $1.2 trillion funding agreement signed by President Joe Biden was a carve-out of $3 million to establish and manage a Northern Border Coordination Center.
Championed by U.S. Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental... Read More »
The Senate recently advanced legislation from U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and John Kennedy (R-LA) that seeks to improve the situation facing disaster survivors by reforming the federal support system and the efficacy of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Under the Helping... Read More »
High-risk biological research and technology both in the United States and abroad is under new scrutiny from the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee, after the announcement of a new investigation by its chair and ranking member.
“Biotechnologies, such as CRISPR, are... Read More »
Among a flurry of 28 bills advanced 43-0 by the House Energy and Commerce Committee recently was a technology-check bill by United States Rep. Bob Latta (R-OH): the Removing Our Unsecure Technologies to Ensure Reliability and Security (ROUTERS) Act.
ROUTERS targeted routers, modems and similar... Read More »
In order to support medical countermeasure priorities for the U.S. government, a new report from the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) projected needs of up to $79.5 billion between fiscal years 2023 and 2027.
The Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasure... Read More »
Looking to better align approaches to cyber incidents on both sides of the Atlantic, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the European Commission’s Directorate General for Communications, Networks, Content, and Technology (DG CONNECT) recently launched a new comparison... Read More »
Building on findings by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), U.S. Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) called on the Department of Defense (DoD) to change how it handles defense industry consolidations to protect taxpayer funding and national security alike.
Back in... Read More »
Last year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reportedly expanded training and education efforts about human trafficking, successfully training more than 275,000 people to recognize the signs and take action.
These findings were documents in the recently released Center for... Read More »
In order to avoid some of the worst issues experienced by supply chains at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and Don Bacon (R-NE) recently introduced a bill to create an emergency reserve of active pharmaceutical ingredients while incentivizing domestic... Read More »
Several Democrat and Republican lawmakers from both chambers of Congress recently introduced the Enhancing Public-Private Sharing on Manipulative Adversary Practices in Critical Minerals Projects Act to increase the information sharing relationship between private companies and the U.S.... Read More »
As a result of the Semantic Forensics (SemaFor) program, DARPA recently reported that defense technology to help against manipulated media may be ready for commercialization.
“Our investments have seeded an opportunity space that is timely, necessary, and poised to grow,” Dr. Wil Corvey,... Read More »
The U.S. House recently passed H.R. 7521, a significant bipartisan bill that seeks to to prevent foreign adversaries, like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), from targeting, surveilling, and manipulating the American people through applications such as TikTok.
Specifically, H.R. 7521 – the... Read More »
