U.S. Policy
A bill designed to strengthen the federal government’s ability to prevent and investigate acts of domestic terrorism was introduced in the House this week.
The Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2021 (H.R. 350) DTPA would authorize three offices -- one each within the Department of Homeland... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Defense will investigate the prevalence of white supremacy and extremist ideology in the ranks of the military.
The investigation comes after the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Lawmakers said that several of the insurrectionists who attacked the Capitol have been... Read More »
Timothy Shea, acting administrator for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, announced Friday that the agency would be expanding Operation Crystal Shield.
The expansion identifies two additional methamphetamine “transportation hubs” in 2021. It would work to attack the entire supply... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Cheri Bustos (D-IL) and Tim Ryan (D-OH) introduced a bill that would require the federal government to cover the full cost of National Guard deployments for COVID-19 response efforts.
A companion bill will be introduced in the Senate on Jan. 21 by Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT). These are... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said Simplified Arrival, which uses facial biometrics to automate manual documentation required for admission, is being used at two California border crossings.
The technology is being implemented at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa pedestrian border crossing... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a new nationwide Real ID public awareness campaign that addresses requirements while encouraging action before the Oct. 1, 2021, full enforcement deadline.
"Be Your REAL ID Self" urges Americans to obtain a REAL ID-compliant card or an... Read More »
The Departments of Defense (DoD) and Health and Human Services (HHS) awarded $69.3 million to CONTINUUS Pharmaceuticals Inc. last week to support the development of domestic production capability for critical medicines using integrated continuous manufacturing (ICM) technology.
ICM is a... Read More »
U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) announced that $16 million in federal funding has been secured to combat Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases.
The funding, a $2 million increase over last year, was included in the recently passed bipartisan government... Read More »
An indictment was unsealed in Central Islip, N.Y., last week, charging 14 leaders in MS-13 who are known as the Ranfla Nacional, which operated as the organization’s board of directors, directing MS-13’s criminal activity for almost two decades.
The indictment charges the defendants with... Read More »
Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL) and Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) have re-introduced legislation they said imposes sanctions on foreign persons, agencies, and governments assisting Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, or affiliates.
The Palestinian International Terrorism Support Prevention Act requires the... Read More »
Last week, a collection of 30 United States Representatives wrote to House and committee leadership to demand the creation of an independent, bipartisan commission to investigate the government’s failure to address domestic terrorism and prevent this month’s assault on the Capitol.
Led by... Read More »
Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., has been selected as the preferred location for the U.S. Space Command Headquarters by the Secretary of the Air Force, on behalf of the Office of Secretary of Defense.
The Department of the Air Force conducted virtual and on-site visits to assess which of... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is calling on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to issue guidelines that will maximize vaccine distribution.
In a letter to CDC Director Robert Redfield, Feinstein pointed out that some vaccine providers have reported leftover doses, doses... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has approved a document addressing emerging risks in the Arctic region amid expanded geopolitical interest and competition.
On Jan. 11, then-Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad F. Wolf approved the Department’s inaugural Strategic Approach for... Read More »
The Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development (BIRD) Foundation has awarded two projects a total of $1.5 million to address homeland security threat detection and 3D mapping technologies.
The BIRD Homeland Security (HLS) program is a joint initiative funded by the Department of... Read More »
State and federal legislators must accomplish more to help protect Marylanders and other Americans from overdose deaths during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, U.S. Rep. David Trone (D-MD) said Wednesday.
“The devastating increases in overdose deaths throughout my district and the state of... Read More »
A group of U.S. Senators recently demanded that the Trump administration take immediate action to remedy the COVID-19 vaccine distribution failures.
Specifically, the 43 senators are calling on Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Alex Azar to develop and implement a national vaccine plan.... Read More »
Three lawmakers have introduced a bill they said would establish a national commission responsible for investigating the domestic terrorist attack on the United States Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Reps. Rodney Davis (R-IL), John Katko (R-NY), and James Comer (R-KY) noted the commission would consist... Read More »
The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Defense (DoD) shored up the national supply of casirivimab and imdevimab this week with the purchase of another 1.25 million doses of Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.’s combo monoclonal antibody therapeutic for COVID-19.
Regeneron is... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) are calling on Congress to fully fund the District of Columbia emergency planning and security fund (EPSF).
The EPSF pays for the unique public safety and security costs the District incurs as the nation’s capital. It is... Read More »
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is honoring National Human Trafficking Awareness Month as a means of drawing attention to the international crime and the work of law enforcement to deter human trafficking, bring traffickers to justice, and aid... Read More »
U.S. Senate leaders from the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration said they would hold investigations to examine the security failures during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Senate Homeland Security Committee leaders,... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel joined forces with military entities to successfully recover approximately 1.9 tons of cocaine and disrupted a Caribbean smuggling attempt.
The Air and Marine Operations (AMO) National Air Security Operations Center—Jacksonville (NASOC—J) P-3... Read More »
The violent suicide bombing that rocked downtown Nashville, Tenn., on Christmas morning and devastated dozens of businesses in the area also exposed the difficulties with an American reliance on reactive, rather than proactive, emergency planning efforts.
While much focus has been placed on... Read More »
Leaders of five House committees are seeking an immediate briefing with the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on its efforts to investigate the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol that led to five deaths.
“We write to request an immediate and urgent briefing on the steps the... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Tucson Medical Center (TMC) began administering monoclonal antibody therapeutic treatments last week.
The treatments were given at a temporary COVID-19 infusion center in Tucson. It is just the second federally supported infusion center... Read More »
At least 80 percent to 85 percent of Americans should receive the COVID-19 vaccine for the country to reach herd immunity, said National Institutes of Health Director Francis Collins in a Jan. 6 interview with the Washington Post.
“Herd immunity requires the majority of a population to be... Read More »
Before Jan. 19, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will release more than $22 billion in funding to support states, localities, and territories grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic through a mix of expanded testing and vaccination distribution efforts.
"This funding is... Read More »
The National Security Council staff has launched a task force to coordinate the investigation and remediation of the recent Solar Winds cyberattack involving federal government networks.
The task force -- called the Cyber Unified Coordination Group (UCG) -- is composed of representatives from... Read More »
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) is encouraging communities to apply for Supporting and Improving Rural EMS Needs (SIREN) Act funds in support of fire and emergency medical services (EMS).
“In many small and rural towns in Illinois and across the country, rural fire and EMS agencies are a lifeline in... Read More »
Dr. Barbara Alexander, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), and Dr. Rajesh Gandhi, chair of the HIV Medicine Association, called this week for swift action to overcome the hurdles slowing COVID-19 vaccine access and efforts to counter the raging pandemic.
“To address... Read More »
Tests conducted by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) showed promising results that facial recognition technologies can accurately identify individuals wearing protective face masks.
The tests were conducted as part of S&T’s 2020 Biometric... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and John Katko (R-NY) introduced a bill to enhance the nation’s readiness to prepare for and respond to public safety and national security threats – including pandemics.
Their bill -- the Analyzing Disaster Vulnerabilities and Applicable National... Read More »
A Transportation Security Administration (TSA) report assessing the 2020 calendar year detailed the implementation of modifications across more than 440 federalized airports nationwide amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2020, the agency screened a total of approximately 324... Read More »
Laura McGill has been named Sandia National Laboratories deputy labs director and will lead its nuclear deterrence programs to support safety, security, and reliability excellence.
“I’m honored to join Sandia Labs and the tradition of serving the national security mission,” McGill said.... Read More »
