U.S. Policy
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program operators are seeking to meet with Maryland-area small businesses to help address homeland security challenges.
Entities in the research and development domain are encouraged to attend Friday’s session,... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) inquired about the information security practices of U.S. Customs and Border Protection contractors following a cyberattack that resulted in the theft of thousands of facial images of U.S. travelers.
The June attack led to the theft of at least 100,000 traveler ID... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel at the Air and Marine Operations (AMO), National Air Security Operations Center Corpus Christi (NASOC-CC) recently aided Hurricane Dorian relief efforts in the Bahamas.
From Aug. 29 to Sept. 8, NASOC-CC’s aircrews deployed to Birmingham, Ala., and... Read More »
Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) recently spearheaded a gathering of Nevada education personnel and tech companies to assess cybersecurity threats and legislation to address such circumstances.
“The security of our nation’s cyber infrastructure is put at serious risk without a robust, skilled... Read More »
Sen. John Hoeven (R-ND) recently secured strong funding in the 2020 Energy and Water Appropriations bill to extend and refurbish nuclear warheads bolstering the nation’s defense.
“Given the security challenges around the globe, it’s vital we invest in our nuclear warheads and nuclear... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel have partnered with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate as a means of bolstering illegal opioid detection methods.
Synthetic Opioid Detection at Speed (SODAS) began after a report by the President’s... Read More »
The Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY2020 funding bill for the Department of Defense by a narrow 16-15 margin.
The $694.9 billion funding bill includes an increase of $20.5 billion above FY2019. The recommendation consists of $622.5 billion in base funding, $70.7 billion for... Read More »
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials said the agency’s recently released enforcement actions report reflects a decline in the last 90 days while activity levels remain high.
The analysis showed this year through August, the total number of people apprehended or found to be... Read More »
The U.S. Senate recently advanced a bill that seeks to make air travel more convenient for transportation industry workers.
The TSA Credential and Endorsement Harmonization Act of 2019 is designed to reduce the number of duplicate screenings by expanding TSA PreCheck to those who have already... Read More »
A U.S. House committee hearing on Wednesday focused on how to strengthen a federal program that protects high-risk chemical facilities from terrorist attacks.
“High-risk chemical facilities hold large stores of industrial chemicals that pose a safety and security risk to the American people... Read More »
Kentucky’s Boyd County has been chosen for inclusion in the Appalachia High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said the HIDTA program provides law enforcement agencies in designated counties with coordination, equipment, technology,... Read More »
Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced Tuesday legislation designed to address asylum fraud and protect children arriving at the border from human trafficking.
The End Child Trafficking Now Act of 2019, amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to require a DNA test to... Read More »
The number of people apprehended or found to be inadmissible at the Southern U.S. border declined by 22 percent in August, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
The number apprehended or turned away was 64,006 in August, down from 82,055 in July. The August totals mark a 56 percent... Read More »
On the eve of the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, experts testified to U.S. Congress that while Islamic jihadists remain a threat to the security of the United States, so to do domestic terrorists in the form of white supremacists and other radical right-wing groups.
During a House... Read More »
The 92nd and 141st Air Refueling Wings at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane, Washington, are hosting Mobility Guardian 2019, the Air Mobility Command’s (AMC) premier exercise.
“Unmatched rapid global mobility exists because of the ready and resilient Airmen who execute the mission day in... Read More »
Sen. Cory Gardner (R-CO) is lauding the Department of Defense’s (DOD) recent decision to temporarily establish U.S. Space Command in Colorado, noting it harnesses the state’s existing military assets.
Gardner, an advocate for the initiative, said the temporary establishment at Peterson Air... Read More »
Ebola containment efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will now be bolstered by $21 million in additional humanitarian assistance from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The funds are in response to a continually worsening condition in the country, where an... Read More »
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials said recent implementation of the agency’s National Fugitive Operations Program resulted in the arrest of 39 fugitives suspected of human rights violations.
The effort, which was executed Aug. 27-29, involved the Human Rights Violators and... Read More »
New York State will provide $10 million in grant funding to strengthen local emergency response operations across the state.
"New York remains steadfast in our commitment to providing our first responders with the tools they need to respond quickly and efficiently to emergencies," Gov. Andrew... Read More »
The U.S. Navy is working on adding 20 new guided missile frigates to its fleet, but the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recommended they provide Congress with an independent cost estimate before awarding any contracts.
Currently, the cost is estimated at around $20 billion. GAO... Read More »
Over $1.2 million in federal assistance grants has been earmarked for Arizona firefighters in Jerome, Marana, Payson, Pinetop, Phoenix, and Prescott.
The funding was awarded through the Department of Homeland Security's Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG), which awards grants directly... Read More »
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Omaha opened a new office in Duluth, Minn.
It is being opened through a partnership with the Lake Superior Drug and Violent Crime Task Force. The Duluth Post of Duty, the 11th DEA office in the DEA’s Omaha Division, supplements the existing drug... Read More »
Rep. John Katko (R-NY) recently joined federal officials in conducting a roundtable discussion focused on addressing cybersecurity threats there.
Katko recently hosted the session at the Onondaga County Water Authority with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials to assist local elected... Read More »
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) maintains trade-based money laundering (TBML) is not sufficiently regarded as one of the nation’s most significant national security threats while urging a comprehensive solution process.
“Cartels and terrorists are moving billions of dollars unchecked to fund their... Read More »
A group of Senate Democrats recently called on the U.S. Department of Defense to provide Congress with details of its decision use military construction funding to pay for a Southern border wall.
“We are opposed to this decision and the damage it will cause to our military and the relationship... Read More »
The U.S. Coast Guard will work in conjunction with state and local first responders in Tennessee today to conduct boat drills aboard the passenger vessel Star of Knoxville, out on the Tennessee River.
Operations will span periods in the morning and afternoon, in two locales: the Knoxville... Read More »
A group of lawmakers recently implored the Trump Administration to release $250 million in authorized military security assistance for Ukraine.
Sens. Rob Portman (R-OH), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ron Johnson (R-WI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) have forwarded correspondence to... Read More »
Legislation to modernize the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Continuous Diagnostics Mitigation (CDM) program was introduced in the House this week.
The Advancing Cybersecurity Diagnostics and Mitigation Act, introduced by Reps. John Ratcliffe (R-TX) and Ro Khanna (D-CA), seeks to... Read More »
The U.S. Army’s Project Manager Soldier Weapons awarded Textron Systems a contract to deliver automatic rifles.
Textron Systems, a subsidiary of Textron Inc., will deliver 43 6.8mm CT Next Generation Squad Weapons (NGSW) Automatic Rifles and 53 NGSW-Rifles. Further, it will provide the Army... Read More »
Planck Aerosystems, Inc. has secured a $200,000 Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) award to test its small Unmanned Aircraft System (sUAS) in operational settings.
The award is part of S&T’s Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP) in partnership with... Read More »
A recent groundbreaking ceremony was held for the site of the Waterloo Fire Station in Jessup, Md., a nearly six-acre plot that will serve as the first new fire station in the eastern part of Howard County in 25 years and will improve the area’s emergency response services.
The fire station... Read More »
Two cooperative research and development agreements, between the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the First Responder Network Authority and more than 75 industry partners, have made emergency service communication easier.
Network towers generally can support approximately 600... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is launching a pilot program in St. Louis to integrate smart cities technology into the public safety infrastructure.
The pilot program will take place at T-REX, the downtown St. Louis technology innovation... Read More »
The State of Wyoming Office of Homeland Security recently welcomed the first member of its Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Integration Team (FIT).
“We are excited to explore this opportunity for partnership with FEMA,” Lynn Budd, director of the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security... Read More »
Fire departments in Middletown, Manchester, Bristol, and Southington, Conn., have been awarded more than $595,000 in Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG).
“These grants represent the hard work and sacrifice of our firefighters and first responders in Middletown, Manchester, Bristol,... Read More »
