News
FEMA borrows $2 billion to pay flood insurance claims
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently borrowed $2 billion from the U.S. Treasury to pay eligible National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) policyholder claims. “The widespread, devastating flooding following hurricanes Helene and Milton reemphasizes the financial effects flooding... Read More »
Cyber PIVOTT legislation reintroduced in Congress
U.S. Rep. Mark Green (R-TN), chair of the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security, has reintroduced the Cyber PIVOTT Act to address the country’s cybersecurity workforce shortage. First introduced in the 118th Congress, the Cyber PIVOTT Act would establish a new full-scholarship program for... Read More »
Cocaine valued at $1.4M seized by U.S. CBP in Texas at Mexico border
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) field operations officers seized cocaine with an estimated street value of $1.4 million at the Eagle Pass Port of Entry between Texas and Mexico on Thursday. The seizure occurred on Camino Real International Bridge. A CBP officer referred for secondary... Read More »
Lockheed Martin awarded $2.8B development contract from Missile Defense Agency
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) recently awarded global defense technology company Lockheed Martin a follow-on development contract for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) Weapon System with a ceiling value of $2.8 billion if all options are exercised. The THAAD Weapon System... Read More »
Legislation to combat fentanyl passed in House
Legislation led by U.S. Reps. Bob Latta (R-OH) and Morgan Griffith (R-VA) to halt the flow of fentanyl into the country has passed in the House. The legislation, the Halt All Lethal Trafficking (HALT) of Fentanyl Act, would make the temporary class-wide scheduling order for fentanyl-related... Read More »
Legislation would reduce cost of medical services provided outside of Military Treatment Facilities
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would work to reduce reimbursement costs for TRICARE and Community Care plans that cover medical services provided outside of Military Treatment Facilities. The Servicemember Site-Neutrality Act would direct the secretary of... Read More »
DHS Inspector General issues final report on Insufficient Oversight of FEMA COVID-19 grants
A new report from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General found that a lack of sufficient oversight of FEMA’s COVID-19 Emergency Protective Measures Grants led to more than $8.1 billion in questionable costs and $1.5 billion in over-obligated funds. The OIG... Read More »
Air Force leases land to develop Convergence Research Center
The U.S. Department of the Air Force and Synergy Building Systems, an Ohio-based real estate development company, recently entered into a 50-year Enhanced Use Lease (EUL) to develop approximately 43.5 acres of land at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton. An EUL is a lease agreement... Read More »
DHS says it will support security at Super Bowl LIX
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will continue its two-decade long tradition of supporting the security operations for Super Bowl LIX, officials said Monday. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said her department had sent 690 employees representing 12 DHS agencies to New Orleans to provide air... Read More »
Legislation would conduct study of certain foreign technologies
Bipartisan legislation recently reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would safeguard communications networks from foreign adversary-controlled technology. The Removing Our Unsecure Technologies to Ensure Reliability and Security (ROUTERS) Act would require the Department of... Read More »
Lockheed Martin awarded $383M contract for sea defense
The U.S. Navy has awarded Lockheed Martin a contract modification for the development of the Trident II Strategic Weapons System (SWS) D5 missile. The $383 million cost-plus-incentive-fee and cost-plus-fixed-fee modification will allow the company to design the missile’s upgrade, called the... Read More »
Justice Department participating in multinational operation to snag cybercrime marketplaces
The Justice Department is participating in a multinational operation to disrupt and disable Cracked and Nulled’s, two online cybercrime marketplaces, infrastructure. The operation is in conjunction with Operation Talent, a multinational law enforcement operation supported by Europol to... Read More »
Legislation reintroduced targeting fentanyl producers in China
Legislation to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for fentanyl coming into the United States was reintroduced by U.S. Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) on Wednesday. The legislation would amend the Fentanyl Sanctions Act to allows the U.S. government to impose sanctions on Chinese individuals and... Read More »
Collins Aerospace awarded $904M U.S. Navy contract
The U.S. Navy recently awarded North Carolina-based Collins Aerospace, an integrated and intelligent solutions company serving the aerospace and defense industries, a follow-on contract for up to $904 million over five years. The contract is for the continued development of the U.S. Navy's... Read More »
Trump orders building of Iron Dome Missile Defense shield
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday instructing the military to begin building an “Iron Dome” for the United States. The order directs the military to do “a review of theater missile defense posture to defend United States troops deployed abroad and an increase in... Read More »
Legislation seeks to make assaulting law enforcement officers deportable offense
Legislation recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would make it a deportable offense for a non-citizen to assault a law enforcement officer. The Protect Our Law Enforcement with Immigration Control and Enforcement (POLICE) Act of 2025 would explicitly designate the assault of a law enforcement... Read More »
Test flights demonstrate crewed-uncrewed teaming mission
Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, Lockheed Martin's Demonstrations and Prototypes organization and the University of Iowa's Operator Performance Laboratory (OPL) recently successfully showcased a crewed-uncrewed teaming mission. The Skunk Works and OPL teams conducted a series of flight tests that... Read More »
Legislation securing undersea cables introduced in Congress
U.S. Reps. Earl “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) and U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced legislation safeguarding the U.S. submarine cable infrastructure Thursday. The legislation, the Undersea Cable Protection Act, would ensure deployment and maintenance of undersea cables, while... Read More »
Defense Department announces Software vendors to support Replicator Initiative
The U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Innovation Unit announced Wednesday contract awards for several software developers contracts in support of the unit’s Replicator Initiative. Officials said the vendors will play a key role in enhancing the DoD’s efforts toward resilient command... Read More »
Pennsylvania Attorney General Henry, state police announce charges against 20 alleged cocaine traffickers
Attorney General Michelle Henry along with the Pennsylvania State Police and New Jersey State Police have announced charges against 20 alleged cocaine traffickers who allegedly used firearms to protect their trafficking operation in the greater Philadelphia area. Dozens of search warrants were... Read More »
Coast Guard offloads 29,000 pounds of cocaine in San Diego
The crew of a Coast Guard cutter recently offloaded in San Diego more than 29,000 pounds of cocaine, with an estimated value of $335.8 million, following 11 suspected drug smuggling vessel interdictions or events in September and October off the coasts of Mexico, Central America, and South America.... Read More »
Legislation introduced to address foreign supply chain threats
Legislation aimed at addressing security threats to the nation’s supply chain was introduced in the Senate by U.S. Sens. Gary Peters (D-MI) and Mike Rounds (R-SD) Monday. The legislation, the Federal Acquisition Security Council Improvement Act, would improve the effectiveness of the Federal... Read More »
DARPA, U.S. Army join forces to evaluate Cyber Threat Detection technologies
Recently, major military organizations came together to test and evaluate new cyber threat detection technologies, the agencies said Monday. As part of a joint operation with the U.S. Army Cyber Command Technical Warfare Center, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the... Read More »
Legislation would prevent individuals with ties to Hamas from entering country
Bipartisan legislation recently introduced in the U.S. Senate would prevent any migrant tied to Hamas from entering the United States. The No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act would prohibit any migrant who carried out, participated in, planned, financed, afforded material support... Read More »
CBP testing facial biometrics at Canada, U.S. crossing
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has begun testing facial biometrics for travelers entering the United States in select vehicle lanes at the Peace Bridge Port of Entry between Fort Erie, Canada, and Buffalo, N.Y. Simplified Arrival-Vehicle Biometric uses facial biometrics to automate... Read More »
Bill authorizing new VA facilities advances Senate
Legislation authorizing several new construction projects for the Veterans Affairs medical facilities passed in the U.S. Senate on Friday. The legislation, Fiscal Year 2024 Veterans Affairs Major Medical Facility Authorization Act, sponsored by U.S. Sens. Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Jon Tester... Read More »
DOD awards winners of hypersonic prototypes challenge
The Department of Defense (DOD) recently named California-based Castelion Corp. and Massachusetts-based Specter Aerospace as the winners of the Hypersonic Accelerated Manufactured Prototype Demonstration (Hyper-AMPD!) prize challenge. Each company receives $250,000. The two-phase project sought... Read More »
DHS unveils framework for AI deployment in critical infrastructure
In a first-of-its-kind collaboration with industry and the AI supply chain, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security released its recommendations for the development and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in critical infrastructure Thursday. The recommendations lays out clear guidance... Read More »
CISA launches Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience Month
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the agency tasked with cyber defense and the national coordinator for critical infrastructure security, recently launched Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience (CISR) Month. CISA uses CISR Month to educate and engage the... Read More »
U.S., Canada and Finland to build Artic, polar icebreakers
Building off of landmark agreements signed in July, the governments of the United States, Canada and Finland signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to start work on developing world-class Arctic and polar icebreakers. The MOU covers the exchange of knowledge, information and resources in... Read More »
Autonomous Black Hawk helicopter targets wildfire flames in demonstration
Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, and Rain, California-based autonomous aerial wildfire containment technology company, recently demonstrated how autonomous Black Hawk helicopters can be used to fight fires. During the 30-minute flight demonstration, a helicopter using Sikorsky’s MATRIX... Read More »
Republican senators request policy shift toward Qatar
A coalition of Republican senators is requesting the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of State to reverse American diplomatic policies toward the state of Qatar. Citing Qatar’s hospitality toward Hamas and Hamas’ role in the killing of several U.S. citizens during the... Read More »
House Armed Services Committee panel urges inclusion of military quality of life provisions in National Defense Authorization
Members of the House Armed Services Committee’s Military Quality of Life Panel urged the Senate Armed Services Committee to include their recommendations in the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act. The panel, led by U.S. Reps. Don Bacon (RNE) and Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), said erosions... Read More »
DHS, Japan partner for technical research and development
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) recently signed a joint statement of intent for collaborative research, development and foreign technical exchanges. Under... Read More »