News
Raytheon secures Air Force missile warning contract
Raytheon Company has secured a five-year, $197 million contract Air Force contract to aid the branch in modernizing its missile warning architecture. The effort involves developing the Future Operationally Resilient Ground Evolution (FORGE) Mission Data Processing Application Framework (MDPAF),... Read More »
Sen. Markey urges Trump to reestablish global health “czar” position following coronavirus outbreak
U.S. Senator Edward Markey (D-MA) is urging the Trump Administration to reestablish the White House global health security and biothreats directorate within the National Security Council. In 2016, after the Ebola virus emerged, the Obama administration created the global health and biothreats... Read More »
Trump signs into law bill that provides security grants for faith-based organizations
President Donald Trump signed into law a bill that provides grants to nonprofits and faith-based organizations to secure their facilities against a potential terrorist attack. The Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit Organizations from Terrorism Act authorizes $75 million annually for five years... Read More »
Nuclear Threat Initiative CEO urges reduction of biological threat risk
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) CEO and Co-Chairman Ernest J. Moniz called on public and private sector leaders at last week’s 50th World Economic Forum (WEF) to work to reduce the biological risks associated with advances in technology. Safety and security measures have not kept pace with... Read More »
GAO offers recommendations regarding FirstNet contract oversight
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued the Department of Commerce a series of recommendations addressing FirstNet contract oversight with state officials and other stakeholders. FirstNet has been tasked with establishing a nationwide broadband network for public safety officials,... Read More »
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contributes $10M to fight novel coronavirus outbreak globally
Faced with a novel coronavirus -- 2019-nCoV -- that continues to spread worldwide, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced this week that it will commit $10 million toward containment in China and Africa. The funds will be split down the middle: $5 million will go to response support in... Read More »
FDA joins novel coronavirus counter-efforts with moves to expedite medical options
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has joined the international effort to fight the Wuhan coronavirus -- a novel coronavirus known as 2019-nCoV -- through assistance to developers, a public information campaign and diagnostics development. “We have a vital mission to protect and... Read More »
Researchers broaden global health security for contemporary, future threats
Global health security may need an overhaul. That’s how Kathryn Bouskill, a social scientist at the RAND Corporation and associate director of the RAND Center for Global Risk and Security, sees the future of the discipline. In her recently published paper ‘Global Health and Security:... Read More »
Senate bill would create state cybersecurity coordinators
A bill that would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to establish a Cybersecurity State Coordinator program was introduced in the U.S. Senate last week. The legislation would ensure that each state has its own Cybersecurity Coordinator, who would be responsible for responding to... Read More »
New reports show weak pipeline for antibiotics against drug-resistant infections
Two new reports reveal a weak pipeline for new antibiotics to combat drug-resistant infections. The World Health Organization (WHO) says this is due to declining private investment and the lack of innovation in the development of new antibiotics. “Never has the threat of antimicrobial... Read More »
Virginia lawmakers seek funding for aviation facility
Virginia’s congressional delegation is urging the Army National Guard to prioritize funding for a new aviation facility in Richmond, Va., as part of the Future Years Defense Program (FYDP). The lawmakers said the funding would help complete a facility to house the Virginia Army National... Read More »
DHS issues recommendations to combat illicit trade
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a series of recommendations to the federal government and industry personnel as a means of combating illicit trade. The guidelines stem from President Donald Trump’s April 3, 2019, Memorandum on Combating Trafficking in Counterfeit and... Read More »
Legislation would ensure proper-fitted body armor for female service members
Bipartisan legislation recently introduced in the Senate would ensure body armor and personal protective equipment (PPE) is properly-fitted and readily available for female service members. Access to smaller sized PPE and female-specific PPE is severely limited and issued to only some women who... Read More »
U.S. cases of Wuhan coronavirus confirmed in five patients in four states
Confirmed infections of the Wuhan coronavirus reached five people in the United States over the weekend, with already known cases in Washington state and Chicago being joined by new patients in California and Arizona. In all cases, the patients recently returned to the United States from Wuhan,... Read More »
Sen. Markey seeks information from HHS, State Department on coronavirus
U.S. Sen. Edward Markey (D-MA) sent letters to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the State Department seeking information on their response to the coronavirus originating out of Wuhan, China. Respiratory droplets, similar to influenza, can transmit the coronavirus. It... Read More »
DHS launches initiative with American Airlines to combat human trafficking
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has launched an initiative with American Airlines to combat human trafficking. The DHS Blue Campaign seeks to raise awareness of human trafficking by sharing awareness materials, engaging in events and public awareness campaigns, and amplifying a... Read More »
California bill adds dispatchers as first responders
California lawmakers recently joined public safety dispatchers from across the state in celebrating a bill classifying those in the vocation as first responders. California State Assemblymember Rudy Salas (D-Bakersfield) said Assembly Bill 1945 (AB 1945) recognizes the work of public safety... Read More »
Treasury Department sanctions Iran’s petrochemical, petroleum sectors
Department of the Treasury officials said the agency’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned four international petrochemical and petroleum companies they said aided financing of Iran's terrorist activities. The action targets Triliance Petrochemical Co. Ltd. (Triliance), a... Read More »
Voters say nuclear weapons threat an important issue for presidential candidates to address
Eight in 10 voters say it is essential or very important for presidential candidates to have clear plans and policies concerning the threat of nuclear weapons, according to an analysis by Hart Research Associates. The majority of voters said they would have a more favorable opinion of a... Read More »
Wuhan coronavirus reaches Chicago as dozens of possible infections emerge across U.S.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed a second U.S. case of the Wuhan coronavirus on Friday, pointing to a patient in Chicago while revealing that 63 other possible cases are being tracked across 22 states. Though Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center... Read More »
CBP seizes vessel with $28M in cocaine
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Coast Guard recently intercepted a 60-foot low-profile go-fast vessel carrying 2,200 pounds of cocaine with a street value of $28 million. A CBP Air and Marine Operations (AMO) P-3 Orion Long Range Tracker crew spotted a suspicious vessel in... Read More »
University of Maryland’s START consortium wins award for terrorism research project
The National Institute of Justice awarded the University of Maryland’s National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START) about $1.5 million for two research projects examining violent extremists’ radicalization and mobilization. The projects, which will build... Read More »
Senate Intelligence Committee holds hearing on security clearance reforms
The U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence held a hearing this week on the federal government’s security clearance reform efforts. The current security clearance model has been mostly unchanged for more than 70 years. The Intelligence Authorization Act for FY 2018, 2019, and 2020,... Read More »
IDSA calls for greater health funding, resources in wake of first case of Wuhan coronavirus in United States
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) issued a warning this week on the discovery of the Wuhan coronavirus in the United States, stating strong prevention and control practices, safety equipment, and funding support are critical to moving forward. The Wuhan coronavirus -- known to... Read More »
Port St. Lucie receives grant to improve emergency communications
The City of Port St. Lucie, Fla., received a $1 million federal grant to install fiber optic cables to improve emergency communication systems. The grant came through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP). The city will use the money to install more... Read More »
Georgia Tech Applied Research wins DHS contract to upgrade public safety information network
Georgia Tech Applied Research Center (GTARC) received a $704,000 research and development contract from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) to help improve the public safety community’s information sharing and safeguarding (IS&S)... Read More »
USAMRAA awards $314,000 to George Mason researchers for vaccine improvements
A pair of researchers at George Mason University -- associate professor Aarthi Narayanan and assistant professor Remi Veneziano -- have received funding from the U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity (USAMRAA) for work on a new vaccine design. That design has the potential to... Read More »
China’s new coronavirus arrives in United States
Despite recent efforts by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to initiate health screenings at several U.S. airports, the first case of a novel coronavirus has cropped up in Washington state. The novel coronavirus has rapidly expanded its reach in recent weeks, following an... Read More »
GAO recommends adherence to reliability practice for DOD acquisition programs
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending that seven Department of Defense (DOD) acquisition programs adhere to key reliability practices. The GAO was asked to examine DOD weapon system reliability. The DOD invests billions of dollars each year in major defense acquisition... Read More »
Senate bill would establish Cybersecurity State Coordinator program
A bill introduced in the U.S. Senate this week would require the Department of Homeland Security to establish a Cybersecurity State Coordinator program. Through this program, states would have to appoint their own federally funded Cybersecurity Coordinator who would work with federal, state,... Read More »
ICE honors efforts to combat human trafficking during awareness month
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recognizes January as National Human Trafficking Awareness Month, which offers an opportunity to bring acknowledgment to continued efforts working to eliminate the crime, ensuring all people are treated with dignity and respect. Law enforcement... Read More »
Comprehensive database reveals more than 3.2 billion live animals imported to United States over 15 years
Thanks to data unveiled through Freedom of Information Act requests, the nonprofit EcoHealth Alliance launched the largest scale database of U.S. animal imports in history last week and, in the process, revealed that the nation imported more than 3.2 billion live animals over 15 years. The data... Read More »
Pacific Northwest National Lab creates, licenses system to secure radiological material in Latin America
A technology system developed and licensed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) to track and secure radiological material will be produced and deployed into Latin America under a new arrangement between PNNL and Golden Security Services of Miami. The Mobile Source Transit Security... Read More »
BAE Systems makes GPS, radio acquisitions
BAE Systems has acquired Collins Aerospace’s Military Global Positioning System (GPS) business, as well as Raytheon’s Airborne Tactical Radio operation. The asset purchase agreement for the Collins enterprise calls for cash totaling $1.925 billion, with an expected tax benefit of... Read More »