Crowd-sourcing has been a key initiative of the Obama administration’s open government plans. But, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is taking the open call for development one step further, allowing soldiers, DoD personnel and members of the public to give their two cents and more on the development of a new combat vehicle. “Soldiers [...]

The Department of Homeland Security recently finished reviewing about 100 service contracts, and the next step could be bringing some  positions in house through in-sourcing, according to a report in Federal Times. DHS also plans to review every existing and future contract. The contracts that have thus far been reviewed are a just a fraction [...]

Dr. David Blumenthal, the national coordinator for health IT for the Department of Health and Human Services, announced in a staff memo late last week he would step down in the spring. Blumenthal, who will return to Harvard University, was appointed by President Barack Obama in March 2009 to lead efforts on electronic health records. [...]

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates has let his voice be heard: Congress’ lollygagging on passing a defense appropriations bill and the threat of a fiscal-year-long continuing resolution is the “crisis on my doorstep,” he said last week. Now, defense analysts are chiming in with their concerns. A senior Navy official told Defense News the lack [...]

Despite all the talk of cloud computing in the federal sector and, more important, action on cloud computing, security questions have threatened to overwhelm the government’s “cloud-first” policy with question marks. While cloud has promised to “free” data, making it easier to use, share and collaborate, how feasible is cloud computing for federal agencies with [...]

The Federal Communications Commission took the first steps in implementing the first-ever presidential alert for the national Emergency Alert System, when FCC voted last week to run a full test of the system and to provide rules for its use. The alert system is not a new concept, but the idea of including presidential announcements [...]

In a blog posting on the Office of Management and Budget website, OMB Director Jack Lew hailed the recent announcement that the government was “turning the tide” on contract spending. “This administration is doing what has been so elusive in the past:  cutting wasteful spending on contracts and getting better value for the taxpayer dollar,” [...]

What makes for a successful government program? For some, the term might seem like an oxymoron. After all, less than one-third of Americans have confidence that the federal government can solve problems, according to recent Center for American Progress survey. But, with an exhaustive new study, “Doing What Works,” CAP aims to take the guesswork [...]

The Defense Department wants budding techies to know a successful career in IT and cybersecurity doesn’t have to start in Silicon Valley or at an Internet giant, such as Google. The Army, Air Force and the office of DoD’s chief information officer hosted about 50 area high schoolers at the Pentagon last week for the [...]

According to an unreleased draft memo, federal agencies have a little less than two months to “fully implement” secure ID cards, Federal News Radio reports. Federal News Radio, which obtained a version of the draft memo, says its release by the Department of Homeland Security is likely imminent. The wider use of smart cards across [...]