The National Institute of Standards and Technology released new direct hiring authorities to allow federal hiring managers to skip some steps in the process to employ new information technology managers, general engineers and general physical scientists.Â
“The expanded direct-hire authority will allow NIST to simplify and expedite hiring for managers in mission critical occupations,†according to a notice issued Thursday. NIST marked top-level scientific and engineering positions in Pay Band III through V as “critical shortage.â€
Under the new authority, hiring managers could bypass certain laws governing eligibility preferences, including section 3309 through section 3318. Such laws are used to identify prospective candidates who should receive preference in hiring decisions, such as veterans and former federal employees.
Related Articles
The General Services Administration has launched USAi, a secure generative artificial intelligence suite designed to help federal agencies experiment with AI tools and accelerate AI adoption. GSA said Thursday the launch of USAi advances the priorities in the White House’s America’s AI Action Plan, which seeks to strengthen U.S. leadership in AI through coordinated federal action, streamlined adoption and smarter infrastructure. A panel discussion at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2025 Navy Summit on Aug. 26 will explore generative AI and how it optimizes decision-making within the service branch. Book your spot now at this GovCon networking event! Expanding Federal Government’s
Nextgov/FCW reported that the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council on Thursday released new model deviation text for six parts of the FAR as part of the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul, or RFO, initiative. In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing his administration to amend FAR to streamline the federal procurement process and eliminate barriers to doing business with the government. In June, the FAR Council released model deviation text for sections related to emergency acquisitions, contract modifications and acquisition of information and communication technology, or ICT. The overhauled FAR parts include sections related to administrative and information matters; required sources of
The National Science Foundation and NVIDIA will invest $152 million in the development of advanced, open-source artificial intelligence models aimed at accelerating American scientific discovery. The public-private investment will support the Open Multimodal AI Infrastructure to Accelerate Science project led by the Allen Institute for AI, or Ai2, NSF said Thursday. Public-Private Investment for Open Source AI Models NSF will provide $75 million, with NVIDIA contributing $77 million. The initiative supports the White House AI Action Plan and aims to ensure the United States remains a leader in AI-powered research and innovation. “As called for in the AI Action Plan,