Executive Gov 
Defense Department acquisition chief Ashton Carter has met with some of the largest defense contractors — Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Boeing — to discuss plans for a new generation of nuclear long-range bombers. According to The Los Angeles Times, the new aircraft would be the first long-range U.S.-built bomber …
Read More »OMB: Two Open-gov Sites to Close, Others to be Scaled Back
The Office of Management and Budget has announced it will close down two open-government federal websites because of cuts to the E-Government Fund, Federal News Radio reports. The two sites slated for shuttering are FedSpace, the General Services Administration’s online collaboration portal, and the Citizen Services Dashboard, which was to …
Read More »Intelligence Association Urges Intel Communtity Not to Forget Lessons of Past
Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it. That seems to be the message of a new white paper from the Intelligence and National Security Alliance, a professional association for intelligence professionals. SMART Change: Lessons of the Past, Direction for the Future aims to act as a guide against …
Read More »Mabus on Green Contracting Standards: ‘We Can Do It Without Spending More Money’
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus means business when it comes to getting building contractors to think green. Starting this year, contractors who want to bid on Navy or Marine construction projects have to include an option to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Gold Standard, Federal News Radio …
Read More »Army’s Cloud Migration in Question
The Army’s cloud transition — moving 1.6 million email accounts to a Defense Information Systems Agency enterprise cloud — is now in question, after a House subcommittee voted to withhold 98 percent of the program’s budget. The House Armed Services Committee’s Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee voted to withhold funding …
Read More »DoD Makes Plans for Audit
DoD Comptroller Robert Hale, Photo: defense.gov Defense News takes a hard look at why efforts to audit the Defense Department are so difficult. As reported last week, the Pentagon has a deadline of 2017 to be fully auditable, a goal many think may be entirely unrealistic. Defense News reports efforts …
Read More »GSA to Consolidate Contractor Databases Using Open Source
The General Services Administration will begin next year consolidating eight different databases containing information about contractors — everything from solicitation data and contract award amounts to rosters of suspended contractors — into a single database powered by open-source software. Federal Times reports that GSA will begin making progress next year …
Read More »Gates: Budget Reductions a Strategic, Not Math Problem
In efforts to wring an additional $400 billion in cost-savings over 12 years out of the Defense Department, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said budget cutters should avoid the “managerial cowardice” of across-the-board cuts. In a question-and-answer session at the U.S. Army Engineer School at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri, …
Read More »Intel Community Calls for Innovative Research Ideas
The Intelligence and National Security Alliance is partnering with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to showcase innovative ideas in intelligence. INSA has issued a call for abstracts on a number of different intelligence-related research areas: from energy storage and robotics to WMD detection and cybersecurity. The entries, …
Read More »Gates on DoD Cost-savings Review: ‘People Need to Make Conscious Choices’ about Implications
Soon-to-retire Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told reporters yesterday efforts to wring even more cost-savings from the Defense Department must avoid “hollowing out” the armed forces and involve a tough, public discussion about the tradeoff between spending cuts and military preparedness. In a speech last month on the deficit, President …
Read More »