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New Congressional Funding to Continue Development of New Mexico Observatory
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New Congressional Funding to Continue Development of New Mexico Observatory

Congress has committed $6.2 million to advance the development of a new optical telescope complex for characterizing space objects at geosynchronous Earth orbit and beyond in Socorro, New Mexico.

The money enables New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology to complete the first phase of the $30 million Magdalen Ridge Observatory Interferometer project, Air Force Research Laboratory, the funding contract manager, said Monday.

Once completed in 2026, MROI will feature three telescopes and two scientific instruments that promise more efficient imaging and higher resolution photos than existing arrays.

“If successful, this effort will enable us to leverage new, innovative sensing instruments that, while directly advancing astronomical sciences, could also augment space domain awareness and defense,” explained Brian Engberg, head of AFRL’s space control branch.

Van Romero, vice president for research and professor of physics at NMT, noted that the observatory will enable the assessment of orbiting man-made objects and the study of various phenomena in deep space.

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Rick Herrmann Tapped to Lead Microsoft Industry Solution Group as Education VP
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Rick Herrmann Tapped to Lead Microsoft Industry Solution Group as Education VP

Former Intel executive Rick Herrmann has been named vice president of education for Microsoft’s Industry Solution Group.

“I am thrilled to join a diverse and superb team of global professionals deeply committed to education at Microsoft and to be returning to the educational technology community,” Herrmann said in a LinkedIn post.

Herrmann has extensive experience in implementing strategic campaigns across high performance computing, digital equity and access, higher education and K12 education in U.S. and global markets.

Previously, Herrmann served for over 32 years at Intel, where he most recently held the position of director of Intel’s U.S. Public Sector region. In this capacity, Herrmann supported the company’s public sector customers through IT and digital transformation initiatives.

During his tenure with Intel, he also served in a wide range of senior executive roles including director of U.S. state, local and education vertical sales as well as global manager of the company’s government and high performance computing program office.

Herrmann has received two Intel Achievement awards for excellence in sales and marketing, and he was inducted into Intel America’s Hall of Fame in 2016.

Recently, Herrmann was featured in an Executive Spotlight with ExecutiveBiz in which he discussed the top priorities driving the federal sector including data security, AI/ML and 5G. Click here to read the full interview with Rick Herrmann.

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VA, Indian Health Service Renew Partnership to Boost Native American/Alaskan Health Care Access
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VA, Indian Health Service Renew Partnership to Boost Native American/Alaskan Health Care Access

The Department of Veterans Affairs has renewed its partnership with the Indian Health Service to boost the health care access of American Indian and Alaska Native veterans.

The partnership aims to improve health care quality for applicable veterans, streamline health care enrollment, integrate electronic health records and expand access through various resource sharing methods, VA said Tuesday.

The department has so far established reimbursement agreements, extended outpatient pharmacy services and launched a rural health care navigator program in support of AI/AN veterans.

“VA and IHS leadership engaged key tribal stakeholders during 90-day tribal consultation sessions in late 2020 and early 2021 to gain insights and feedback on how both agencies can better serve these historically marginalized patient populations,” said Thomas Klobucar, executive director of the Veterans Health Administration’s Office of Rural Health.

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Chris Willis: Army’s Maneuver Battle Lab Creates Experimentation Space for Smaller Formations
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Chris Willis: Army’s Maneuver Battle Lab Creates Experimentation Space for Smaller Formations

The U.S. Army is enabling smalls groups of warfighters to practice more in multiple domains such as cyber and space areas through field experimentation, simulation and modeling, Federal News Network reported Tuesday.

“What we’ve been working on the last two or three years is improving our capability to conduct what we call nonlethal simulation of nonlethal effects inside simulation,” said Chris Willis, deputy director of Army Futures Command’s Maneuver Battle Lab at Fort Benning in Georgia.

“We are looking at what is the effect on those smaller formations and those maneuver combat formations as opposed to the larger Army formations and how do we fight in those domains at that larger echelon?,” he added.

One of the lab’s experiments is Quick Look VI, which involves the use of electronic warfare modeling platforms by soldiers against a near-peer threat.

Willis said the service branch wants to improve its teams and systems through such experiments.

“This has been an intuitive iterative process,” Willis said. “We’re focused on cyber for others. So as a layman, as an armor soldier, as a cavalryman, how do I train those soldiers for this? How do I inject cyber effects inside experimentation to understand how it affects those maneuver soldiers? That’s really the way forward.”

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Rep. Gerry Connolly Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Rebuild OPM
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Rep. Gerry Connolly Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Rebuild OPM

Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., has proposed a bipartisan bill that seeks to rebuild and modernize the Office of Personnel Management.

Connolly’s office said Tuesday the Strengthening the Office of Personnel Management Act would clarify the agency’s mission as the center of the federal government’s civilian human resources systems and establish a federal advisory committee to help the director of OPM understand the concerns and needs of stakeholders to inform the agency’s policymaking efforts and operations.

The proposed measure would require candidates for the OPM director post to have leadership and human capital expertise and ensure that the chief management officer of the agency is a career civil servant who could provide stability and continuity across administrations.

Reps. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, and Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., co-sponsored the legislation that is being backed by several organizations, including the National Treasury Employees Union and the National Federation of Federal Employees.

“Federal employees are the crown jewel of government, and we must build a human resources agency nimble and prepared to help us attract and retain the talent our nation needs to provide vital services today and into the future,” Connolly said.

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NIST’s National Cybersecurity CoE Issues Draft Publications on Enterprise Patch Management
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NIST’s National Cybersecurity CoE Issues Draft Publications on Enterprise Patch Management

The National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence (NCCoE) is seeking public comments on two draft publications about enterprise patch management. 

The first draft document titled Guide to Enterprise Patch Management Planning: Preventive Maintenance for Technology calls for the development of an enterprise strategy to simplify patching and improve risk reduction, the National Institute of Standards and Technology said Wednesday.

The second draft publication presents an example demonstrating how organizations can use tools to implement patching capabilities needed for emergency and routine patching conditions.

The draft document titled Improving Enterprise Patching for General IT Systems: Utilizing Existing Tools and Performing Processes in Better Ways also suggests workarounds and other alternatives to patching.

Comments on the draft publications are due Jan. 10th.

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Labor Department Unveils Final Rule for $15 Hourly Minimum Wage for Federal Contract Workers; Jessica Looman Quoted
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Labor Department Unveils Final Rule for $15 Hourly Minimum Wage for Federal Contract Workers; Jessica Looman Quoted

The Department of Labor has announced a final rule that will increase the minimum wage of employees working on federal contracts to $15 per hour starting Jan. 30.

The final rule will apply to new federal contracts and extensions and renewals of existing contracts in accordance with President Biden’s executive order signed in April, the department said Monday.

The rule will also phase out the tipped minimum wage for federal contract workers by 2024, extend the new minimum pay to federal contract employees with disabilities and bring back minimum wage protections to guides and outfitters working on federal lands.

“The final rule adds value for taxpayers by boosting worker productivity and reducing employee turnover and absenteeism. It also allows federal contractors to retain top talent, and reduce recruiting and training costs,” said Jessica Looman, acting administrator of DOL’s wage and hour division.

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Air Force Puts F-15Es to Nuclear Weapon Delivery Trials at Nellis
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Air Force Puts F-15Es to Nuclear Weapon Delivery Trials at Nellis

The U.S. Air Force has tested the capability of F-15E Strike Eagles to deliver nuclear weapons during an evaluation event at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, in fall.

The Dual Capable Aircraft Nuclear Weapons System Evaluation Program saw the F-15Es drop B61-3 and B61-4 Joint Test Assemblies at the Tonopah Test Range at Nellis, the Air Force said Monday.

Lt. Col. Douglas Kabel, deputy director of strategic deterrence and nuclear integration at Air Combat Command, the event assesses the abilities of the maintenance crew, pilots and weapons airmen to ensure the stockpiling and delivery of nuclear capabilities.

“It improves our readiness by giving our warfighters the experience they would need to employ the F-15E and the B61 series weapons in a future conflict within a contested environment,” added Kabel.

DCA NucWSEP is just one of the many exercises and operations F-15Es are participating in to practice homeland security missions and interoperability with U.S. allies and security partners.

The Boeing-developed dual capable aircraft developed by Boeing is a part of the Air Force’s future fighter fleet that links fourth-generation jets with fifth and sixth-generation planes.

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CISA, FBI Highlight Importance of Cybersecurity During Holidays
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CISA, FBI Highlight Importance of Cybersecurity During Holidays

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the FBI jointly advise both government and commercial organizations to observe cybersecurity practices as the holiday season approaches. CISA said Monday that cyber actors tend to exploit the vulnerabilities of critical networks during weekends and holidays.

The agencies advise organizations to observe a set of risk reduction practices and identify human resources available for cybersecurity work during these times.

Risk reduction practices include using multi-factor authentication, requiring strong passwords, monitoring risky devices, raising employee awareness and reviewing incident response plans.

“We urge network defenders to prepare and remain alert over the upcoming holiday weekend and report any suspicious activity to www.ic3.gov,” said Bryan Vorndran, cyber assistant director at the FBI.

Ransomware incidents are cyber attacks when a malicious actor blocks a user’s system access until the victim pays a demanded sum of money.

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Senate NDAA Amendment Lacks Language Advancing FISMA Update
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Senate NDAA Amendment Lacks Language Advancing FISMA Update

A substitute amendment proposed by Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., to the House-passed National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) did not include a language calling for updates to the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA), including changes to how federal agencies report on cyber incidents, Nextgov reported.

Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, proposed the FISMA update provision. Reed on Friday introduced the substitute amendment to the NDAA a day after the upper chamber started initial deliberations on the defense policy bill.

Reed’s proposal, however, included a language proposed by Peters that would direct the secretary of the Department of Defense (DOD) to work with the national cyber director and head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in designing a pilot project to advance DOD’s collaboration with the private sector.

Peters and Portman serve as chair and ranking members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, respectively. The Senate is expected to resume deliberations on the NDAA on Nov. 29th.

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