President Biden has issued a memo seeking to create a task force on scientific integrity to promote decision-making driven by scientific data.

"Scientific and technological information, data, and evidence are central to the development and iterative improvement of sound policies, and to the delivery of equitable programs, across every area of government," the memo stated. 

The memo directs the director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to establish an interagency group under the National Science and Technology Council that will be responsible for evaluating current agency policies related to scientific integrity.

The task force’s 120-day review must be based on best practices in collaborating with federal scientists and professional contractors, as well as the news media and social media.

The group must also “prevent improper political interference” in policies involving scientific integrity and obtain input through events such as the OSTP’s virtual stakeholder summit.

In addition, the memo tasks the OSTP director to publish the task force’s findings on the agency's website a well as other public channels. Biden’s directive builds on prior scientific integrity memos signed in 2009 and 2010.

Ball Aerospace has completed the spacecraft and payload assembly integration of NASA’s Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) space-based astrophysics observatory, the company reported on Friday. With the completion, Ball will start environmental testing of the observatory, including instruments and the spacecraft bus.

“It is truly a pleasure to work with an integrated team that includes government, industry, academia and international partners on a mission that will gather exciting and important science, supported by Ball’s commitment to delivering science at any scale,” said Dr. Makenzie Lystrup, vice president and general manager, Civil Space, Ball Aerospace.

The observatory has been scheduled to launch in late-2021. Once on orbit, IXPE will measure the polarization of cosmic X-rays. The measurements will enable NASA to improve the understanding of the fundamental physics of extreme objects in the universe, such as black holes.

IXPE is a Small Explorer (SMEX) mission, under NASA’s Astrophysics Explorer Program, which is led by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and supported by Ball Aerospace, the Italian Space Agency (ASI), Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at University of Colorado Boulder and other partners.

Under the mission, Ball will deliver the IXPE spacecraft, mechanical and structural elements of the payload, observatory assembly, and integration and test. The spacecraft for IXPE is based on Ball’s smallest Ball Configurable Platform (BCP) model.

Previously, Ball developed a similar BCP for NASA’s Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM). The company also built two additional BCP small satellites that are currently performing on orbit: STPSat-2 and STPSat-3.

STPSat-2 launched in November 2010, and STPSat-3 launched in November 2013. The two STP satellites were developed for the U.S. Air Force Space Test Program’s Standard Interface Vehicle (STP-SIV) project.

“Moving IXPE into environmental testing is an important step gearing up towards launch this year as it ensures the observatory will be able to withstand the effects of the launch into space,” Lystrup added.

The U.S. Postal Service will expand its digital fingerprinting service for more than 400 post offices by the end of 2021, FedScoop reported on Friday. USPS entered into an agreement with  IDEMIA to integrate its biometric capture and in-person proofing services.

“We’ll be able to scale at whatever pace they want to once the initial solution is delivered,” Shane Powers, vice president of operations at IDEMIA National Security Solutions. “I think we’re going to see other agencies look at this model as well.” 

The partnership will enable the U.S. Postal Service to further leverage its nationwide retail network and information infrastructure to better serve federal agencies and the American public through broader access to biometric capture and in-person proofing services. The award will also enable the Postal Service to meet its five-year strategic goal to improve people’s access to e-government services.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) introduced an electronic departmental order, which has required the U.S. Postal Service to conduct identity history summary checks (IDHSCs) of potential employees. As a result, the service launched a digital fingerprinting pilot with the FBI two years ago and found the new service took hours with a high return on investment. 

With IDEMIA’s solutions, USPS has intended to extend digital fingerprinting to other federal agencies as well, which will support the employee vetting space across government.

"This announcement signals USPS's commitment to enabling its people, presence and prestige to better meet the needs of the American public in an increasingly digital world," said Andrew Boyd, CEO, IDEMIA NSS. "We are delighted to partner with USPS to help bring their vision forward, and to leverage USPS's broad infrastructure to offer the American people greater access to identity verification and assurance solutions."

Scott Breor, acting executive assistant director for infrastructure security at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), has warned about violent extremist actors and domestic terrorists taking advantage of peaceful protests to escalate civil unrest, and pointed to a paper released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agency to provide information on how to safeguard critical infrastructure.

The CISA official wrote in a blog post published Thursday that the Protecting Infrastructure During Public Demonstrations fact sheet outlines risk mitigation measures that can be implemented by infrastructure owners and operators to address risks posed by extremist actors.

The paper recommends opening direct communication between owners and local law enforcement, adjusting business hours to not coincide with scheduled local demonstrations, having emergency plans and increasing security presence, among other risk mitigation efforts.

In addition, Breor noted that there is another agency fact sheet intended for personal safety considerations as high-profile individuals are also at risk to being targeted by extremists.

The document details basic security measures that could help citizens enhance personal safety, and lists several indicators of suspicious behaviors.

A congressional report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that the State Department use evidence and data to support its proposed plan to set up the bureau of cyberspace security and emerging technologies (CSET) in order to enable the new office to establish priorities and allocate resources to meet its goals. 

In June 2019, the State Department informed Congress of its plan to establish the new CSET bureau that would operate with a budget of $20.8 million and 80 employees and report to the undersecretary for arms control and international security, GAO said in a report released Thursday.

In the congressional notification, the department said the proposed bureau will help enhance coordination with other agencies working on issues related to national security, align emerging technology and cyber space security issues with international security initiatives and advance long-term capacity within the department.

GAO made the recommendation based on several findings, including the lack of analyses supporting the additional details outlined in the 2019 congressional notification in an action memo and briefing slides. GAO said the State Department commented on the report.

“While State disagreed with our characterization of its use of data and evidence to develop its proposal for CSET, it agreed that reviewing such information to evaluate program effectiveness can be useful. State commented that it provided us with what it determined to be appropriate material on its decision to establish CSET and our report noted only the potential coordination challenges resulting from separating cyber and digital policy,” the GAO report reads.

According to the report, the department announced on Jan. 7, 2021, that the secretary of state gave the green light to the CSET establishment and directed the agency to advance the formation of the new bureau. To date, the department has not established the bureau.