Gen. Paul Selva, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Brookings Institute event that the efforts to miniaturize satellites are helping to reduce costs in constructing and deploying large constellations, C4ISRnet reported Thursday. Selva noted that this may result in broadband services hosted by low-Earth orbit satellites that are cheaper compared to fiber-optic networks.

“But it’s not just miniaturization. It’s integration, so the capacity to make a small satellite that will do multiple things,” he said. “Similarly, if you want to specialize that same satellite, the integration of sensors into storage and transmission methodologies that allow you to build a much more elegant sensor on a smaller platform that demands less power.”

The Department of Defense intends to deploy LEO constellations to support military communications and missile warning operations. Previously, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency launched a program called Blackjack aiming to launch 20 smallsats carrying a range of DoD payloads as part of a commercial constellation.

Gen. John Murray, commanding general of the Army Futures Command, said the unit is slated to be fully operational on July 31 during a media day in Arlington, Va., National Defense magazine reported Wednesday. AFC was created to address the Army’s modernization priorities which include next-generation combat vehicles, future vertical lift, long-range precision fires, soldier lethality, air-and-missile defense and network capabilities.

The Senate approved Murray as the command’s chief in August 2018 after the Army selected Austin, Texas, as the AFC headquarters. The service branch expects more than 500 personnel to be stationed at the AFC complex.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said she hopes the lower chamber can pass a deal to raise the debt ceiling and set spending levels by July 26, CNBC reported Wednesday.

Pelosi said she expects the White House and the chamber to agree on a measure by Friday, July 19 to allow lawmakers to work on the legislative text over the weekend. She noted that passing the bill by July 26 would provide the Senate enough time to decide on the measure before Congress leaves for an August recess.

The report said lawmakers plan to vote on the legislation before the recess to avoid a government shutdown by the end of September and a potential default on U.S. debt, which could have an impact on financial markets and the global economy. Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have discussed a two-year spending agreement that would increase the debt limit.

Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), chairman of the House Government Operations Subcommittee, said a bill is being drafted to address gaps in the approval process under the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program, FCW reported Wednesday.

“There will be legislation in your future” that will serve as an “anchor” for FedRAMP, he said Wednesday at the House subcommittee hearing.

Connolly is working with Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) to draft the new FedRAMP measure, which would define the responsibilities and roles of agencies and third-party assessment organizations as well as establish metrics on time, assessment quality and costs and accelerate the approval process for vendor applicants. Connolly and other lawmakers held a hearing on Wednesday to discuss the challenges faced by companies with regard to the FedRAMP approval process.

The U.S. Army plans to work with the U.S. Navy to integrate a drone-defeating laser into the former’s Family of Medium Tactical Vehicles, Military.com reported Tuesday. Previously, the Army developed a High Energy Laser Tactical Vehicle Demonstrator platform that includes a 100-kilowatt laser designed to target swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles.

Lt. Gen. Paul Ostrowski, military deputy to the  assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, said at an Association of the U.S. Army Institute of Land Warfare event that the service branch is seeking help from the Navy to further the Army’s High Energy Laser program.

“The intent is to work with the Navy, and we are doing that right now, in order to increase the power of that laser system from beyond 100-kilowatt up to maybe the 250-kilowatt mark,” he said.

The Army is looking to demonstrate the laser-equipped FMTV’s target-defeating features over the next three years. The service is also planning to deploy 50-kilowatt Maneuver Short Range Air Defense lasers onto Stryker vehicles by fiscal 2022.

Lisa Gordon-Hagerty, administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration, said at the agency’s recent job fair outside Washington, D.C. that new hiring efforts may help NNSA address staff shortages, Federal Times reported Wednesday.

Gordon-Hagerty noted that NNSA is looking to hire more than 100 people to help the agency fill positions that will soon be vacant within five years after 40 percent of its workforce reach retirement age. She noted that NNSA’s efforts to help transition the Office of Personnel Management’s security backlog processing responsibilities to the Department of Defense may simplify hiring procedures.

“We are actually putting OPM investigators at our labs, plants and sites, and at our headquarters so we can expedite those processes,” said Gordon-Hagerty.

NNSA offers fellowship programs for recent college graduates and is aiming to hire more than 2,000 personnel by the end of 2019.

The Government Accountability Office has assessed the Customs and Border Protection’s efforts to plan personnel, fencing and technology programs in support of the larger border security mission. GAO said Tuesday that it found CBP’s 2018 Border Security Improvement Plan didn’t contain all information required under the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act.

The border protection agency did not include the complete cost and life cycle information for efforts through fiscal 2027. The plan is also missing feature reviews on infrastructure deployment effects across communities and ways for the projects to support high priority border security missions. The accountability office recommends the secretary of homeland security to make sure the fiscal year 2019 plan contains required details and, if necessary, explain why absent elements are not included.