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President Trump will nominate David Bernhardt, acting secretary of the Department of the Interior, to serve in the role on a permanent basis, Federal Times reported Tuesday.
Bernhardt has been serving across the department since the early 2000’s and was confirmed as its deputy secretary in April 2017.
President Trump said Monday via Twitter that he’s looking forward to an official confirmation from the Senate and that Bernhardt did a “fantastic job” leading the agency.
U.S. Army Europe is exploring a new electronic warfare tool designed to assist troops conduct command and control of direct connect, non-networked sensors in the field. The new Electronic Warfare Planning and Management Tool was deployed by the Program Executive Office Intelligence Electronic Warfare and Sensors to help USAREUR meet its EW needs, according to a report by the Pentagon’s Director, Operational Test and Evaluation.Â
EWPMT allows troops to manage EW capabilities, integrate battlefield information and management systems into mission command systems. The Army is using an early version of the tool, called Raven Claw or USAREUR ONS Phase I. The service intends to enable units equipped with the technology to conduct spectrum situational awareness, EW planning, dismounted and vehicle-based direction finding and electronic attack.
Raytheon’s space and airborne systems business serves as the lead contractor working on the EWPMT. Previously, DOT&E sought feedback from troops into the initial employment and capabilities of USAREUR ONS Phase I systems. The director recommended the Army conduct a vulnerability and penetration assessment and adversarial assessment of the EW tool, integrate USAREUR ONS Phase I into military vehicles and refine doctrine to support its tactical employment.
The Defense Health Agency announced an effort to merge the Department of Defense and Department of Veterans Affairs’ healthcare systems is in the “strategy development stage,†Bloomberg Government reported Monday.
Pat Murray, deputy director of the National Legislative Service for Veterans of Foreign Wars, said the DoD VA Health Care Staffing Services initiative will help the VA provide timely health services to veterans. Last year, DHA partnered with the VA for a feasibility study on a joint strategy to deliver “integrated, high-quality health care services†for the DoD health unit’s 19M beneficiaries.
The VA mostly caters to older members of the community, while DHA primarily treats families and a younger population.
The U.S. Navy has named the latest Independence-variant littoral combat ship after a city in Texas. Austal USA will construct the future 419-foot-long ship in Mobile, Ala., the service branch said Monday. The ship, also known as LCS 36, will feature a 104-foot-long beam and designed to run at speeds of over 40 knots.
 “The citizens of Kingsville have been steadfast partners to the Navy and Marine Corps team and their enduring support of our future strike fighter pilots have helped make the city of Kingsville the gateway for naval aviators,” said Richard Spencer, secretary of the Navy.
The Navy has purchased a total of 35 LCS units, with 11 in progress and seven awaiting for construction to start.
A Lockheed Martin-led industry team has delivered the future USS Billings littoral combat ship to the U.S. Navy at the Fincantieri Marinette Marine shipyard in Wisconsin during a ceremony Friday. LCS 15 is the eighth Freedom-class ship and the 17th LCS to join the Navy fleet, Naval Sea Systems Command said Monday.
Capt. Mike Taylor, manager of the LCS program for the Navy, said he expects to commission USS Billings later in 2019, which will operate with the service’s new fleet of warships tasked to support the country’s future maritime strategy.Â
LCS units are built to perform anti-submarine, mine countermeasures and surface warfare missions. Freedom-class variants, like Billings, leverage new integrated technologies to support various mission capabilities from deep water to littoral.
The future USS Indianapolis is slated to enter acceptance trials in the summer, while five other LCS units are currently in production phase for the Navy.
Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., re-introduced a bill aiming to improve U.S. national security through a modernized security clearance system and a new workforce to handle national security and public safety missions. The Modernizing the Trusted Workforce for the 21st Century Act would also help the government reduce its background investigation backlog, Warner said in a statement released Friday. The bill was introduced to the Senate in 2018. Â
In a letter to top White House and intelligence officials, Warner said the current vetting process for security clearances in the government is too complicated, too long, costly and lacks modernized technology and processes.Â
“We are taking too many security risks and losing talented people who are not willing to endure a years-long process,†Warner said, who also serves as vice chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. “Our current system is broken and needs a revolution.â€Â
The bill would task the executive branch with managing the background investigation backlog crisis, consolidate the National Background Investigation Bureau at the Pentagon and promote innovation in the clearance process.
A new watchdog report shows the U.S. Government Publishing Office failed to implement a policy or a contingency plan to run its information technology infrastructure following a disaster. The agency is at risk of losing access to critical data and IT systems when hit by any disruption due to lack of emergency planning, the GPO inspector general said in the report issued Thursday.
GPO officials said ongoing systems testing delayed the process to finalize a contingency strategy. The IG report also shows that the office takes longer to remove security credentials of former employees and determine when employees have “conflicting roles and responsibilities.†The watchdog said such issues could put GPO’s IT systems at risk of hacking or interference.Â
Government auditors first reported a lack of post-disaster plans in 2011. The agency admitted it has yet to finalize a contingency strategy to secure and operate its IT infrastructure following a disaster.
Roger Stone, formerly deputy senior director of resilience policy of the National Security Council, has been named director of information technology at the White House, FedScoop reported Monday.He succeeds Chris Herndon, who served as head of IT for two years, and will serve as chief information officer of the executive offices of the president and vice president.
Stone previously held senior leadership roles at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including deputy assistant administrator and executive officer for national continuity programs.
The Office of Management and Budget has notified Congress that the president’s fiscal 2020 budget request for the Department of Defense could be ready by mid-March, National Defense reported Monday.“We got an email this morning from [the Office of Management and Budget] saying that they are projecting right now to give us the skinny [defense] budget March 12 with full budget documents … on March 18,†John Lucio, a Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee staffer, said during a panel discussion Monday at the Tactical Wheeled Vehicles Conference in Monterey, Calif.
The White House’s defense budget for fiscal 2020 was originally scheduled to be issued Tuesday, Feb. 5, but was delayed due to a partial government shutdown, according to the report.
Lucio said the White House’s fiscal 2020 budget request is reported to be worth $750B, including a base budget that is close to the caps set under the Budget Control Act.
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Vishal Amin, the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, has detailed the Trump administration’s intellectual property protection and policy strategy in the 2018 Annual Intellectual Property Report to Congress released Monday.
The report states the administration is “taking a targeted, practical, and comprehensive approach†to ensure that American innovators’ creations are respected and U.S. businesses can operate in a fair and open market. IPEC noted that the administration’s four-part plan includes engagement with U.S. trading partners; effective use of legal powers; expanded law enforcement efforts and partnerships with the private sector.
According to the report, the administration is working on initiatives such as improving the U.S. patent system; monitoring judicial and executive branch implementation of IP regulations and engaging with industry on IP protection and cooperation. IP policy matters covered in the report include patents, copyrights, trade secrets and trademarks.
Previously, IPEC created the White House Intellectual Property Strategy Group responsible for regularly bringing together relevant government entities such as the National Economic Council, National Security Council, Office of Science and Technology Policy, Council of Economic Advisors, Office of the Vice President and Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.
