The Department of Energy plans to award a total of $16M for a research program aimed at integrating new data with computer models in order to accurately represent climate and terrestrial phenomena, the DOE said Friday.

The DOE plans to provide $5M for research into terrestrial events and $11M for atmospheric research on clouds and aerosols for a period of two to three years.

The terrestrial research’s first track will study the movement of nutrients, carbon and water; while the second focus will concentrate on the impact of phenomena such as floods, fires, hurricanes and the rising of sea levels on the vegetation and nutrient cycles of coastal areas.

Atmospheric research under the program will utilize data from the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement User Facility operated by the DOE Office of Science.

“For decades, DOE has been a leading contributor in advancing our knowledge of both atmospheric and terrestrial processes. This research will result in a better grasp of critical factors affecting the earth system,” said Under Secretary for Science Paul Dabbar.

The DOE will use a competitive, peer-reviewed process to select universities and nonprofit organizations who will participate in the project.

Reps. Will Hurd, R-Texas, and Robin Kelly, D-Ill., have reintroduced a bill intended to reauthorize and modify the role of the federal chief information officer.

The Federal CIO Authorization Act would elevate the executive’s role to that of a presidential appointee who would directly report to the Office of Management and Budget‘s leader, Hurd’s office said Friday.

The bill would also assign a federal chief information security officer who would directly report to the federal CIO as a presidential appointee.

“This bill helps keep the vast information stored by the federal government secure from hackers by making clear that the Federal CIO is in charge of the security of our data across the government,” said Hurd.

The two lawmakers are reintroducing the bill to accommodate a new Congress, following the bill’s previous House passing in November.

Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Mark Warner, D-Va., have introduced a bill to establish the Office of Critical Technologies and Security at the White House to mitigate national supply chain risks, Rubio’s office said Friday.

The proposed unit will oversee inter-agency coordination and develop a standardized, long-term strategy to implement supply chain regulations and protect the U.S. against technology theft by adversaries such as China.

Rubio said the bipartisan legislation will streamline the government’s efforts and provide a coordinated approach to countering threats to the nation’s critical networks and infrastructure.

Rubio and Warner previously sent a letter to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in October 2018 to reconsider Huawei’s participation in Canada’s 5G efforts.

Rubio also introduced a bill in September to strictly ensure ZTE’s full compliance with all probationary conditions under a deal with the Department of Commerce.

The two senators currently serve on the Senate’s Select Committee on Intelligence.

The lack of funding due to the ongoing partial government shutdown is already affecting some federal programs, including the government-wide information technology modernization under the President’s Management Agenda, FedScoop reported Friday. 

Administration officials have expressed concern that without permanent funding some agencies may soon be forced to stop key IT programs. 

“PMA quarterly goals are funded through multiple vehicles, so some goals may be unaffected by the lapse while others may, in fact, be affected,” a senior administration official told FedScoop. “Ultimately, we hope Congress takes action quickly to end the current lapse in appropriations for affected programs.”

Some of the programs at risk include technology asset management, workforce recruitment, cloud email adoption and the Technology Modernization Fund that already awarded $68.5M to federal IT modernization projects in 2018. 

TMF supports projects at the departments of Agriculture, Energy, Labor, Housing and Urban Development as well as the General Services Administration.

However, Energy and Labor may continue some IT efforts as the agencies operate under separate appropriations and are not affected by the shutdown. 

Ellen Lord, under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, has announced plans to increase transparency of the Pentagon’s acquisition efforts following recent pressure from Congress, Bloomberg reported Friday.

The plan comes after lawmakers questioned the Navy for restricting access to information in a 2017 report on its multi-billion dollar Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers. 
 
The service stamped the report as “For Official Use Only,” which was previously open to the public during the Obama administration. 

To address concerns in Congress, Lord said her office is working on “a bunch of guidelines and internal rules” to promote transparency. 

The Department of Defense’s acquisition chief intends to encourage the agency to refrain from using the “For Official Use Only” designation in the reports, according to her spokesperson.

In October, Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, also expressed concern about the Trump administration’s “abuse of processes designed to keep the public informed about the weapons programs.”

He noted previously restricted reports contained information on failed systems.

The fiscal year 2019 defense policy bill already directed the DoD to reduce future Selected Acquisition Reports labeled for official use only, unless allowed by Congress. 

SAR provides lawmakers, defense analysts and journalists with information about the status of major government programs, including original estimated costs and delivery schedules.

The U.S. Navy has named upcoming Arleigh Burke-class destroyers after former senators Jeremiah Denton and Ted Stevens.

The USS Jeremiah Denton takes the name of a Vietnam war veteran who represented Alabama as a U.S. senator, the Navy said Friday.

Denton, a Navy Cross recipient, joined the military as a test pilot after graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1947, and went on to develop tactical approaches that the service branch still applies.

Meanwhile, the USS Ted Stevens honors a former member of the Army Air Corps who served as senator for Alaska over a tenure of 41 years, the branch said in a separate announcement.

Both ships will measure 509 feet in length, and will undergo construction at Huntington Ingalls Industries shipbuilding facility in Pascagoula, Miss.

The guided missile destroyers will feature anti-air, surface and anti-submarine warfare equipment that are geared to function simultaneously.