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Inspectors General Council Unveils Online Database of Govt Audit Reports
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Inspectors General Council Unveils Online Database of Govt Audit Reports


Inspectors General Council Unveils Online Database of Govt Audit ReportsThe Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency has launched a website that serves as a searchable database of audit reports from offices of the inspector general across the federal government.

The Project On Government Oversight said Monday 64 of the 67 OIGs that publicly issue reports have agreed to upload searchable versions of their reports from fiscal years 2015 through 2017 to the Oversight.gov database.

The OIGs also pledged to make new reports available on the website whenever they post to their own online platforms.

Oversight.gov features data on the number of available reports by fiscal year; on how many recommendations the reports contain; and on potential savings estimated by IGs.

The website also includes a “Report Government Fraud, Waste and Abuse” button that currently leads to a list of contact details for all 73 OIGs.

CIGIE aims to update the whistleblower support feature to facilitate disclosures through Oversight.gov.

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Eric Burger to Serve as FCC Chief Technology Officer
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Eric Burger to Serve as FCC Chief Technology Officer


Eric Burger to Serve as FCC Chief Technology Officer
Eric Burger

Eric Burger, former director of the National Science Foundation-sponsored Security and Software Engineering Research Center, has been appointed to serve as the Federal Communications Commission‘s next chief technology officer.

He will succeed Henning Schulzrinne, who accepted a new position at Columbia University, and advise FCC and Chairman Ajit Pai and on technology and engineering matters as CTO, the agency said Monday.

Burger holds multiple telecommunications-related patents and has knowledge of internet, network and telecommunications technology standards.

He also serves as chairman of the board at AtFCyber, a consultant for StandardsTrack, non-executive director of the Public Interest Registry and a board member at Ascension Technology Group.

He also held the CTO position at SnowShore Networks, Cantata Technology, BEA System and NeuStar.

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Air Force Implements New Minuteman III Data Transfer Unit
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Air Force Implements New Minuteman III Data Transfer Unit


Air Force Implements New Minuteman III Data Transfer UnitThe U.S. Air Force‘s 91st Missile Wing unit at Minot AF Base in North Dakota has implemented a new data transfer unit for the LGM-30G Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile system.

DTU is built to replace the missile system’s outdated cartridge tape unit and launch facility load cartridge systems, the Air Force said Monday.

“The DTU loads the Missile Guidance Set, which is the brain of the Minuteman III, with sensitive cryptographic data and other information the missile needs in order to function,” said Capt. Kevin Drumm, ICBM codes operations chief for the 91st Operations Support Squadron.

Drumm added he expects the new unit to help increase the performance, reliability and security of ICBM operations.

 

The Air Force noted that a single DTU is 25 pounds lighter than Minuteman III’s previous CTU and works to store the same volume of data as 12 LFLC units.

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Former Maryland State IT Chief David Garcia Named OPM CIO
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Former Maryland State IT Chief David Garcia Named OPM CIO


Former Maryland State IT Chief David Garcia Named OPM CIO
David Garcia

David Garcia, former chief information officer for the state of Maryland, has been appointed to the same position at the Office of Personnel Management.

OPM said Monday Garcia led Maryland’s information technology operations over the past two years as the state CIO and secretary for its IT department.

He is also the founder and chairman of the board of directors at Chantilly, Virginia-based NMR Consulting, which offers IT, program and risk management, infrastructure and logistics services to the government sector.

He previously served as chief of the telecommunication and network management divisions within the U.S. Army‘s Center for Health Promotion and Preventative Medicine as well as a signals intelligence analyst and Russian linguist at the service branch.

Report: VA Inches Closer to Cerner EHR Devt Contract Award
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Report: VA Inches Closer to Cerner EHR Devt Contract Award


Report: VA Inches Closer to Cerner EHR Devt Contract AwardThe Department of Veterans Affairs expects to award Cerner a contract to build a new electronic health record system for VA as early as this month, Federal News Radio reported Friday.

VA Secretary David Shulkin told members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee at a hearing Wednesday that the department issued to Congress a 30-day notice of contract award for the new EHR platform.

His statement came months after he announced plans in June to issue a direct solicitation to Cerner to implement the same EHR system – MHS Genesis – that the Defense Department currently deploys.

VA Press Secretary Curt Cashour told the station in an email that the department will end 80 percent of its ongoing information technology development projects over the next 18 months as part of VA’s IT strategic plan.

A source said the agency’s move to reduce its current projects seeks to help fund the implementation of the new EHR system, the report added.

Cerner collaborates with Leidos and Accenture as part an industry team that won a potential 10-year, $4.3 billion contract in 2015 to help DoD integrate a commercial EHR platform across the Military Health System.

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DHS S&T Project Aims to Repurpose Analytic Tools for Border Security Operations
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DHS S&T Project Aims to Repurpose Analytic Tools for Border Security Operations


DHS S&T Project Aims to Repurpose Analytic Tools for Border Security OperationsThe Department of Homeland Security‘s science and technology directorate has launched a new project to repurpose, modify or integrate existing commercial and government analytic tools into border security platforms.

DHS said Friday it aims to produce automated software to increase the amount of available data for border situational awareness missions through the Adaptive Sensor Analytics Project.

The department intends for the automated software to operate 24/7 and filter large volumes of satellite imagery data to help border patrol agents identify potential criminal activity.

“By developing these capabilities… we will be ready to fully exploit the robust commercial satellite constellations when it is realized in the coming years,” said Jon McEntee, acting director of the S&T borders and maritime security division within the Homeland Security Advanced Research Projects Agency.

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Rep. Will Hurd Seeks to Include Central IT Modernization Fund in FITARA Scorecard
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Rep. Will Hurd Seeks to Include Central IT Modernization Fund in FITARA Scorecard


Rep. Will Hurd Seeks to Include Central IT Modernization Fund in FITARA ScorecardRep. Will Hurd (R-Texas) looks to evaluate a proposed information technology modernization working capital fund through the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act scorecard used to evaluate the performance of government IT systems, MeriTalk reported Friday.

The planned central IT modernization fund is part of the Modernizing Government Technology Act, which has been included in the fiscal year 2018 National Defense Authorization Act.

Hurd said he hopes Congress will pass the fiscal 2018 NDAA before the year ends with no changes to the language of MGT Act, the report noted.

MGT Act would authorize agencies to obtain $250 million in IT modernization funds from a central working capital fund, then repay the money using savings achieved through upgraded systems.

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DARPA Tests Cloud-Penetrating Radar Tech on Modified DC-3 Aircraft
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DARPA Tests Cloud-Penetrating Radar Tech on Modified DC-3 Aircraft


DARPA Tests Cloud-Penetrating Radar Tech on Modified DC-3 AircraftThe Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has tested an electro-optical and infrared sensor onboard a modified DC-3 aircraft to demonstrate its capacity to collect real-time video through the clouds.

DARPA said Thursday it aims to produce a cloud-penetrating extremely high frequency sensor that can be integrated with multiple aerial platforms as part of the Video Synthetic Aperture Radar program.

“The recent flight tests of the ViSAR sensor marked a major program milestone toward our goal, proving that we can take uninterrupted live video of targets on the ground even when flying through or above clouds,” said Bruce Wallace, program manager in DARPA’s Strategic Technology Office.

“The EO/IR sensors on board the test aircraft went blank whenever clouds obscured the view, but the synthetic aperture radar tracked ground objects continuously throughout the flight.”

The next phase of the ViSAR program will look to merge the radar into an aircraft equipped with a complete battle management system and real-time target engagement capacity.

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Brian Burns: Coast Guard On Track to Meet DoD Deadline for Windows 10 Migration
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Brian Burns: Coast Guard On Track to Meet DoD Deadline for Windows 10 Migration


Brian Burns: Coast Guard On Track to Meet DoD Deadline for Windows 10 MigrationBrian Burns, acting chief information officer of the U.S. Coast Guard, has said the service branch is on track to meet the Defense Department’s March 2018 deadline to transition to Microsoft’s Windows 10 operating system, Federal News Radio reported Friday.

Rear Adm. Kevin Lunday, commander of the Coast Guard’s Cyber Command, said the Windows 10 migration provides the service a common secure baseline to defend its information technology networks against hostile threats.

Lunday noted that the military branch will transition to the implementation of the virtual desktop interface after it completes the Windows 10 migration phase.

“That will allow us to provide more robust security in terms of having virtualization and also the capability of having remote access,” Lunday said of VDI.

Burns told the station’s Ask the CIO about the Coast Guard’s intent to migrate to the cloud and the need to meet the requirements of DoD and the Department of Homeland Security to facilitate cloud adoption.

He said those requirements include the use of DoD’s information network, migration to the Pentagon’s Joint Information Environment and compliance with DHS’ data center consolidation initiative.

Burns said the service has begun to consolidate its data centers for its aviation and surface force logistics centers and has partnered with DHS to “provide a department-level financial management services capability.”

“That leads us into the next steps of going to the cloud,” he added.

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Report: Trump Mulls New Policy to Ease Foreign Arms Sale Restrictions
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Report: Trump Mulls New Policy to Ease Foreign Arms Sale Restrictions


Report: Trump Mulls New Policy to Ease Foreign Arms Sale RestrictionsPresident Donald Trump is set to issue an executive order or a presidential memorandum this fall that seeks to relax restrictions on foreign sales of U.S. weapons systems as part of the administration’s “arms transfer initiative,” Politico reported Friday.

Three officials with the Trump administration told Politico the National Security Council leads the initiative that aims to increase U.S. manufacturers’ competitiveness as the country’s allies ramp up procurement of missile defense systems, fighter jets, warships, ground vehicles and other military equipment.

The officials said the White House considers implementing changes to policies such as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and Conventional Arms Transfer Policy and could release an executive order as early as October.

The departments of Defense, State and Commerce also participate in the arms transfer program through development of proposals for evaluation by the White House, the officials noted.

NSC issued a statement to Politico saying the administration has started a review of the country’s arms sales policies to pave the way for U.S. companies to compete.

“The Trump administration is pursuing a deliberate approach to our arms export policy, ensuring that such sales better align with our national security and foreign policy objectives as well as economic imperatives for American jobs,” NSC said in the statement.

News on the initiative came weeks after senior U.S. officials said the White House intends to transfer oversight of exports of nonmilitary firearms from the State Department to the Commerce Department to increase small arms sales overseas and create jobs.

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