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White House Proposes $19.1B NASA Budget for Fiscal 2018
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White House Proposes $19.1B NASA Budget for Fiscal 2018


White House Proposes $19.1B NASA Budget for Fiscal 2018President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2018 budget proposal would allocate $19.1 billion for NASA, which represents a $561 million reduction from the agency’s budget under the FY 2017 omnibus spending bill, Space News reported Tuesday.

Trump proposed scrapping five Earth science programs to help NASA save approximately $191 million and shut down the agency’s Office of Education, according to the report.

Those projects include the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem satellite; Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory Pathfinder; Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3 instruments; Deep Space Climate Observatory Earth-viewing instruments and the Radiation Budget Instrument.

NASA Acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot said in a statement posted Wednesday the White House’s budget request would fund 18 Earth-observing programs and airborne missions and continue support for various research programs.

Trump also wants the agency to discontinue the Asteroid Redirect Mission and retain some technologies developed under the program to aid future deep space missions.

NASA would receive $1.8 billion for its Earth science program and another $1.93 billion for planetary science under the budget request — a $167 million decrease and an $83.5 increase from the agency’s 2017 budget, respectively.

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Air Force Gen. John Raymond: Joint Force Readiness Key to Fight Potential Conflicts in Space
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Air Force Gen. John Raymond: Joint Force Readiness Key to Fight Potential Conflicts in Space


Air Force Gen. John Raymond: Joint Force Readiness Key to Fight Potential Conflicts in Space
John Raymond

Gen. John Raymond, chief of the Air Force Space Command, has said the joint force should be prepared to address potential conflicts in the space domain as potential adversaries work to build technological capabilities that seek to deny access to space, Defense News reported Monday.

Raymond made the remarks at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on national security priorities in the space domain for fiscal 2018.

He also cited his priorities such as efforts to build up space situational awareness, increase the space architecture’s defense capability, facilitate professional development among the command’s airmen and advance operations of the National Space Defense Center.

Robert Cardillo, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and an inductee into Executive Mosaic’s Wash100 for 2017, also discussed the need to leverage artificial intelligence, algorithms and machine-to-machine learning tools to automate GEOINT data collection and analysis and facilitate the delivery of intelligence and navigation support to warfighters.

Other officials that testified at the House panel hearing include Air Force Lt. Gen. David Buck, commander of the joint functional component-space at the U.S. Strategic Command; Betty Sapp, director of the National Reconnaissance Office; and John Hill, deputy assistant defense secretary for space policy.

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James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford Outline Achievements of Anti-ISIS Coalition
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James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford Outline Achievements of Anti-ISIS Coalition


James Mattis, Gen. Joseph Dunford Outline Achievements of Anti-ISIS CoalitionMarine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the U.S.-led coalition against the Islamic State militant group has worked to reduce ISIS-held territory and diminish the group’s financial resources, leadership and freedom of movement since coalition efforts began in 2014, DoD News reported Friday.

Dunford told reporters in a Pentagon briefing that the coalition has closed the Turkish-Syrian border in an effort to decrease the flow of foreign fighters, weapons and money to ISIS.

The general noted that the number of foreign fighters who cross the border every month has dropped to less than 100 from approximately 1,500 during its peak.

Dunford said he is working with more than 60 defense leaders to expand the coalition and cut communications between ISIS affiliates and associates.

Defense Secretary James Mattis told reporters that the coalition applied changes in the delegation of authority and in engaging adversaries following a review of anti-ISIS efforts directed by President Donald Trump.

The coalition shifted from driving militants out of safe areas to surrounding the group in their strongholds in a push to prevent escaped foreign fighters from returning home, Mattis stated.

The secretary added the coalition has grown to 68 member nations and organizations, with 26 countries contributing approximately 4,000 non-U.S. troops.

Trump’s special envoy Brett McGurk said the coalition also launched a post-conflict effort that seeks to restore communities affected by the fight against ISIS.

Coalition forces trained Iraqis to de-mine facilities and the effort has removed 34 tons of explosive material to date and brought 1.7 million displaced individuals back to their homes in Iraq, McGurk noted.

Reports: Trump’s Fiscal 2018 Budget Plan Includes $607B in Defense Discretionary Funds
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Reports: Trump’s Fiscal 2018 Budget Plan Includes $607B in Defense Discretionary Funds


Reports: Trump’s Fiscal 2018 Budget Plan Includes $607B in Defense Discretionary FundsPresident Donald Trump’s final budget request for fiscal 2018 would allocate $607 billion in discretionary funds for defense and $560 billion in discretionary spending for nondefense programs, Federal News Radio reported Monday.

The fiscal 2018 budget plan proposes to reduce spending by $3.6 trillion over 10 years and slash public debt to 60 percent of the gross domestic product.

The proposed budget would also cut nondefense discretionary spending by $54 billion in order to balance increases to the defense budget for fiscal 2018.

The report noted spending reductions would be derived from changes to several government programs such as Medicaid, Child Tax Credit, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Earned Income Tax Credit and student loan.

The Department of Homeland Security would get $2.6 billion in fiscal 2018 budget to hire staff and establish new infrastructure to support Trump’s plans along the southern border.

DoD Buzz also reports that Trump’s budget request would appropriate $603 billion in baseline budget for the Defense Department and allocate $65 billion for overseas contingency operations.

The proposed base defense budget includes $29 billion in funds for the Energy Department’s nuclear programs.

The Department of Veterans Affairs would get a 6 percent increase under the fiscal 2018 budget request in order to fund recruitment efforts and support the Choice Program’s expansion for private care, the report added.

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CBO: Small Biz Cybersecurity Bill Would Cost $6M Through 2022
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CBO: Small Biz Cybersecurity Bill Would Cost $6M Through 2022


CBO: Small Biz Cybersecurity Bill Would Cost $6M Through 2022A Congressional Budget Office report says a proposed House bill that would provide small businesses access to cybersecurity resources from the National Institutes of Standards and Technology would cost $6 million over five years.

The NIST Small Business Cybersecurity Act of 2017 would require the agency to help companies address cyber threats through the voluntary use of tools, methodologies and guidelines, CBO said Friday.

CBO estimated that NIST would spend approximately $2 million in efforts to develop cybersecurity resources in collaboration with other federal agencies and another $4 million to update the resources for small businesses.

The proposed bill would not affect budgets at the state, local and tribal levels since the legislation does not contain any mandates found in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, according to CBO.

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GAO: Federal Improper Payments Reached $144B in Fiscal 2016
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GAO: Federal Improper Payments Reached $144B in Fiscal 2016


GAO: Federal Improper Payments Reached $144B in Fiscal 2016The Government Accountability Office has found that the federal government recorded approximately $144 billion in improper payments in fiscal 2016.

GAO said in a report published Wednesday the figure was linked to 112 federal programs across 22 agencies and those programs include Medicare, Medicaid and earned income tax credit.

Medicare-related programs such as Part D and Medicare Advantage accounted for approximately $59.7 billion in improper payments, followed by Medicaid at $36.3 billion.

The congressional watchdog also found that the government reported approximately $4.3 billion in fiscal 2015 spending on more than 640,000 vehicles that are either owned or leased by agencies.

GAO called on the federal government to cut improper payments, manage its fleet of vehicles, reduce unneeded facilities, make changes to the acquisition process for information technology platforms and address cybersecurity issues related to federal IT infrastructure.

 

Dyke Weatherington, Principal Director of SSI to Speak at POC Unmanned Systems Forum
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Dyke Weatherington, Principal Director of SSI to Speak at POC Unmanned Systems Forum


Dyke Weatherington, Principal Director of SSI to Speak at POC Unmanned Systems Forum

The Potomac Officers’ Club is pleased to announce that Dyke Weatherington,  Principal Director, Space, Strategic and Intelligence Systems (SSI) at the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (OUSD (AT&L)) for the Pentagon will speak at the Unnanned Systems Forum. The Forum will be held at 2941 Restaurant in Falls Church, VA 22042 on Wednesday May 24,2017 from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Weatherington is responsible for acquisition shaping and oversight of space, strategic manned and unmanned aircraft, intelligence programs and treaty compliance executed by the Department of Defense. His prior roles include Deputy Director, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance in the SSI. His IC portfolio includes major system acquisition programs of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), National Geo-Spatial Agency (NGA), National Security Agency (NSA), and Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA).

Weatherington also worked on systems like Global Hawk, Triton NATO Alliance Ground Surveillance, and the Long Range Strike – Bomber and B-2 weapons systems.

As SSI’s Senior Acquisition Officer and the primary liaison between Joint Staff, Services, Agencies, and Congress, Weatherington looks for cost reductions and ways to achieve schedule and performance goals. He also advises the Milestone Decision Authority on space, strategic, and intelligence program acquisition decisions, and is the functional lead for the Deputy Secretary of Defense directed Unmanned Aircraft Systems Task Force.

Weatherington serves as Chairman of the multi-agency UAS Executive Committee Senior Steering Group that addresses the National Airspace System for the DOD, Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Homeland Security and National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Prior to his assignment to SSI, Weatherington was the Deputy Director, Unmanned Warfare and ISR, Strategic & Tactical Systems. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering mechanics from the United States Air Force Academy (1981) and a Master of Arts in National Securities Studies from California State University (1993). He is also a graduate of the Air Force Air Command and Staff College and the Defense Systems Management College. He has been awarded numerous OSD and Air Force decorations including the Airman’s Medal and OUSD Exceptional Civilian Service Award.

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GAO: DHS Should Fully Implement FITARA, Increase CIO Involvement in IT Contracts
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GAO: DHS Should Fully Implement FITARA, Increase CIO Involvement in IT Contracts


GAO: DHS Should Fully Implement FITARA, Increase CIO Involvement in IT ContractsThe Government Accountability Office has called on the Department of Homeland Security to fully implement action plans under the Federal Information Technology Acquisition Reform Act and to increase the agency chief information officer’s involvement in IT contracts.

DHS has fully accomplished 28 of 31 FITARA action plans that GAO evaluated but the department has yet to implement all aspects of three action plans as of December 2016, GAO said Thursday.

Auditors also assessed 48 DHS contracts associated with major IT investments and found that the DHS CIO did not participate in the approval process of any of the contracts.

FITARA directs agency CIOs to review and approve IT contracts and agreements associated with major programs prior to award.

The legislation also requires CIOs to perform risk evaluations of major IT investments and update risk ratings on the Office of Management and Budget‘s public website dubbed IT Dashboard.

DHS changed its evaluation process for 30 of 93 major IT investments in October 2016, removing the CIO’s responsibility to evaluate or provide risk ratings for the investments, GAO reported.

Under the new process, multiple DHS organizations and officials evaluate the investments and the CIO’s assessment accounts for approximately 18 percent of the total score.

GAO said the process change poses challenges to the DHS CIO’s capacity to publicly report risk ratings.

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US-Jordan Team Discuss Possible Approaches to Mitigate WMD Production
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US-Jordan Team Discuss Possible Approaches to Mitigate WMD Production


US-Jordan Team Discuss Possible Approaches to Mitigate WMD ProductionThe U.S. and Jordan have participated in a capacity-building workshop at the Exercise Eager Lion event to discuss interdiction and potential approaches to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

DoD said Thursday that the Proliferation Security Initiative workshop looked to identify opportunities to boost national legal authorities, discuss challenges regarding WMD proliferation as well as examine national and international legal authorities.

PSI is a global program that looks to prevent the trafficking of WMDs, delivery systems and related materials to and from states and non-state actors of proliferation concern.

The program aims to develop procedures regarding the exchange of information on WMD proliferation, boost national legal authorities to facilitate interdiction and take specific actions in support of interdiction efforts.

“Our work together these last few days through the PSI was intended to help [Jordan] develop another national security tool,” said Andrea Yaffe, director of transnational threats from the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense.

“We are stronger when we confront these threats together, and the PSI is an important example of that cooperation,” said Amjad Al Rudaini, chief of planning and defense requirements for the Jordanian armed forces.

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Gens. Joseph Dunford, Paul Selva Nominated to Retain JCS Leadership Roles
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Gens. Joseph Dunford, Paul Selva Nominated to Retain JCS Leadership Roles


Gens. Joseph Dunford, Paul Selva Nominated to Retain JCS Leadership Roles
Joseph Dunford

President Donald Trump has nominated Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford for reappointment as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Defense Department announced Friday.

Dunford became chairman on October 1, 2015 and also currently serves as principal military adviser to the president, defense secretary and the National Security Council.

He previously served as commandant of the Marine Corps, assistant commandant of the Marine Corps and commander of the International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces-Afghanistan.

Dunford also held various leadership roles within the Marine Corps such as director of operations; deputy commandant for plans, policies and operations; and commander of the 1st Marine Division.

Gens. Joseph Dunford, Paul Selva Nominated to Retain JCS Leadership Roles
Paul Selva

Air Force Gen. Paul Selva has also been nominated for reassignment as vice chairman of JCS.

Selva led the U.S. Transportation Command before he was appointed to his current position  in July 2015 and has recorded more than 3,100 flight hours.

He previously served as commander of the Air Mobility Command, vice commander of the Pacific Air Forces, assistant to the JCS chairman and director of strategic planning at the Air Force.

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