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GAO: DoD, DHS, HHS Need to Adopt Existing Tools to Coordinate Pandemic Response Efforts
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GAO: DoD, DHS, HHS Need to Adopt Existing Tools to Coordinate Pandemic Response Efforts


GAO: DoD, DHS, HHS Need to Adopt Existing Tools to Coordinate Pandemic Response EffortsThe Government Accountability Office has called on the departments of Defense, Health and Human Services and Homeland Security to employ existing tools to coordinate preparedness and response to a pandemic.

Those mechanisms include training exercises, liaison officers and interagency working groups, GAO said in a report published Friday.

GAO also found that DoD has created plans and guidance on how to support DHS, HHS and other civil agencies in the event of a disease outbreak and those guidance documents include the Department of Defense Global Campaign Plan for Pandemic Influenza and Infectious Diseases 3551-13 and Strategy for Homeland Defense and Support to Civil Authorities.

Although DHS and HHS have plans to direct pandemic response efforts, such strategies do not detail how they would operate in an environment where resources are restricted, according to the congressional budget watchdog.

GAO noted that HHS and DHS have begun to update their plans to identify potential measures to implement if the Pentagon’s support to civil agencies might be limited.

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Republican Senators Urge White House to Consider ‘Principled’ Approach Toward Russia
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Republican Senators Urge White House to Consider ‘Principled’ Approach Toward Russia


Republican Senators Urge White House to Consider 'Principled' Approach Toward RussiaA group of eight Republican senators has written a letter to President Donald Trump asking him to pursue a “results-oriented” and “principled” Russia policy that would highlight the country’s activities in cyberspace, Syria and Ukraine.

Sens. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota), Cory Gardner (R-Colorado), Jim Inhofe (R-Oklahoma), Todd Young (R-Indiana), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) jointly urged the Trump administration to maintain the current sanctions regime against Russia and Russian organizations, Rounds’ office said Thursday.

The lawmakers also called on the White House to condemn continued Russian aggression in Ukraine as well as counter Russia’s cyber and information warfare efforts against western democracies such as the attempted interference in the U.S. democratic elections process.

They said the U.S. should maintain an open dialogue with Russia on global initiatives related to nuclear arms control, anti-drug trafficking , counterterrorism and healthcare promotion.

“However, while we should seek common ground with Russia in the areas of mutual interest, we must never pursue cooperation with Russia at the expense of our fundamental interests of defending our allies and promoting our values,” the letter states.

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Mitre Study Suggests Navy Needs 414 Ship-Fleet
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Mitre Study Suggests Navy Needs 414 Ship-Fleet


Mitre Study Suggests Navy Needs 414 Ship-FleetA new Mitre study says the U.S. Navy needs a fleet size of 414 combat ships that would include 160 destroyers and cruisers, 72 attack submarines and 14 aircraft carriers, Breaking Defense reported Friday.

Sydney J. Freedberg Jr. writes Mitre’s 15-year shipbuilding plan for the Navy would cancel the Littoral Combat Ship program and replace it with new classes of ships such as frigates and magazine ships.

Mitre’s study suggests a “high-low mix” of a small number of high-end combat vessels and a large number of low-end warships such as magazine ships – MG(X) – and diesel-powered attack submarines.

The nonprofit organization recommended that the service branch continue to build nuclear-powered Virginia-class submarines at a rate of two vessels per year and replace the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock vessels with either three modified Watson-class cargo ships or six Spearhead-class expeditionary fast transport ships.

Mitre also called for the Navy to prioritize the deployment of the Hyper-Velocity Projectile for use with electromagnetic railguns aboard destroyers and cruisers, the report added.

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NASA, University of Miami Researchers Partner to Develop Solid-State Battery for Microsatellites
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NASA, University of Miami Researchers Partner to Develop Solid-State Battery for Microsatellites


NASA, University of Miami Researchers Partner to Develop Solid-State Battery for MicrosatellitesResearchers from NASA‘s Kennedy Space Center and the University of Miami have teamed up to protoype a solid-state battery that could be used in microsatellites.

NASA said Saturday Luke Roberson, a senior principal investigator at Kennedy’s Exploration Research and Technology Directorate, collaborates with Ryan Karkkainen and Xiangyang Zhou, researchers at the University of Miami, on the battery development project as part of the agency’s Small Spacecraft Technology Program.

Roberson noted that the battery may also be used as an alternate power source for homes and buildings as well as be integrated in walls of structures during construction to serve as an additional power source.

“This technology could be used on satellite structural trusses, the International Space Station, or to power habitat structures established on another planet,” he added.

Daniel Perez, a mechanical engineering student at the University of Miami, and two other students from the university support the development of the two- to three-millimeter-thick battery.

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Sen. Ron Wyden Asks FBI to Address Limitations of Bureau’s Updated FOIA Request Policy
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Sen. Ron Wyden Asks FBI to Address Limitations of Bureau’s Updated FOIA Request Policy


Sen. Ron Wyden Asks FBI to Address Limitations of Bureau's Updated FOIA Request PolicySen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) has urged the FBI to accept email submissions of Freedom of Information Act requests and address limits on FOIA submissions from the bureau’s portal following a policy change that requires FOIA requests to be sent online or by fax and letter.

He told David Hardy, chief of FBI’s record and information dissemination section in a letter published Thursday that the 3,000-character limit for submissions on the FBI portal may not be enough for requesters to explain why they seek relevant records.

Wyden also asked Hardy to clarify if the bureau intends to exclude requests for internal FBI communications, memos, emails and guidance as well as update the terms of service to explicitly authorize requests for document types other than the record types that the terms state.

The senator noted that the FBI also added a technical protection measure that he believes may limit automated submissions from researchers and journalists as well as implemented a requirement for requesters to determine whether they are in the U.S. or not.

Wyden wants to know the bureau’s reasons for implementing such measures and an online portal separate from the existing multiagency FOIA website that other Justice Department components use.

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Sen. James Lankford Talks General Schedule System, Federal Hiring Process at Senate Hearing
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Sen. James Lankford Talks General Schedule System, Federal Hiring Process at Senate Hearing


Sen. James Lankford Talks General Schedule System, Federal Hiring Process at Senate HearingA subpanel within the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has started a series of hearings to gather ideas on how to facilitate reforms to the civil service system and assess the federal hiring process, Federal News Radio reported Thursday.

Nicole Ogrysko writes Sen. James Lankford (R-Oklahoma), chairman of the Senate committee’s regulatory affairs and federal management subpanel, said during a Thursday hearing that the General Schedule system needs to be addressed and that he aims to seek feedback from federal managers on current processes and authorities that pose a challenge to their jobs.

The subpanel’s hearing comes weeks after President Donald Trump issued a memo that would bar federal agencies from hiring new employees until the Office of Management and Budget drafts within 90 days a plan on how to implement attrition to shrink the size of the federal workforce.

“Congress can either watch as the administration deals with the federal workforce through executive actions, or it can find consensus and work with the administration, take up the mantel of substantive legislative reform,” Lankford said.

He also noted that modernizing the civil service system should start with updates to the federal hiring process, according to the report.

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Air Force, NASA Fund Research to Improve Wind Predictions at Space Launch Complexes
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Air Force, NASA Fund Research to Improve Wind Predictions at Space Launch Complexes


Air Force, NASA Fund Research to Improve Wind Predictions at Space Launch ComplexesCorey Amiot, a graduate student from the University of Alabama in Huntsville, currently explores methods to improve forecasts of high wind events at Florida-based space launch facilities as part of a research project funded by NASA and the U.S. Air Force.

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and the Air Force’s 45th Weather Squadron provided funds to support Amiot’s efforts to optimize lead times for high wind warnings and help lessen false alarms, UAH said Thursday.

Currently, launch complexes issue warnings when wind speed exceeds 35 knots to mitigate hazards facing personnel and hardware.

UAH said Amiot used data from 45WS’ dual-polarization C-band weather radar and 29 weather stations to detect patterns and potential signatures of changes in 14 thunderstorms.

He identified four distinct radar signatures in 85 to 92 percent of the 14 storms.

Amiot said he needs to expand the sample size of the research to detect more radar signatures.

Report: Israel’s Defense Contractors Have Pulled In $1.03B in F-35 Contracts Since 2010
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Report: Israel’s Defense Contractors Have Pulled In $1.03B in F-35 Contracts Since 2010


Report: Israel’s Defense Contractors Have Pulled In $1.03B in F-35 Contracts Since 2010Israel’s defense ministry has said defense contractors have earned $1.033 billion in deals related to the Lockheed Martin-built F-35 aircraft since 2010, the Times of Israel reported Sunday.

Judah Ari Gross writes Lockheed and Israel-based defense firms inked approximately $258 million in fighter jet-linked contracts in 2016, up 33 percent from previous years.

The country’s defense ministry said it expects Elbit Systems and Rockwell Collins to get $206 million worth of contracts to produce an F-35 helmet designed to provide pilots a 360-degree view of the aircraft’s surroundings.

Israel Aerospace Industries would get approximately $26 million in contracts to manufacture the fighter plane’s wings, while Elbit would receive $16.6 million in funds for its Israel-based factory that manufactures the jet’s body.

The agency also noted that approximately $9.4 million in contracts will go to companies that produce simulators, radios and other components of F-35s, according to the report.

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NIST, GSA Launch Nationwide Cybersecurity Survey
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NIST, GSA Launch Nationwide Cybersecurity Survey


NIST, GSA Launch Nationwide Cybersecurity SurveyThe General Services Administration and National Institute of Standards and Technology  have partnered to examine the cybersecurity practices of various organizations throughout the U.S. through a nationwide survey.

NIST said Wednesday the survey for senior cybersecurity executives will mostly contain multiple-choice questions and take respondents less than 40 minutes to complete.

Interested agencies and companies may respond to the questionnaire until Feb. 27 via the CyberChain website.

Respondents who complete the survey will receive an invitation to a fall 2017 briefing at the NIST headquarters in Gathersburg, Maryland, to participate in a pre-general release webinar on the survey’s findings and its potential advantages to organizations’ cybersecurity programs.

The survey is part of NIST’s Predictive Analytics Modeling Project that aims to explore tools to measure and assess cybersecurity effectiveness.

The project also seeks to utilize anonymized risk assessments based on the NIST’s Cybersecurity Framework to create a data set that will demonstrate cause and effect relationships between cybersecurity and supply chain capacity and organizational performance outcomes.

Sen. John McCain: Full-Year CR More Likely If Trump’s Budget Deal Lacks Enough Domestic Spending
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Sen. John McCain: Full-Year CR More Likely If Trump’s Budget Deal Lacks Enough Domestic Spending


Sen. John McCain: Full-Year CR More Likely If Trump's Budget Deal Lacks Enough Domestic SpendingSenate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Arizona) has said Congress might resort to a full-year continuing resolution if President Donald Trump fails to make a budget deal that contains enough funds for domestic spending, Defense News reported Sunday.

“It’s a real possibility unless we get the president’s understanding that you can’t necessarily cut everything else to pay for defense,” McCain was quoted as saying by Defense News.

“That will probably not get enough votes.”

Joe Gould writes House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) noted that defense spending should not be held “hostage” to domestic expenditures.

“You do not balance the budget by cutting defense,” Thornberry added.

He told reporters in an interview that he wants Congress to pass the fiscal 2017 defense appropriations bill “as soon as possible,” adding that “there is no reason in the world not to finish this year’s budget.”

The report said armed services panels in the House and Senate have begun to draft their fiscal 2018 defense spending plans that would propose $640 billion in base budget, the report added.

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