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DoD/News
John McCain: Silicon Valley Should be Flexible in Data Privacy-Natl Security Matters
by Anna Forrester
Published on February 8, 2016
John McCain: Silicon Valley Should be Flexible in Data Privacy-Natl Security Matters


John McCain
John McCain

John McCain (R-Ariz.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, believes the technology industry in Silicon Valley should consider measures that balance encryption and information sharing with the government on cyber threats.

McCain said in a guest piece published Friday on Bloomberg View that Silicon Valley’s stance on privacy through data encryption impacts the government’s efforts against threats to national security.

“Developing technologies that aid terrorists like Islamic State is not only harmful to our security, but it is ultimately an unwise business model,” he wrote.

The senator urged technology leaders to work with government and adopt flexible measures that protect both their business needs and national security.

He also called on the administration to develop a concrete strategy and Congress to pass legislation to address the use of encryption and facilitate lawful access to what he calls “digital criminal evidence.”

News
GSA Debuts Online Acquisition Tool to Public; Tom Sharpe Comments
by Jay Clemens
Published on February 8, 2016
GSA Debuts Online Acquisition Tool to Public; Tom Sharpe Comments


Tom Sharpe
Tom Sharpe

The General Services Administration has unveiled its new online acquisition tool to the public designed to provide information resources to contracting officers.

GSA built the Acquisition Gateway portal to help federal employees engage with acquisition officers and examine various contract vehicles.

“The public will have access to as much of the Acquisition Gateway as possible and will experience the same user-centric design as federal users,” said Tom Sharpe, commissioner of GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service.

“The Gateway will enable that access while protecting the integrity of critical federal data and the security of private information supplied by contractors and others,” Sharpe added.

The public can access information on service categories such as the project center, solutions finder, statement of work library, TechFAR hub, news and events feeds, releasable category-curated articles, Buy Online button and Contribute and Share button.

GSA initially created the portal in October 2014 to provide government employees access to information on goods and services by category.

DoD/News
DoD News: Ashton Carter Eyes Lethality in Planned 2017 Investments for Navy, Marines
by Jay Clemens
Published on February 8, 2016
DoD News: Ashton Carter Eyes Lethality in Planned 2017 Investments for Navy, Marines


Ashton Carter
Ashton Carter

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has outlined the Pentagon’s planned investments in fiscal year 2017 as part of efforts to bolster U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps capabilities, DoD News reported Thursday.

Cheryl Pellerin writes the Defense Department’s fiscal 2017 budget proposal calls for new lethality to ships, submarines, aircraft and munitions.

Carter told audiences at Naval Base San Diego in California the Navy will receive a major chunk of the defense budget because of the service’s “centrality” to the department’s strategy, according to the report.

The budget request also proposes modification to the SM-6 missile in order to extend its target range, the purchase of nine Virginia-class attack submarines over the next five years and updates to the USS Spruance Arleigh Burke-class destroyer and USS Princeton Ticonderoga-class cruiser, Pellerin reports.

The Pentagon also plans to invest $600 million in unmanned undersea vehicles over the next five years and buy 13 additional F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighters and 16 F-18 Super Hornets for the Navy and Marine Corps, DoD News reported.

Terri Moon Cronk reports the department also wants to increase funding for the tactical air fleet in order to sustain the Marines’ F-18 fighter jets and spend more on full-spectrum training for the service, according to the report.

Profiles
Profile: Shantanu Agrawal, CMS Program Integrity Deputy Administrator
by Mary-Louise Hoffman
Published on February 8, 2016
Profile: Shantanu Agrawal, CMS Program Integrity Deputy Administrator


Shantanu Agrawal
Shantanu Agrawal

Shantanu Agrawal is the deputy administrator for program integrity at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and has led efforts to reduce costs and eliminate wasteful spending, abuse and fraudulent activities across the Medicaid and Medicare healthcare programs since he took the role in 2014.

Agrawal also directs the agency-run Center for Program Integrity, where he previously served as chief medical officer from 2011 to 2013 and helped implement data transparency, analytics and payment models.

During that time, he also managed partnership between private payers and CMS.

Before he joined the agency, Agrawal held a management consultant role at McKinsey & Co. and worked with healthcare organizations, hospitals and biotechnology and pharmaceutical firms to help them develop strategies for care delivery.

He has contributed articles to various medical journals and delivered presentations on healthcare cost and policy issues.

Agrawal is currently also an assistant professor for emergency medicine at Medstar Health‘s Washington Hospital Center and a fellow at the American Academy of Emergency Medicine.

He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and biomedical ethics from Brown University and a master’s degree in social and political sciences from Cambridge University.

He completed his medical education at Cornell University.

Civilian/News
NASA Appoints Jerry Cook as Space Launch System Program Deputy Director
by Jane Edwards
Published on February 8, 2016
NASA Appoints Jerry Cook as Space Launch System Program Deputy Director


Jerry Cook
Jerry Cook

Jerry Cook, formerly deputy director at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, has been appointed deputy director of the Space Launch System program at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

Cook assumed the role in December 2015 and oversees procurement, technical planning, testing, production, evaluation and testing operations related to the SLS program, NASA said Saturday.

The 31-year NASA veteran’s career includes roles such as test engineer at Marshall center’s technology evaluation department, chief engineer for exploration systems development and test conductor for the Space Shuttle Main Engine Test Program.

Cook is an advisory board member of the University of Alabama’s mechanical engineering department and has written books on propulsion and aerospace.

News
DoD, YMCA Sign 1-Year Military Outreach Program Extension
by Mary-Louise Hoffman
Published on February 8, 2016
DoD, YMCA Sign 1-Year Military Outreach Program Extension


DoD logo resizeThe Armed Services YMCA has been awarded a one-year contract renewal to continue providing physical fitness and respite child care services at no cost to eligible U.S. military personnel and their families.

The nonprofit group will extend its Military Outreach Program for the agency through March 2017, the Defense Department said Friday.

Rosemary Williams,  deputy assistant defense secretary for military community and family policy, noted the initiative reflects the department’s commitment to help geographically dispersed military families.

“This initiative is especially valuable for those living in areas distant from a military installation, allowing them to access services in their own communities,” Williams added.

News
Reuters: DoD Includes F-35 Procurement Funds in FY 2017 Budget Request
by Mary-Louise Hoffman
Published on February 8, 2016
Reuters: DoD Includes F-35 Procurement Funds in FY 2017 Budget Request


F-35The Defense Department‘s proposed fiscal 2017 budget would fund procurement of Lockheed Martin-built F-35 fighter planes for the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps over the next five fiscal years, Reuters reported Friday.

Andrea Shalal writes the Air Force has requested money to purchase up to 243 F-35s through fiscal 2021.

The military branch plans to defer orders for about 45 jets in order to finance its Long Range Strike Bomber development and KC-46A tanker aircraft programs, Shalal reports.

The Navy and Marine Corps seek to buy as many as 97 F-35B short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing planes as well as 64 carrier-based F-35Cs, the report said.

Government Technology/News
Nextgov: OPM Eyes Added Security Requirements for Contractors Handling Fed Personnel Records
by Anna Forrester
Published on February 8, 2016
Nextgov: OPM Eyes Added Security Requirements for Contractors Handling Fed Personnel Records

cybersecurityThe Office of Personnel Management plans to require government contractors for employee background investigations processes to report cybersecurity incidents within 30 minutes and allow unannounced system inspections by the agency, Nextgov reported Friday.

Jack Moore writes that a draft request for proposals released in January indicated the added requirements for OPM contractors as the agency continues its work to secure federal personnel records.

The data breaches on OPM systems last year compromised the personal information of 22.1 million federal employees and contractors.

“Due to the ever-evolving nature of cybersecurity threats, the IT security clauses posted in the draft RFP represent recent revisions but do not represent the most up-to-date revisions in progress, which will be finalized and issued with the formal solicitation,” agency spokesman Sam Schumach noted in an email to Nextgov, according to the report.

Also included in the proposed contractor security requirements are data encryption and the use of smart cards to support two-factor authentication to access OPM networks, the report said.

DoD/News
Maj. Gen. Robert McMurry Named AFRL Commander
by Jane Edwards
Published on February 8, 2016
Maj. Gen. Robert McMurry Named AFRL Commander


Robert McMurry
Robert McMurry

Maj. Gen. Robert McMurry, formerly vice commander of the Air Force Space Command’s Space and Missile Systems Center, has been named chief of the Air Force Research Laboratory.

Col. Mark Baird, special assistant to the commander of the Air Force Material Command, will succeed McMurry as SMC’s vice chief and will be promoted to brigadier general, the Defense Department said in a release published Friday.

AFRL leads research and development efforts and integration of warfighting platforms for aerial, space and cyberspace forces.

SMC oversees the acquisition, testing, maintenance, sustainment and deployment of military satellite constellations and other space systems for DoD.

Mark Baird
Mark Baird

Prior to SMC, McMurry spent two years as director of space programs at the office of the assistant secretary for acquisition at the Air Force and one year as director of security assistance mission in Iraq as part of the U.S. Central Command.

Baird previously served as director of SMC’s space superiority systems directorate before he became commander of the Air Force Installation Contracting Agency.

He has held various acquisition roles within the service branch, including procuring contracting officer, program manager and contingency contracting officer.

Government Technology/News
James Clapper: ODNI Considers Constant Cyber Intrusions a ‘Primary Concern’
by Jane Edwards
Published on February 5, 2016
James Clapper: ODNI Considers Constant Cyber Intrusions a ‘Primary Concern’


James Clapper
James Clapper

Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has said his office considers small cyber attacks and network intrusions that occur on a daily basis a major concern, Federal Times reported Thursday.

“They impose increasing costs to our businesses, to U.S. economic competitiveness and to national security,” Clapper told audience during the Naval Academy’s Cyber Lecture Series held Jan. 29.

Clapper also noted that cyber vulnerabilities have become the No. 1 threat to national security and will likely to continue in the next year, Aaron Boyd writes.

“A lot of people find this surprising in our post-9/11 world but in 2013 ‘cyber’ bumped ‘terrorism’ out of the top spot on our list of national threats,” he said.

“And cyber has led our report every year since then.”

Clapper said the Intelligence Community has initiated efforts to raise awareness on cyber threats, according to the report.

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