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Inside NASA’s SEWP VI Contract With Deltek’s Carey Webster
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Inside NASA’s SEWP VI Contract With Deltek’s Carey Webster

Later this year, NASA is expected to move forward with the sixth iteration of its Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement contract. According to Carey Webster, vice president of research at Deltek, contractors should be preparing for the opportunity now.

Inside NASA’s SEWP VI Contract With Deltek’s Carey Webster

Webster expects that NASA will release a final request for proposals in the spring, and awards are expected to be made around October 2024. And because this opportunity is so attractive to contractors — as it has no cap on awards — Webster urges contractors to dive into the draft RFP now.

“We do anticipate that the final RFP is going to look very similar, if not exact, to the draft RFP,” she shared in a new video interview with Executive Mosaic. “So anything that they can do to get a better understanding of the evaluation process within that draft, I recommend.”

NASA’s SEWP VI differs from previous iterations of the contract in focusing more on procuring information technology services in addition to IT products.

“It sort of has this reputation when people think about it as being an IT product contract, which it is — there’s a lot of IT products that are procured on this contract. But it’s interesting, what we’re seeing in [SEWP VI], at least what we’ve seen so far, is that they’re really going to focus more on that IT services piece,” Webster explained.

For more information about SEWP VI requirements and how contractors can prepare for the upcoming RFP, watch Webster’s full video interview here.

LLNL Launches Software Licensing Portal to Facilitate Faster Technology Transfer
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LLNL Launches Software Licensing Portal to Facilitate Faster Technology Transfer

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s Innovation and Partnerships Office has opened to the public a new software licensing portal that offers access to a catalog of proprietary software developed by LLNL researchers.

LLNL said the portal aims to promote technology transfer and collaboration with industry by providing software licensing opportunities for specific use cases, ranging from non-exclusive end-user licenses to custom proprietary options and open-source software licensing.

Through the tailored license agreements, LLNL IPO intends to work with businesses looking to distribute software and incorporate LLNL-developed software into commercial products.

The software licensing portal is meant to pair with LLNL’s open-source software catalog to jointly promote industry adoption and innovation in academia.

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NSF Inviting Proposals for 2024 Edition of Responsible Design, Development & Deployment of Technologies Program
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NSF Inviting Proposals for 2024 Edition of Responsible Design, Development & Deployment of Technologies Program

The National Science Foundation is calling for proposals for the fiscal year 2024 activities under the Responsible Design, Development and Deployment of Technologies program.

The ReDDDoT program’s objectives include enabling research and capacity building in; creating communities of interest for; and training the science, technology, engineering and mathematics workforce on responsible technology design, development and deployment, the NSF said Monday.

For FY2024, ReDDDoT covers phase 1 of the Planning Grants activity, which seeks to facilitate transdisciplinary work in anticipation of future larger proposals involving the following priority areas:

artificial intelligence
biotechnology
natural and anthropogenic disaster prevention or mitigation

Between 10 to 12 awards are expected to be issued for Planning Grants, with each worth up to $300,000.

ReDDDoT also covers phase 1 of the Translational Research Coordination Networks activity, which aims to establish a community of practice for the same priority areas. Two awards worth up to $500,000 each are expected for this activity.

Also part of FY2024 is phase 1 of the Workshops activity, which aims to raise awareness and identify needs related to the key technology areas listed under Section 10387 of the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. Between 8 and 10 awards are expected for Workshops, with each worth up to $75,000.

ReDDDoT 2024 also includes phase 2 of project proposals, which is expected to result in eight to 12 awards worth between $750,000 and $1.5 million each. Phase 2 projects cover the same priority areas as Planning Grants.

Proposals for phase 1 Planning Grants, Translational Research Coordination Networks and Workshops are due April 8.

Proposals for phase 2 projects are due April 22.

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Stacy Sanders Takes on Newly Created Chief Competition Officer Role at HHS
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Stacy Sanders Takes on Newly Created Chief Competition Officer Role at HHS

Stacy Sanders, counselor to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra since November 2022, has taken on the newly created role of chief competition officer at HHS.

In her new capacity, Sanders will identify, coordinate and pursue long-term opportunities, initiatives and policies to promote competition in healthcare markets to help achieve the Biden administration’s goals of lowering healthcare and prescription drug costs, HHS said Monday.

“As the counselor leading HHS’s work to implement the President’s drug price negotiation law, Stacy has successfully taken on some of the most difficult challenges facing HHS. Her stewardship has made a meaningful difference in helping Americans save money on their prescription drug costs,” Becerra said.

Sanders will work with the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice to address market concentration issues in the healthcare sector through data sharing, reciprocal training programs and competition policy development.

Before joining HHS, Sanders served as staff director of the Senate Special Committee on Aging for Sen. Bob Casey, Jr., D-Penn.

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DOD Issues Memo on FedRAMP Moderate Equivalency for Cloud Service Offerings
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DOD Issues Memo on FedRAMP Moderate Equivalency for Cloud Service Offerings

The Department of Defense has released a memorandum providing guidance on how the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program Moderate equivalency applies to cloud service offerings that are used for processing, transmitting or storing covered defense information, also known as CDI.

Cloud services must achieve total compliance with FedRAMP’s latest moderate security control baseline through an evaluation performed by a third party assessment organization, or 3PAO, in order to be considered FedRAMP Moderate equivalent, according to the DOD memo published on Jan. 2.

Such cloud offerings should present to the contractor supporting documents as body of evidence.

Documents include system security plans, security assessment plans, plans of action and milestones and security assessment reports performed by a FedRAMP-recognized 3PAO.

The memo states that the Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity Assessment Center within the Defense Contract Management Agency will assess cloud service providers’ — or CSPs’ — bodies of evidence demonstrating FedRAMP Moderate equivalency.

The CSP should be required to undergo an annual assessment carried out by a 3PAO validating compliance with Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement clauses that require CDI protection and cyber incident reporting.

“The contractor acts as approver for the use of the CSO by their organization and confirms that the selected CSP has an incident response plan. The contractor, not the CSO’s CSP, will be held responsible for reporting in the event of CSO compromise,” the document reads.

The memo was signed by David McKeown, deputy chief information officer for cybersecurity at DOD and a previous Wash100 awardee.

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Senate Lawmakers Request Funding to Support NIST’s AI Safety Consortium
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Senate Lawmakers Request Funding to Support NIST’s AI Safety Consortium

Senate lawmakers have called on the Senate Appropriations Committee to approve $10 million in initial funding for fiscal year 2024 to establish the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s U.S. Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute, or USAISI.

They asked for the funding to be included in the Fiscal Year 2024 Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill to support NIST’s efforts to create standards for secure AI development and use, the office of Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., said Friday.

According to the lawmakers, the initial funding will be used to recruit experts in red teaming and capability evaluation, form a joint research center for AI system evaluation techniques and support the USAISI Consortium.

Sens. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M.; Mike Rounds, R-S.D.; and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., joined Young in signing the letter addressed to Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Chair Jeanne Shaheen and Ranking Member Jerry Moran.

“The USAISI aims to provide a dedicated platform for research, collaboration, and implementation of safety measures in AI development,” the letter reads.

POC - 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit on March 21 to hear more about cutting edge AI innovations from government and industry experts. Click here to register!

SBA Commences 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition
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SBA Commences 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition

The Small Business Administration marked the beginning of the 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition, focusing on national and economic security, domestic manufacturing and sustainability.

The contest will be divided into two stages for ecosystem-building activities and later the commercialization of winning innovations, SBA announced Monday.

Stage One of GAFC is now open to interested applicants, with a potential $3 million prize money to be awarded in April. The second stage will be a shortlist of candidates from the first round, with winners to be announced in September.

The theme areas range from defense to quantum computing, biotechnology, public health, renewable energy, supply chain, infrastructure resilience and agricultural technology and innovation.

“This year’s Growth Accelerator Fund Competition builds on the success of last year’s competition, which successfully catalyzed bonds between local and national innovation ecosystem support networks,” said Bailey DeVries, associate administrator for SBA’s Office of Investment and Innovation. The 2024 prize awards “will support entrepreneurs operating in undercapitalized and underserved markets with valuable resources in America’s innovation ecosystem.”

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Ronald Keohane Renominated as DOD Assistant Secretary for Manpower & Reserve Affairs
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Ronald Keohane Renominated as DOD Assistant Secretary for Manpower & Reserve Affairs

The White House on Monday sent to the Senate its nomination of Ronald Keohane, former deputy assistant secretary of defense for military community and family policy during the Obama administration, for the role of assistant secretary for manpower and reserve affairs at the Department of Defense.

Keohane, a managing partner at Blue Rose Consulting Group, was first nominated by President Joe Biden for the post in September 2022.

The Biden administration moved to renominate Keohane for the post after the upper chamber failed to take action on his nomination in 2023.

Keohane’s government career included time as director, secretariat for electronic commerce at the Department of Commerce and senior adviser to the President’s Electronic Commerce Working Group at the White House.

He was reportedly instrumental in expanding Drug Demand Reduction programs within DOD and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

RTX Business Makes Progress on Navy Hypersonic Missile Project; Colin Whelan Quoted
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RTX Business Makes Progress on Navy Hypersonic Missile Project; Colin Whelan Quoted

RTX’s Raytheon business has concluded a technical review and prototype fit-check in phase one of a U.S. Navy carrier-based high-speed missile development program.

This milestone is a step forward for the service branch’s Hypersonic Air Launched Offensive Anti-Surface — a.k.a. HALO — project, a part of the Navy’s broader long-range fires strategy, RTX announced from Tuscon, Arizona on Tuesday.

Colin Whelan, president of advanced technology at Raytheon, called the accomplishment a “key step in fielding the Navy’s first anti-ship hypersonic missile.”

“It’s critical that our warfighters have proven technology that can address advanced threats in contested environments, and they need this technology now,” he said.

The missile is designed to open up Naval operations in contested battlespaces in anti-access/area denial environments. Raytheon used digital and model-based engineering methods to create virtual and physical HALO design concepts and expedite the development of the missile.

“We’re leveraging our expertise in hypersonics to deliver a straightforward and mature, digitally engineered system at the pace the Navy needs,” said Whelan.

In the fall, Raytheon completed a fit-check on an F/A-18 to confirm that the prototype is compatible with the Super Hornet aircraft and associated support equipment.

The company received the contract for phase one of the program in March 2023. Under the award, Raytheon is working to prepare the technology needed for a preliminary design review of an all up round HALO weapon system. During the second phase of the program, Raytheon will be responsible for demonstrating a propulsion system.

Contract activities are being conducted in Tuscon, Arizona.

RTX Business Makes Progress on Navy Hypersonic Missile Project; Colin Whelan Quoted

Hypersonics is one of many topics that may be discussed at the Potomac Officers Club’s 10th Annual Defense R&D Summit on Jan. 31. Heidi Shyu, under secretary of defense for research and engineering, will deliver the opening keynote address at the event. To learn more and register to attend the summit, click here.

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Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro Unveils ‘Running Fix’ Initiative
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Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro Unveils ‘Running Fix’ Initiative

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro has launched an initiative that seeks to enhance the Department of the Navy’s effectiveness and efficiency by addressing organizational and programmatic issues.

Nickolas Guertin, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition, and Russell Rumbaugh, ASN for financial management and comptroller, will co-chair the “Running Fix” initiative, gather insights from stakeholders across the department and analyze and integrate those issues into the budget development process for fiscal year 2026, the Navy said Monday.

“The Department of the Navy is a venerable and strong organization well-poised to address our Nation’s strategic needs,” said Del Toro, a previous Wash100 awardee.

“We owe it to the American people to take a hard look at ourselves and be the best stewards of every tax dollar they provide. This process will enable us to demonstrate transparency and accountability, which will further strengthen our Navy,” he added.

The Running Fix project is in the initial phase, which is focused on soliciting nominations for programmatic and organizational issues to be considered, according to a memo issued by the secretary.

Under Phase I, the co-chairs will examine the nominations and present a select set of issues for approval to the under secretary of the Navy by mid-December.

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