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DTRA Posts Plan for Follow-On Cooperative Threat Reduction Integrating Contract
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DTRA Posts Plan for Follow-On Cooperative Threat Reduction Integrating Contract

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency plans to launch a competition for the fourth iteration of the Cooperative Threat Reduction Integrating Contract.

Through CTRIC IV, DTRA intends to facilitate the procurement and delivery of a range of products and services designed to provide chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threat reduction capabilities in collaboration with partner countries, according to a special notice published Friday on SAM.gov.

Per the draft solicitation, the agency expects the contract vehicle to help prevent the proliferation of materials related to weapons of mass destruction and chemical, biological and nuclear weapons and facilitate the elimination, storage and safe transportation of nuclear weapons.

The procurement vehicle will serve as a follow-on to the multiple-award CTRIC III indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract.

In June 2018, DTRA awarded six companies spots on the CTRIC III contract to help counter the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

Questions and other comments on the draft solicitation are due Feb. 23.

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CSO Chief Col. Richard Kniseley Discusses Business Opportunities With Space Servicing Companies
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CSO Chief Col. Richard Kniseley Discusses Business Opportunities With Space Servicing Companies

A U.S. Space Force official said in a recent interview that many of the companies reaching out to the Space Systems Command Front Door align with the various dimensions of space servicing, a key element in sustaining maneuverability in the space domain and achieving what has been described as dynamic space operations.

Col. Richard Kniseley, head of the SSC Commercial Space Office, which houses the Front Door initiative, told C4ISRNet on Tuesday that his organization is working to evaluate the maturity level of the technologies offered by these companies, which, he noted, feature “a great deal of innovation and expertise.”

The CSO chief added that Front Door is also looking into the investments the companies are receiving. Kniseley explained that the government is keeping an eye out for businesses that enjoy “potential nefarious capital” or those that do not enjoy wide patronage, where the government would effectively become “a crutch to lean on.”

The SSC Front Door describes itself as “the first point of contact for early-stage start-ups and innovative commercial enterprises” seeking to do business with the Space Force. Front Door takes the ideas that these companies offer and tries to align them with a customer or mission with a matching requirement, such as the Assured Access to Space team or the Space Systems Integration Office, Kniseley noted.

“We’ve been bridging that gap between the companies and the mission areas,” the CSO leader said.

CSO Chief Col. Richard Kniseley Discusses Business Opportunities With Space Servicing Companies

Col. Richard Kniseley will speak at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2024 Space Summit, which is set to take place on March 5. Register now to attend the event!

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Peraton’s Stu Shea & CENTCOM’s Schuyler Moore Recognized for 2024 Wash100 Wins
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Peraton’s Stu Shea & CENTCOM’s Schuyler Moore Recognized for 2024 Wash100 Wins

Executive Mosaic recognized Stu Shea, chairman, president and CEO of Peraton, and Schuyler Moore, chief technology officer of the U.S. Central Command, for their 2024 Wash100 Award wins on Tuesday.

The Wash100 Award represents the most prestigious honor for government contracting industry executives. For 11 years, Wash100 has carefully evaluated the past achievements and forward momentum of GovCon leaders from both the public and private sectors to call attention to the most influential figures in the field.

Shea’s 2024 win marks his eighth, and this year, he earned his award for expanding Peraton through key contract awards. In 2023, the company won multiple significant contracts, including a $2.25 Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency award, a $1 billion contract from the Department of the Interior and a $2.8 billion award from the U.S. Special Operations Command. Read Shea’s full profile here.

Moore entered the ranks of Wash100 for the first time this year for her efforts to drive modernization within the U.S. military. An outspoken advocate of digital transformation, Moore has spoken extensively about the need for Department of Defense organizations to implement cutting-edge technologies. She has also created exercises to help warfighters become familiar with artificial intelligence. Click here to read her full profile.

Peraton’s Stu Shea & CENTCOM’s Schuyler Moore Recognized for 2024 Wash100 Wins

Moore will participate in a panel discussion during the Potomac Officers Club’s Achieving Transformative Cooperation for National Defense Forum on March 15. Don’t miss the opportunity to hear Moore’s insights in person – click here to register!

The annual Wash100 popular vote contest is now underway. Visit Wash100.com to cast your votes for Shea and Moore as your favorite 2024 winners.

GSA, Access Board Begin Drafting Questions for 2024 Section 508 Assessment
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GSA, Access Board Begin Drafting Questions for 2024 Section 508 Assessment

The General Services Administration and the U.S. Access Board have begun drafting questions for the fiscal 2024 government-wide Section 508 assessment to evaluate agencies’ use of information and communication technology systems accessible to people with disabilities, Federal News Network reported Friday.

Kristen Smith-O’Connor, senior ICT specialist within the Government-wide IT Accessibility Program at GSA, expects some questions to be tweaked and refined to be more straight-to-the-point and avoid misunderstanding.

“We expect minor changes, at this point, to the questions. What exactly will they be, we are still working on. There’s a very small and very collaborative group of us working on it. I wouldn’t expect anything drastic to change. But we are refining and honing,” Smith-O’Connor said.

GSA and the Access Board are also working to expand Section 508 certifications and training under a recent Office of Management and Budget memorandum.

“Simply put, Section 508 Programs that don’t have sufficient staff can’t perform adequate Section 508 work,” a previous GSA assessment states.

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Navy Unveils Network Integration & Engineering Facility CANES Lab in Virginia
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Navy Unveils Network Integration & Engineering Facility CANES Lab in Virginia

The U.S. Navy has opened Network Integration and Engineering Facility Consolidated Afloat Networks and Enterprise Services – a.k.a. NIEF CANES — a laboratory at Naval Station Norfolk in Virginia.

“This lab will ensure we are better positioned to provide access to CANES systems that are pre-loaded for training and Integrated Logistics Support (ILS) documentation, validation and updates to technical manuals, maintenance requirements, and engineering development and sustainment,” Capt. Nicole Nigro, commanding officer of NIWC Atlantic or Naval Information Warfare Center Atlantic, said in a statement published Thursday.

CANES is a program of record deployed on Navy ships, shore sites and submarines and provides warfighters with a scalable network platform that provides internet protocol-based capability.

The new lab will enable NIEF Atlantic to perform multiple CANES shipset pre-installation tasks and hardware post-production modifications, providing increased capacity for technical refresh, initial system builds and application integration work.

The facility also comes with an administrative space designed for collaboration between hardware and software government and contractors and is the latest addition to NIWC Atlantic’s Tactical Networks Deployment Integrated Product Team labs.

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ITI Publishes Recommendations on Developing NIST Trustworthy AI Standards
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ITI Publishes Recommendations on Developing NIST Trustworthy AI Standards

The Information Technology Industry Council has published recommendations on implementing the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s responsibilities to support the secure and trustworthy development and use of artificial intelligence technologies.

ITI said Friday it recommends that NIST work with international counterparts on the development of a risk management framework for generative AI systems to increase alignment of approaches and consider the roles of developers and deployers in advancing AI transparency.

The global tech trade association also suggests that the agency ensure that evaluation and auditing requirements level with the risks an AI system poses and know the difference between cybersecurity red-teaming and AI red-teaming.

“We believe that a generative AI RMF or profile, standards and guidelines for AI red-teaming and model evaluation, and a plan to engage in and advance the development of international standards are all integral to advancing the development and deployment of trustworthy AI,” ITI said in response to NIST’s request for information.

In December, NIST sought industry feedback on establishing guidelines and best practices for AI safety and security as part of the Executive Order on Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence.

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. Register here.

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DISA Chief Data Office Outlines Strategies to Ensure Responsible Data Sharing Within DOD
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DISA Chief Data Office Outlines Strategies to Ensure Responsible Data Sharing Within DOD

The Defense Information Systems Agency’s Office of the Chief Data Officer is stepping up to ensure responsible data access authorization within the Department of Defense.

DISA on Thursday explained its role in overseeing DOD components’ evaluation of enterprise information authentication requirements as the agency continues to seek ways to secure and maximize the potential of data assets.

OCDO will push for interoperability frameworks and standards for information sharing and integration, including federal policies such as DOD’s directive on net-centric data exchange and the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act.

“It is vital to the success of the DISA mission to provide common language and common expectations that enable interoperability,” said acting DISA Chief Data Officer Caroline Kuharske. “Without standardization we will continue spiraling in silos of data that do not allow data analyst to work together across infrastructures to solve our IT issues today,” she added.

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Brian Peretti Named Treasury Deputy Chief AI Officer
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Brian Peretti Named Treasury Deputy Chief AI Officer

Brian Peretti, a two-decade Department of the Treasury veteran and a Senior Executive Service career member, has been appointed deputy chief artificial intelligence officer and director of domestic and international cyber policy at the Treasury, according to a LinkedIn post.

He has been director of domestic and international cybersecurity policy since October 2022 and has managed VA’s operational resilience, risk management, disaster recovery, information security and regulatory compliance initiatives.

His VA career includes time as head of the Office of Critical Infrastructure Protection and Compliance Policy, Office of International Coordination and Mission Support and Office of Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection.

Peretti previously served as senior risk adviser for security and the economy within the Department of Homeland Security’s National Risk Management Center.

He was also a member of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee’s Communications Resiliency Subcommittee.

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New DARPA Program Seeks Electromagnetic Warfare Innovations to Enhance Defenses of Ground Bases
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New DARPA Program Seeks Electromagnetic Warfare Innovations to Enhance Defenses of Ground Bases

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency seeks to improve the defenses of ground bases and is soliciting proposals for the effort.

The Dynamic Optimization for Defense of Ground Bases with Electromagnetic warfare, or DODGEball, program calls for innovative feedback sensors that would help optimize the countermeasures defending ground bases, according to a program solicitation posted Friday on SAM.gov.

Proposals submissions will take the form of abstracts, which will be evaluated by the government. Chosen proposers will then be invited for an oral presentation, which will also be subject to evaluation. Another round of selection will result in three proposers being given a base other transaction authority award. Of the three, only the most promising solutions will be given extension periods.

Work under the effort will likely involve the development of algorithms, hardware and models. These will then undergo evaluation using a simulation environment.

Interested parties have until April 5 to respond. It should be noted, however, that DODGEball involves accessing Secret-level information. Proposers have until March 8 to request this information.

White House Backs Passage of Bipartisan National Security Agreement in Congress
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White House Backs Passage of Bipartisan National Security Agreement in Congress

The White House has urged Congress to approve a bipartisan agreement that seeks to address national security concerns.

The national security agreement would establish a temporary border emergency authority to enable the U.S. president and the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to temporarily prevent individuals from seeking asylum in the event that the southwest border is overwhelmed, the White House said Sunday.

The measure would recalibrate the asylum screening process by modifying the screening asylum threshold from “significant possibility” to “reasonable possibility” and moving consideration of statutory bars to asylum eligibility into the screening stage.

Other provisions in the proposed legislation are establishing an efficient process for considering asylum and other protection claims; providing critical funding for countering drug trafficking and smuggling, asylum processing and border security; and strengthening federal law against fentanyl trafficking.

The bipartisan agreement includes providing military aid to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression, investing in the defense industrial base to support U.S. jobs and offering resources to help allies in the Indo-Pacific region to develop the capabilities needed to counter threats from China and other emerging issues.

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