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DOE Invites Public Comment on Proposed Acquisition Regulation Amendment
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DOE Invites Public Comment on Proposed Acquisition Regulation Amendment

The Department of Energy is inviting external comments on its plan to streamline its procurement rules in order to complement or supplement the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

In a notice published Thursday on Federal Register, DOE unveiled its proposal to eliminate obsolete policies as well as rules that are also found in FAR.

The Department of Energy Acquisition Regulation was established with the National Nuclear Security Administration to create mutual procurement rules in compliance with the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act.

To keep the agency-specific regulation up-to-date, the Energy Department is drafting provisions including new instructions for the preparation and submission of requests for individual or class deviations from DEAR.

DOE also proposed a new section that requires contractor self-identification when communicating on the agency’s behalf, as a supplementary rule to the FAR Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct.

Interested parties may submit their comments until Dec. 26, the agency said.

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Rob Wolborsky: Navy Eyeing 5G, P-LEO Satellite Constellations for Better Network Connectivity
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Rob Wolborsky: Navy Eyeing 5G, P-LEO Satellite Constellations for Better Network Connectivity

Rob Wolborsky, chief engineer at Naval Information Warfare Systems Command, said the U.S. Navy is exploring commercial technologies such as 5G and proliferated low Earth orbit satellite constellations to help advance shipboard information technology modernization and deliver network connectivity to ships at sea, Federal News Network reported Friday.

“What we’re looking at with 5G and P-LEO is the same level of transformation, but much more profound and a much greater exponential curve,” Wolborsky told FNN on an interview.

“The capability that is in orbit today is multiple orders of magnitude more bandwidth that we can deliver to the fleet and the warfighter today, and it is a catalyst for a significant amount of activity and transformation,” he added.

Wolborsky cited NAVWAR’s efforts to advance 5G adoption.

“We’re doing quite a bit of experimentation and work right now on the ships with 5G as a pier surrogate, and it’s actually demonstrating significant benefit to the fleet,” he said.

The chief engineer noted that the Starlink service has been fielded on some ships and the command has built an open architecture framework to enable the service to easily implement offerings from other satellite providers.

DOD Contracting Officers Complete 1st Immersive Commercial Acquisition Program
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DOD Contracting Officers Complete 1st Immersive Commercial Acquisition Program

The first cohort of the Defense Acquisition University’s Immersive Commercial Acquisition Program has completed the 12-month initiative that aims to educate defense contracting officers on how to acquire innovative commercial technologies effectively.

ICAP is a competitive program for defense acquisition professionals that incorporates virtual classroom and experiential learning methods to carry out prototype projects, DOD reported Friday.

The inaugural ICAP fellows are Mariluz Chan-Endres, contracting officer for the Naval Surface Warfare Center Port Hueneme; April Davison, contracting officer for the Air Force Sustainment Center Contracting Directorate; Maj. Michael Gerbasi, a contracting officer for the U.S. Army; and Maj. Shamika Woodruff, former deputy division chief at the Air Force Installation Contracting Division.

The program was launched in 2022 as part of a collaboration between DAU and the Defense Innovation Unit.

A new group of defense contracting officials will join the second cohort of ICAP to help bridge the gap between DOD and the commercial technology industry.

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CISA Highlights Promising Results of Preemptive Cybersecurity Initiatives; Eric Goldstein Quoted
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CISA Highlights Promising Results of Preemptive Cybersecurity Initiatives; Eric Goldstein Quoted

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has led the remediation of more than 12 million known exploited vulnerabilities across 102 government departments in the past two years, said Eric Goldstein, CISA’s executive assistant director for cybersecurity.

In a testimony before Congress on Wednesday, Goldstein detailed progress on programs such as the “no-notice” SILENTSHIELD program, which conducts penetration testing across federal entities to preempt hackers in finding serious network vulnerabilities in their systems.

Goldstein told the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Protection that CISA was able to deploy endpoint and detection response tools to 52 government agencies, allowing them to proactively detect and evict online intruders before they can cause harm.

Its Federal Attack Surface Test program led to the discovery of 1,000 vulnerabilities in official federal websites before they could be exploited by malicious actors. The agency also published vulnerability disclosure information relevant to industrial control systems, operational technology and medical devices in its Common Security Advisory Framework.

On Nov. 15, online security will be one of the numerous issues raised at the Potomac Officers Club’s 2023 Homeland Security Summit. Join the event by registering now.

POC - 2023 Homeland Security Summit
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Army Begins Efforts to Facilitate Transition to Agile Software Test & Evaluation
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Army Begins Efforts to Facilitate Transition to Agile Software Test & Evaluation

The U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office for Enterprise Information Systems is working with Army Test and Evaluation Command, or ATEC, and the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, or ASA(ALT), to facilitate the shift the Agile software test and evaluation process, DVIDS reported Friday.

“We need to have the right amount of the right type of manpower,” Aric Sherwood, director of PEO EIS’ Acquisition Innovation Directorate, said of the transition.

Sherwood noted that ATEC will oversee testing by program managers and vendors and assessment of data.

According to the report, ATEC will be involved in various initiatives such as helping programs implement user-based Agile demonstrations adapted from operationalized scenarios and performing a pilot with five Army “pathfinder” programs to develop software testing playbooks, which could be released in December.

The playbooks are expected to address end-user support during all aspects of the Agile process, participation in iteration or sprint activities and definition of business processes during business process engineering, among other topics.

Tom Ehrhart, G-3/G-5 chief of plans at ATEC, said the Army has initiated the process of updating its official test and evaluation regulation.

According to the report, ATEC and ASA(ALT) have sought insights from the director of operational test and evaluation and the deputy under secretary of the Army for test and evaluation to come up with a draft guidebook on Agile software test and evaluation.

Army Acquisition Priorities: Balancing Readiness and Modernization Forum

ExecutiveBiz will host the Army Acquisition Priorities: Balancing Readiness and Modernization Forum on Nov. 8. Register here to attend this important event.

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President Biden Signs Executive Order Instituting New AI Regulations
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President Biden Signs Executive Order Instituting New AI Regulations

President Biden has signed an Executive Order establishing new standards for artificial intelligence development and use.

Building on previous AI guidance issued by the administration, such as the Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, the new order includes standards intended to promote safety and security, protect civil rights and encourage innovation and competition as related to AI technologies, the White House said on Monday.

The concept of responsible AI, or the assurance of ethical standards in AI development and deployment, is a core part of the Executive Order. Under the new regulations, major AI developers must share safety assessment results with the U.S. government. Multiple federal organizations, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Energy, will be heavily involved in the development of safety standards.

Protecting privacy is another component of the order, and President Biden has urged Congress to pass bipartisan data privacy laws to ensure safeguards are employed. The Executive Order also calls for the creation of new privacy-preserving tools and guidelines.

To mitigate bias that some AI models have demonstrated, the order asks government agencies to provide clear guidance to landlords, federal benefits programs and federal contractors to prevent AI algorithms from worsening discrimination. It also directs agencies to collaborate with the Department of Justice to prosecute civil rights violations associated with AI.

The Executive Order includes protections for prisoners, consumers, patients and students that may be harmed by AI risks. President Biden aims to regulate the use of AI in sentencing, parole and probation, healthcare and education.

For workers, the Executive Order urges the development of best practices that will help workers leverage AI and directs the creation of a report detailing the potential impacts of AI on the market. It also looks at ways to empower AI research and encourage competition in the field.

Under the order, federal organizations must adopt new standards on AI procurement and deployment. The White House will take actions to help agencies acquire AI products and services and hire AI professionals more quickly.

Collaboration with international partners to drive global progress in AI and associated standards is another portion of the Executive Order. Through cooperation, the White House intends to advance the use of responsible AI in tackling global challenges.

President Biden Signs Executive Order Instituting New AI Regulations

Don’t miss the Potomac Officers Club’s 5th Annual Artificial Intelligence Summit in March 2024! At the event, you will have the opportunity to hear from top government officials and industry experts, who will come together to consider the most pressing AI challenges and priorities facing the U.S. today. To learn more and register to attend the event, click here.

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Argonne Researchers Mark Thousand-Fold Increase in Coherence Time of Newly-Developed Quantum Bit
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Argonne Researchers Mark Thousand-Fold Increase in Coherence Time of Newly-Developed Quantum Bit

A research team under the leadership of the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has extended the coherence time of the quantum bit it has developed from 0.1 microseconds to 0.1 milliseconds, marking a near-thousand-fold increase.

Coherence time refers to the amount of time a qubit — the building block of quantum computers — can exist as 0 and 1, a mixed state that needs to be maintained in order for a qubit to work, Argonne said Thursday.

The qubit the team developed features an electron trapped on a neon platform within a vacuum. Neon is an element that does not react with other elements, thereby providing resistance to disturbances from the surrounding environment. Protection from disturbances extends a qubit’s coherence time.

The team’s qubit works by encoding quantum information into the electron’s charge states. This type of qubit, called an electron charge qubit, is simpler to fabricate and operate and is compatible with the infrastructure for classical computers, according to University of Notre Dame professor Dafei Jin, who leads the project at Argonne.

“This simplicity should translate into low cost in building and running large-scale quantum computers,” Jin added.

CISA Requests Comments on Software Identification Ecosystem Analysis White Paper
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CISA Requests Comments on Software Identification Ecosystem Analysis White Paper

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is requesting industry comments on its new white paper outlining six paths forward for a software identification ecosystem.

The white paper, titled “Software Identification Ecosystem Option Analysis,” enumerates the benefits and challenges associated with the outlined approaches and explores the authority structure necessary to develop and sustain the identifier format ecosystem, CISA said Thursday.

In the document, CISA also outlines two key requirements to achieve effective software identification ecosystem, which are the timely availability of software identifiers across all software items and software identifiers that support both precision and grouping.

“A more robust software identifier ecosystem must be established for a harmonized software identification ecosystem that facilitates greater automation, inventory visibility, and the multifaceted value proposition of SBOM’s broad adoption,” said Sandy Radesky, associate director for vulnerability management.

Interested parties have until Dec. 11 to submit written comments on the white paper.

POC - 2023 Homeland Security Summit

Join the Potomac Officers Club’s 2023 Homeland Security Summit on Nov. 15 to learn about the U.S. government’s national security priorities and initiatives. Click here to register for the highly anticipated event.

FAA, AFWERX Prime to Collaborate on Safe Advanced Aircraft Mobility Integration
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FAA, AFWERX Prime to Collaborate on Safe Advanced Aircraft Mobility Integration

The Federal Aviation Administration has agreed to share flight-test data with AFWERX Prime, the Department of the Air Force’s accelerator program, to safely integrate advanced aircraft mobility, or AAM, into the national airspace system.

Under the memorandum of understanding, the FAA and AFWERX Prime will exchange data and share capabilities and expertise needed to test AAM aircraft, the Air Force Research Laboratory said Wednesday.

The FAA will use data from the MOU to inform its certification efforts and future airspace integration requirements.

“With this MOU and the ongoing AAM Interagency Working Group, we are accelerating a breakthrough in electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft,” said Col. Elliott Leigh, director of AFWERX and chief commercialization officer for the DAF.

The agreement comes three months after the FAA issued an implementation plan, dubbed Innovate28, to enable AAM operations at scale at multiple sites by 2028.

OMB Replaces Memo on Buy America Preference in Federal Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure
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OMB Replaces Memo on Buy America Preference in Federal Financial Assistance Programs for Infrastructure

The Office of Management and Budget replaced its memorandum on the conditions for applying or getting exempted for the Buy America preference among federal agencies with financial assistance programs for infrastructure.

The new guidance comes more than a year after OMB issued Memorandum M-22-11, which was formulated in compliance with the 2021 Build America, Buy America Act, the agency said Wednesday.

In the latest memo, OMB specified a Buy America preference to articles, materials and supplies that are incorporated, affixed or consumed in an infrastructure project. It excludes tools and equipment temporarily used during construction, as well as equipment and furnishings that are not considered an integral or final component of the project.

The agency also defined the Buy America parameters for-profit organizations in the running for infrastructure financial assistance. It emphasizes the terms stated in title 2 of the Code of Regulations part 184, which sets the scope of infrastructure as government projects, facilities, systems and utilities that will serve a public versus a private or personal function.

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