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Commerce Dept Team Unveils Selection Committee for Board of National Semiconductor Tech Center
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Commerce Dept Team Unveils Selection Committee for Board of National Semiconductor Tech Center

The Department of Commerce’s CHIPS for America team has named five industry leaders to a committee that will select the board members of a nonprofit organization charged with operating the proposed National Semiconductor Technology Center.

NSTC is a key component of the CHIPS and Science Act’s research and development program, the National Institute of Standards and Technology said Tuesday.

“We want the NSTC to be an engine of innovation, supporting and extending U.S. leadership in semiconductor research, design, engineering and advanced manufacturing for decades to come. This selection committee is the next step to helping us stand up the NSTC and ensure it succeeds for generations,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

The members of the selection committee are:

  • Brenda Wilkerson, president and CEO of global nonprofit AnitaB.org
  • Don Rosenberg, a fellow in residence at the University of California San Diego’s School of Global Policy and Strategy and a venture partner at Anzu Partners
  • Janet Foutty, a principal with Deloitte Consulting LLP and former executive chair of the board of Deloitte US
  • Jason Matheny, president and CEO of RAND Corp.
  • John Hennessy, a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at Stanford University and chairman of Alphabet

The selection panel will act independently of the Commerce Department and will end no later than Aug. 31.

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FCC Changes Rules on Spectrum Sharing Among Satellite Systems
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FCC Changes Rules on Spectrum Sharing Among Satellite Systems

The Federal Communications Commission amended its policy on spectrum sharing among non-geostationary satellite orbit, fixed-satellite service systems.

In a Federal Register notice posted Tuesday, FCC said the changes were made to regulate the growing number of satellite and NGSO FSS systems launched into space.

The agency noted that it has received an unprecedented number of lead and competing applications for commercial communication systems to be launched into orbit. NGSO FSS technology owners are required to abide by spectrum sharing rules and coordinate with each other in terms of using commonly authorized frequencies—otherwise, a spectrum-splitting procedure would take effect.

In the new ruling, FCC limits the spectrum-splitting threshold to systems that received approval in the same processing round, before the sunset period. The policy also reinforces coordination and mutual protection between systems despite obtaining approval in different processing periods.

The amendments were based on the comments received from the agency’s notice of proposed rulemaking, which was issued in Dec. 2021.

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IARPA Program Aims to Protect Privacy for Speech Recorded in Smart Devices
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IARPA Program Aims to Protect Privacy for Speech Recorded in Smart Devices

The Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity is inviting interested vendors to a proposers’ day for its Anonymous Real-Time Speech program.

IARPA said Tuesday the new program is seeking new technologies capable of protecting the identity of consumers whose speech is being recorded on smart devices or by companies for marketing research purposes.

The 36-month effort will explore novel software-based transformational speech technologies to address privacy threats. For instance, new software may be designed to instantaneously alter a speech to prevent its attribution to the original speaker.

IARPA identified artificial intelligence and machine learning assessments of human emotion, speaker identification software and human evaluation of user age and dialect as threats to the privacy of speech owners.

“Anonymity and discretion are vital to the [Intelligence Community’s] mission success, and the ARTS program will give the IC an important new tool to help facilitate mission priorities,” explained Mark Becker, a program manager at IARPA.

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DOJ Creates National Security Cyber Section to Prosecute State-Sponsored Cyberattacks
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DOJ Creates National Security Cyber Section to Prosecute State-Sponsored Cyberattacks

The Department of Justice has established a cyber section within its National Security Division that will focus on prosecuting nation-state and state-sponsored cyberthreat actors.

DOJ said Tuesday the National Security Cyber Section will coordinate department-wide efforts against malicious cyber activities while promoting strategic collaborations with partners, including the FBI’s Cyber Division and the Criminal Division’s Computer Crimes and Intellectual Property Section.

“This new section will allow NSD to increase the scale and speed of disruption campaigns and prosecutions of nation-state threat actors, state-sponsored cybercriminals, associated money launderers, and other cyber-enabled threats to national security,” said Matthew Olsen, assistant attorney general of DOJ’s National Security Division.

NatSec Cyber will support prosecutors in the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and FBI Field Offices nationwide.

Olsen added that the new center will “serve as an incubator, able to invest in the time-intensive and complex investigative work for early-stage cases.”

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Senate Bill Seeks to Address Foreign Adversaries’ Influence in National Security Contracting
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Senate Bill Seeks to Address Foreign Adversaries’ Influence in National Security Contracting

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, has proposed a bill that would preclude the Department of Defense from awarding national security contracts to consulting firms that also offer services to foreign adversaries and sanctioned entities.

The proposed Combating Obstructive National Security Underreporting of Legitimate Threats Act would set disclosure requirements on vendors bidding on consulting services contracts and establish an enforcement mechanism for DOD to end contracts that are not disclosed, Ernst’s office said Tuesday.

“While our adversaries are aggressively working against our national security interests, government contractors closely tied to China and Russia are allowed to advise our military and Pentagon officials. This is a clear conflict of interest,” said Ernst, a Senate Armed Services Committee member.

“It’s past time we put safeguards in place to ensure no firms hired by the federal government are working simultaneously to support the agenda of our adversaries,” the lawmaker added.

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Lockheed’s Maria Demaree Accepts 1st Wash100 Award from Executive Mosaic CEO Jim Garrettson
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Lockheed’s Maria Demaree Accepts 1st Wash100 Award from Executive Mosaic CEO Jim Garrettson

Executive Mosaic CEO Jim Garrettson recently presented Maria Demaree, a vice president and general manager at Lockheed Martin‘s space segment, with her first Wash100 Award.

Her inclusion in the 2023 Wash100 roster of leaders was prompted by her efforts to drive innovations in the space sector, as well as her advocacies to ensure the well-being and growth of Lockheed Martin’s workforce.

Demaree has been with Lockheed for almost 33 years, even before its merger with Martin Marietta in 1995. She has worked in different departments within the company, serving in roles such as senior engineering manager, director of mission systems, vice president of ground systems and solutions and head of the national security space team.

One of her many accomplishments was to lead the modernization activities for the defense contractor’s Joint All Domain Command and Control corporate initiative. She also repeatedly emphasized the importance of customers’ input in Lockheed’s business objectives, especially in emerging technologies.

“I’d like to highlight the importance our customers place in terms of multi-domain convergence. At Lockheed Martin, we’re looking at how to advance the ability to link highly capable platforms into a network that truly provides that awareness as well as command and control access across all security domains,” she said in an interview with ExecutiveBiz.

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House Bill to Create National Commission on AI Policy
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House Bill to Create National Commission on AI Policy

Rep. Ken Buck, R-Colo.; Ted Lieu, D-Calif.; and Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., have introduced a bill that would establish a national commission to assess the nation’s current approach to artificial intelligence regulation.

The National AI Commission Act would create an independent body to make recommendations on any governmental structures that may be necessary to oversee AI systems, Buck’s office said Tuesday.

The proposed commission is envisioned to comprise government and industry experts who will collaborate on developing a comprehensive AI policy framework.

Lieu said the commissioners would “make recommendations on the best ways to move forward on AI regulation.”

“Our bill forges a path toward responsible AI regulation that promotes technological progress while keeping Americans safe,” he added.

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NTIA Publishes Over 1,400 Comments on Proposed AI Accountability Policy
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NTIA Publishes Over 1,400 Comments on Proposed AI Accountability Policy

More than 1,400 written responses were received by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration commenting on its draft artificial intelligence accountability policy.

The comments have been published two months after NTIA issued its request for feedback, which will help shape its policy recommendations to ensure earned trust in AI technology.

The agency drafted the AI Accountability Policy in an aim to guide the development of assessments, audits, and certifications of AI systems. The document is part of a larger effort by the Biden administration to govern AI-related risks and opportunities.

NTIA sought input on the kind of data access needed for the audits, the feasibility of creating incentives for accountability initiatives and suggested approaches to accountability in different industries.

NTIA published a total of 1,447 comments on its draft policy on the Regulations.gov website.

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911 Veteran Renee Gordon Appointed Vice Chair of FirstNet Authority Board
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911 Veteran Renee Gordon Appointed Vice Chair of FirstNet Authority Board

Renee Gordon, director of the emergency communications center in Alexandria, Virginia, has been appointed vice chair of the First Responder Network Authority board.

Gordon has been a member of the FirstNet Authority board since November 2022 and brings to the position extensive experience in public safety operations, the independent authority said Thursday.

She succeeds Richard Carrizzo, who held the vice chair position for more than two years before becoming the organization’s board chair in April.

“Her deep understanding of the nexus between 9-1-1 and first responder communications will help us further evolve the network and support the men and women who put their lives on the line every day,” Carrizzo commented on Gordon’s experience.

Gordon also led 9-1-1 emergency communications in Baltimore, Maryland, from 2014 to 2020.

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DOD, GSA, NASA Field Comments on Proposed Information Collection Related to Contract Financing
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DOD, GSA, NASA Field Comments on Proposed Information Collection Related to Contract Financing

The Department of Defense, NASA and the General Services Administration have asked the public to share their feedback and insights on whether the proposed collection of data is needed in order for the federal government to properly perform its acquisition-related functions.

The agencies are soliciting comments on an extension regarding contract financing in compliance with the Office of Management and Budget Regulations and the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, according to a Federal Register notice published Tuesday.

Interested stakeholders can also provide their input on whether the information will have practical use and ways to improve the clarity, utility and quality of data to be gathered.

The federal agencies also want the public to suggest ways to reduce the burden of data collection on respondents, including the use of automated collection methods and information technology systems.

Public comments are due Aug. 21.

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