Ideas
Hey, Congress—if you're looking to cut spending, go after wasteful software contracts
Legacy software companies have spammed federal agencies with outdated, costly and ridiculously complex software assets that impede actual IT modernization.
Defense
FCW Insider Chat: Defense Tech
Fed100 winners Caroline Bean of DISA’s Joint Enterprise Services Directorate and Air Force Chief Experience Officer Colt Whittall join the podcast to talk about their work.
Acquisition
VA seeks cyber operations help
The Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for capabilities ranging from cyber incident response and cloud threat detection to insider threat analysis to support its security operations center in a new market research request.
Cybersecurity
Transportation Needs to Improve Cyber Policy Implementation, Watchdog Finds
The Department of Transportation should better implement its policies for established cyber roles, including improving training and role expectations, according to a recent GAO report.
Cybersecurity
Hack on Transportation Systems Exposes Employee Information
The Department of Transportation breach exposed the data of 237,000 current and former employees.
Artificial Intelligence
Senate Bill Looks to Train AI-Ready Workforce, Focus on Risk Mitigation
The bipartisan legislation, introduced last week, aims to help public sector employees catch up with advancing AI technologies.
People
Lawmakers propose training program for federal officials on AI risks and rewards
The AI Leadership Training Act seeks to ensure that federal workforce leadership has the necessary skills and training to implement AI into their organizations.
Cybersecurity
Quantum Cryptography Market to Exceed $3B by 2028
The growth reflects rising concern about the potential threat posed by fully realized quantum computers.
Ideas
CDC: Cases of Kids Diagnosed With Profound Autism on the Rise
Over a 16-year period, the rate of profound autism doubled to 4.6 cases per 1,000 eight-year-olds. Children most likely to be diagnosed are poor, female, and non-white.
Ideas
A Brief History of Debt Ceiling Crises and the Political Chaos They’ve Unleashed
There are political as well as economic risks to debt standoffs in Congress.
Policy
Republicans unemployment fraud bill passes House, gets Senate version
The bill’s passage in the House fell one day after the indictment of one of its cosponsors – Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) – for unemployment fraud.
Cybersecurity
Lawmakers tell Biden they are ‘extremely concerned’ about critical vacant cyber role
The Office of the National Cyber Director has not had a Senate-confirmed director since former Director Chris Inglis left the post nearly three months ago, just prior to the release of the national cyber strategy.
Artificial Intelligence
Proposed Law Would Create Responsible Emerging Tech Leaders at Agencies
The bill would require a senior official at each relevant agency to oversee technologies like artificial intelligence, quantum and biotechnology to ensure responsible usage.
Ideas
Is federal financial management stuck in the 20th century?
More than three decades after legislation codifying the role of the chief financial officer was passed into law, functions like budget authority, cost and performance data and many other CFO-related functions are often spread out among different agency officials.
Artificial Intelligence
FDA Seeks Insight into How AI can Help and Hurt Drug-Making
The Food and Drug Administration is seeking public feedback amid its efforts to balance the advantages and risks of deploying artificial intelligence and machine learning into drug creation and approval processes.
Policy
Feds Could Be Fired at Any Time for Any Reason, Under a Bill That Was Just Reintroduced
The bill also would abolish the Merit Systems Protection Board and threatens to reduce former federal employees’ retirement benefits if they file “frivolous” appeals of adverse personnel actions.
Emerging Tech
Interior Wants a Fleet of Drones ‘On Call’ to Help With Wildfires, Other Emergencies
The department is awarding multiple spots on a $7.2 million contract for unmanned aerial systems-as-a-service.
Defense
DOD plans free software tools to support cyber compliance by small biz
The Department of Defense wants to bolster the number of small contractors it does business with, so it's planning to debut a series of free software tools to make it easier to work with industry.
Cybersecurity
Voting Machines Must Be Test Hacked for Certification, Under Proposed Bill
The new law would require cybersecurity penetration testing as part of voting systems’ approval process.
Digital Government