Digital Government
Missile Defense Agency chief wants fewer sole-source contracts
As the Defense Department explores ways to trim spending from the Pentagon budget, the Missile Defense Agency is focusing more heavily on competition for multibillion-dollar contracts.
Cybersecurity
NASA sets its sights on off-loading IT functions and boosting security
Space agency turns to cloud computing for cost and energy efficiency while meeting open government goals.
Digital Government
You're never too young to learn fiscal responsibility
Treasury Direct Kids provides children with simple explanations of financial terms, games and cartoons.
Digital Government
Employees still pose biggest security threat, survey finds
Almost 60 percent of government security experts say agency insiders who have access to sensitive information are the most likely cyber criminals.
Digital Government
VA moves toward open source for electronic health record system
By asking industry to provide ideas for using free code to modernize its network, the Veterans Affairs Department could 'drive expansion' of digital medical files nationwide.
Digital Government
Is the economy holding back your retirement?
A good bit of the traffic we have on our FederalSoup Web site is related in one way or another to impending retirements from federal service.
Ideas
Squaring Off on Recovery Jobs
The chairman of the board that oversees Recovery.gov released on Monday a statement promoting the transparency of the stimulus-tracking website, just as Republicans on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee alleged the site is a public relations effort aimed at inflating the accomplishments of the administration.
Cybersecurity
Photo of the Day
Yes, that's Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., chairman of the Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and International Security Subcommittee and <a href=http://techinsider.nextgov.com/2010/04/critical_agency_cyber_reports_prod_senate_action.php>author of cybersecurity bills</a>, standing next to a Nerf gun "modified to hold long-range antennas and a computer that can monitor data sent over wireless networks."
Digital Government
Grants for Insurance Monitoring
The Health and Human Services Department <a href=http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2010pres/08/20100816a.html>announced</a> $46 million in grants to 45 states and the District of Columbia to apply a check on the increase in health insurance premiums. Part of the money, which came from the 2010 Affordable Care Act, will pay for upgrades to systems or for tools states "need to hold insurance companies accountable and put a halt to unreasonable premium increases," the <a href=http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/08/16/slowing-large-health-insurance-premium-increases>White House Blog stated</a>.
Digital Government
Insourcing Tech Jobs
Federal agencies still have the green light to bring contractor jobs in-house, despite the Defense Department's recent announcement that it will abandon such efforts, <em>Government Executive</em> <a href="http://www.govexec.com/story_page.cfm?articleid=45899&dcn=todaysnews">reports</a>. Daniel Gordon, administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy at the Office of Management and Budget, said on Friday the Obama administration does not anticipate issuing guidance that would prohibit agencies from adding federal employees to do work currently being performed by contractors.
Digital Government
The End of AHLTA?
The Military Health System may have finally decided to get rid of its electronic health record system called <a href=http://whatsbrewin.nextgov.com/2009/03/ahlta_maybe_not_a_noun.php>AHLTA</a>, which military clinicians loath and what S. Ward Casscells, who served as the Defense Department top doc from 2007-2009, described as being <a href=http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0908/092908wb.htm>"hard to learn and use, slow and often down"</a>. Officials are looking to replace the system with some (hopefully) easier to use commercial software.
Digital Government
Bolden comments on employees, contractors at NASA IT Summit
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden spoke at the first-ever NASA IT Summit at the Gaylord National Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.
Cybersecurity
Back to school: Meet NIST's leader for national cybersecurity education
Federal Computer Week spoke today with Ernest McDuffie, who is leading the National Institute of Standards and Technology's coordination of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education.
Modernization
GSA Web site to host agency competitions
The General Services Administration has created a new Web-based platform for federal agencies to hold challenges and share ideas about innovation.
Digital Government
Retirement is on Defense secretary's radar
Defense Secretary Robert Gates tells Foreign Policy magazine he is looking at stepping down from the Pentagon helm next year, but avoids exact details.
Digital Government
Risque reality TV, hip finance ministers and other Swedish stereotypes
Blogger Steve Kelman finds that some stereotypes of the Scandinavian country are fairly accurate, while others are not.
People