Modernization

GSA plans new cloud buying vehicle to support modernization at all levels of government

The General Services Administration is soliciting feedback from industry on a planned new blanket purchase agreement to provide cloud infrastructure, storage, software and services to federal agencies and state and local governments.

Artificial Intelligence

Automatic Government

This Nextgov ebook examines how agencies employ automation and other variants of artificial intelligence software to improve service delivery and mission outcomes.

Policy

Billions of Federal Dollars to Close Broadband Gaps are About to Start Flowing

The FCC has launched a program that provides $50 subsidies to help households pay internet bills and also approved rules for a $7 billion fund for libraries and schools.

Modernization

VA expecting claims backlog to peak this summer

Recent additions to the backlog of veterans affected by Agent Orange are going to add to an expected spike in the backlog of pending benefits claims at the Veterans Benefits Administration, but agency officials are still aiming to get the levels closer to pre-pandemic numbers by the end of fiscal year 2022.

Digital Government

Survey: 1 in 3 Experience Slow Service Engaging With Government

Despite progress, a recent survey indicates agencies still have room to improve service delivery.

Ideas

Modernizing Container Security Is Essential to Secure Application Development

Most traditional security tools agencies rely on aren’t designed to effectively show what’s going on inside of a container.

Digital Government

Pentagon Publishes Five Data Decrees

Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks also mandated assessments of certain data efforts in a May 5 memo.

Modernization

Funding is only part of the answer for UI modernization

State workforce agencies have funding for unemployment modernization and administration thanks to pandemic relief legislation but there are policy impediments, experts said.

Cybersecurity

Energy Department Leading White House Interagency Response to Pipeline Attack

The hack highlights jurisdictional issues on pipeline cybersecurity.

Modernization

Lawmakers Say It’s Past Time OMB Issued IDEA Act Guidance

After two years in limbo and a pandemic forcing more adoption of digital services, House lawmakers want to see real guidance issued in the next 45 days.

Modernization

Justice Official Recommends Supreme Court Reject Oracle’s JEDI Petition  

Oracle has not won at any level of court despite numerous bid protests against the Pentagon’s Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure contract.

Digital Government

3 Companies Settle Over Millions of Fake Comments on FCC’s Net Neutrality Rollback

Broadband companies funded an effort responsible for 8.5 million fraudulent comments supporting the repeal, according to a New York attorney general report.

Digital Government

Coalition Urges Congress to Boost Funding for Census Modernization

A group of Census experts and data users are asking appropriators to provide $2 billion in funding to the Census Bureau in fiscal 2022.

Ideas

How Design Thinking Can Improve Public Sector IT

With its push to provide faster, more predictable and higher quality software, public sector IT organizations may have discounted the need for design.

Emerging Tech

Army to Equip First Unit With Augmented Reality Headsets By Fall

Top Army officials told Congress the first unit will be equipped with the Integrated Visual Augmentation System headsets by the first quarter of fiscal year 2022.

Modernization

Government needs a massive investment in FedRAMP

A well-funded shared service could relieve an authorization bottleneck and bring essential cloud services to the government market.

Modernization

How the Army Software Factory Preps Soldiers for Future Battlefields

Program lead Maj. Vito Errico said the project is focused on helping the Army figure out how to organize product teams for the future force.

Ideas

Why We Remember More by Reading – Especially Print – than from Audio or Video

Learning is generally more successful when it’s on paper than onscreen.

Modernization

OMB Prioritizes Cyber, COVID Tech For New TMF Payback Model

Officials urged agencies to pitch projects that focus on hack cleanup, COVID-19 response or economic recovery by June 2 for maximum repayment flexibility from the Technology Modernization Fund.