Acquisition
OMB report highlights major barriers to equity in federal programs
Onerous paperwork, complex requirements and opaque guidelines are just some of the many roadblocks preventing racial equity across government services, a new report says.
Acquisition
New guidance on vaccines and COVID testing for feds and contractors
The White House-led Safer Federal Workforce Taskforce issued additional question and answer style guidance on Friday addressing how exactly the recently-released vaccination and testing requirements will be carried out.
Acquisition
How VA can succeed with its EHR mega-program
The former CIO of the Department of Veterans Affairs offers some ideas for course correction in the agency's flagging $20 billion–plus Electronic Health Records Modernization program.
People
Unions press SSA leaders for a new contract, workplace safety plan
Biden ousted top leaders at the Social Security Administration last month, but some union officials say more personnel change is needed further down the ladder.
Acquisition
DOD could face $4 billion in pandemic reimbursement payments for contractors
According to a GAO report, the Defense Department may have $4 billion in eligible reimbursements for contractors under the CARES Act.
Modernization
Globally connected data can safeguard the defense industrial and technology base
Data can play a critical role in planning and ultimately protecting the nation's valuable talent, resources and supplies.
Acquisition
Agencies have proposed more than $2B in TMF projects since new funding was approved
Federal CIO Clare Martorana told a House subcommittee that 108 project proposals have been submitted to the Technology Modernization Fund across 43 agencies, with 75% focusing on cybersecurity since the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act.
Acquisition
VA to continue pause on Cerner deployment for six more months
At the end of calendar 2021, the Department of Veterans Affairs expects to announce a new schedule for the deployment of its $21 billion electronic health record modernization project.
Modernization
Lawmakers balk at cost-overruns, transparency issues with VA's $21 billion health record program
At a Senate hearing last week, Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough noted deficiencies in training including the lack of a real system available for use by clinicians in advance of the go-live date for a new, integrated health care software system.
Modernization
Cloud after COVID
More than a year of pandemic operations has altered government’s view of cloud-centric modernization
Acquisition
CMMC board clarifies assessor training timeline
Training materials and certification exams for the assessors and instructors are at least four months away from delivery.
Acquisition
House Dems look to ramp up oversight of DHS operations
A bill introduced by the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee addresses law enforcement functions, acquisition, leadership and more.
Cybersecurity
NIST defines 'critical software' under the cyber EO
The National Institute of Standards and Technology's new definition of "critical software" is foundational to new federal efforts to exert more control over the code supply chain.
Modernization
Pentagon is 'actively' weighing JEDI options, Hicks says
Kathleen Hicks, the deputy defense secretary, said DOD is "very actively looking at our options" to fulfill the enterprise cloud needs and with a strategic decision "in the next month."
Acquisition
TMF board scales up
The deputy federal CIO said on Monday that the Technology Modernization Board has received numerous "large-scale modernization, cybersecurity projects" from the entire federal landscape after relaxing payback requirements.
Acquisition
DOD's electronic health records rollout hits 30% completion
The Defense Department's electronic health records system rollout nearly a third complete with 42,000 active users across more than a dozen states.
Acquisition
First CMMC assessment organization approved
The accrediting body overseeing the Defense Department's Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program announced the debut of the first organization authorized to assess defense contractors.
Acquisition
Security clearance demands are exploding and government must keep up
The federal government must evolve security clearance standards to reflect certain cultural realities while also looking to improve clearance reciprocity between agencies.
Acquisition
DHS faces setbacks implementing CDM, watchdog says
The Department of Homeland Security has failed to address critical vulnerabilities across information technology assets due to significant delays in the department's rollout of a federal Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation program.
Acquisition