Elections

What would a GOP takeover of the House mean for the Oversight Committee? 

The chair-in-waiting for the once “sleepy” committee would like to investigate COVID-19’s origins, the Biden administration’s border policies and the president’s family members. 

IRS tech, CISA funding in Build Back Better

An effort to put $3.5 billion into key governmentwide tech modernization accounts appears to have come up short in the Build Back Better bill, but there's still a lot of technology spending on the table.

Christopher Krebs: Truth and consequences

Krebs spent 2020 working furiously to ensure the integrity of our elections, while also ensuring that ransomware, software supply-chain vulnerabilities and a range of other rapidly escalating risks didn't cripple government operations or the nation's critical infrastructure.

Few agencies sought Schedule F conversions

In the waning days of the Trump administration, only a relative handful out of hundreds of eligible agencies and department responded to an executive order that looked to reclassify vast swathes of the federal civil service as at-will employees.

Lawmakers reach bipartisan deal to probe Jan. 6 attack

The proposed commission would have investigative and subpoena powers and would hold hearings to produce a report by the end of 2021.

OPM details pandemic emergency paid leave program

This special leave will be available through the end of the fiscal year or until the $570 million fund is exhausted, OPM documents say.

NIST framework focuses on election cybersecurity

The new draft framework combining election security and cybersecurity is the first of its kind for NIST.

IC: Foreign actors tried to affect U.S. election via influence campaigns, but not by hacking

The intelligence community's newly declassified report largely concludes Russia attempted to meddle in the U.S. election through influence operations but did not attempt the kinds of cyberattacks observed in 2016.

Biden looks to expand time off for feds to vote

An executive order issued Sunday on voting access includes a directive to the Office of Personnel Management to support federal employees looking to vote or serve as poll workers or observers during elections.

With Tanden out, top House Dems push Young for budget director

The House Speaker her and top lieutenants are pressing for the nomination of Shalanda Young to lead the Office of Management and Budget.

Manchin's opposition could sink OMB nominee

President Biden's pick of Neera Tanden's to head the Office of Management and Budget is in peril after a powerful centrist Democrat has announced his plan to vote no on the nomination.

Sen. Peters takes over HSGAC

The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee will be faced with oversight responsibilities over the SolarWinds hack, the federal government's response to the pandemic and with legislation to implement the Biden administration's priorities for the federal workforce.

SolarWinds hack blights the Trump administration's cybersecurity record

The consequences of the SolarWinds Orion hack are far from clear, but analysts and lawmakers say that officials at CISA and NSA made notable strides to improve the government's cybersecurity posture.

Biden floats $9B boost to TMF as part of funding surge

The incoming Biden-Harris administration announced a $1.9 trillion "rescue" package to help Americans whose incomes have taken a hit from the pandemic, which includes a major uptick in technology spending to secure government systems and spur modernization.

Don't keep Trump off Twitter

Steve Kelman contends that free speech -- above and beyond the letter of the First Amendment -- should be supported to the fullest extent possible.

Biden taps former Obama aide to lead VA

Denis McDonough would be the second non-veteran to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs.

CISA doesn't plan to tackle COVID vaccine disinformation

CISA’s acting director Brandon Wales said his agency is not the right source to counter anticipated disinformation about coronavirus vaccines.