Digital Government
Republican lawmakers ask Trump to kill IRS Direct File
The new program intended to enable free, online tax filing directly with the government has garnered controversy and praise since its inception.
Modernization
Ramaswamy cites legacy tech and fraud as early DOGE priorities
Department of Government Efficiency Co-Chair Vivek Ramaswamy called IT modernization “low-hanging fruit,” but reaping cost savings will take up-front investment — and time.
Ideas
How software reuse and extension can accelerate digital transformation for agencies
Practical tips for improving digital transformation.
Policy
Biden looks to preserve tech, cyber legacy with veto threat
Experts see continuity in tech policy from the Biden administration to a possible Kamala Harris presidency, with possible divergence on some national security and antitrust issues.
Updated
Cybersecurity
Biden briefed on CrowdStrike IT outage as multiple federal systems impacted
Social Security offices are closed for the day due to the incident. It will be “time-consuming” for all affected systems to undo the damage because the process is manual, one expert says.
People
Hitting the gas at Energy
CIO Ann Dunkin talks FITARA, modernization and the challenge of managing IT in an environment driven by high-performance technology.
Ideas
Why it's past time to modernize the FITARA scorecard
COMMENTARY | Another reset is needed to keep the FITARA scorecard relevant in driving IT management best practices across federal agencies
Ideas
Overcoming technical debt and accelerating modernization
COMMENTARY | High performance in IT requires an ability to adapt, preparing the organization to seize future opportunities and tackle upcoming challenges efficiently.
Digital Government
Automation helped VA approve 1 million PACT Act claims, officials say
The agency is relying on automated decision support and other optimization efforts to help process claims for veterans exposed to burn pits and other chemicals.
People
IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel details his hefty tech to-do list
Enabling taxpayers to fully interact with the IRS digitally is a “generational imperative,” the agency head said.
Digital Government
The Labor Department wants Congress to help to fix unemployment insurance tech, delivery
Among the asks: fund the program adequately, the Labor Department says.
Exclusive
Acquisition
Senate bill looks to chop through red tape in procurement
The bipartisan legislation aims to both expand access to special acquisition authorities and give new, innovative contractors more opportunities to work with the government.
Modernization
Federal weather system experiences outage amid severe weather nationwide
The agency is seeking money to shore up weather forecasting IT systems in fiscal year 2025.
Digital Government
Export control agency lacks funding and tech to manage its workload, official says
The head of the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security gave lawmakers “an emphatic no” when asked if his office has the IT resources it needs to carry out its mission.
Digital Government
Agencies contend with new metrics, another missing hearing for FITARA 17.0
Cracks are showing in the usual, bipartisan buy-in for oversight on FITARA progress.
Ideas
How federal agencies can accelerate IT systems modernization with AI
AI can explain older programming languages, assist in developing new code and expedite vulnerability remediation.
Cybersecurity
NDAA provision looks to close cybersecurity gaps in nuclear weapons systems
The requirement included in the fiscal year 2024 defense policy bill follows a 2022 GAO report that found the National Nuclear Security Administration did not fully implement “foundational cybersecurity risk practices.”
Ideas
Why smart multicloud policies are a golden ticket to modernizing IT infrastructure
COMMENTARY | A multicloud approach to cloud computing is used for better data control, allows access to the best services from each provider, and offers more flexibility as IT leaders can optimize workload placement based on workload requirements.
Digital Government
IRS hits key digitization goal months ahead of schedule
Although Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen plugged progress in IRS efforts to tame paper in the agency, she also emphasized that “playing politics with IRS funding is unacceptable.”
People