Acquisition

DARPA's Pandemic Prevention Platform

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, DARPA's 10 years of funding research and development on DNA and RNA vaccines, including a $25 million award to Moderna to help establish its messenger RNA platform, proved critical.

Acquisition

Why VA must keep Vista healthy

The moratorium on further Vista investment put in place three years ago creates major strategic issues for the Department of Veterans Affairs as the agency looks to put Cerner's commercial electronic health record system in place.

Acquisition

TMF, cyber EO drive modernization at Labor, CIO says

The unprecedented investment in IT and cybersecurity resources have provided agencies like the Department of Labor with a historic opportunity to tackle some of their loftiest modernization plans.

Acquisition

Can DOD make buying software easier?

FCW talked with Tory Cuff, senior advisor for agile acquisitions, to get a better understanding of the Adaptive Acquisition Framework's special software pathway and DOD's pilot experiment with "colorless" money.

Acquisition

CMMC board chief talks assessors, IT staff

Matt Travis, the CEO for the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification Accreditation Body, said proper training and IT access to the Defense Department's Enterprise Mission Assurance Support Service (eMASS) application, which will house CMMC data, still needs to be finalized for the third-party organizations that will be charged with conducting cyber assessments.

Acquisition

IRS looks to experiment with augmented reality

Taxpayers might soon be able to file their financial documents with the help of AR capabilities thanks to an experimental procurement technique the IRS is using to test and deploy innovative technologies and solutions.

Acquisition

Watchdog says contractor oversight was lacking in Afghanistan

The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction's newest report calls out the government's failure to oversee contractors as a source of waste, fraud and abuse.

Acquisition

DHS eyes CMMC model

DHS' Office of the Chief Procurement Officer issued a special notice Aug. 10, noting that it is looking for a way to check contractors' compliance with its cyber hygiene clauses released in 2015.

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.

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.

Acquisition

Senate-passed bill looks to modernize federal contracting, expand small business opportunities

A bipartisan bill seeks to expand federal contracting opportunities for small businesses and push government to modernize acquisition processes.

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

HASC cyber subcommittee pushes mandatory legacy IT audit in defense bill

The military services could be required to audit its legacy IT systems and software as part of a proposal to be considered in the 2022 defense authorization bill.

Acquisition

What ever happened to innovation in government?

Steve Kelman wonders whether the federal IT community has lost its focus on truly transforming the way government functions.

Acquisition

Lawmakers push for new defense supply chain strategy

The House Armed Services Committee's Defense Critical Supply Chain Task Force issued recommendations that push for domestic production and better government oversight of supply chain vulnerabilities.

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.

Acquisition

Worries from a Democrat about the Biden administration and federal procurement

Steve Kelman is concerned that the push for more spending with small disadvantaged businesses will detract from the goal of getting the best deal for agencies and taxpayers.

Acquisition

The risks of pushing for procurement equity

A White House plan to steer $100 billion towards small disadvantaged businesses could prove transformative for historically underserved communities nationwide -- but only with proper regulation.