FCW Insider: Nov. 21

David Norquist, the deputy defense secretary and DOD's former comptroller, told Congress that the Pentagon needs to use data like the commercial sector. Lauren C. Williams has more on how the DOD's second audit played on Capitol Hill.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) won the race to succeed the late Elijah Cummings as the chair of the House Oversight and Reform Committee. House Democrats chose Maloney over Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who heads the Government Operations subcommittee of the Oversight panel. Maloney is the first woman to wield the Oversight gavel and brings a reputation as a strong advocate for workforce rights and federal workers. Adam Mazmanian has the story.

New cybersecurity guidance from the Office of Management and Budget updates timelines and deliverables for reporting security incidents, information sharing and vulnerability scans of federal systems and websites. Derek B. Johnson reports.

Experts warned Congress that the U.S. government has largely failed to address a number of known security shortfalls related to the 2020 and future elections. Get more on election security from Derek.

Quick Hits

*** The Senate's vote on a stopgap spending bill to prevent a government shutdown on Nov. 22 was delayed by one day because of procedural issues. Senators are expected to vote this afternoon on the House-passed continuing resolution that will keep government open through Dec. 20. The bill also includes accelerated Census funding, a 3.1% pay raise for uniformed military and extenders for certain health care programs and controversial surveillance authorities in the Patriot Act. President Donald Trump is expected to sign the legislation.

*** A Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General management report dated Nov. 13 – the day Chad Wolf took over as acting secretary – criticized the department for among other things, a lack of permanent leadership. The report also details wider workforce challenges, stating that DHS employees "work in an environment marked by high attrition, changing mandates, and difficulties implementing permanent plans, procedures and programs."

*** The Defense Intelligence Agency, in a report on Iran's strategic goals and military capabilities, said that compared to the U.S., China and Russia, "Tehran’s offensive cyberspace capabilities remain underdeveloped." According to the report, Russian and China supply "technical assistance for cyberspace defense" to Iran. On the offensive side, Iran's cyber actors go after defense contractors, energy and infrastructure firms and aerospace companies, seeking to steal credentials and information and spread malware.