In Depth Show Blog – June 10, 2013

Mary Davie, assistant commissioner in the General Services Administration’s Office of Integrated Technology Service, joins In Depth for an hour-long, deep-dive conversation about GSA’s new Wireless Federal Strategic Sourcing Initiative and the agency’s new Managed Mobility Program.

Click here to read Mary’s GSA blog.

Hypersonic propulsion is the process of making something travel several times faster than the speed of sound. Experts call it the last frontier of aeronautics because of the complex technical difficulties it provides. Manan Vyas is a research engineer with the NASA Glenn Research Center in Ohio. He was the first to prove that wind-tunnel simulated conditions were not the same as actual atmospheric conditions. He is a finalist in the Call to Service category of the 2013 Service to America Medals.

PHOTOS: Meet the 2013 Service to America Medal Finalists

Celebrating a breakthrough and celebrating a milestone are both worthy of note. At Customs and Border Protection, they’re doing both at the same time. John Wagner, acting deputy assistant commissioner of the Office of Field Operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, joins In Depth to discuss the fifth anniversary of CBP’s Global Entry enrollment program.

Bad news is piling on top of the Internal Revenue Service. First the IRS was in the congressional hot seat for unfair political targeting. Now the agency faces hearings and disciplinary action for conference spending. Greg Kutz, assistant inspector general for audit, management services and exempt organizations at the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, joins In Depth to discuss the IG’s findings.

IG: IRS violated few policies in spending millions on conferences (related story)

Performance.gov exists to help you do your job better. But federal managers say the website is just an external reporting tool that benefits the public. GAO studied this disconnect and released several recommendations for the Office of Management and Budget to make form meet function. Chris Mihm, managing director for Strategic Issues at GAO, joins In Depth with more.

Performance.gov faces identity crisis (related story)

Information collection and sharing is in the spotlight as Congress comes back into session and we learn more about leaks by a government contractor. Jim Lewis, director and senior fellow in the Technology and Public Policy Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, joins In Depth with his take.