DHS News 
Top News
- Senators push Tangherlini for assurances GSA is improving
- As VA works to eliminate one backlog, one more might emerge
- Senator: IRS to pay $70M in employee bonuses
- Furlough song: Laugh or you'll cry
- Navy strikes enterprise licensing deal with Oracle
- Contractors with security clearances lack path to report problems
- NSA leak case gives vendors reason to reevaluate personnel
- Does security clearance process need a makeover?
- 8 contract executives guilty of 8(a) contracting fraud
- Whistleblower suit leads to $12M false claims settlement by SAIC
- NASA engineer, 29, recognized for improving aeronautical testing
- USPS reaches energy reduction goal ahead of schedule
- NOAA meteorologist helps save lives one storm at a time
- NASA picks 8 new astronauts, 4 of them women
- House passes sweeping $638 billion defense bill
- NIH tops list of best companies for baby boomers
- Latest postal reform proposal OKs 5-day delivery
- Wednesday federal headlines - June 19, 2013
Lawmakers push DoD, Energy for answers on IT supply chain security
Two GAO reports find agencies lack oversight and controls over ensuring vendors buy the components for hardware and software from trusted sources. DoD is ahead of most agencies. It is using intelligence expertise to secure the supply chain of national security systems.
House Oversight FISMA bill envisions beefed-up OMB role
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee unveiled a bill to overhaul a decade-old law detailing how federal agencies protect their computer networks from cybersecurity threats. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), the chairman of the committee, told Federal News Radio the Office of Management and Budget is better poised to be a "fair arbitrator" than the Homeland Security Department.
Gov't report: DC nuke blast wouldn't destroy city
This is what the U.S. government imagines would happen if terrorists set off a nuclear bomb just blocks away from the White House: The explosion would destroy everything in every direction within one-half mile. An intense flash would blind drivers on the Beltway miles away. A radioactive cloud would drift toward Baltimore.
Lawmakers call TSA screeners ineffective, rude
House members of both parties on Monday teed off against the agency in charge of airport and port anti-terrorist screening, saying it uses ineffective tactics, wastes money on faulty equipment and treats travelers rudely.
IG: DHS must improve recovering improper payments
The Homeland Security Department is complying with federal improper payments legislation, but the department can do more to recover improper payments, according to the DHS IG.
Correction: Airport Security story
In some versions of a Nov. 24, 2010, story about Thanksgiving holiday security at U.S. airports, The Associated Press wrongly attributed a comment supporting more invasive screening measures to AP reporter Ted Shaffrey. It was a traveler interviewed by Shaffrey who said, "Tell all the people whining about getting patted down to remember 9/11. They're all whine-bags." In a paragraph attached to the story, Shaffrey was correctly listed one of the AP journalists who contributed to the report.
Low morale at DHS is 'referendum on leadership'
Strong leadership is key to boosting employee morale at the Homeland Security Department, according to testimony today before aHouse Homeland Security subcommittee.
DHS struggles to balance mission costs with new facilities
The agency's headquarters and new bio and agro defense facility are limping along as funding dwindles. DHS' Rafael Borras said new headquarter's projects will be done in segments. Tara O'Toole, who leads the Science and Technology Directorate, said severe budget cuts are one the reasons a new biosafety facility is far from finished.
DoD finalizing rules of engagement for cyber attacks
Gen. Keith Alexander, commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, told lawmakers DoD would complete an updated version of rules of engagement for cyberspace in the next month or two. Some congressmen believe the Pentagon needs broader authorities to protect the nation from cyber attacks.
FEMA, AmeriCorps team up to bolster disaster recovery force
By partnering with AmeriCorps, the Federal Emergency Management Agency hopes add 1,600 young people to its disaster recovery efforts.
FEMA Corps assigns young people to disaster relief work
First there was the Peace Corps, and then AmeriCorps, which brought college grads into classrooms. Now there's FEMA Corps.
Agencies met 77 percent of cyber requirements in 2011
In a new report to Congress, the administration said continuous monitoring is taking hold, but HSPD-12 still is floundering. OMB also reported agencies spent $13.3 billion on cybersecurity last year and that government employees make up 60 percent of the cyber workforce.
Government can't keep up with information requests
The Obama administration couldn't keep pace with the increasing number of people asking for copies of government documents, emails, photographs and more under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act, according to a new analysis of the latest federal data by The Associated Press.
GAO: DHS plan a 'roadmap' for coming off high-risk list
The Homeland Security Department has had management issues since its foundation nearly a decade ago. But the Government Accountability Office is finding some signs that the department is heading in the right direction. David Maurer, the director of homeland security and justice issues at GAO
White House paints cyber attack picture for Hill
An interagency group of senior officials will brief Senate lawmakers today on what would be the response if the nation's critical infrastructure suffered a cyber attack. The meetings come as Senate lawmakers debate two cyber bills that try to address critical infrastructure protection.
Schaffer leaves DHS cyber post
Greg Schaffer is leaving as the Homeland Security Department's assistant secretary in the Office of Cybersecurity and Communications.
DHS seeks new CERT director
The Homeland Security Department is hiring a new director of the U.S. Computer Emergency Response Team, or U.S. CERT.
Analysis: Agency social media monitoring about good government, not Big Brother
Richard Hartman, the chief operating officer of OhMyGov, Inc., said lawmakers and the public shouldn't be surprised that some agencies monitor social networks but that more aren't.
DHS unification still high risk — 9 years later
A check-up of how well the Homeland Security Department is unifying its 22 agencies finds the patient getting better, but still weak. The House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations and Management examined the agency's acquisition, human resources and financial management systems. While DHS has a roadmap for improvement, it may not have the tools to implement it.
GOP cyber bill takes hands-off approach to industry
Eight Republican lawmakers on Thursday introduced an alternative to a comprehensive cybersecurity bill the Senate expects to vote on soon. GOP senators say their approach avoids additional bureaucracy and encourages information sharing.
