Jason Miller covers civilian agencies in the federal government with a focus on technology and acquisition. He is also an executive editor at Federal News Radio. Jason's reports can be heard Monday - Friday on the Federal Drive and In Depth.

TSA analyzes mobile needs before deployment

Dr. Emma Garrison-Alexander, TSA's chief information officer, said the goal is to make sure employees have the right device to match up with their mission requirements.
September 20, 2012

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Issa proposes major reforms to IT management

The Federal IT Acquisition Reform Act would codify much of the Obama administration's 25-point IT reform plan. The draft bill would go even further in attempting to address long-standing challenges for agency chief information officers.

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Improvements to how agencies buy goods, services bear out little fruit

In part 4 of Federal News Radio's special report, The Obama Impact: Evaluating the Last Four Years, we examine progress the administration has made in the acquisition arena. We rated one initiative as effective (green), three as ineffective (red) and two as more progress needed (yellow). View the details of each initiative through our interactive dashboard.

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Agencies cracking down on troubled vendors

The Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee (ISDC) issued its annual report to Congress showing that the use of suspension and debarment increased substantially in 2011 over 2009 and 2010.

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Air Force on track to meet 2014 financial deadline, official says

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta requested that all of his department's agencies have their auditable financial statements to him by 2014.

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Cybersecurity fails to live up to expectations, reflect reality

The administration has struggled to fulfill its promise to take enough concrete steps to make cybersecurity a national security priority. Experts say the White House fell short in several areas, most notably in getting comprehensive cyber legislation passed.

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Technology reforms give agencies a needed lift

In part 2 of Federal News Radio's special report, The Obama Impact: Evaluating the Last Four Years, we examine the success and change brought by five technology initiatives. We rated three as effective, one as having made some progress, but more is needed, and a fifth as ineffective.

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Accenture head of federal resigns

Kay Kapoor leaves to "pursue other opportunities" after less than two years at the helm. John Goodman, who leads the company's defense and intelligence business, takes over on an interim basis.

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Planning, performance measures put DHS on solid financial footing

Peggy Sherry, the agency's CFO, said when budget cuts do come they are prepared. DHS has been finding efficiencies in its spending and asked components to think hard about how they spend their money.

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Tangherlini sought details of GSA IG's investigation tactics

The acting administrator of GSA said he met with IG Brian Miller and David Shea after accusations the IG investigator's tactics were overly aggressive in looking into the recent SmartPay Conference. Tangherlini also expects to receive suggestions on how the CIO reorganization would work, and how to go forward with the reduction of FAS fees in the coming weeks.

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Sen. Wyden reminds White House to limit scope of cyber order

The Select Committee on Intelligence member wrote a letter to White House Cyber Coordinator Michael Daniel asking him to make sure any mandate doesn't harm the networks used for interactive computer services.

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GSA praised for steps to reform culture, organization

Senate lawmakers and the agency's Inspector General say the strategy to reorganize the General Services Administration and make it more accountable is on the right track. Acting Administrator Dan Tangherlini said he will consolidate IT and HR across the agency, and reduce contracting fees charged by the Federal Acquisition Service.

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OSC, HHS's Sebelius at odds over Hatch Act violation

The Office of Special Counsel found the HHS Secretary's remarks in February at a gala violated the law prohibiting federal employees from engaging in partisan actions. Kathleen Sebelius contends she didn't break the law.

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PTO changes the way it invests in IT systems

John Owens, the Patent and Trademark Office's CIO, said the agency used to spend 85 percent of its IT budget on operations and maintenance (O&M) support and 15 percent on development, modernization and enhancements (DME) of systems. Now, the agency spends 50 percent on each. That change has allowed it to upgrade IT systems without additional money.

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GSA to centralize oversight of IT, HR after top-to-bottom review

Acting Administrator Dan Tangherlini will tell Senate lawmakers today about his plans to continue reforming the agency in the aftermath of the Western Regions Conference scandal. Along with consolidating CIO and human resources offices, Tangherlini wants the Federal Acquisition Service to reduce its fees. Federal News Radio has obtained an exclusive copy of Tangherlini's testimony.

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OFPP keeping a close eye on struggling acquisition system consolidation

GSA's System for Award Management is finding its footing after a rough start. OFPP Administrator Joe Jordan said he's watching the systems' progress carefully.

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White House draft cyber order promotes voluntary critical infrastructure protections

The administration is considering using an executive order to promote and encourage critical infrastructure providers to improve their cybersecurity. The draft EO, which Federal News Radio obtained details of, mirrors major sections of the second version of the Lieberman- Collins comprehensive cyber bill.

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Army Contracting Command easing burden on contracting officers

Gino Magnifico, the ACC's chief information officer, said his component is helping to lead an Armywide effort to develop a new contract writing system. It's not just a technology refresh, however. It's about improving the business processes.
September 6, 2012

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Management successes paving the way for One-DHS

Rafael Borras, the Homeland Security Department's undersecretary for management, said in an exclusive interview with Federal News Radio, improvements to back-office functions show how interdependent the agency has become over the last few years. DHS is managing its acquisition, financial management and human capital processes through a holistic approach.

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Timing, technology converge to better attack improper payments

Over the last three years, agencies understood the problem better, improved how they tracked the information and used advanced data analysis tools to lower the governmentwide rate to 4.69 percent from 5.42 percent in 2009. While the amount of money improperly paid out hit a high of $125 billion in 2010, Danny Werfel, the Office of Management and Budget's controller, expects it to drop for a second consecutive year, below the $115 billion mark in 2011.

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