Federal Drive with Tom Temin

The delays have gotten so bad with the transition to the new unique entity identifier (UEI) on SAM.gov that the Defense Department isn’t requiring contractors to have a new number to do business with them for the next six weeks. The Defense Pricing and Contracting office issued a deviation to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) on Sept. 8 that allows the services and defense agencies to do business with companies who aren’t fully registered in the governmentwide acquisition system. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Agencies will require software vendors to self-certify that they’re following secure development practices under new White House guidance, but it leaves the door open for departments to mandate third-party security assessments as well. The new guidance from the Office of Management and Budget, “Enhancing the Security of the Software Supply Chain through Secure Software Development Practices,” stems from last year’s cybersecurity executive order. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When it tragically hit the scene, some 40 years ago, HIV/AIDS was a fearsome scourge. Today it's manageable. Many people with it can lead normal lives. Much of the lifesaving research into the virus and the disease has been conducted at the National Institutes of Health. Federal Drive host talks to someone who was NIH all those years ago, Dr. Clifford Land, the clinical director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, as well as afinalist in this year's Service to America Medals Program: THE SAMMIES. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The prices of spare parts have long been a bugaboo for the military. Now the Senate version of the 2023 defense authorization bill (NDAA) contains something called a Progress-Payment Incentive Pilot program. For how it works and what the benefits would be, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Julia Gledhill, a defense analyst with the Project on Government Oversight or POGO. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The prices of spare parts have long been a bugaboo for the military. Now the Senate version of the 2023 defense authorization bill (NDAA) contains something called a Progress-Payment Incentive Pilot program. For how it works and what the benefits would be, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Julia Gledhill, a defense analyst with the Project on Government Oversight or POGO. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The pandemic has depressed blood and plasma donations to what the Department of Health and Human calls historic lows. So the department has launched a public campaign to get more people to donate. Federal Drive host Tom Temin got the details from B. Kaye Hayes, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Infectious Disease and the Director of the Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/AIDS Policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Although many have said the youngest generation in the workforce heavily prefers more remote work and telework opportunities, the full picture is more complicated.The future of those remote flexibilities looks a little different, after factoring in diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, said Khalilah Harris, the Office of Personnel Management’s new deputy chief of staff. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Hatch Act prohibits political activities by federal employees on the job. It only applies to executive branch agencies. So when the head of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts enacted new rules for that agency's employees that went even further than the Hatch Act, not everyone was on board. Two employees filed a lawsuit. Federal News Network's Eric White spoke with one of the attorneys involved. He's legal director for the D.C. chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, Art Spitzer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Homeland Security Department's headquarters project might be one of the longest-running construction programs in government history. Planning started more than 17 years ago. The latest estimates peg the completion date at 2027, another five years. Now, the Government Accountability Office reports the latest cost and schedule estimates lack detail and, perhaps, reliability. Federal Drive host got some details on the mater from Chris Currie, GAO's director for Homeland Security and Justice issues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As part of its drive to modernize and diversify its workforce, the State Department will add new fellowhips and internships to its roster. The Colin Powell Leadership Program will open to college students and recent graduates and, its planners hope, prepare them for long-term success at the State Department. Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about the program with Beth Sheppard, deputy director of talent services at the State Department. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is taking the development of landmark cyber incident reporting regulations on an 11-stop roadshow, as it seeks feedback on a number of key questions about the forthcoming rules. CISA previewed a request for information today on the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022. Under that law, passed earlier this year, the agency is developing regulations that will require critical infrastructure entities to report cyber incidents to CISA within 72 hours and ransomware attacks within 24 hours. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Federal agencies are moving into the spend-it or lose-it stage of the fiscal year, with just two weeks to go. But it looks like when the books are closed, contract obligations for fiscal 2022 will have been bigger than last year. To get all the details, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with federal sales and marketing consultant Larry Allen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If wind and solar don't wreck the energy grid, emerging quantum computing sure could. Brownouts here and there could turn into a sudden national catastrophe. For how the federal government can help prevent it, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Duncan Jones, the head of cybersecurity at Cambridge Quantum. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Each generation brings new recruitment challenges for the Army. That's why the Army is constantly seeking fresh messages to deliver through its marketing channels. Maybe you remember "Be All You Can Be" or "The Army of One." Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about the latest recruiting challenges and the Army's newest marketing campaign, with Maj. Gen. Alex Fink, the Chief Marketing Officer for the U.S. Army. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Navy is many things: sailors, ships, submarines, airplanes. In some sense, it's a science and technology enterprise. You know, STEM. Federal Drive host Tom Temin made a recent visit to the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Dalhgren, Virginia and spoke with Joseph McGettigan, a former Navy captain (and Dalhgren commanding officer), who is now director of the STEM Center at the Naval Academy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices