Federal Drive with Tom Temin

The Office of Federal Procurement Policy’s has a new cross-agency priority goal. It's not about changing acquisition rules or processes. Instead, the goal is called frictionless acquisition. Friction causes heat and slowdowns. The initiative aims to change how contracting officers, program managers, and contractors view what it takes to buy a product or service. Federal News Network's Jason Miller discussed the complexity reduction plan in a two part interview with the administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Michael Wooten, on Federal Drive with Tom Temin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It might feel like groundhog day on capitol hill. Congress will be debating pandemic relief legislation, as the Senate works to craft a bill likely to be very different from what the House has already passed. For these and other matters ahead on the hill, we turn to WTOP capitol hill correspondent Mitchell Miller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A recent broad agency announcement from the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency seeks fresh ways for industrial and academic researchers to help the agency take on hard problems. It's celled Boosting Innovative GEOINT Research BAA, or Big R. Here to tell us what's going on, the NGA's research director, Dr. Cynthia Daniell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As part of its plan to get on firmer financial management footing, the Pentagon wants to infuse its financial management workforce with new blood. But the department’s longstanding failure to get a clean audit opinion hasn’t just earned it flak from Congress – it’s also created a recruiting challenge. As Federal News Network’s Jared Serbu reports, it’s a challenge the department’s now trying to overcome. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The problem with finding out you've sent money to ineligible or deceased people is that it's too late. Much of the money can be nonrecoverable. Gary Shiffman, who teaches artificial intelligence at Georgetown University, argues that the right screening applied at the right time would prevent the improper payments in programs like those under the CARES Act. He is founder of Giant Oak search technology, and joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin for more discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Office of Federal Procurement Policy’s has a new cross-agency priority goal. It's not about changing acquisition rules or processes. Instead, the goal is called frictionless acquisition. Friction causes heat and slowdowns. The initiative aims to change how contracting officers, program managers, and contractors view what it takes to buy a product or service. Federal News Network's Jason Miller discussed the complexity reduction plan in a two part interview with the administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, Dr. Michael Wooten.

What happens when a new branch of the military is enacted into being? It's got to have a worthy headquarters. And although the new Space Command might be tiny compared to the Army or the Air Force, that hasn't stopped more than half the states from vying to be its new home. The Federal Drive with Tom Temin got more from Bloomberg Government senior reporter Travis Tritten. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Electric cars seem like a great idea, until you consider that someday the batteries will require disposal. You just can't bury them or stack them up somewhere. They're full of toxins and recoverable material. That's why the Argonne National Laboratory has been working on a program to establish a U.S. battery recycling industry. Joining the Federal Drive with a progress report, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's group leader for materials recycling, Jeffery Spangenberger. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Small Business Administration's Office of Women's Business Ownership dates back to 1979, when a stagnant and inflationary economy needed everyone's brainpower to rev back up. It still offers management and technical advice to help women establish and grow their own businesses. Now the SBA has a new assistant administrator for women's business ownership. Sery Kim joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Women-owned small businesses take note, the Small Business Administration is changing the certification process for doing business with the federal government. Following a 2015 mandate from Congress, SBA will end the self-certification process for women-owned small businesses on October 15. This comes after the agency’s inspector general found contract awards were going to vendors that didn’t meet the criteria for the program. Business owners can already submit their applications under the new process. For more on what small businesses should expect, Federal News Network’s Jory Heckman spoke with a program manager in SBA Women’s Contracting Office, Alisa Sheard. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The United States is starting to take cyber and cybersecurity more seriously. Some members of Congress think there needs to be a high level position to reflect that. An amendment attached to the House version of the 2021 defense authorization bill would establish a national cyber director in the executive office of the president. The office would have two deputies. Federal News Network’s Scott Maucione spoke with the author of that provision, Rhode Island Representative Jim Langevin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For small businesses contracting with the federal government, cash flow, borrowing costs, and a healthy balance sheet are just as important as winning bids. For some tips on sharpening up that financial strategy in the age of pandemic, the Federal Drive turned to the director of operations at business lender Parabilis, Ryan Huss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress has returned from a two-week recess to pretty much the same conditions, pandemically speaking, as when it left. The Committee on House Administration has been working to keep things operating as normally as possible. Last week we hear from the ranking Republican member, Illinois Rodney Davis. Today we hear from the committee's vice chair, Maryland's Jamie Raskin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Congress passed big coronavirus response bills back in late March, the IRS was among the agencies most affected. It had to totally redo the 2020 filing season while figuring out how to issue some $157 million stimulus checks. So how did it do? For some answers the Federal Drive turn to the associate Treasury inspector general for tax administration, Russ Martin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Turns out reopening the federal office is a lot more difficult than maybe some agency leaders first thought. Many federal agencies set three-phase reopening plans back in May. But those are getting scrambled, with coronavirus cases still surging in parts of the country. With schools and mass transit options still up in the air, some agencies are acknowledging it's just too early to expect normal. Federal News Network's Nicole Ogrysko has the latest Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices