Welcome to MeriTalk News Briefs, where we bring you all the day’s action that didn’t quite make the headlines. No need to shout about ‘em, but we do feel that they merit talk.
CBO Says New CDM Bill Would Cost Less Than $500K
A cost estimate from the Congressional Budget Office released Wednesday says that recently approved legislation to codify the Department of Homeland Security’s Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM) Program “would cost less than $500,000 over the 2019-2023 period.” The bill would require DHS to develop and submit it to Congress a strategy to carry out the program, along with a report no later than 90 days after on CDM data and its effect on improving Federal agency cybersecurity. CBO determined that the preparation of these documents would be the only aspects of the bill that would require funding. The bill was introduced by Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, on July 18 and approved by the House Homeland Security committee on July 24. It now awaits consideration by the full House.
Senate Bill Would Create State Department Cyber-Digital Economy Office
A bill introduced in the Senate this week–the Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act–includes a provision that would create an Office of Cyberspace and the Digital Economy in the State Department. The office would lead diplomatic efforts related to international cybersecurity, internet access, internet freedom, the digital economy, cybercrime, deterrence and responses to cyber threats. The legislation is sponsored by Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Bob Menendez, D-N.J., among others, and would increase economic, political, and diplomatic pressure on the Russian government, and includes other pieces of legislation introduced earlier this week including the International Cybercrime Prevention Act and the Defending the Integrity of Voting Systems Act.
GDIT Awarded $3.9 Billion Contract From DoD
General Dynamics announced Thursday that it won a $3.9 billion dollar, 5-year contract with the U.S. Army Contracting command under the Common Hardware Systems-5 Program. The contract includes worldwide support services and logistics. “The CHS program is a great example of how the Army and industry can partner to ensure military services can rapidly acquire C4ISR (Command, Control, Communications, Computers for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition, and Reconnaissance) solutions and other products that are not only cost-competitive with the commercial market, but logistically managed and supported for an extended period,” said Chris Marzilli, president of General Dynamics Mission Systems.
TransUnion Adds Former CIA CIO to Government Advisory Board
Consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion announced today that it appointed Doug Wolfe to its Government Advisory Board. No stranger to the Federal sector, Wolfe had a 33 year stint with the CIA, serving as, among other roles, the agency’s associate deputy director of science and technology and CIO. After retiring from public service in 2017, Wolfe now oversees operations at BlackLynx, a firm that specializes in high-performance analytics and computing. “Doug Wolfe brings unmatched expertise stemming from his leadership roles in implementing technology strategies at the top level of Federal government, and we are very pleased to have him join TransUnion’s Government Advisory Board,” said Jonathan McDonald, executive vice president of TransUnion’s government information solutions business unit. “Doug’s deep knowledge is invaluable in providing us with additional insight into how to better help the public sector tackle fraud, data breaches, and risk management.”
