Rising military suicide rates continue on worrying trend

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• The Department of Defense sees disturbing new figures in military suicide rates. The Pentagon recorded a 15% increase in military suicides in 2020 compared to the previous year. Last year, 580 soldiers committed suicide. The military is having a particularly difficult time with the issue. We have seen suicides increase every year for the past five years. Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth said in response that the service’s goal is to give soldiers the help they need and make it readily available. Some experts have pointed out that isolation during the pandemic was a factor in increasing the general suicide rate.
• Congress hit perhaps one of the easiest items on yesterday’s to-do list: avoiding a government shutdown. The House and Senate have both passed a nine-week rolling resolution that will keep the agencies in operation until December 9. The Senate authorized the RC with bipartisan support. And President Joe Biden signed it in with a few hours to spare before the midnight deadline. The RC includes more than $ 28 billion in disaster relief funds and nearly $ 7 billion for Afghan resettlement efforts. Congress has yet to find a way to raise or suspend the debt ceiling before mid-October. (Federal Information Network)

• The house has passed legislation to create a new set of jobs in software and data. Under the bill, the Office of Personnel Management has 270 days from enactment to create one or more professional series covering federal positions in software development, software engineering, data science and engineering. Data managment. The legislation was originally introduced in May by Representative Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.) And was passed overwhelmingly with a vote of 416 to 9.

• An updated software framework is available for agencies and other organizations looking to comply with the mandates of President Joe Biden’s cybersecurity executive order. The National Institute of Standards and Technology released version 1.1 of the Secure Software Development Framework this week. The guidelines refer to various clauses in the decree setting out how agencies and contractors should develop software securely. NIST is also seeking comments for inclusion in its next update of the framework.

• Post offices are affected by natural disasters. Natural disasters in recent years have damaged more than 1,000 postal service facilities and cost the agency more than $ 30 million in repairs. Hurricane Maria claimed the most lives, causing nearly $ 15 million in damage at 43 sites. The Government Accountability Office said more than a third of USPS facilities are in natural disaster risk areas. Flooding, wildfires, storm surges, and sea level rise are just a few of the threats USPS properties face.

• Lawyers for federal contractors are still wondering about the mandate of vaccines. Federal contractors must show proof of vaccination by December 8, but the Safer Federal Workforce Taskforce’s advice on implementation has been broad, leaving lawyers for contractors wondering how to advise their clients as advice evolves. . The entrepreneurs are waiting for the Federal Acquisitions Regulatory Council to issue a regulatory clause to further clarify how to move forward. The vaccines mandate follows more complex compliance challenges that the contracting community has seen in recent years, including the ban on Chinese telecommunications equipment.

• The Department of Homeland Security is stepping up efforts to communicate with employees about the vaccine. DHS officials said 64% of the department’s workforce were vaccinated. Assistant Deputy Secretary for Management Randolph “Tex” Alles. “We want to encourage them. We certainly don’t want to lose employees because of the vaccinations. This is our starting point as we work. Real communication with them and the provision of vaccines is a critical part of this effort. All federal employees have until Nov. 22 to be fully immunized as part of the Biden administration’s mandate. (Federal Information Network)

• The Aviation is on the cusp of fulfilling its mandate that all aviators on active duty get vaccinated against COVID-19. Ninety-four percent of airmen have received at least one injection and 75% are fully immunized. The Defense Ministry said in August it would demand that all military personnel be shot. The Air Force then set the standard that all active-duty Airmen must be fully immunized by November 2. The Reserve and the Air Guard have until December.

• A little over a year after the start of the proof of concept of the electronic marketplace platform, the General Service Administration has still not fully identified its indicators of success. A new report from the Government Accountability Office found that the GSA needs to establish a comprehensive plan that outlines goals and timeframes for each action. Auditors say this will better position the GSA to measure whether the program is being implemented successfully or whether the program needs to be changed before it is finally rolled out government-wide, as is the current plan. Additionally, the GAO says the GSA needs to take additional steps to ensure that the three portal providers are doing enough to protect federal data.

• The General Services Administration helps federal buildings save money by installing solar panels. His Inspector General found that the agency’s solar panel pilot saved the federal government $ 330,000 in energy costs between 2018 and 2020. But the IG said the GSA could do a better job selecting sites for the pilot. He found that the GSA was paying more for electricity at two solar-powered sites than what local utility companies would have charged. The GSA pilot is focused on its Pacific Rim region which covers California, Nevada, Arizona and Hawaii.

• Four agencies and six projects won the first installment of money from the $ 1 billion Technological Modernization Fund account. GSA, OPM, Education, DHS and a classifieds agency crossed the finish line to win over $ 311 million from the Technology Modernization Fund. Out of more than 100 proposals received by TMF’s board of directors, these seven were chosen as ready to receive an influx of money to accelerate their modernization efforts. GSA received three awards for a zero trust initiative, for extending Login.gov, and for modernizing the MAX.gov website. OPM and the Education Department also won awards for Zero Trust implementations. DHS received funding for technology to protect the southwest border. (Federal Information Network)