Tuesday federal headlines – August 4, 2015

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive and In Depth radio shows. Our headlines are updated twice per day — once in the morning and once in the afternoon — with the latest news affecting federal employees and contractors.

• There’s a new leader at the helm of the intelligence community’s research arm. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper has named Jason Matheny to lead IARPA, the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity. Matheny has overseen research at IARPA’s Anticipating Surprise office. It works to create better forecasts of national security-related events. Traditionally, those forecasts have been based on human judgement. IARPA has focused on developing technology to make those predictions. Matheny holds advanced degrees in applied economics, public health and an MBA. Before joining IARPA, he founded a nonprofit focused on producing in-vitro meat as a sustainable food alternative. (IARPA)

• The council that represents federal inspectors general is lobbying Congress for a new law. It says legislation is needed to reaffirm IG’s independence from their parent agencies and to make sure they get all the information and data they need to do their work. The Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency represents 72 inspectors general. It has sent a letter to two key congressional committees to press its point. Last month, the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion restricting the Justice IG’s ability to get grand jury, wiretap and credit information. The opinion said the agency should decide what the IG should get and what should be off limits. (IGNet.gov)

• If you’ve waited until now to buy long-term care insurance through the government, you’ll have to shell out much more for your premiums. They’ve gone up 30 percent on average. The increase varies by age group. It does not apply to those who purchased coverage before Aug. 1, according to Long Term Care partners, the company that runs the federal program. Federal and postal workers already covered by the federal LTC program will not see any premium hike.

• The Homeland Security Department opposes a cybersecurity bill being debated in the Senate this week. The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act lets companies share information about cyber with any agency. DHS Deputy Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said that undermines his department’s role as the key go-between. In a letter to Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), an opponent of the bill, Mayorkas said the bill’s emphasis on real-time information sharing could ‘sweep away important privacy protections.’ DHS oversees the N-kick, a coordination center that brings together cybersecurity experts from different agencies and the private sector. (Sen. Al Franken/Senate Republican Policy Committee)

• The Navy is easing its rules on body fat. Vice Adm. Bill Moran, the chief of naval personnel, said he’s heard sailors’ complaints about the body composition assessment that is part of their twice-yearly physical fitness exams. He told Navy Times the service is shifting toward a fitness culture that emphasizes health and readiness. Come this fall, failing the body-composition assessment won’t mean failing the fitness exam. Sailors can continue with the exercise part of the test. They will have to take remedial fitness and nutrition courses. Those who are about to be kicked out of the Navy for failing the body-composition portion multiple times can now appeal to their commanding officers for a reprieve. If they can do the required running, sit-ups and push-ups, they can stay in. More than 6,700 sailors could be affected, the Times reports. (Navy Times)

• Following the hack of Office of Personnel Management databases, tech-industry experts are recommending dozens of steps the government should take to improve cybersecurity. The IT Alliance for Public Sector breaks down its suggestions in five categories: Cyber management, short-term improvements, collaboration across the public and private sectors, cyber crisis response, and responsibility and accountability. ITAPS said the government must act boldly and alter its overall culture and approach. The ITAPS task force represents 20 companies including Adobe, Microsoft, Symantec and Lockheed Martin. (ITIC)

• The U.S. military is using a southern Turkish base to launch armed aircraft over Syria. The Washington Post reports the military previously had been restricted to surveillance flights only. Now it has launched armed drones. Soon pilots will begin armed flights from the base. That could increase the time they spend in Syrian airspace, either collecting intelligence or launching weapons. Turkey recently agreed to expand cooperation with the United States in the fight against Islamic State militants. (Washington Post)

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