Monday federal headlines – November 23, 2015

The Federal Headlines is a daily compilation of the stories you hear discussed on the Federal Drive.

• The Defense Department has met the interoperability requirements for electronic health records called for by the NDAA for 2014. The NDAA required all data in DoD’s Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application outpatient system be shared in compliance with existing national standards. Frank Kendall, under secretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, said DoD exceeded NDAA requirements by integrating data from other systems. (DoD)

• The Government Accountability Office is urging DARPA to perform regular assessments on the Defense Department’s efforts to move innovations from the experimental phase into acquisition and development stages. GAO made the recommendation in a report last week, showing inconsistencies in how DARPA evaluates outcomes of technology transition programs at the department. It also said DARPA program managers have limited training on migration of new technology from the laboratory to the hands of warfighters. (GAO)

• The Federal Aviation Administration may be ready to release its interim final rule on registering small drone operators as soon as next month. This is after receiving recommendations Saturday from its newly created task force charged with creating a streamlined registration process. FAA Administrator Michael Huearta said he and his team will work quickly and flexibly to move toward the next steps for registration. (FAA)

• NASA has secured partnerships with 22 U.S. companies to encourage the development of critical space technologies. NASA’s space technology mission directorate selected nine companies to mature technologies beyond their “tipping point,” with the goal of allowing private industry to development them for market. The agency is partnering with 13 other companies to provide technical expertise and test facilities to aid industry partners in maturing other key space technologies. (NASA)

• The Veterans Affairs Department demoted two of its regional office directors. Kimberly Graves ran the St. Paul, Minnesota office and Diana Rubens ran the Philadelphia office. They’re both accused of manipulating the hiring system to get a bigger paycheck. Both refused to testify before Congress about those allegations at a hearing earlier this month. The VA said Rubens will be the assistant director of Veterans Benefits Administration’s Houston regional office. Graves will be the assistant director of the Phoenix office. (Federal News Radio)

• An annual report for the Homeland Security Department inspector general laid out the department’s top nine challenges in 2015. Better acquisition, financial aid and IT management are among them, along with disaster preparedness and response. Critics of the report, however, said its findings lack context since it viewed the department as a whole, rather than focusing on problems facing the department’s 22 component agencies. (Federal News Radio)

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