Seven federal agencies band together to form new ‘Climate Corps’

• The Defense Department inspector general has substantiated multiple allegations of misconduct by a former high-ranking DoD official. In a report released Tuesday, the DoD IG concluded William Lietzau sexually harassed a subordinate employee when Lietzau was serving as director of the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA). The IG also found Lietzau misused his position by providing security clearance updates to a family friend and likely violated the Hatch Act by sharing political views using his governmental email. Lietzau disputed many of the IG’s conclusions. He retired as director of DCSA in October.
  (IG finds former DCSA director sexually harassed employee, misused his position - Federal News Network)
• Almost three years into the Biden administration, the Navy finally has an acquisition chief. The Senate confirmed Nickolas Guertin to serve as the Navy’s assistant secretary for research, development and acquisition. Guertin’s confirmation hearing took place in March, six months after the White House announced its plans to nominate him for the Navy’s acquisition executive position. Guertin has an extensive four decade combined military and civilian career, including his work at Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute performing applied research for government in software-reliant and cyber-physical systems. Guertin has been serving as the Defense Department's director of operational test and evaluation since December 2021.
  (Nickolas Guertin confirmed as Navy’s acquisition chief - Congress.gov)
• The Senate has approved a new leader for the National Security Agency and U.S. Cyber Command. President Biden first nominated Lt. Gen. Timothy Haugh to be the next NSA director and commander of U.S. Cyber Command in May. The Senate finally confirmed him, along with several other nominees, in a voice vote yesterday. The vote comes with a promotion to the rank of general. Up until now, Haugh has served as the deputy commander at CYBERCOM. Before that, he commanded the 16th Air Force, that service’s component of Cyber Command.
  (Senate confirms new NSA director, CYBERCOM commander - U.S. Senate)
• The Army is expanding the rollout of its new platform designed to streamline the contract writing process. About 400 additional users across a dozen states and outside of the continental United States are getting the new Army Contract Writing System. Since the platform's initial rollout in August, the Army’s procurement workforce has issued 123 contract awards totaling $41 million through the new system. Next year the Army plans to add 2,000 users from Army National Guard and Army Contracting Command sites that receive purchase requisitions through the General Fund Enterprise Business System. The new system will eventually replace the Standard Procurement System and the Procurement Automated Data and Document System.
  (Army expands rollout of its new contract writing platform - Army PEO EIS)

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• Seven federal agencies are banding together into the Biden Administration’s “Climate Corps.” That is the White House initiative that aims to create new jobs and training programs in areas of the economy that have a hand in clean energy and conservation. In a new memorandum of understanding, the departments of Commerce, Labor, Energy, Interior and Agriculture, along with the Environmental Protection Agency and AmeriCorps, have agreed to take the first steps to lead the effort. The White House said it plans a series of listening sessions starting next month to begin recruiting other participants.
  (Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Agreement Between Seven Federal Agencies To Implement The American Climate Corps  - Environmental Protection Agency)
• Federal agencies have a lot of discretion to create regulations that lawmakers aren’t always happy with. One answer might be a dedicated office within the legislative branch to take a second look at those rules. That is one option the Government Accountability Office suggests as part of a new report on how Congress might tackle regulatory review issues. Another option is to revive the idea of an Office of Legal Counsel that could argue for the legislative branch’s prerogatives.
  (Options for Enhancing Congressional Oversight of Rulemaking and Establishing an Office of Legal Counsel - Government Accountability Office)
• The Federal Emergency Management Agency is looking to fill a key technology position. FEMA is seeking applicants for a “product and customer experience director” in the Office of the Chief Information Officer. The person hired for the job will lead a cross-functional team charged with developing critical digital services. FEMA is considered a high-impact service provider under the Biden administration’s customer experience push. The agency is redesigning many of its digital services, including its disaster assistance applications.
  (FEMA job posting for “Product and Customer Experience Director” - USAJobs)

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