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Archived Government Notes
Published in 2020
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Boeing and US Space Force Developing Advanced Communication Satellites
by david szondy
Boeing and the US Space Force have completed the first major engineering design review of a new generation of military communication satellites. Being developed by the United States Department of Defense, Canadian Department of National Defence, and the Australian Department of Defence, the Wideband Global SATCOM (WGS)-11+ communications satellite now goes on to its final system design phase before Boeing begins production in 2024.
The WGS is one example of how space is becoming, in many ways, the battleground of the future. Not in the sense of flashing laser beams and satellites exploding (although there is that unpleasant possibility), but in how the major military powers and alliances are becoming increasingly dependent on space-based technology for communications, reconnaissance, intelligence gathering, weather monitoring, and much more. As a result, a space arms race is as much a matter of capturing the communications high ground as it is about war fighting.
Read full story at NewAtlas…
first published week of: 11/09/2020
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California AGs Seek Injunction 'to Force Uber and Lyft to Play by the Rules'
by Bryan Menegus
It’s been a long road to regulation for Uber and Lyft in their home state of California, but it may be coming to an equitable end—one that would see their massive workforce of driver-contractors finally given legal employee status.
State AG Xavier Becerra, along with the Attorneys General of Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego announced in a press release this afternoon their intention to file an injunction against the transportation companies to “immediately halt the unlawful misclassification of their drivers as independent contractors.” The injunction itself is expected to become public tomorrow, though it’s unclear if it will be granted.
“Misclassifying your workers as ‘consultants’ or ‘independent contractors’ simply means you want your workers or taxpayers to foot the bill for obligations you have as an employer,” Becerra wrote. “That’s not the way to do business in California. We’re seeking a court order to force Uber and Lyft to play by the rules.”
The rules, in this case, being the landmark Dynamex decision made by the state’s highest court over two year ago, as well as Assembly Bill 5, which entrenched that court ruling into state law. AB5 passed last September and came into effect on January 1, but gig economy companies such as Lyft and Uber have thus far flaunted the new restrictions.
Read full story at Gizmodo…
first published week of: 06/29/2020
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California Innovation Office Opens Search for CIO
by Dennis Noone
This position oversees the planning and administration of IT as well as other elements of the Government Operations Agency, the job posting says.
The Office of Digital Innovation (ODI), part of the California Government Operations Agency, is recruiting for a chief information officer.
“The person will lead the work to build out and maintain a resilient and secure technical infrastructure and digital tools for our team,” said JP Petrucione, communications lead for the Office of Innovation. “Like the rest of ODI, they will bring both experience and a passion for learning and experimenting to help us all serve Californians better.”
The position, which has a job classification of IT Manager I, oversees the planning and administration of IT, including “technology and telecommunications systems, policies and programs, including but not limited to Networking and Connectivity, Information Security, Software, Endpoints (e.g., laptops and smartphones) Management, and Digital Services for ODI” and other elements of the Government Operations Agency (GovOps), the job posting says.
Read full story at GT…
first published week of: 11/02/2020
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California Privacy Law Hits Big Tech, Enforcement Uncertain
by Los Angeles Times Staff
"Do not sell my information" links popped up on websites New Year's Day as companies scrambled to comply with California's sweeping new consumer privacy protection law, which allows customers to instruct businesses to not sell their personal information.
The announcements were required as part of the California Consumer Privacy Act, which went into effect Wednesday, just one part of the most powerful consumer privacy protection law of its kind in the United States.
Read full story at Government Tecnology…
first published week of: 01/06/2020
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Can Local Governments’ Cyber Flaws Be Fixed?
by stephanie kanowitz
With Nov. 3 fast approaching, city and county officials recognize the importance of securing elections, while struggling to ensure they can, an expert says.
“Everybody is so resource-constrained right now,” said Mike Hamilton, chief information security officer at CI Security, a cybersecurity firm specializing in protecting local governments. “Budgets are tightening, people are losing staff…. For the most part, the larger ones are in better shape financially, but there are a lot of counties in the United States, and as things are contracting, they have even less access to qualified people that know how to deal with security.”
Support is available from the federal government, but it’s not enough, he said. For instance, the Homeland Security Department’s Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC) provides real-time network monitoring, threat analysis and early-warning notifications through a round-the-clock security operations center. Similarly, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) offers free Cyber Resilience Reviews to assess enterprise programs and practices across 10 domains, including risk and incident management. But if a locality lacks a security point person, that assistance could be moot.
Read full story at GCN…
first published week of: 09/21/2020
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City Builds Open-Access High-Speed Internet to Residents With Google Fiber
by Google Fober
Thank you, West Des Moines!
Google Fiber’s mission is to help all communities — big, small, urban, rural, and everywhere in between — get access to internet that’s fast, reliable, fairly priced and open. Today, we’re taking the next step on our journey, working with the city of West Des Moines, Iowa, to bring gigabit internet to their residents and businesses.
West Des Moines is a city with a long-term technology vision. In 2016, it established a Strategic Plan, laying out a future where everyone in the City has access to fast and affordable internet. Tonight, the City Council approved a measure for the city to build an open conduit network to help realize this goal. Google Fiber is excited to be the first tenant — and first city-wide internet service provider — on that network, to help serve homes and businesses in the City with gigabit internet, and to foster new competition in the market. West Des Moines residents who are interested in learning more can sign up on our website for updates on the project and service availability.Tonight’s announcement not only marks an exciting step forward for the people of West Des Moines and Google Fiber, but it demonstrates the innovative power of public and private sector collaboration, showcasing what each party — a city and a company — does best.
Read full story at Google Fiber Blog…
first published week of: 07/13/2020
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Colorado IT Office Names New Chief Strategy Officer
by GovTech Staff
The position within the Office of Information Technology, which focuses on product management, business architecture and communications, has been vacant since the state's last strategy officer stepped down in 2016.
The state of Colorado's Office of Information Technology (OIT) has hired Julia Richman as its new chief strategy officer.
The position will focus on the convergence of strategy, product management, business architecture, as well as marketing and communications, Richman told Government Technology.
Richman, whose first day in the role was Monday, has spent the last two years working for the city of Boulder, Colo., where she started as its chief innovation and analytics officer, before being promoted to chief technology officer.
Working with the city helped prepare her for her work at OIT, she said, because of the focus on modernization and leadership where it came to service delivery — from back-end infrastructure to front-end customer service.
Read full story at GovTech…
first published week of: 02/10/2020
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Colorado Taps Former Oregon CIO as Chief Technology Officer
by Jed Pressgrove
Pettit, a familiar figure in the government IT space over the last 20 years, is now Colorado's CTO. He comes to the position after a search to replace David McCurdy, who left the role in October last year
Colorado has chosen Alex Pettit, former CIO of Oregon and Oklahoma, as its new chief technology officer.
Pettit comes to the position within the Colorado Governor’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) at a time when the state seeks to utilize more emerging tech. The press release announcing his appointment mentions that Pettit will “guide further enhancements” related to blockchain and artificial intelligence, among other technologies.
“Alex brings a wealth of knowledge to the state of Colorado as a veteran technology expert in both the public and private sectors,” said CIO and OIT Executive Director Theresa Szczurek in the release.
After joking about getting used to the altitude and dry climate of Colorado, Pettit was humble when asked about what he planned to do in his new role as state CTO, saying he is “blessed” to be back in public service after a short absence and that he would act as a “sponge for quite some time” given all of the state’s ambitious tech initiatives.
Read full story at Govtech…
first published week of: 01/20/2020
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Commission Put Out a 200-Page Guide for US Cybersecurity: Here Are 3 Takeaways
by Samantha Ann Schwartz
The Cyberspace Solarium Commission spent a year analyzing how industry and government could work together to enhance cybersecurity. Will it make a difference?
f commission's cyber recommendations are adoptable for the public and private sectors in the U.S., but it has no intention of "tearing down the system wholesale," said Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wisconsin, and co-chair of the commission, while speaking at the report's release Wednesday.
Read full story at CIODive…
first published week of: 03/30/2020
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Con Man Gets 7 Years for $4.4M Government Intelligence Scam
by rich griset
Former DEA spokesperson Garrison Courtney posed as CIA officer to cheat federal contractors
A former Drug Enforcement Administration spokesperson was sentenced to seven years in federal prison on Wednesday for defrauding at least a dozen companies of more than $4 million while pretending to be a covert officer of the Central Intelligence Agency.
In June, Garrison Kenneth Courtney, 44, of Florida, entered a guilty plea in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria for wire fraud. He faced a maximum sentence of 20 years.
According to court documents filed by federal prosecutors, from roughly 2012 through 2016, Courtney claimed to be a member of the CIA involved in a classified program or task force. As explained by Courtney, the classified program would work with private companies to provide goods and services to governmental defense and intelligence agencies.
Read full story at Virginia Business…
first published week of: 11/02/2020