CHIPS for America has launched a beta version of METIS designed to enable stakeholders to access research results of projects under the CHIPS Metrology program and help accelerate breakthroughs in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology said Thursday METIS, which stands for the Metrology Exchange to Innovate in Semiconductors, seeks to facilitate the exchange of data, models and other products to help transition microelectronics research to the marketplace.
According to NIST, the projects under the CHIPS Metrology program are aligned with seven grand challenges, including Metrology for Materials Purity, Properties and Provenance and Advanced Metrology for Future Microelectronics Manufacturing.
To date, CHIPS for America has distributed over $190 million in funding across 40 projects to help build new measurement instruments and measurement-informed simulations and models to advance the design and production of advanced microelectronics systems.
The awardees will conduct studies to develop tools and technologies to mitigate cyber, physical and natural threats to the energy sector, the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security and Emergency Response announced on Sept. 27.
The selected projects and their leads are:
Brigham Young University’s quantum-based technology for enhanced distributed energy resource—or DER—communications within a zero-trust architecture
New York University’s enhanced physical security monitoring systems at substations using fiber-optics sensing technology
North Carolina A&T State University’s cyber-physical platform that simulates large-scale electric power grid with multiple DERs
Operant Networks’ use of zero-trust architecture to integrate security and access control across energy systems
SUNY Research Foundation’s fire spread prediction model and situational awareness system for critical energy assets and infrastructure
Southern California Edison’s technologies that enable DER to operate while mitigating cyber threats
Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station’s two climate-based projects, including the use of engineering software tools to prepare the electric grid for extreme weather, and the use of machine learning programming to detect failing devices and prevent fire
Texas A&M University’s integration of light, camera and siren systems into the GDI Gun Detection System to harden substation infrastructure
University of North Dakota’s use of sensors, machine learning algorithms and data systems to detect and respond to physical and climate-based threats to substations
Puesh Kumar, director of CESER, noting that the DOE is making strategic investments to secure energy systems, said “This work is accomplished through robust partnerships with academia, industry and technology companies. We know it will take the best and brightest to fully realize a secure and resilient energy future for all Americans, and the funding we are announcing today is a significant step toward that goal.”
Forty-eight Centers for Disease Control and Prevention public health partners are set to receive $176 million for the first year of a 5-year-cycle under the National Partners Cooperative Agreement, a funding mechanism that seeks to finance organizations with the ability to support the needs of the public health infrastructure and workforce.
Using the funds, the health partners will work to bolster the ability of various agencies and organizations to deliver services to bring about positive health outcomes, the CDC said Wednesday.
For CDC Director Mandy Cohen, the financial support being provided through the National Partners CoAg demonstrates her agency’s commitment to building a public health system that is strong and resilient.
Regarding public health partners, Cohen said they are “critical to building trust with communities and providing the essential services and capacity needed to face health threats.”
For her part, CDC Public Health Infrastructure Center Director Leslie Ann Dauphin said the funding awards “will help build a strong public health infrastructure with enhanced ability to detect and control diseases, promote healthy lifestyles, and provide essential healthcare services to all communities.”
Seven months after it delivered 60-plus recommendations to the Department of Agriculture earlier this year, the agency’s Equity Commission held a final convening with the department on Wednesday.
The commission launched in 2022 to help the department try to address historical discrimination in American agriculture by rooting out internal practices that perpetuate disparities.
U.S. agricultural policies excluded farmworkers from benefits, displaced Black farmers and more. Media analyses have also found that, even in recent years, farmers of color have been rejected by the agency for loans more than white farmers.
Now, “there’s a lot of reason to have faith,” Arturo Rodríguez, commission co-chair, told the audience at USDA’s headquarters last week. He’s president emeritus of the United Farm Workers, where he worked for decades, including as its president.
USDA has “made huge strides at trying to begin to implement many of the different issues that we’ve discussed… and also [trying] to position the department in such a way that it’s integrated into the work that they do,” he told Nextgov/FCW.
This year, the department and commission have fielded eight equity convenings nationwide, Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Xochitl Torres Small said at the event.
“We’ve transformed the loan process to make it easier for farmers and ranchers,” she said. “Whether that’s access to online applications, or being able to finally pay your loan payments online, or whether it’s a rule that goes into effect today to help lower the cost — the collateral that’s required to get into a loan — make payments more flexible and also provide for up to one deferred payment a year.”
The department also launched new summer grocery benefits for certain children and families, said Torres Small, and distributed payments to over 43,000 people who the department discriminated against in its farm lending programs before 2021.
The latter came after courts blocked a previous, race-targeted debt relief program created by a COVID-relief package. White farmers sued, claiming that it was racially discriminatory, per CNN. Lawmakers created the race-neutral program under the Inflation Reduction Act.
That’s not the only corporate or government program that’s been subject to pushback against diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Last year, the Supreme Court banned race-based affirmative action in higher education.
Torres Small told Nextgov/FCW “that’s a key reason why it’s important to show that the proof is in the pudding” when asked about these trends.
“When it comes to the work that we’ve been able to achieve,” she said, “it truly is benefiting everyone.”
Agriculture isn’t the only government agency pursuing this type of work. The Biden administration has touted its executive orders focused on equity and subsequent equity-focused plans across federal agencies.
“It would be naive to suggest that there are not those who would like to dismantle any effort for inclusion,” Ertharin Cousin — chair and CEO of Food Systems for the Future and commission co-chair — told Nextgov/FCW.
The work, she said, “is about ensuring that every stakeholder that can benefit from the support and services of this department receives equal access to that opportunity.”
Torres Small said the department is prioritizing changes with the greatest impact. Whether or not Congressional action is required is also a factor in how the department is implementing recommendations, she said.
Internally, removing barriers that prevent people from accessing programs requires work.
“So we know maybe this application is too long, for example, but then we’ve got to go through and identify every place where we think maybe this information isn’t really necessary that we’re asking for,” explained Torres Small. “Why are we asking it in the first place? Is it that the statute requires us to ask it? Okay, we’ve got to keep it in. Is it that there was an audit a few years back that said we needed to have this information for some reason? Or was it just something that someone thought was a good idea?”
Prioritizing technical assistance via partners on the ground who can help applicants get Agriculture’s programs is also a key priority moving forward, she said.
“This work is not over. This work cannot be over,” Dewayne Goldmon, senior advisor for racial equity at the department, said Wednesday. “This work has to continue.”
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has launched a new program seeking to automatically translate obligations, permissions and prohibitions, known as deontic concepts, into logical programming language.
The project will develop innovative techniques for translating natural human language into a language form that artificial intelligence can readily process, according to CODORD Program Manager Benjamin Grosof.
CODORD will accelerate the transmission of deontic knowledge so AI researchers can take advantage of advances in large language models and logical programming languages, Grosof added.
DARPA projects that CODORD could enable automated and accurate deontic reasoning to support AI applications that comply with command orders, regulations, laws, operational policies, ethics and contracts.
The capabilities produced under the program are expected to advance military and civilian use cases, the agency noted.
Col. Robert Gerbracht, special assistant to the DARPA Director, said CODORD would assure commanders that an AI will transmit directives or intents “within the ethical, legal and moral guidelines.”
DARPA will hold a proposers day for the program on Oct. 8 and will publish a full solicitation on the effort in the weeks ahead.
The National Academy of Public Administration on Monday announced that it selected James-Christian B. Blockwood as its next president and chief executive officer.
Blockwood most recently served as executive vice president of the Partnership for Public Service, where he oversaw the nonpartisan good government group’s strategy and management. He will succeed Terry Gerton, who has been the president and CEO of the nonpartisan nonprofit since 2017, its longest-serving leader.
Gerton, only the second woman to lead NAPA full-time, announced in March that she would step down from the role in 2025.
“In our search for our next president and CEO, the board of the Academy was looking for a combination of broad and deep experience in public administration, outstanding leadership skills and a demonstrated commitment to the Academy’s unique role and mission,” said Academy Board Chair Janet A. Weiss in a statement. “Terry Gerton has been an extraordinary leader for the Academy and in James-Christian Blockwood we have identified a leader we believe will build on Terry’s legacy, the reputation of the Academy and our capacities for the future.”
Blockwood also has worked in the Government Accountability Office and the departments of Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs. He is an adjunct professor at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.
Notably, Blockwood is a NAPA fellow. The Academy hosts 1,000 individuals from government, academia and the private sector who advise lawmakers and leaders on public administration.
“It was an honor to be elected a fellow of the Academy nearly ten years ago, and now a privilege to have the confidence of the board of directors to lead the Academy into its next era — especially with the Academy’s 60th and our nation’s 250th anniversaries as milestones ahead,” Blockwood said in a statement. “I am proud to have the opportunity to work with our extraordinary fellows and the entire Academy staff.”
Congress chartered NAPA in 1967 to provide nonpartisan expertise to the legislative branch, federal agencies as well as state, local and international entities.
The National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service said Friday the contract that NOAA awarded on Sept. 10, aims to investigate the disruptions of RF bands used by Earth observation satellites.
JPL is responsible for detecting, identifying and characterizing harmful emissions interfering with a passive band. It is expected to provide possible measures to mitigate or reduce the impact of these issues.
The center will assess the risks, processes and modifications necessary to implement enhanced passive remote sensing globally. It will also develop methods and evaluate resources needed for the mitigation strategies.
Increasing RF emissions from congested band sources, including private satellites and advanced wireless services, can corrupt data from Earth’s satellites that are vital for weather forecasting.
The contract, a Joint Venture Partnerships broad agency announcement, is intended for research purposes. There are no current plans for an RFI detection or mitigation satellite mission.
The Office of Systems Architecture and Engineering’s Joint Venture Partnerships program, operated by NOAA’s National Environmental Satellite, Data and Information Service, is managing the contract.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has “very high confidence” that it can complete its digital GI Bill platform by mid-2026 without needing to expend further additional funds on the project, a VA official said on Thursday, despite a recent watchdog report finding that the modernization initiative has already been beset by significant cost overruns.
The Veterans Benefits Administration signed a $453 million contract with Accenture Federal Services in March 2021 to develop and implement a modernized IT platform to enhance the processing of veterans’ education-related claims. The agency expected the new platform to be operational by April 2024.
A report released by VA’s Office of Inspector General last month found that “insufficient planning” on the part of VBA “led to significant delays and contributed to about $479 million in additional costs.” The platform’s release has been pushed back to July 2026.
VA officials said during a House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity hearing that they believed the digital GI Bill platform deployment was back on track.
“Our confidence level in reaching our goals, according to the current project milestones, is extremely high” VA Deputy Undersecretary for Policy and Oversight Ron Burke said.
When asked to estimate the likelihood that the department would be able to complete the project on time without the need for additional funding, he pegged that figure at 80%Other VA officials accompanying him at the hearing agreed with his estimate.
OIG’s report cited unclear and unrealistic expectations in the initial contract as a major factor in the project’s setbacks, and Burke said the department has taken the necessary steps to remedy these problems. The cost of the original contract increased to $532 million before VBA renegotiated the agreement in December 2023 to account for changes in the platform’s needs.
“VA acknowledges the true complexity of the modernization vision was not apparent at the start of the original contract,” he said, adding that the department “has made the course corrections necessary to meet the modernization objectives.”
Rep. Mike Levin, D-Calif. — the subcommittee’s ranking member — told Burke “I am hopeful that your 80% confidence interval will increase rather than decrease,” although he also warned that “80% isn’t good enough for me.”
Lawmakers and witnesses also said issues with the GI Bill platform’s deployment were part of a pattern of troubled IT modernization projects across the department. VA’s rollout of a modernized electronic health record system, for instance, has been similarly bogged down by delays and cost overruns. The department has paused implementations of the new EHR system to prioritize technical fixes at the VA medical facilities using the software.
Nicholas Dahl, deputy assistant inspector general for management and administration with VA’s OIG, said “the identified contract planning and management deficiencies are similar to those identified in other VA IT modernization projects.”
Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis. — the subcommittee’s chairman — warned that VA is “batting zero for IT projects” and pressed Dahl as to whether or not he believed VA could complete the digital GI Bill platform by its new July 2026 deadline.
“VA does have a track record of difficulty in implementing major IT systems,” Dahl said. “They almost, without fail, take longer.”
The Network Coordination Hub will establish and operate regional nodes across the United States, where educational programs will be implemented, according to a notice released on Sam.gov Friday.
These nodes will offer instructional materials, experimental opportunities and teacher professional development programs to help train the semiconductor and microelectronics industry’s workforce.
The NSF will manage the Network Coordination Hub with the help of the DOC.
Interested vendors may submit their proposals by Oct.28, at 4 pm EDT. An information webinar will be held on Oct. 4 to discuss the hub and the application process.
Federal agencies have sent 3,600 employees to the Southeast and Appalachia in response to the devastating fallout from Hurricane Helene, a storm that has so far claimed more than 100 lives and left sweeping damage throughout the region.
At least eight agencies have sent personnel to 10 states as officials continue to engage in search and rescue operations and begin recovery efforts. After the number of residents without power peaked at 4.6 million after the hurricane hit last week, federal and local teams have cut the figure in half.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is leading the federal response and has 900 employees in affected areas. It is sending dozens of trailers with food and water to North Carolina, the state currently reeling the hardest from the storm’s wreckage. Cell phone service is unavailable in much of the western part of the state, and other areas, and FEMA is working with the Federal Communications Commission to set up mobile assets that can restore coverage.
President Biden on Monday promised that federal responders will remain present until “the job is done.”
“I’m here to tell every single survivor in these impacted areas that we will be there with you as long as it takes,” Biden said. Both he and Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to visit storm-damaged sites as soon as officials deem it no longer disruptive to do so.
FEMA said on Monday more Incident Management Assessment Teams, search and rescue teams and other personnel are en route to North Carolina, while Biden noted the number of federal personnel deployed to storm recovery efforts is “growing by the day.”
Twenty-four federal search and rescue teams are already in the region and have worked with state and local partners to assist more than 1,400 people. Biden said those efforts will continue until every person is accounted for. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is in the area providing power restoration, infrastructure assessment and debris removal.
The Environmental Protection Agency also has personnel on the ground working to provide technical assistance with debris management and water systems. The Agriculture Department’s Farm Service Agency sent staff to the region to provide emergency credit to those who lost crops and livestock.
The Health and Human Services Department’s Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response has sent 200 personnel to Florida, Georgia and North Carolina, where various teams are assessing the status of health care facilities or preparing to provide health care themselves.
Biden noted FEMA is working with the Small Business Administration to provide assistance to individuals whose homes or businesses “were literally destroyed, washed away or blown away.” The U.S. Postal Service is working to restore delivery and retail service in large swaths of Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida and South Carolina. The storm has also affected processing and transportation of mail and packages, USPS noted.
The federal government’s response to Helene is one of its first major tests after FEMA promised to take a new approach in 2024 that would focus on more prepositioning to reach victims more quickly. The agency said it would place both commodities and personnel just outside of impact zones before storms hit this year, allowing it to “jumpstart the recovery process.” It also comes as FEMA is fighting to make progress in a longstanding push for more staffing.
A Government Accountability Office report earlier this year found FEMA was 6,000 employees short of its staffing targets, forcing it to function at 65% of its operating capacity.
FEMA employees in recent years have deployed to natural disaster sites, wildfires, the U.S.-Mexico border, in support of the resettling of Afghan evacuees and for pandemic assistance. Employees have warned they are fatigued due to the lack of downtime between deployments and said burnout is spiking as they no longer experience a true offseason. GAO confirmed in its report that increased workloads have caused burnout to increase and attrition to jump.
Employees and GAO have said burnout at FEMA has increased since the pandemic and recruiting remains a challenge since most of its staff are reservists who only work part of the year. The benefit for those employees was commonly that they had months of break in between deployments, but increasingly the workers—particularly those with specialized skills—are being sent from one disaster to the next without any time off.
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell—who surveyed the damage in North Carolina on Monday—told Congress earlier this year she was optimistic her agency is better retaining its part-time workforce after Congress passed the Civilian Reservist Emergency Workforce Act to provide those employees who leave their day jobs to address disasters with the same protections as members of the armed forces deployed to active duty. She also said recruitment bonuses are helping to bring in more employees, as FEMA has been regularly onboarding new personnel every two weeks.
Jaclyn Rothenberg, a FEMA spokeswoman, said the agency can tap its cadre of federal employees at other components and agencies who volunteer to deploy to disaster sites when needed to ensure it maintains adequate staffing.
“FEMA has the ability to use the Surge Capacity Force across the federal government to help with response and recovery efforts,” Rothenberg said when asked about potential staffing concerns.
Congress created the force in the 2006 Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act and FEMA has activated it on limited occasions for hurricane response, as well as to address upticks in migrants arriving at the southern border and for COVID-19 response. It activated the federal workers last year in response to the wildfires in Hawaii and Hurricane Idalia.
While Biden vowed for the federal response to continue as long as necessary, he conceded such efforts will require emergency funding from Congress. He noted he may have to request lawmakers—who are currently on recess until after the Nov. 5 election—to come back for a special session to pass a supplemental disaster spending package, but no decision has been made on that front.
