The General Services Administration is pioneering human centered design in a number of areas. One of those areas in acquisition. Mike Shepherd is Director of the Catalog Management Office at GSA. At ELC 2023, I ask him about the state of the art in human-centered design in contracting.More than half of agencies have moved off legacy telecom contracts, onto the Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions contract. Agencies have a May 2024 deadline now to move to EIS or request an extension. Laura Stanton is Assistant Commissioner for the Office of the Information Technology Category at the Federal Acquisition Service at GSA. Her office is leading the EIS work for the agency. At ELC 2023, she says she has four priorities right now.The customer experience pillar of the President’s Management Agenda is driving a lot of activity in areas of CX that agencies haven’t thought about before. Beth Martin is a digital services expert at the Office of Personnel Management. After her panel discussion at ELC 2023, I asked her what misunderstandings she’s seen about CX efforts.

A reorg is complete inside the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration. The Commissioner of FAS, Sonny Hashmi, told you about it on the Nov. 1st Fed Gov Today podcast (if you missed it, you can listen on demand at FedGovToday.com). At ELC 2023, Laurie MacNamara, Chief Customer Officer at TTS within FAS, says the position TTS has, and she has within it, are unique.Agile development has taken over as the development method of choice for IT management projects in government. But the techniques of agile… aren’t limited to tech. At ELC 2023, Arianne Gallgher-Welcher, Executive Director for the Department of Agriculture Digital Service, says her team is applying agile concepts to change management too.The Federal CIO, Clare Martorana, says the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management are partnering to stock federal agencies with the people they need. At ELC 2023, I asked the Director of OPM, Kiran Ahuja, about OPM’s role in that partnership.

This Special Fed Gov Today podcast is sponsored by Verizon.The Labor Department’s customer experience efforts include its response to a major piece of legislation. The American Rescue Plan Act features several services the Labor Department provides. Lesley Sheffield, Senior IT Project Manager for ARPA Unemployment Insurance Modernization at Labor, details the path that Labor has taken to modernize the UI process, and the road ahead.The Internal Revenue Service has added more than 5,000 customer service representatives since the Inflation Reduction Act passed. Agencies like the IRS say they are looking at tools to make their CX efforts more efficient, in addition to more people power. Stephen Sopko, Managing Client Partner at Verizon, covers some of those tools, and how to apply them effectively.The Department of Homeland Security’s formal customer experience operation is still relatively new. The agency’s CIO, Eric Hysen, stood up the office officially in September. At ELC 2023, Dana Chisnell, Executive Director of Customer Experience at DHS, tells me leaders at her agency have made big commitments to CX.

The beginning of December will mark the one-year anniversary of Ann Lewis’s tenure as Deputy Commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration, and Director of GSA’s Technology Transformation Services. She followed Dave Zvenyach as TTS’s head; he left in August 2022. At ELC 2023, I ask Ann about her vision for TTS.The acquisition arm of the General Services Administration is doing a technology transformation like a lot of parts of the Federal government. Charlotte Phelan is Assistant Commissioner for Strategy and Innovation in the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration. She’s leading that transformation effort at FAS. At ELC 2023, I ask her how much of the transformation is similar to other organizations in government, and how much is unique to acquisition.The job of Chief Information Officer for the Office of the Secretary of Defense is a relatively new one inside the Pentagon. Danielle Metz took that job a little more than a year ago, and on the main stage at last year’s ELC, she told me about some of her objectives. At ELC 2023, she tells me what her office has accomplished in the past year.Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

The Air Force Research Laboratory has a new Chief Information Officer. Alexis Bonnell has served in government before, including as Chief Innovation Officer at the US Agency for International Development. At ELC 2023, I ask her about her priority list in her new job.The President’s Management Agenda includes a pillar on rebuilding the federal workforce. One element of that is a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. Isaac Hernandez is Senior Risk Advisor at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. He spoke on a panel at ELC 2023 on “DEIA and the Employee Experience.” At the conference, I ask him what message he wants people to take away from that panel.The new artificial intelligence Executive Order and the new draft guidance on updating FedRAMP are two of the newest items that will impact the Federal Acquisition Service at the General Services Administration. The Commissioner of FAS, Sonny Hashmi, spoke about those items and many others on the main stage at ELC 2023. After his remarks on stage, I asked him what his main message was.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, Nov 8th, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

The Navy is on the hunt for a new Principal Cyber Advisor. Chris Cleary’s tenure as PCA expires after three years. CDR Juliana Vida (USN), former Deputy Chief Information Officer of the Navy, details what makes a good PCA, and what makes a good relationship among the PCA, CIO, and CISO in a department.Chris Cleary on Fed Gov Today TVLeaders at the Office of Personnel Management say they’ll use data to drive decision making about the federal workforce. OPM’s working to give agencies data and tools to make workforce decisions, too. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, Robert Shea, Chief Executive Officer of GovNavigators, former Associate Director at the Office of Management and Budget, and former Commissioner on the Commission on Evidence-based Policymaking, explains why he thinks OPM is on a transformation journey.The Thrift Savings Plan is rolling out a new feature at TSP.gov. It’ll help you track loans from your account more easily. Kim Weaver, Director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, explains how the tracker works, and other features the TSP will debut in the future.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

10/24/23: A 3-pronged approach to solving cyber at sea; financial managers get a new tool in the toolboxThe Navy is celebrating a cyber anniversary. The service’s Cyberspace Superiority Vision document turns one year old this month. Chris Cleary is the Principal Cyber Advisor of the Navy. On the newest Fed Gov Today TV, he says the Vision has gotten a lot of uptake in the department over the past year.Financial management practitioners all across the government are finding new ways to use AI to drive mission and to manage agency budgets better. One FM leader says AI is a change management issue, not a technology issue. Vinay Singh is the Chief Financial Officer at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Joe Baptiste is Senior Manager for Technology Consulting at EY. They both were guests on the new Fed Gov Today special show “AI In Depth”. In this highlight of that show, Vinay explains why he believes A-I is a change management issue.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

Federal CIO Clare Martorana says AI will be an important part of the federal government’s Customer experience efforts. One of the agencies using AI to improve the experience of the people it serves is the Department of Veterans Affairs. Gil Alterovitz is Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer at the VA. Joe Boye is System Engineer for Palo Alto Networks. They both were guests on the new Fed Gov Today TV special, “AI In Depth”. In this highlight of that show, I ask them about success in serving agency customers, whether internal or external, with AI.A new task force is working on the generative AI challenge inside the Defense Department. Task Force Lima is part of the Chief Data and Artificial Intelligence Office at the Pentagon. Lt. Col. Pedro Ortiz of Task Force Lima tells me about the mission of the task force, and his role in that mission.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

Agencies across government are looking at use cases for artificial intelligence projects. Leaders say they’re trying to avoid forcing technology onto their challenges. Use cases for AI is only one of several topics you can learn about on the new Fed Gov Today special show “AI In Depth.” This highlight of that show features Dimitri Kusnezov, Under Secretary for Science and Technology at the Department of Homeland Security, and Dominic Delmolino, Vice President for Worldwide Public Sector Technology & Innovation at AWS.The Defense Department’s artificial intelligence efforts are coalescing around the DoD Data Strategy. Every part of the department is executing on that data strategy. Dan Folliard is the Chief Digital and AI Officer at U.S. Special Operations Command. In part two of this conversation, I ask him how much of the structure he’s building parallels the CDAO office at the Pentagon. Part one of this conversation is here.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

Three agencies have As on the new FITARA scorecard. And eight agencies have better grades on this scorecard than they did on the last one. David Powner, Executive Director of the Center for Data-Driven Policy at MITRE and former Director of IT Issues at the Government Accountability Office, reviews the new grades and changes to the scorecard; compares those changes to the ones an ACT-IAC all-star team (including Dave) has proposed; and what he thinks should come next for the scorecard.Four components make up an “artificial intelligence accountability framework” from the Government Accountability Office. Those four components include data; governance; performance; and monitoring. Taka Ariga, Chief Data Scientist and Director of the Innovation Lab at GAO, tells you how his team identified those components, and how end users should use the framework.The Defense Department’s artificial intelligence efforts are coalescing around the DoD Data Strategy. Every part of the department is executing on that data strategy. Dan Folliard, Chief Digital and AI Officer at U.S. Special Operations Command, details what he’s doing at SOCOM, and how he’s doing it; and how SOCOM is a microcosm of the broader Department of Defense.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

The continuing resolution Congress passed, and President Biden signed, puts the next shutdown deadline just before Thanksgiving. The current CR runs out November 17th. Margaret Weichert, former Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget, and Gordon Bitko, Executive Vice President for Public Sector at the Information Technology Industry Council and former Chief Information Officer at the FBI, discuss what federal government leaders should do between now and November 17th in case they’re in this spot again.The tax return backlog at the Internal Revenue Service cost more than $3 billion in interest taxpayers got because their refunds were late. That payment is just one consequence of the IRS’s transition to digital records. Bryce Kisler, Assistant Inspector General for Audit in the Office of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, explains what those roadblocks are, and how the agency can fix them.ServiceNow “Modern Logistics & Maintenance” event, October 25, 2023Appian Government event, November 29, 2023

This edition of Fed Gov Today is sponsored by Leidos. Today, the second episode of conversations from the Department of Veterans Affairs National Artificial Intelligence Institute’s International Summit for AI in Health Care, September 6-8 in Washington. First episode from TuesdayThe VA says it’s working toward a concept of trustworthy AI throughout its health care system. At the VA AI Summit, Dr. Michael Kim, Chief of Staff of the NAII, tells me it’s important that both health providers and patients trust the AI applications those providers use.VA leaders at the Summit, and through this interview series, have used the term “trustworthy AI” to describe what they’re seeking, and what they want their end users and patients to understand about the technology. VA is also exploring the digital twins concept that A-I will enable. Narasa Susarla, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Lead, and Chief Architect and Chief Engineer of the Health Group, at Leidos, explains the intersection between trustworthy AI and digital twins, and how digital twins will help you do your job better.Experts in health care, and across the technology spectrum, say generative AI has huge potential. They also talk about the risks that it may bring. At the VA AI Summit, Dr. Shareef Elnahal, Undersecretary for Health at the VA, tells me he believes avoiding generative A-I solutions would be a huge mistake.Photo: sign from the National Artificial Intelligence Institute’s International Summit for AI in Health Care (Fed Gov Today)

This edition of Fed Gov Today is sponsored by Leidos.Today and Thursday, conversations from the Department of Veterans Affairs National Artificial Intelligence Institute’s International Summit for AI in Health Care, September 6-8 in Washington.The VA is optimistic about moving AI solutions from prototype and testing to deployment. Part of that transition is engaging end users in that deployment. Evan Carey is Deputy Director for AI Networks at the National Artificial Intelligence Institute. At the VA AI Summit, he tells me moving from testing to implementation isn’t a new challenge.One theme throughout the sessions at the VA AI Summit is the potential to address burnout among healthcare providers. You’ll hear more about that issue on today’s show, and Thursday’s podcast too. Ning Yu, Chief Natural Language Processing Research Scientist at Leidos, explains how AI can help with burnout and a number of other challenges health care providers and systems face.Making health care provision more efficient, more equitable, and more accessible are three goals the VA has for using AI in its healthcare system. Dr. Andrew Borkowski is Founding Chief of the Artificial Intelligence Service at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital in Tampa, FL; and Facility Lead for the NAII. At the VA A-I Summit, he tells me how AI can help the VA achieve those goals.

A 10-year roadmap for agency digitization is out from the Office of Management and Budget. The guidance is called “Delivering a Digital-First Public Experience.” Suzette Kent, CEO of Kent Advisory Services and former Federal Chief Information Officer, explains what’s in it, and what it means for agencies and the government as a whole.“Data as a strategic asset” is not a new term in the federal government. But the kinds of data agencies are tracking, collating, and using to make decisions is growing - fast. Dorothy Aronson, Chief Information Officer and Chief Data Officer at the National Science Foundation, describes how the nature of data management is changing at NSF, and how her technology infrastructure and workforce are changing with it.The Thrift Savings Plan has set a new record. More people are bringing their money into the TSP than ever before. Kim Weaver, Director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, tells you how that happened, and why. She also explains the impact of the potential shutdown on TSP participants, and how to learn more about the shutdown’s impact on the TSP.

A government shutdown wouldn’t just stop work for the two point one million federal employees of the government. It would stop work on almost all the contracts that almost all the contractors that work for the government work on. Soraya Correa, Executive Director of the Contract Management Institute at the National Contract Management Association, and former Chief Procurement Officer at the Department of Homeland Security, tells you what has to happen if a shutdown impacts government acquisition. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency will drive toward five strategic objectives. Those objectives (enhance operational readiness; attract and develop your workforce; build resiliency by strengthening partnerships; strengthen stewardship of GEOINT resources; accelerate technology acquisition and integration) will push the agency to what its Director, Vice Admiral Frank Whitworth, calls “a new mission and end state.” VADM Whitworth tells you what’s coming to meet each of those five objectives.New updates to the President’s Management Agenda include bringing more customer experience professionals into government, faster. OMB’s Loren Dejonge Schulman told you about them on Fed Gov Today TV recently. Chris Mihm, Adjunct Professor of Public Administration at the Maxwell School at Syracuse University and former Managing Director for Strategic Issues at the Government Accountability Office, explains what’s new - and what’s missing - in the updates to the PMA.

Early fiscal year 2024 is the target date for a reorganization at the General Services Administration. GSA will restructure the Federal Acquisition Service. Alan Thomas, Chief Solutions Officer at Leadership Connect and former Commissioner of the Federal Acquisition Service at GSA, tells you how the reorg will work, and what it will mean for GSA and its employees; GSA customers; and industry. He also details new bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Technology Modernization Fund.150 contracting officers around the world will get extra training in supply chain risk management. That extra training will focus on the cyber supply chain. Michael Derrios, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition and Senior Procurement Executive at the State Department, tells you what those COs will learn, and how it will help them do their jobs better - and make the State Department more secure.A new initiative from the Defense Department will try to counter China with large quantities of autonomous systems. Breaking Defense reports Deputy Secretary of Defense Katherine Hicks says the Replicator project will “leverage platforms that are small, smart, cheap, and many.” Deborah Lee James, Chair of the Defense Business Board and 23rd Secretary of the Air Force, explains how services can lean in quickly on Replicator, without replicating work they’ve already done.

A new initiative from the Defense Department will try to counter China with large quantities of autonomous systems. Breaking Defense reports Deputy Secretary of Defense Kath Hicks says the Replicator project will “leverage platforms that are small, smart, cheap, and many.” Dov Zakheim, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and former Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller), writes about Replicator at themessenger.com. He tells you what would make Replicator work, and what could hold it back.Federal agencies are getting some help in hiring customer experience personnel. It’s part of the latest update to the President’s Management Agenda from the Office of Management and Budget. Lauren DeJonge Schulman, Associate Director for Performance and Personnel Management at OMB, details the new options, and new milestones, in the PMA.The Homeland Security Department is 450,000 square feet smaller now in the National Capital Region than it was at the beginning of the fiscal year. That number came from Randolph Alles, Deputy Under Secretary for Management and Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary for Management at the Department of Homeland Security, at a House Oversight & Accountability subcommittee hearing last week. Dan Mathews, President of Mathews Associates and former commissioner of the Public Buildings Service at the General Services Administration, explains what agencies can do about their footprints, and how to think strategically - and long-term - about the federal real estate portfolio.

The Merchant Marine service is dealing with some of the same people problems the rest of government is dealing with. RADM Ann Phillips (USN ret.) is Administrator of the Maritime Administration at the Transportation Department. On the latest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, she explains why the people problem is her biggest issue right now.Several federal agencies are increasing the number of days each pay period employees have to come into the office. The White House is asking agencies to “aggressively execute” back-to-office strategies this fall. President Biden’s Chief of Staff, former Deputy Director for Management at OMB Jeffrey Zients calls in-person work “critical to the well-being of our teams.” The House Oversight and Accountability Government Operations and the Federal Workforce subcommittee called four agency leaders to testify today about their telework posture. The four leaders are Karen Marrongelle, Chief Operating Officer of the National Science Foundation; Robert Gibbs, Associate Administrator for the Mission Support Directorate at NASA; Dan Dorman, the Executive Director for Operation at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and Randolph Alles, Deputy Under Secretary for Management and Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Under Secretary for Management at the Department of Homeland Security. In these highlights of the hearing from today, you’ll hear questions for the witnesses from Representative Gary Palmer (R-AL) and Representative Gerry Connolly (D-VA).

The Department of Veterans Affairs is the recipient of one of the most recent Technology Modernization Fund awards. The TMF Board says the $7.4 million award “aims to help the VA tackle the digitization of forms at scale.” Maria Roat, Founder and CEO of MA Roat Consulting and former Deputy Chief Information Officer of the United States, details the potential pitfalls of digital modernization projects, and how to avoid them.The Internal Revenue Service will soon have more than 90,000 employees for the first time in more than ten years. The Commissioner of the IRS, Danny Werfel says the agency is looking for data scientists, accounting pros, and many more skill sets. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask the new Chief Human Capital Officer at the IRS, Traci DiMartini, who she’s looking for.The National Background Investigation Services system is on the way to replacing the legacy system the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency uses for security clearances. But the original operational goal of 2019 is now 2024 for full capability. Alissa Czyz, Director of Defense Capabilities and Management at the Government Accountability Office, explains how the program slid, and how to get it back on track.

The Federal Government is getting better at moving money from one agency to another. But it still has work to do in a number of money management areas. Dawn Simpson, Director of Financial Management and Assurance at the Government Accountability Office, explains what those issues are, and how to fix them.Customs and Border Protection has a 70% goal to hit by the end of this month. That’s the percentage of its applications it has targeted to be in the cloud by the end of fiscal 2023. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, Sonny Bhagowalia, Chief Information Officer at CBP, tells me about the progress he’s making toward that goal.More than 160 medical centers and clinics in the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system are using virtual and augmented reality to treat a wide range of conditions. The treatments are helping veterans with both physical and mental health challenges. Anne Lord Bailey is Director of Clinical Tech Innovation and Immersive Technology Lead, and Caitlin Rawlins is Deputy Director for Clinical Tech Innovation and Extended Reality Network Lead, at the Veterans Health Administration at VA. They and their team are finalists for a Service To America Medal in the Science, Technology, and Environment category. They tell me how they discovered these solutions, how they work, and what’s ahead for virtual and augmented reality in health care.Photo: VA Headquarters in Washington, DC (courtesy Government Accountability Office)

The Commerce Department is counting down to a big cloud move at the end of this month. On the latest edition of the Fed Gov Today TV show, the Chief Information Officer at Commerce, Andre Mendes, tells you what’s coming October 1st.The Chief Information Officer at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency is making a culture shift. Robert Costello told me about it in a one-on-one conversation on stage at Carahsoft’s GovForward: FedRAMP Headliner Summit, produced by GovExec, August 23rd. This conversation was the last item on the program, and I started with a retrospective of the day’s discussions.

The White House is asking agencies to “aggressively execute” back-to-office strategies this fall. President Biden’s Chief of Staff, former Deputy Director for Management at OMB Jeffrey Zients calls in-person work “critical to the well-being of our teams.” John Sawyer, Director of Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues, and Michael Hoffman, Director of the Center for Economics, both at the Government Accountability Office, have new research on telework and how it’s affecting productivity.The Thrift Savings Plan is tracking 25 pieces of legislation that may affect its future. If some of those bills become law, they could change the way you save for your retirement. Kim Weaver, Director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, tells you what they are, and what they might mean for you.Graphic: Thrift Savings Plan logo, courtesy of TSP

The Office of Management and Budget is working on a 10-year plan to modernize federal IT. Chris DeRusha, the Federal Chief Information Security Officer, says legacy system modernization is “the number one biggest rock that needs to get moved for us to be able to secure our systems.” Richard Spires, principal at Richard A. Spires Consulting and former Chief Information Officer at the Department of Homeland Security and the Internal Revenue Service, is author of “Success in the Technology Field.” His new book is titled “Government Can Deliver”, and he explains what’s in the book that can help with the tech modernization the government is undertaking.The Defense Department’s Cyber Workforce Strategy has a new implementation plan to guide the department’s execution of the strategy. That implementation plan includes four goals the department believes will guide its success. Mark Gorak, Principal Director for Resources & Analysis in the office of the Chief Information Officer at the Defense Department, explains the four goals, how the department will hit them, and how it will measure progress.

The National Finance Center does payroll, human resources, and retirement services for 650,000 federal employees across 170 agencies. It’s up against the same modernization challenges other federal government organizations are facing. Margie Graves, Senior Fellow at the IBM Center for The Business of Government, and former Deputy Chief Information Officer of the United States, led a team for the National Academy of Public Administration that advised the NFC how to stay ahead of the curve. She tells me what her team found, and how NFC can keep moving in the right direction. The Department of Health and Human Services small business contracting goal for Fiscal 2023 is 22%. The agency has goals for subcategories of small businesses for this fiscal year too. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask Shannon Jackson, Executive Director of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization at HHS, about the progress he’s making toward those goals.The war in Ukraine has dozens - or maybe hundreds - of second- and third-order effects in addition to the suffering and violence because of war fighting. One of those is the security of nuclear materials in the region. Zachary Johnson, Foreign Affairs Specialist at the National Nuclear Security Administration, is a finalist for a Service to America Medal in the Safety, Security, and International Affairs Category. He shares the management and relationship-building principles that keep nuclear materials safe in some of the worst conditions in the world.

GovForward FedRAMP Headliner Summit August 23Big changes are coming to the 8(a) program at the Small Business Administration. Vendors will soon have to tell their own stories about why they should be in the program. Joe Jordan, President and CEO of Actuparo and former Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy, explains why both contractors and SBA could have some trouble ahead.The newest service in the military is preparing to battle the nation’s adversaries if it ever becomes necessary. But the Space Force is battling an internal challenge too. The Vice Chief of Space Operations, Gen. David “DT” Thompson (USSF), says the service has to deal with what he calls “bureaucratic inertia.” On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask him how that fight is going.Civilian and national security agencies are speeding up the use of DevSecOps for software. That software is fueling both mission delivery and back-office functions. Paul Puckett is Chief Technology Officer at Clarity. He’s former Director of the Enterprise Cloud Management Agency at the Army. I introduced Paul on stage as the keynote speaker at the Carahsoft DevSecOps Conference on Thursday. After his speech, titled “Keep/Start/Stop: Retro On A Decade Of DSO”, I asked him what message he wanted to convey in his remarks.Photo: Paul Puckett at Carahsoft DevSecOps Conference, August 17, 2023.

GovForward FedRAMP Headliner Summit August 23The new edition of one of the federal government’s guiding performance documents is out. The update to Circular A-11 includes references to strategic reviews, customer experience, and evidence-based policymaking. Robert Shea, Chief Executive Officer of GovNavigators, former Associate Director at the Office of Management Budget, and former Commissioner on the Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, explains what’s in the update, and what it means.The Department of Veterans Affairs is in the seventh year of what it calls the “VA Way.” The agency says the “VA Way” is “the department’s customer experience formula that connects all VA employees to our I CARE values.” On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask Nathan Sanfilippo, Executive Director for Multi-Channel Technology in the Veterans Experience Office at the VA, about the intersection of the “VA Way” and his office.An update is coming for the Defense Department’s Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification. Washington Technology reports the Pentagon and the Office of Management and Budget expect the update to come next month. Ron Marks, President of ZPN Cyber and National Security Strategies, nonresident senior fellow at the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security at the Atlantic Council, and former special assistant to the assistant director of central intelligence for military affairs, tells you what the update, and the timeline for its release, mean for the department and the defense industrial base.Photo: Cover of update to Circular A-11, courtesy of the Office of Management and Budget.

The State Department’s “Tech for Life” initiative will give each employee her or his own phone number to connect to the department’s IT. The CIO at the State Department, Kelly Fletcher, says the department is running two pilot programs this summer. Karen Evans, Partner at KE&T Partners, and Managing Director of the Cyber Readiness Institute and former E-gov Administrator at OMB, and former Chief Information Officer at the Department of Homeland Security, explains why she thinks “Tech For Life” is a ground breaker.Kelly Fletcher on “Tech For Life” on Fed Gov Today TVThe Air Force is about a year and a half out from the “Fix Our Computers” LinkedIn post that sparked a rethinking of internal customer experience in the service. But that post wasn’t the beginning of the service’s customer experience journey. Colt Whittall has been Chief Experience Officer at the Air Force and Space Force for about four years. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask him what the Air Force’s U-X operation was thinking, and doing, when the “Fix Our Computers” furor started.The Defense Innovation Unit is taking on the Pentagon’s need for speed in hypersonics. The Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities program’s goal is more hypersonic tests, more often. Barry Kirkendall, Technical Director for Space at DIU, tells you about the program’s mission and goals.Photo: Barry Kirkendall via LinkedIn

The Department of Veterans Affairs is moving to a new supply chain management solution. The agency’s solicitation has been on the street for a couple weeks now. Greg Giddens, Partner at Potomac Ridge Consulting and former Principal Executive Director of the Office of Acquisition, Logistics and Construction at VA, tells you what he sees in the solicitation, and what he reads between the lines.The Department of Homeland Security is on a zero trust journey like the rest of the federal government. On the newest edition of Fed Gov Today TV, I ask the Chief Information Security Officer at DHS, Ken Bible, where his agency is on its journey.2023 is the 45th anniversary of the Civil Service Reform Act that established the Senior Executive Service. Data about the SES shows some important trends. Max Stier, President and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, tells what the data show, and what he thinks it means.Photo: Ken Bible on Fed Gov Today TV, August 6, 2023.

The next generation of the Army’s Project Convergence is scheduled for the beginning of next year. Federal News Network reports Project Convergence-4 will focus on battlefield scenarios. Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan (USAF ret.), former director of the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center, tells you what really matters in AI research, and how a movie he watched recently sparked that thought.The Air Force’s innovation arm has five new lines of effort in its third iteration. AFWERX says the goal of its effort is “expanding technology, talent, transition, and capabilities.” Mark Ingram, Chief Strategy Officer at the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Integrated Capabilities Directorate, and finalist for a Service to America Medal in the Emerging Leaders category, traces the history of AFWERX, and considers what the AFWERX of the future will look like.Photo: Mark Ingram, courtesy U.S. Air Force

Scientists could save the earth from an object that’s coming at us from outer space thanks to a test NASA has done. The Double Asteroid Redirection Test team at NASA, called DART, has proven it can change the path of something coming toward earth by smashing a spacecraft into it. Brian Key is Program Manager, and Scott Bellamy is Mission Manager, in the Planetary Missions Program Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center at NASA. They’re finalists for a Service to America Medal in the Career Achievement category. They tell you how their team did its work, and what other organizations can learn from their success, even if they’re not in the space business. Photo: Members of the DART team celebrate on Sept. 26, 2022, as images live-streamed from the spacecraft show it successfully impacted the asteroid Dimorphos, completing the world's first planetary defense test mission. (Credits: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Ed Whitman)

The Defense Department says it considers diversity a “strategic imperative”. But data seems to show diversity hasn’t changed much in the last decade. Brenda Farrell, Director of Defense Capabilities and Management at the Government Accountability Office, tells you what she looked at, and what she found, about diversity in DoD.A network based at the National Cancer Institute has “changed the way national guidelines for cancer screening are established.” One of the leaders of that network is up for a Service to America Medal. "Rocky" Feuer is Chief of the Statistical Research and Applications Branch in the Surveillance Research Program at the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health. He’s a finalist for a Service To America Medal in the Volcker Career Achievement category. He reviews his career and work, and what’s ahead for him, and for cancer research.The Thrift Savings Plan is celebrating year two of the implementation of its Converge system. It’s looking at metrics to gauge how the transition continues, and what it should do next. Kim Weaver, Director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, covers what those metrics are, and what year two of Converge will look like for TSP participants.Photo: NIH’s Rocky Feuer (photo credit: Partnership for Public Service)

The Internal Revenue Service will award a procurement worth up to $1.7 billion to modernize its Integrated Enterprise Portals platform. The agency says that platform “served over 11.4 billion page views to 660 million site visitors globally.” Richard Spires, principal at Richard A. Spires Consulting and former Chief Information Officer at the Department of Homeland Security and the Internal Revenue Service, tells you how the IRS can maximize the money it will spend on its modernization.Richard’s first book: Success in the Technology FieldNew book coming soon: Government Can DeliverThe National Treasury Employee Union will have a new leader soon. That transition will happen next month. Tony Reardon is the outgoing President of the National Treasury Employees Union. I asked him about the current state of the civil service and the employees that make it up, and what he sees ahead for his successor and other federal employee leaders.Sexual harassment complaints are down 92% aboard research vessels the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminstration operates. NOAA’s Deputy Undersecretary for Operations, Benjamin Friedman, says that change required transforming “the whole operation and its culture.” Rear Admiral Nancy Hann, Director of NOAA’s Commissioned Corps and Director of the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, is a finalist for a Service to America Medal in the Management Excellence category. She told me how she and the NOAA team built a structure, and a culture, that’s cutting the harassment numbers, and serving employees better.Photo: NOAA’s RADM Nancy Hann (Image credit: NOAA/Lt. Kevin Doreums)

This edition of Fed Gov Today is sponsored by Eleven09 and Carahsoft.The Coast Guard is running into some problems with its new Offshore Patrol Cutter program. Those problems are stacking up on top of some issues with the ships the new program will replace. Marie Mak, Director of Contracting and National Security Acquisitions Issues at the Government Accountability Office, took a close look, and testified about it on Capitol Hill. She tells you where the Guard is going wrong, and how to recover.The Defense Department says it’s on track to hit its 2027 goal to implement its zero trust strategy. The Federal zero trust strategy has hard deadlines and goals for every agency too. At Edge 23, Kyle White, co-founder and Managing Partner of Eleven 09, tells me what he sees agencies are still trying to figure out about zero trust.Representatives of the Science and Technology Directorate and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency at DHS are at the National Homeland Security Conference in Chicago this week. The leader of the S&T Directorate, Dimitri Kusnezov, writes on the S&T blog that he’ll speak about, and seek to learn about, Maritime Safety and Security; support for first responders; and artificial intelligence, among other topics. At Edge 23, I ask him how much of his job involves specific technologies, and how much involves the concepts around those technologies.Photo: DHS’s Dimitri Kusnezov at Edge 23 in San Diego

This edition of Fed Gov Today, from the Edge23 Security Summit in San Diego, is sponsored by Hitachi Vantara Federal and Carahsoft.The Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section at the Justice Department is more than halfway through its third decade fighting cyber crime. It’s taken down some of the biggest dark web and cyber crime organizations in the world. Mick Stawasz is Deputy Chief for Computer Crime at CCIPS. At Edge23, I asked him how the threat landscape is changing.You heard Mick Stawasz talk about the evolution of cyber crime, and what he and his team are doing to stay competitive. The key element, though, may not be technological. Phil Fuster is Chief Revenue Officer at Hitachi Vantara Federal. At Edge 23, I asked him what agencies should do to defend against cyber crime better.The Federal Government Zero Trust Strategy includes deadlines for goals agencies have to meet by next September. The goals come out of the Zero Trust Maturity Model from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. La Monte Yarborough is Chief Information Security Officer at the Department of Health and Human Services. At Edge23, I asked him about where HHS came from, and where it’s going, on its zero trust journey.Photo: HHS CISO La Monte Yarborough at Edge 23 in San Diego

This edition of Fed Gov Today, from the Edge23 Security Summit in San Diego, is sponsored by Okta and Carahsoft.The motto of Edge 23 is “Managing Risk in Turbulent Times.” Zero trust is the primary driver of cyber policy and action in government right now. At Edge 23, Barry West, Founder and CEO of West Wing Advisory Services, and former Chief Information Officer at FEMA and the Commerce Department, tells you where else cyber leaders in government should focus beside zero trust.Those zero trust strategies Barry West discussed include specific steps that agencies must take. To take those steps, government leaders are asking industry what tools they need to get the job done. At Edge 23, Jim Lambert, Area Vice President for Civilian at Okta, tells me what pieces agencies need to execute their strategies.The Department of Homeland Security’s Burden Reduction Initiative is saving time and hassle for people who interact with the department and its components. The initiative is part of a broader customer experience effort at the agency. At Edge 23, Beth Cappello, Deputy Chief Information Officer at the Department of Homeland Security tells me about a milestone DHS has hit with the initiative.Photo: DHS Deputy CIO Beth Cappello at Edge 23 in San Diego

This edition of Fed Gov Today, from the Edge23 Security Summit in San Diego, is sponsored by Splunk and Carahsoft.Civilian and military agencies across government are building systems to collaborate more closely with industry. One of the goals of most of these cells is to learn what’s possible from industry, instead of writing lists of requirements. Don Upson is Founder and Chairman of the Government Business Executive Forum, host of Edge 23. At the conference, I asked him if he thinks government leaders are hungry to learn about solutions from industry.The White House’s Zero Trust Strategy is generating strategies at individual agencies. Some of the timelines in the White House strategy, and the agency strategies, mean those agencies are already in tactical mode on ZT. At Edge 23, I asked Bill Rowan, Vice President of Public Sector at Splunk, what tactical steps he sees agencies taking to deliver on those strategies.A new list of artificial intelligence competencies from the Office of Personnel Management includes 44 general competencies and 14 technical competencies. OPM says agencies can “use the AI competencies to select, assess, and train AI talent as confirmed by a job analysis.” At Edge 23, I asked Jamie Holcombe, Chief Information Officer of the Patent and Trademark Office, what mature use of AI looks like in the federal government, and when he thinks that’s coming.Photo: USPTO CIO Jamie Holcombe at Edge 23 in San Diego

The Office of Management and Budget’s new cyber investment priorities for fiscal 2025 match the National Cybersecurity Strategy. Those priorities align with the Federal Zero Trust Strategy too. Karen Evans, Partner at KE & T Partners, Managing Director of the Cyber Readiness Institute, and former E-Gov Administrator at OMB, explains what’s in the priorities list for the federal government enterprise, and individual agencies.The Defense Department could get $1 billion to fund hedge capabilities. The House Appropriations Committee has approved the fund in its version of the fiscal 2024 spending bill. Michael Brown, partner at Shield Capital and former Director of the Defense Innovation Unit, helped develop the fund’s concept while at DIU. He tells you why he believes it’s more important now than ever.The Army is moving closer to replacing one of its core platforms. Five vendors are developing concept designs for the Optionally Manned Fighting Vehicle to replace the Bradley Fighting Vehicle. Mona Sehgal, Acting Director for Contracting and National Security Acquisitions at the Government Accountability Office, reviews what her team found in an in-depth look at the OMFV planning process.Photo: Bradley Fighting Vehicle M2A4, photo courtesy of U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center

The leader of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Jen Easterly, says her agency is “not tracking a significant impact against the civilian .gov enterprise” because of the MOVEit hack. But there is more CISA can do to help civilian agencies fight cyber attacks, according to Ron Sanders, the President and CEO of Publica Virtu; former Associate Director at OPM; and former Chief Human Capital Officer at the IRS, and the intelligence community. He’s writing about what CISA can do that it’s not in Gov Exec, and he tells you what steps he thinks CISA can - and should - take.The revival of legislation that would bring back Schedule F has the spotlight on poor performers again. But some experts are leveraging that revival to talk about broader human capital management reform. Jenny Mattingley, Vice President of Government Affairs at the Partnership for Public Service and former Day 1 Impact Fellow at the Office of Management and Budget, reviews some possible points to watch for.Three aviation crashes since 2015 have reshaped the way the U.S. military operates. One aircraft accident investigator has played a critical role in all three. Dave Clark, Air Safety Specialist and Aircraft Mishap Investigator for Naval Safety Command, and finalist for a Service to America medal from the Partnership for Public Service in the Career Achievement category, tells you about his office’s mission, and his work.Photo: Dave Clark, courtesy of Partnership for Public Service

The Department of Veterans Affairs and the IRS are two agencies dealing with backlogs for citizen services. The VA has a claims backlog in the Veterans Benefits Administration; the IRS has a backlog of tax returns. Paul Lawrence, former Undersecretary for Benefits at the Department of Veterans Affairs and his co-author Mark Abramson have a piece in Gov Exec titled “Helping Production Agencies Deliver.” They’re also co-authors of the book “Succeeding as a Political Executive: 50 Insights from Experience.” Paul explains how production agencies can get ahead of their workloads - and stay ahead.Several Department of Homeland Security components are collaborating on vetting programs. One of the components involved is the Transportation Security Administration. Neal Latta, Assistant Administrator for Enrollment Services and Vetting Programs at TSA, discusses the technologies that are changing the vetting process, and how his agency is working with others inside DHS to deploy and maximize them.Photo: Neal Latta, Assistant Administrator for Enrollment Services and Vetting Programs, TSA, testifies at a House Transportation and Maritime Security subcommittee hearing, May 10, 2023 (screengrab from committee web site)

The Department of Veterans Affairs is rolling out its new Workforce Dashboard. The agency has set a monthly update schedule for the dashboard. Tracey Therit, Chief Human Capital Officer at VA, tells you what the dashboard tracks, who its customers are, and what they can do with the information there. She also describes how the dashboard will continue to evolve over time.Photo: Tracey Therit, Chief Human Capital Officer, Department of Veterans Affairs, at Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing “Strengthening Methods of Recruitment and Retention for VA’s Workforce”, March 22, 2023 (screengrab from committee web site)

The nominee to become the next Commandant of the Marine Corps says technology is integral to preparing his service for the future fight. The Senate Armed Services Committee questioned Gen. Eric Smith, the current Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, at his confirmation hearing Tuesday. In this highlight of the hearing, the Chairman of the Committee, Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) asks Gen. Smith about the Marine Corps’s tech posture. Gen. Smith also answers questions from the committee’s ranking member, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS).The Department of Homeland Security and its components are looking at 32 startup companies and the technology they can deliver in critical areas. Those companies demonstrated what they can do at the Silicon Valley Innovation Program Demo Week 2023. Melissa Oh, Managing Director of the SVIP at DHS’s Science and Technology Directorate, tells you what her office took away from Demo Week, and what it will do next.WATCH: “Innovation in Government from GEOINT” on demandPhoto: Gen. Eric Smith testifies to the Senate Armed Services Committee, June 13, 2023 (screen grab from committee web site)

This edition of Fed Gov Today, featuring the ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 2023, is sponsored by Red Hat and Carahsoft.Innovation is coming fast for health care providers all across the federal government, according to speakers at the Health Innovation Summit. The people who run the support infrastructure will benefit from innovation too. Ryan Dempsey Argentieri is Deputy Director of the Office of Technology at the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT. At the Summit, I asked her if health innovation right now is mostly patient centric, or provider centric.The work Ryan described is just some of the tactical work that’s going on at the agency level. Strategic opportunities will explode in health care IT in the coming years too. Ben Cushing, Chief Architect for Health and Life Sciences at Red Hat, and former Application Engineer at the National Institutes of Health, tells you what to look for in the coming months and years.The Deputy Chief Information Officer at the Department of Health and Human Services is new to the agency, and to health IT, but she’s not new to the Federal government. Jennifer Wendel joined HHS recently from the FBI. At the Health Innovation Summit, she described her portfolio at HHS.Photo: Speakers at the ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 2023 (L-R): Amanda Lienau, VA; Ryan Dempsey Argentieri, ONC; Col. Thomas Cantilina, DHA; Srini Iyer, Leidos (photo credit Ben Marglin via LinkedIn)

On the latest episode of the Innovation In Government television show from SOF Week, you learned about five pillars the Operator Relief Fund bases its help around for Special Operators. The pillars are sleep; alcohol; hormones; nutrients; and psychological. At SOF Week, I asked Derek Nadalini, Beneficiary Advocate for the Operator Relief Fund, how his group settled on those five pillars.Defense department leaders say their supply chains are one of their most important priorities. A lot of the discussion focuses around the continuity of those supply chains, but capacity is becoming more important too, according to those leaders. Jerry McGinn, Executive Director of the Baroni Center for Government Contracting at George Mason University and former Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manufacturing and Industrial Base, writes about the DIB in Breaking Defense, and tells you more about his prescription for the supply chain.The Chief Information Officer of the United States says she is “super optimistic” about the potential of artificial intelligence for citizen experience. She describes a numbers game that could deliver big impact for citizens. Pam Isom, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of IsAdvice & Consulting, former Executive Director of the Artificial Intelligence and Technology Office, and former Deputy Chief Information Officer at the Energy Department, offers ideas to maximize that potential.Photo: Francis Rose and Derek Nadalini at SOF Week, May 10, 2023

The intelligence community is moving to the cloud through its Commercial Cloud Enterprise. But one of the I-C’s leaders says the community doesn’t have a multi-cloud strategy. Bob Osborn, Chief Technology Officer for Global Governments for ServiceNow & former CIO of the National Nuclear Security Administration, describes what goes into a multi-cloud strategy, and how to make it work.The United States has a “generational opportunity” to cooperate with partners. That opportunity exists in tech development and the defense industrial base, according to Bill Greenwalt, visiting senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; a founder of the Silicon Valley Defense Group; former deputy undersecretary of defense for industrial policy; and former senior staff member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. He and his co-author Tom Corben write about the generational opportunity, and Bill tells you how to make the most of that opportunity.Federal agencies would buy software very differently under a bill in Congress. The “Strengthening Agency Management and Oversight of Software Assets Act” is under consideration in both the House and Senate. Mary Davie, President of Mary Davie Consulting, former assistant commissioner of the Office of Integrated Technology Services at the Federal Acquisition Service, and former Deputy Associate Administrator for the Mission Support Directorate at NASA, advises agencies about what they’ll have to prepare for if the bill becomes law.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo: Mary Davie (NASA)

The next evolution of FedRamp is here. A new blog post at FedRamp.gov is titled “Revision 5 Baselines Have Been Approved and Released.” Dave Wennergren, CEO of ACT-IAC & former Chief Information Officer of the Navy, former Deputy Defense Department CIO, and former assistant Deputy chief Management Officer at DOD, explains what the new guidelines mean, and what comes next for industry and agencies.Agencies and other stakeholders have a new list of action items to make their digital modernization efforts work. David Powner, Executive Director of the Center for Data-Driven Policy at MITRE and former Director of IT Issues at the Government Accountability Office, writes about them with his colleague Nitin Naik, and he tells you what’s on the roadmap they’ve written, and how agencies can navigate it.The Thrift Savings Plan is taking a page out of the President’s Management Agenda. It’s reshaping its customer experience organization to serve TSP participants better. Kim Weaver, Director of External Affairs at the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, tells you why the FRTIB has unveiled its new Office of Participant Experience, and what it will do.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo: David Powner testifies to the House Oversight and Reform subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation, May 10, 2023 (screen grab from committee site)

This podcast was recorded at GEOINT Symposium 2023, hosted by the US Geospatial Intelligence Foundation, in St. Louis, MO, May 22-23, 2023.Technology isn’t the aspect of the metaverse government leaders are strategizing for. Personal privacy and personal security are important considerations for government leaders too. Dan Opstal, Acting Director of the National Civil Applications Center at the U-S Geological Survey, hosted a panel about privacy and security in the metaverse at GEOINT 2023. After that panel, he told me about the intersection of the metaverse with his job.The Chief Information Officer at NGA is new to the job, but he’s not new to the agency. Mark Chatelain has only been the CIO there since February, but he’s been at NGA since before it was NGA. At GEOINT 2023, I asked him how his tenure there informs the way he leads the technology shop.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo (L-R): Francis Rose & Mark Chatelain at GEOINT 2023 (Fed Gov Today photo)

This podcast was recorded at GEOINT Symposium 2023, hosted by the US Geospatial Intelligence Foundation, in St. Louis, MO, May 22-23, 2023. The theme of this year’s event is “From Maps To Metaverse.” Many of the discussions here focused on the metaverse. Christy Monaco, Vice President of Programs at the U.S. Geospatial Intelligence Foundation and former Chief Ventures Officer at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, explains how the Foundation decided on that theme.NGA is exploring what it calls non-linear career paths to solidify recruitment and retention. Ian Zearfaus, Director of the Human Capital Advanced Capabilities Office at NGA, discusses how non-linear career paths benefit employees and the agency.One of the panels here about the metaverse addressed bringing it to the geoint field. One of the panelists was the Deputy Chief Technology Officer at NGA, Christopher Johnson. I asked him how the practitioners on this panel define the metaverse.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo (L-R): Francis Rose & Christopher Johnson at GEOINT 2023 (Fed Gov Today photo)

Congress could find budget savings in federal agency software, according to a veteran of the Hill. He calls those contracts “software vampire squid.” Matt Cornelius, former Senior Professional Staff Member for the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and former Senior Technology and Cybersecurity Advisor at the Office of Management and Budget, writes about software licensing in FCW, and he tells you about legislation that could kill the squid.Federal employees would all become at-will employees if two members of Congress get their way. The Public Service Reform Act would eliminate most of the ways federal employees have to appeal personnel decisions, too. Jeff Neal, former Chief Human Capital Officer at the Department of Homeland Security, explains the nuances of the bill and why he believes it would be bad for the federal workforce.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo (L-R): Francis Rose, Jeff Neal on Government Matters

The debt limit debate on Capitol Hill could have some impact for operations at federal agencies. Those implications for agencies could be somewhat familiar and different at the same time. Janice Haith, industry strategic advisor at Oracle and former Deputy Chief Information Officer of the Navy, tells you why, and how to prepare for it.Operators across the government are using the Team Awareness Kit for a variety of situational awareness uses. Its program center says TAK is the “core of a suite of georeferenced imagery and communications tools that allow for scaled operational planning, data sharing, visualized elevation data, and target management.” Ryan McLean, Director of the TAK Program Center, explains what TAK, how it works, and how it exists as a unique entity inside the DoD ecosystem.ACT-IAC Health Innovation Summit 23, Reston VA, June 8, 2023Photo: TAK logo, courtesy of TAK.gov