Federal Drive with Tom Temin

The Commerce Department, through the Patent and Trademark Office, has for several years operated a plan to help more women and minorities gain access to the patent system, and fill what has become known as the patent gap. Now that effort has notched up a gear. For more on what's going on, Tom Temin spoke with the USPTO's deputy commissioner for patents, Valencia Martin Wallace. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Defense Health Agency has been working for years on rightsizing the Military Health system. What that means is moving some TRICARE beneficiaries away from military hospitals and clinics and to private providers. DHA had to rethink that plan after COVID hit and now a new study says TRICARE patients might get lesser care in the private world. Federal News Network’s Scott Maucione talks about how DHA is responding with DHA’s Assistant Director of Healthcare Administration Dr. Brian Lein. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometime in early 2022, you will be able to check the calendar and chat with a colleague at another agency. No more emailing and hoping they'll respond. No more playing calendar tag to try to find an agreeable time for a meeting. The CIO Council tested out this new collaboration capability during a nine month pilot with four agencies, and now is ready to roll it out across the government. Federal News Network’ executive editor Jason Miller joined the Federal Drive from Hershey Pennsylvania where he is covering the Imagination Nation ELC event from ACT-IAC to discuss this small but important change to how you will be able to collaborate in the near future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The General Services Administration, under the authority to fast-track the process, is selling federal properties considered valuable but underutilized by their agency tenants. FNN reporter Jory Heckman talked about it on the Federal Drive with host Tom Temin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The House vote last week didn't really do that much, given how much dispute there is over the infrastructure bills in the Senate. And even that vote came after multiple delays. But Congress is out this week and the regular appropriations continuing resolution hasn't got much longer to go. Is a year-long CR in the offing? Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about that, an other happenings, with WTOP Capitol Hill Correspondent Mitchell Miller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wellness of the workforce is a big issue for federal executives, especially for people like Border Patrol agents, who deal with stress and danger, overlaid with the pandemic. Now the Science and Technology Directorate at Homeland Security is seeking help on how to maintain a high performing and resilient workforce. The program comes under the auspices of its Silicon Valley Innovation Program. Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about it with the managing director of the Silicon Valley Innovation Project, Melissa Oh. and the deputy director of the CBP innovation team, Jeremy Ocheltree. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Coast Guard regularly takes on smugglers and drug traffickers in roiling seas. But even the nation's first line of defense has yielded to a seemingly irresistible force right here in the U.S., namely the desire for would-be recruits to cover themselves with tattoos. So, it's revised its policy. Federal Drive host Tom Temin talked about it with the commanding officer of the Coast Guard Recruiting Command, Capt. Richter Tipton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new funding program from the Energy Department aims to enlist poor and underserved communities in finding answers to climate questions. The Inclusive Energy Innovation Prizes will give challenge winners up to $250,000 for ideas they can develop into clean energy technologies. Joining the Federal Drive with details, the innovation and market transformation advisor for DOE's water power technologies office, Rukmani Vijayaraghavan. https://www.energy.gov/eere/articles/eere-announces-intent-launch-new-inclusive-energy-innovation-prize Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The State Department is in the midst of an annual month-long program to generate ideas for how to stop trafficking in wildlife. It's sponsoring Zoo-hackathon sessions on three continents. With what they are and how they work, from the bureau of International, Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Allie Swanson. And Zoohackathon program manager Tory Peabody. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The COVID-19 pandemic produced a bumper crop of almost everything it touched, including research. One authoritative database reports that 4% of all scientific research published last year had to do with COVID. And, you guessed it, that produced data. Lots and lots of data. Now the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory is trying to find meaning in a murky sea of data. With more on the project, data scientist Neeraj Kumar. https://www.pnnl.gov/news-media/preparing-future-pandemic-artificial-intelligence Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Pentagon wasn't kidding when it took the is Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program under review. Yesterday officials proposed some hefty changes. They say the revisions will simplify the process, especially for small businesses. For more, Federal News Network's, Justin Doubleday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's been a busy week for federal contractors trying to keep up with the details of the Biden administration's vaccine mandate. Contractors now have a new deadline to comply. At the same time, the administration indicated it would approach the mandate with a bit of flexibility. Meantime, nearly 20 states have sued the administration over the mandate. Federal News Network's Nicole Ogrysko joined the Federal Drive to walk us through the many developments. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Passwords are a pain in the neck for computer users, and easy for hackers to work out. Yet they persist, despite the availability of alternates. Now tech vendor Cisco reports a sharp rise in the use of biometrics and other forms of multi-factor log-in, and greater interest by IT executives to move past passwords altogether. Joining the Federal Drive with more, Cisco's global advisory chief information security officer, Dave Lewis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The COVID pandemic not only made the world more dangerous. It also made it more complicated. When and how federal employees and contractors should return to their normal workplaces, that's turned into one of the toughest questions to nail down. The policy work falls to a special committee known as the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force. For an update, the Federal Drive turned to the Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget, Jason Miller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

General Services Administration Federal Building Service officials see a rare opportunity to reduce the federal government’s office space. Nearly half of GSA-leases will expire over the next four years, giving GSA a chance to shift people to government-owned buildings and save money. They're also asking Congress for more money to catch up on maintenance. For more on federal real estate, Federal News Network’s Jory Heckman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices