The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security would like to increase its funding by about $4 million for export administration (EA), the agency said in its Fiscal Year 2020 budget justification. That new money would be split between "Identifying and Reviewing Emerging Technologies" and "Addressing Increased Foreign Investment Reviews," it said. BIS is asking for funding for 21 new personnel, the agency said.
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and the Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) have seen rapidly growing volumes of calls and any move to a three-digit national suicide prevention hotline will likely mean those growth rates accelerate, meaning such a hotline needs to be paired with increased capacity to deal with the calls. That's according to Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and Department of Veterans Affairs officials at Thursday's North American Numbering Council (NANC) meeting.
Valery Kosmachov was extradited from Estonia to face federal charges in the U.S. related to a "scheme to illegally procure sophisticated electronic components" and smuggle them to Russia, the Department of Justice said in a March 20 news release. The indictment was filed in September 2017 but was only unsealed on March 20, said the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California. Kosmachov was arrested in September 2018 and extradited to the U.S. on March 14, the DOJ said.
Last week's terrorist attack in New Zealand puts more pressure on lawmakers to regulate online platforms, some experts said. Even before that, 70-80 proposals for regulating platforms were under consideration globally, Hogan Lovells preliminarily found in an ongoing six-month survey. Early results show "by far the most proposals we tracked come from the government," emailed Hogan Lovells (Brussels) competition lawyer Falk Schoening.
Last week's terrorist attack in New Zealand puts more pressure on lawmakers to regulate online platforms, some experts said. Even before that, 70-80 proposals for regulating platforms were under consideration globally, Hogan Lovells preliminarily found in an ongoing six-month survey. Early results show "by far the most proposals we tracked come from the government," emailed Hogan Lovells (Brussels) competition lawyer Falk Schoening.
FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel dissented on a Further NPRM proposing vertical accuracy standards for wireless calls indoors to 911. Commissioner Geoffrey Starks voted yes in part and concurred in part. The questions were expected (see 1903140043). The FNPRM proposes a vertical location accuracy metric, or z-axis, of plus or minus 3 meters for 80 percent of indoor wireless calls to 911.
FCC Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel dissented on a Further NPRM proposing vertical accuracy standards for wireless calls indoors to 911. Commissioner Geoffrey Starks voted yes in part and concurred in part. The questions were expected (see 1903140043). The FNPRM proposes a vertical location accuracy metric, or z-axis, of plus or minus 3 meters for 80 percent of indoor wireless calls to 911.
From an overhauled FAA launch approval process to the U.S. whole-heartedly embracing the small-satellite launch industry, launch executives at a Washington Space Business Roundtable panel Wednesday had a variety of suggestions for how policymakers and regulators could help along the emerging industry. Relativity Space CEO Tim Ellis said the pace of launches could be ramped up if the FAA's commercial space regulatory overhaul includes giving a range of trajectories with a launch approval. He said faster acquisition timelines for government contracts would help space startups keep the flow of venture capital going. Firefly Aerospace Vice President-Business Development Les Kovacs said the U.S. needs to specify smallsat launchers are important to the nation's industrial capabilities and funnel more work that way. Stella Guillen, Arianespace vice president-sales and marketing, said the nation needs to open up to foreign vehicles for government payloads. While more than 100 smallsat launchers are at some stage of development, maybe five will survive, Kovacs said. Other panelists wouldn't make predictions. Rocket reusability isn't likely to be a big part of the smallsat launcher business model. "I would love to wrap myself in a reusability flag," but the added fuel and equipment needed for a reusable rocket cuts into the payload size -- a problem when already dealing with smallsats, Kovacs said. Echoed Vox Space Vice President-Government Affairs Jeffrey Trauberman, economics of reusability aren't as compelling for smallsat launchers as for larger vehicles. Planned small satellite mega constellations are a big driver of expectations of a smallsat boom, but some aren't counting on those as big parts of their business plans. If even a fraction of those mega constellations come to fruition, they will mean a shortfall in launch capacity, Guillen said. Smallsat launchers could handle replenishment missions, but larger rockets make sense for putting up those massive constellations, said John Steinmeyer, Northrop Grumman Launch Vehicle Division director-space launch business development. Ellis said the startup's long-term goal is 3D printing of rockets, and such capabilities -- which will be as disruptive as rocket reusability -- are "inevitable," and could come within 20 years.
Administration debates over spectrum use for satellite vs. 5G "have been intense," Commerce Department Office of Space Commerce Director Kevin O'Connell said in Senate Commerce Committee testimony Wednesday. He said a worry on the space side is protecting taxpayer investments in federal capabilities like GPS and weather prediction via NOAA satellites, and Commerce wants to ensure the space community has an advocate while a 5G strategy is formulated.
Mintz adds Larry Naughton, ex-Choate Hall, as member-emerging growth practice, technology ... Library of Congress appoints Robin Dale, ex-Institute of Museum and Library Services, associate librarian, library services ... SAIC promotes Nazzic Keene to CEO, effective July 31, succeeding Tony Moraco, retiring ... Motorola taps Mahesh Saptharishi, from the company's Avigilon, as chief technology officer ... SentryOne announces Lang Leonard, from LevelUp, as chief financial officer ... Plantronics appoints Chuck Boynton, ex-SunPower, executive vice president-chief financial officer, succeeding Pam Strayer.