The Fed Mission Success Round Up: IRS Affairs, NASA’s Achievement, Innovation in DoD, New Appointees, and Cyberattacks in Federal Agencies

April 26, 2021

Welcome to the Fed Mission Success News Round Up brought to you by Makpar. Each week, we will provide a summary of actionable news and insights to help aid in overall mission success for Federal agency IT decision-makers and influencers.

The $1 Trillion Tax Evasion Opportunity

Internal Revenue Service Commissioner, Charles Rettig, told the Senate Finance Committee last week that the annual gap between taxes owed and taxes paid could be as much as $1 trillion. The so-called tax gap has doubled over the past decade, as IRS resources shrank. The number of IRS employees has declined by 33,000, with more than half of the decrease coming in the hard-pressed enforcement division. As a result, Mr. Rettig says, the IRS is “outgunned.”

IRS Will be Ready to Start Sending Monthly Child Tax Credit Payments in July, Commissioner Says

Checks headed to families eligible for the child tax credit are on track to go out starting in July. The Internal Revenue Service commissioner confirmed the agency expects to launch its portal for the credit on July 1, despite concerns about the challenges the IRS would face implementing a program so quickly after the passage of the American Rescue Plan.

Internal Revenue Service Took Outcome-Focused Approach to Develop New IT Contract

The Internal Revenue Service has a new solicitation on the street for the Enterprise Development Operations Services contract, which could be worth up to $2.5 billion. NextGov reports this IT services contract could touch every tax system the government uses.

NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Extracts First Oxygen From Red Planet

The growing list of “firsts” for Perseverance, NASA’s newest six-wheeled robot on the Martian surface, includes converting some of the Red Planet’s thin, carbon dioxide-rich atmosphere into oxygen. A toaster-size, experimental instrument aboard Perseverance called the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) accomplished the task. The test took place April 20, the 60th Martian day, or sol, since the mission landed Feb. 18.

Free the Data: Vice Chiefs Launch an Acquisition Crusade

Better access to weapon data is crucial to faster Pentagon purchasing — and dangerous to industry business models.

JADC2 Strategy Nearing Completion, Official Says

The Defense Department is in the final stages of work on its strategy to connect sensors from each military service under a unified network, according to the top project official on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Senate OKs Former Regulator as Securities and Exchange Commission Chief

The Senate has approved President Joe Biden’s choice of Gary Gensler to head the Securities and Exchange Commission, signaling an emphasis on investor protection for the Wall Street watchdog agency after a deregulatory stretch during the Trump administration.

Chinese Hackers Compromise Dozens of Government Agencies, Defense Contractors

Chinese Hackers have compromised and hacked various Federal agencies with the exception of the Defense department.

From the Makpar Blog …

In case you missed it, here are our latest blog posts:

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• Makpar Applauds Appointment of First Native American U.S. Cabinet Member

• The Cybersecurity Framework That Keeps You and Your Family Safe as You Access Your IRS Records for Stimulus Checks

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• PODCAST: The SolarWinds Breach Points to Need for Cyber Fundamentals

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• Cybersecurity Best Practices for Federal Agencies, Small/Medium Businesses, and Individuals

Makpar has over a decade of experience providing high-level strategic and project management services, focused on cybersecurity and cutting-edge technologies. Please contact us here for more information about how we can enhance mission success for your agency.