Microsoft launches election platform for Xbox LIVE

Microsoft launched “Election 2012 on Xbox LIVE” on Monday, a new hub that lets Xbox 360 owners to watch and interact with election coverage on the presidential debates, learn about the candidates and issues.

Users can also register to vote, participate in live daily polling from YouGov and election programming from NBCNews.com.

“We want to provide our passionate Xbox LIVE community with a great way to experience the election process with TV that makes them participants — and not just viewers,” said Marc Whitten, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. “This is a great example of how our Xbox capabilities are making the promise of interactive television a reality.”

U.S.-based Xbox LIVE1 members will be able to interact in real time throughout the three scheduled presidential debates, as well as watch live feeds from the Republican and Democratic national conventions.

Xbox LIVE members will also be able to voice their opinions by responding to poll questions throughout live programming of the debates and other unique election events hosted on Xbox LIVE throughout the campaign season.

“Technology has been a transformative force in politics during recent years,” said Fred Humphries, vice president of government affairs at Microsoft. “The launch of the Election 2012 Hub on Xbox LIVE marks another exciting moment of change. This platform will innovate how some voters engage in the political process, and it provides greater access to valuable information such as the perspectives of youth at our town halls, newscasts and voter registrations. By bringing the elections directly into the home through this Xbox platform, we hope to encourage greater participation in the democratic process this fall.”

FedPod: NASA CTO Sasi Pillay

PilayPodcastFedPod is FedScoop’s daily podcast highlighting the top news and events in federal government IT, hosted by David Stegon.

[audio:https://fedscoop.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2012_08_PilayPodcast5.mp3]

NASA Chief Technology Officer Sasi Pillay discusses the agency’s growth from internal apps to external apps in this interview with FedScoop Radio.

HP signs $41 million integration agreement with Minnesota

The State of Minnesota Department of Public Safety signed a $41 million system-integration agreement with HP Enterprise Services to develop the Minnesota Licensing and Registration System for the Driver and Vehicle Services Division.

HP will work with Minnesota to create standardized processes and develop an integrated system that houses 6.4 million vehicle records and 4.1 million driver history records.

“This agency is part of the foundation of Minnesota’s economy—when vehicles move, so do products and services,” said Marilyn Crouther, senior vice president and general manager, U.S. Public Sector, HP Enterprise Services. “To build MNLARS, we will combine our government expertise with proven technology to develop the comprehensive solution that will take the State of Minnesota into the future.”

MNLARS is designed to improve information access, accuracy and security. For example, entering information early in the process ensures that accurate data is readily available, improving data sharing and reporting capabilities while eliminating data re-entry and saving paper. As a result, the DVS staff can standardize the transactions process no matter who initiates or completes it. The system also will track and review transactions to reduce errors and fraud.

DVS staff members and agents will have access to a 360-degree view of a driver’s vehicle registration, title, driving record and other related documentation, to improve efficiency and customer service.

The interface, as well as self-service options such as selecting a preferred communication method and filing online permit applications, will facilitate accurate interactions with customers. The new system also will provide the framework for adding new services in the future.

OMB: Agency record keeping to be all electronic by 2020

Federal agencies must begin to manage their records, including emails, in an electronic format by the end of the decade, according to a memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget and the National Archives and Records Administration.

The memorandum carries out a presidential memorandum sent in November to reform the federal government’s records management for the 21^st century. The directive also requires each agency to designate a high-ranking agency official to oversee its records management programs and to ensure that all appropriate staff recieve records management training.

“Records are the foundation of open government, supporting the principles of transparency, participation, and collaboration,” said Archivist of the United States David Ferriero and Acting OMB Director Jeffrey Zients. “Well-managed records can be used to assess the impact of programs, to improve business processes, and to share knowledge across the Government.”

Ferriero, who heads NARA, and Zients said the directive creates “a robust records management framework that complies with statutes and regulations to achieve the benefits outlined in the Presidential Memorandum.”

“This directive sends a strong message to federal agencies about the importance of electronic records,” Ferriero said. “We look forward to working with agencies throughout the government and our stakeholders to implement its goals.”

Highlights from the directive:

• Federal agencies must manage all permanent electronic records in an electronic format by December 31, 2019, and must have plans to do so by December 31, 2013.
• All agencies must manage both permanent and temporary email records in an accessible electronic format by December 31, 2016.
• NARA will issue updated guidance on managing, disposing of, and transferring email by December 31, 2013.
• By December 31, 2014, all agencies must have records management training in place for appropriate staff.
• By this November, each agency must designate a senior agency official to oversee its records management program.  The Archivist will convene the first ever meeting of senior agency officials before the end of 2012.

Navy offering scholarships in cyber security

The Navy is offering scholarships to civilian and military personnel through the Department of Defense Information Assurance Scholarship Program to meet the demand for cyber security professionals.

January 15, 2013 is the deadline for submission of nomination packages for courses starting in July, August, and September 2013, and January 2014.

These scholarships for master’s and doctorate level work cover the cost of tuition, fees, and books.

They can be used for degrees in Biometrics, Computer Science, Computer Crime Investigation, Computer Engineering, Computer Programming, Cyber Operations, Digital and Multimedia Forensics, Electronics Engineering, Software Engineering, Telecommunications, Business Management or Administration, and other areas with a CS/IA concentration

DON civilian and military members may apply for IA scholarships through their service chain-of-command to the DON CIO. View detailed instructions on the scholarship nomination process.

Infographic: ‘The U.S. Census Bureau: Measuring America’s People, Places & Economy Through the Decades’

HHS releases requirements for next step of EHR deployment

The Department of Health and Human Services released final requirements for hospitals and health care providers to meet in order to qualify for incentives during the second stage of the agency’s program to expand the use of electronic health records (EHR).

The requirements from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT released the following requirements:

• Make clear that stage two of the program will begin as early as 2014. No providers will be required to follow the Stage 2 requirements outlined today before 2014.
• Outline the certification criteria for the certification of EHR technology, so eligible professionals and hospitals may be assured that the systems they use will work, help them meaningfully use health information technology, and qualify for incentive payments.
• Modify the certification program to cut red tape and make the certification process more efficient.
• Allow current “2011 Edition Certified EHR Technology” to be used until 2014.

Under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, doctors, health care professionals and hospitals can qualify for Medicare and Medicaid incentive payments when they adopt and meaningfully use certified electronic health record technology.

More than 120,000 eligible health care professionals and more than 3,300 hospitals have qualified to participate in the program and receive an incentive payment since it began in January 2011. That exceeds a 100,000 goal set earlier this year, the agency said. That includes more than half of all eligible hospitals and critical access hospitals and 1 out of every 5 eligible health care professionals.

“The changes we’re announcing today will lead to more coordination of patient care, reduced medical errors, elimination of duplicate screenings and tests and greater patient engagement in their own care,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.

Deltek sells to private firm for $1.1 billion

After weeks of speculation, Deltek is being sold to Thoma Bravo, a private equity firm for $1.1 billion in cash. Herndon-based Deltek, which sells enterprise software solutions to government contractors and is the leading provider of government market analysis for the contracting community, has been an active acquirer in recent times.  In September 2010, the company acquired INPUT for $60 million and then acquired FedSources for $28 million in March of 2011 to build out its

GovWin platform and give it a stranglehold on the government analysis market.

“Over the past seven years, we have successfully executed our long term plans for Deltek to enter new markets, grow internationally, and expand our industry-leading solutions for project-based companies,” said Kevin Parker, Deltek’s president, CEO and Chairman of the Board.

He continued, “Throughout our journey, New Mountain Capital gave us outstanding support and was instrumental in building the Deltek of today. We’re very excited about the opportunity to continue Deltek’s successful journey in partnership with Thoma Bravo.”

The transaction is expected to close during the fourth quarter of 2012, the company said. After the acquisition closes, Deltek will remain headquartered in Herndon, and will continue to be led by its existing senior management team.

Deltek will also become a privately held company and its stock will no longer trade on the NASDAQ following the acquisition’s close later this year.

“We have a long history of investing in highly respected and industry-leading software companies,” said Orlando Bravo, managing partner at Thoma Bravo. “In Deltek, we found a vertical market leader with unmatched solutions, a loyal and broad customer base, passionate employees and significant organic and acquisition-led growth opportunities, and the firm is confident in our approach and experienced in leveraging such assets to drive growth.”

Is this the federal government’s first agency-to-agency accepted pull request?

Presidential Innovation Fellow Ben Balter recently posted to Twitter news on what may be the federal government’s first agency-to-agency accepted “pull request” at the collaborative coding site GitHub.

A pull request allows one party to enhance another’s code submission, known as a repository, and submit it back to the original developer for review and merge to the initial repository.

The request was made on the Digital Government Strategy Report Generator, which generates agency progress reports related to the White House’s Digital Government Strategy. The repository is located at the General Services Administration’s official GitHub account.

“I am preparing the digital strategy implementation for the Dept. of Commerce and we are using your report generator. Thank you for the tool as it has accelerated our deployment,” wrote Bill Severe in submitting the request. “I would very much like to combine our efforts on this for the benefit of the entire FED community.”

In accepting the request, Balter replied, “Thanks again to both for the feedback and for the code. Truly a model of what government should be doing.”

VanRoekel gives update on federal government digital efforts

U.S. Chief Information Officer Steven VanRoekel provided a three-month anniversary update on deliverables related to the federal Digital Government Strategy, emphasizing the efforts made are critical in providing “the highest value of services” for the American people.

As part of the strategy’s latest milestone, agencies have published potential candidates for government information that should be made available through structured data or application programming interfaces. VanRoekel asked citizens to give feedback on what data sets and services each agency can provide to increase efficiencies to help save taxpayer dollars.

VanRoekel cited Census Bureau efforts, including its new application programming interface and mobile application “America’s Economy,” as examples of how agencies are following through on the strategy.

“To provide the highest value of services, we must rethink from step one how government builds and provides services for the American people,” VanRoekel said on the White House blog. “We must unlock rich government data, information and services so that everyone from citizen developers and private sector entrepreneurs, to our very own Federal agencies can help provide the American people with the access to these services ‘anywhere, anytime, on any device.'”