Federal - Executive Branch
Federal - Executive Branch
News releases, reports, statements and associated documents from the U.S. Executive Branch, covering all aspects of the Obama administration including cabinet departments, federal agencies, regulatory and independent agencies.
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White House Issues Readout of State Legislative Convening on Mental Health
WASHINGTON, June 1 -- The White House issued the following readout of a state legislative convening on mental health on May 31, 2023:* * *
In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, today, officials from the White House Domestic Policy Council, the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, and the Department of Health and Human Services convened 19 state legislators from 10 states across the country working to advance legislation to improve mental health care. This legislative convening follows a White House forum held earlier this month with county officials on mental health as ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, June 1 -- The White House issued the following readout of a state legislative convening on mental health on May 31, 2023: * * * In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, today, officials from the White House Domestic Policy Council, the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, and the Department of Health and Human Services convened 19 state legislators from 10 states across the country working to advance legislation to improve mental health care. This legislative convening follows a White House forum held earlier this month with county officials on mental health aswell as a convening with state legislators held in September 2022.
The Biden-Harris Administration has made mental health a top priority by investing unprecedented resources in tackling the mental health crisis, particularly among our youth. In March 2022, the White House released a comprehensive mental health strategy designed to strengthen system capacity, connect more Americans to care, and create healthy environments to transform how we address mental health.
Throughout this Mental Health Awareness Month, the Administration has announced a series of actions and investments, including more than $95 million in awards across 35 states to increase access to school-based mental health services and more than $200 million for states, territories, and tribal organizations to support "988" services and help respond to crises. These investments are part of billions of dollars the Administration has committed to expanding access to mental health services through President Biden's American Rescue Plan and the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
During the convening, legislators discussed steps they are taking at the state level to address the mental health crisis, including improving access to mental health care in schools and universities, funding and expanding "988" services, and boosting the mental health workforce. Senior White House officials thanked the leaders for their efforts and ongoing partnership with the Biden-Harris Administration to improve mental health care for all Americans.
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Original text here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/05/31/readout-of-white-house-state-legislative-convening-on-mental-health/
White House Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Advances Equity & Opportunity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander Communities Across the Country
WASHINGTON, June 1 (TNSrpt) -- The White House issued the following fact sheet on May 31, 2023:* * *
The Biden-Harris Administration Advances Equity and Opportunity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Communities Across the Country
Since day one of this Administration, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have prioritized the advancement of opportunity, equity, and safety for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) communities to realize the full promise of our nation. Throughout Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, June 1 (TNSrpt) -- The White House issued the following fact sheet on May 31, 2023: * * * The Biden-Harris Administration Advances Equity and Opportunity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Communities Across the Country Since day one of this Administration, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have prioritized the advancement of opportunity, equity, and safety for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AA and NHPI) communities to realize the full promise of our nation. Throughout Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and PacificIslander Heritage Month, the Biden-Harris administration celebrates the diversity of cultures, breadth of achievement, and remarkable contributions of these communities while also recognizing the generational inequities, barriers to access, and discrimination faced by AA and NHPI communities within the United States. As we continue to make progress to advance equity and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities, today the Biden-Harris Administration is providing a comprehensive update on our efforts to combat anti-Asian violence and discrimination and to provide AA and NHPI communities the resources, access, and opportunities to thrive.
Combatting Anti-Asian Hate and Promoting Belonging and Inclusion of AA and NHPI Communities. AA and NHPI communities continue to face anti-Asian hate, and persistent racism, xenophobia, religious discrimination, and violence that began long before the Covid-19 pandemic. In May 2021, President Biden signed into law the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, a bipartisan legislation that makes significant improvements to our Nation's response to hate crimes. The bill addresses two challenges: the lack of resources and training for state and local law enforcement to accurately identify and report hate crimes to the FBI, and the language and cultural barriers that many AA and NHPI communities and communities of color face in reporting hate crimes to law enforcement.
President Biden has led a historic whole-of-government approach to combat hate, xenophobia, and intolerance facing AA and NHPI communities in the United States. In his first week in office, President Biden signed the "Memorandum Condemning and Combating Racism, Xenophobia, and Intolerance Against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States" (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/26/memorandum-condemning-and-combating-racism-xenophobia-and-intolerance-against-asian-americans-and-pacific-islanders-in-the-united-states/). The memorandum directs all federal agencies to take steps to ensure their actions mitigate anti-Asian bias and xenophobia, especially in the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the last two years, agencies have worked to deliver real and lasting results:
* Funding critical research to prevent and address bias and xenophobia against AA and NHPI communities. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is taking a comprehensive approach to investing in research to understand, address, and end bias, discrimination and xenophobia, including against AA and NHPI communities.
* The Department of Justice (DOJ) continued its efforts to help agencies transition their crime data to the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), a more detailed, FBI-recommended, national crime database that provides a better picture of crime incidents, including hate crimes by:
o Providing funding and free technical support to assist law enforcement agencies transition from the old crime data collection system to the FBI's National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), the only way for state and local agencies to submit crime data, including hate crime data, to the FBI.
o Conducting outreach to police chiefs, law enforcement groups, and mayors to emphasize the importance of accurate hate crime data collection.
* In March 2023, the FBI released its Supplemental 2021 Hate Crime Statistics (https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-releases-supplemental-2021-hate-crime-statistics) - combining the Summary Reporting System (SRS) and NIBRS data - which captured a 167% increase in anti-Asian crime incidents.
* In September 2022, the Department of Justice launched the United Against Hate program in all 94 U.S. Attorneys' Offices by September 2023 to help improve the reporting of hate crimes by teaching community members how to identify, report, and help prevent hate crimes and encouraging trust building between law enforcement and communities.
* In 2022, the Department of Justice's Community Oriented Policing Services released a new hate crimes recognition and reporting training aimed specifically at line-level officers. The training aims to increase state and local law enforcement officers' ability to identify when an incident is a hate crime or hate incident.
* The Department of Justice and the Department of Education jointly issued a letter to educators on May 26, 2021, and a fact sheet addressing the increased harassment and violence directed at AA and NHPI students and reminded schools about their role in addressing discrimination, including harassment, against AA and NHPI students.
* Providing funding for justice programs: The Department of Justice awarded over $32 million in grant funding to law enforcement and prosecution agencies, community-based organizations, and civil rights groups to support outreach, investigations, prosecutions, community awareness and preparedness, reporting, hotlines, and victim services; as well as supporting research and program evaluation studies. Examples include:
o The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Program, which supports state, local and Tribal law enforcement and prosecution agencies and their partners in conducting outreach, and investigating and prosecuting hate crimes;
o The Community Based Approaches to Prevent and Address Hate Crimes Program, which supports community-based organizations and civil rights groups in implementing comprehensive approaches to promote community awareness and preparedness, increase victim reporting, strengthen community resiliency, and improve responses to hate crimes;
o The Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act Program, which supports state-run hate crime reporting hotlines and assists jurisdictions' transition to NIBRS to improve hate crimes data reporting; and
o The Emmett Till Program, which supports law enforcement and prosecutors and their partners in their efforts to investigate and resolve cold-case homicides that involve civil rights violations.
* Revitalizing the Justice Department's Community Relations Service. The Justice Department is strategically revitalizing the Community Relations Service (CRS), an office which provides facilitated dialogue, mediation, training, and consultation for communities facing bias-related conflict, including AA and NHPI communities. CRS has been meeting with national and local AA and NHPI organizations to address community concerns about the rise in anti-Asian incidents and individuals' safety during the pandemic. CRS will continue sharing resources and information with affected communities, as well as working with government leaders, faith leaders, community groups, universities, and schools to help them build the capacity to address and prevent hate crimes.
* Issuing a memorandum from the Attorney General on hate crimes and hate incidents. In one of his first acts, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland issued a directive to the Department to conduct a 30-day expedited internal review (https://www.justice.gov/ag/page/file/1381396/download) to determine how the Department could deploy all the tools at its disposal to counter the recent rise in hate crimes and hate incidents.
* On May 27, 2021, following the review's completion and the passage of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act and Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, the Attorney General issued a memorandum (https://www.justice.gov/media/1143466/dl?inline) announcing immediate steps to deter hate crimes and bias-related incidents, address them when they occur, support victims, and reduce the pernicious effects these incidents have on our society.
* On May 20, 2022, the one-year anniversary of the enactment of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, the Department of Justice issued a new guidance document (https://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes/addressing-hate-crimes-against-AAPI) with the Department of Health and Human Services, aimed at raising awareness of hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic. This guidance provides an overview of the rise of hate crimes and hate incidents during the pandemic, including a surge of hate crimes and hate incidents against AA and NHPI communities, and several steps that law enforcement, government officials, and others can take to raise awareness of increased hate crimes and incidents, and to use increased awareness as a tool for the prevention of and response to hate crimes.
* In 2022, U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai participated in an event, hosted by the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and the National Coalition of Canadians Against Anti-Asian Racism. Under the banner, 'Inspiring Next GenerAsian Leaders', the event hosted youth from several Asian organizations and institutions across Canada and provided an opportunity for Ambassador Tai to work with her Canadian counterpart Minister Mary Ng to convene conversations with broader Asian American and Asian Canadian groups.
* Providing trainings to enhance civil rights reporting and strengthen relationships between law enforcement and community members. The FBI hosted regional conferences across the country with state and local law enforcement agencies regarding federal civil rights and hate crimes laws; to encourage reporting; strengthen relationships between law enforcement and local civil rights organizations; and build trust within the diverse communities they serve.
* Assessing threats against AA and NHPIs. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) issued an "Intelligence in Brief" publication that assessed the threats targeting AA and NHPI communities. The brief examines physical threats and incidents of violence against AA and NHPI community members over the last year and provides context for what the office views as the potential threats facing the community in the near future.
* Identifying systemic barriers in accessing nonprofit security grant benefits and opportunities. In July 2021, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the Department of Homeland Security collaborated to award FEMA Nonprofit Security Grants to 17 AA and NHPI serving organizations.
* Integrating AA and NHPIs into community-based violence prevention efforts. DHS's Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) Regional Prevention Coordinators conducted outreach and built connections with local and regional partners across the country to ensure that AA and NHPI communities are integrated into broader local community-based prevention efforts to increase the ability of local community leaders to prevent violence and build community resilience against discrimination and hate.
Promoting Equitable Data and Data Disaggregation for AA and NHPI Communities. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to advancing racial equity and inclusion through improved data collection, research, access, and disaggregation efforts. Better data leads to better and more informed policies that reflect the needs and priorities of the AA and NHPI communities.
* The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)'s, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) posted in the Federal Register (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/10/21/2022-22867/agency-information-collection-activities-proposed-collection-public-comment-request-information) the proposed expansion of demographic characteristics reporting in the Uniform Data System (UDS) beginning with the 2023 reporting period to better align with HHS race/ethnicity data standards in accordance with Section 4302 of the Affordable Care Act. UDS will be updated to include subpopulation categories for AA and NHPI, and a broader selection for Hispanic ethnicity. These options will more accurately reflect the diversity of patients served by health centers as well as continue to align with OMB's minimum categories for race and ethnicity data collection. High-quality accessible data is critical to strategically meeting the needs of patients and identifying opportunities for clinical process improvement.
* In September 2022, the Department of Labor (DOL)'s, Bureau of Labor Statistics published for the first time (https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bls.gov%2Fblog%2F2022%2Fbls-now-publishing-monthly-data-for-native-hawaiians-and-other-pacific-islanders-and-people-of-two-or-more-races.htm&data=05%7C01%7CChen.Christina.E%40dol.gov%7C53bacd39cc4949d27a0a08db349056d5%7C75a6305472044e0c9126adab971d4aca%7C0%7C0%7C638161566756866764%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=FVaGq%2BYOpLev1XzEIccOEL1%2FO7zb2X2envMsWbMo78E%3D&reserved=0) monthly labor force estimates for NHPIs regarding the unemployment rate, the employment-population ratio, the labor force participation rate, and other key metrics. With the release of the Employment Situation (https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bls.gov%2Fnews.release%2Fempsit.nr0.htm&data=05%7C01%7CChen.Christina.E%40dol.gov%7C53bacd39cc4949d27a0a08db349056d5%7C75a6305472044e0c9126adab971d4aca%7C0%7C0%7C638161566756866764%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&sdata=WX7SiA1GCAInHQZrFaTVa%2Bv7HIsJiB1zB7moZkmH%2BJc%3D&reserved=0) report on September 2, 2022, monthly data for NHPIs are available going back to January 2003.
* The Department of Commerce (DOC)'s Census Bureau released the Demographic and Housing Characteristics File (DHC) (https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2023/dec/2020-census-dhc.html) and Demographic Profile on May 25, 2023 (https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2023/dec/2020-census-demographic-profile.html). These 2020 Census data products provide demographic and housing characteristics of local communities. More demographic and housing characteristics will be included in the Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File A (DHC-A).
* On February 8, 2023, the Census Bureau held the AA and NHPI Proof of Concept Webinar (https://www.census.gov/data/academy/webinars/2023/detailed-dhc-a-proof-of-concept.html), with nearly 80 organizations. The Census Bureau offered targeted and tailored outreach in advance to AA and NHPI data users and key stakeholders to discuss the proof of concept, which included proposed content and disclosure avoidance settings, and was based on 2010 Census data that represents the tables planned for publication in the 2020 Census Detailed Demographic and Housing Characteristics File A, which will provide the population counts and sex and age statistics for approximately 370 detailed racial and ethnic groups and 1,200 American Indian and Alaska Native tribes and villages and is scheduled for release in September 2023.
* The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has finalized a rule required by Congress to increase transparency in small business lending, promote economic development, and combat unlawful discrimination, including against AA and NHPI businesses. Lenders will collect and report information about the small business credit applications they receive, including geographic and demographic data, lending decisions, and the price of credit. The rule will work in concert with the Community Reinvestment Act, which requires certain financial institutions to meet the needs of the communities they serve. The increased transparency will benefit small businesses, family farms, financial institutions, and the broader economy.
* The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) now receives disaggregated AA and NHPI data for single-family automated underwriting system mortgage applications. FHFA will use these data to monitor fair lending impacts to subgroups and to inform future policy decisions that support equal treatment of all future homeowners.
* The Department of Education (ED) will collect highly disaggregated race and ethnicity data on its Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form, which is filled out by all federal student aid applicants. This data feeds into a variety of student outcome measures reported for postsecondary institutions and programs and will allow for more robust disaggregated reporting on college access and success.
* At the request of the U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai, the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC), an independent U.S. agency, released a report in November 2022 that catalogued information on the distributional effects of trade and trade policy on underrepresented and underserved communities. The report summarizes the literature and confirms clear gaps in trade data focusing on Tribal nations, Indigenous and AA and NHPI workers; workers with disabilities; and workers based on their race/ethnicity, gender, and sexual orientation. Ambassador Tai also requested that the USITC update the distributional effects report every three years.
Lowering Health Care Costs and Improving Health Outcomes for AA and NHPI Communities. The COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the systemic inequities in our economy and healthcare system. The Biden-Harris Administration has used every lever and tool to ensure access to safe, free, and convenient vaccines and invest in more equitable public health infrastructure to better serve communities across America, including in AA and NHPI communities.
* Expanding access to health care. The American Rescue Plan (ARP) has lowered or eliminated health insurance premiums for millions of lower- and middle-income families enrolled in health insurance marketplaces. The Administration's efforts to expand access to coverage has driven the uninsured rate to historic lows, with more than 3.6 million people gaining coverage during last year's recording breaking 16.3 million ACA enrollment period.
o The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) locks in lower monthly premiums - about 197,000 uninsured AA and NHPI Americans will continue to save money on health care coverage, including the 50,000 AA and NHPI people that could find a plan for $0-premium plan in 2021.
o By continuing the improvements made through the American Rescue Plan, the Inflation Reduction Act keeps free or low-cost health insurance available. About 120,000 more AA and NHPI Americans will have health insurance coverage in 2023, compared to without the Inflation Reduction Act.
o As outlined in his February 2023 State of the Union address, the President is calling on Congress to make permanent the improved ACA tax credits that lower health care premiums for millions of Americans and to close the Medicaid coverage gap.
* Ensuring health care resources are readily available for AA and NHPI communities. The Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded culturally appropriate and understandable health care information for the AA and NHPI community, including releasing the "Medicare & You" handbook in Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese. CMS also conducted targeted outreach to AA and NHPI communities for the 2022 Affordable Care Act (ACA) Open Enrollment season, including specific social media and television advertisements, and hosting an AA and NHPI week of action during December 2022.
* HHS has also launched an Equity Technical Assistance (TA) Center to provide training, tools, and TA for HHS employees to make sure that policies, programs, research, and analyses more equitable, including TA on strategies for reducing disparities in access to, and use of, grants and other HHS policy levers.
* Supporting the mental health needs of AA and NHPI communities. In October 2022, the Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded a grant to the Hawaii State Department of Health/Behavioral Health Administration to establish the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Behavioral Health Center of Excellence (AANHPI-CoE). The purpose of this Center of Excellence is to advance the behavioral health equity of AA, NH, and PI communities. The AANHPI-CoE will (1) develop and disseminate culturally-informed, evidence-based behavioral health information and (2) provide technical assistance and training on issues related to addressing behavioral health disparities in AA, NH, and PI communities. The AANHPI-CoE serves as a resource to behavioral healthcare providers, community-based and faith-based organizations, research institutions, and federal entities.
Promoting Economic Opportunity for AA and NHPI Communities. By signing into law the historic American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act, and CHIPS and Science Act implementing robust regulatory reform, the Biden-Harris Administration has led the most equitable economic recovery on record, creating more than 12 million jobs since coming to office and helping create new economic opportunities for all Americans, including AA and NHPI workers, small business owners, and entrepreneurs.
* Improving engagement with AA and NHPI businesses and entrepreneurs. In January 2023, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) launched a series of regional economic summits to connect AA and NHPI community members directly with federal leaders and resources. The events are being held in different cities in collaboration with the U.S. Small Business Administration, U.S. Department of the Treasury, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)'s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, the National Asian / Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce & Entrepreneurship, and local officials. The series was spurred by a recommendation from the President's Advisory Commission on AA and NHPIs and aims to improve the accessibility of federal resources, including contracting and procurement opportunities, as well as federal jobs, grants, and programs.
* The Small Business Administration established a Community Navigators Pilot Program (CNPP) via the American Rescue Plan. In the program's first year (through November 30, 2022), CNPP provided business counseling to more than 17,000 unique clients and general training to another 200,000+ attendees, resulting in over $170 million in approved funding. Of the 51 grant recipients engaged in the Community Navigators Pilot, 18 have a particular focus on AA and NHPI entrepreneurs, including the U.S. Pan Asian American Chamber, which specializes in providing in-language support for ESL entrepreneurs in the AA and NHPI community, and Maui Economic Development Board, which works with community organizations serving smaller Hawaiian Islands, such as Moloka'i and Lanai. Navigator organizations have also directly counseled over 1,400 clients identifying as AA and NHPI.
* The Small Business Administration (SBA) distributed loans to AA and NHPI business owners and entrepreneurs. SBA distributed 1,084 loans totaling $1.5 billion through its 504 Program, which provides long-term, fixed rate financing for major fixed assets that promote business growth and job creation; 5,603 loans totaling $5.3 billion through its 7(a) Program, which provides financial support for small businesses; and 165 microloans totaling $3.7 billion (in FY 2022) and 22,800 grants via the temporary Cares Act Restaurant Revitalization Fund totaling $5.95 billion (in FY 2021) to help small businesses and certain non-profit childcare centers start up and expand.
* Good Jobs Challenge to support AA and NHPI businesses. The Department of Commerce (DOC)'s Economic Development Agency (EDA) announced grant awards to 32 industry-led workforce training partnerships in 31 states and Puerto Rico as part of the $500 million Good Jobs Challenge funded by ARP.
- Resilient Hawaii: The Good Jobs Challenge is investing $16 million in the University of Hawaii, an EDA University Center and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI), to support four of Hawaii's major industries: healthcare; information technology; energy and resilience; and film, arts, and media. The sectoral partnerships funded by this program will train thousands of workers, with a focus on NHPI communities, to secure quality jobs with local employers including Adventist Health Castle, Bank of Hawaii, and Diagnostic Laboratory Services.
- Greater Boston Region (GBR) Regional Workforce Training System (RWTS): The Good Jobs Challenge is investing $23 million in the Economic Development and Industrial Corporation of Boston. In partnership with over 100 local employers, EDIC will create demand-driven pathways into quality childcare, healthcare, and energy jobs. Its clean energy sector partnership, led by Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving Institution, will partner with local unions to develop skilled journeymen workers to develop clean energy infrastructure.
* Strengthening export capacity. The Department of Commerce (DOC)'s International Trade Administration (ITA) is leading the U.S. Commercial Service's Global Diversity Export Initiative is committed to helping underserved communities in the United States, including AA and NHPI businesses among others to increase their exports. Through the Strategic Partnership Program, ITA continues its partnership with the Asian American Chamber of Commerce and the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce.
* Investing in Equitable Workforce Training. The President is committed to creating pathways to the middle class, especially for people from underserved communities, by expanding skills-based hiring and increasing access to Registered Apprenticeship and workforce training. States, localities, community colleges, and community-based organizations have leveraged $40 billion in ARP funds to deliver training, expand career paths, encourage more Registered Apprenticeships, provide retention and hiring bonuses in critical industries, and power efforts to help underserved Americans and those who face barriers to employment secure good jobs. In 2022, the Department of Labor (DOL) awarded $121 million in grants to expand, diversify, and improve access to Registered Apprenticeships for underserved communities, including AA and NHPIs. The agency is also awarding $95 million to help people in marginalized and underrepresented populations overcome barriers to career and technical education programs they need to connect with quality jobs.
* Reversing decades of disinvestment through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. For years, politicians have talked about investing in our national infrastructure, but up until now they have failed to follow through. The lack of investment has fallen most heavily on underserved communities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will: replace lead pipes; increase access to training and good-quality jobs; expand affordable high-speed internet, reliable public transit, and clean drinking water; reconnect neighborhoods divided by legacy highway infrastructure; and provide other resources to communities.
* Ensuring digital equity. The Department of Commerce (DOC)'s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) tentatively reserved $3 million to award grants to the U.S. territories. In addition, NTIA tentatively reserved $15 million to award grants to Indian Tribes, Alaska Native entities, and Native Hawaiian organizations for the purpose of creating Tribal / Native digital equity plans.
* Supporting rural development. The Department of Agriculture's Rural Development mission area has so far invested $467 million in Hawaii, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau, in grants, loans, and investments in infrastructure.
Addressing Housing Discrimination and Helping AA and NHPI Communities Stay in their Homes. The Administration implemented a series of measures that protected homeowners from foreclosure, including a foreclosure moratorium, increased options for mortgage payment forbearance, and enhanced loan modifications to resolve delinquencies. In addition, the American Rescue Plan is helping struggling homeowners catch up with their mortgage payments and utility costs through the Homeowner Assistance Fund.
* Protecting AA and NHPI access to housing by combating housing discrimination. Following President Biden's Presidential Memorandum directing his Administration to address racial discrimination in the housing market, in February 2023, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to fulfill obligations under the Fair Housing Act to Affirmatively Further Fair Housing. This rule would help overcome patterns of segregation and to hold state, localities, and public housing agencies that receive federal funds accountable for ensuring that underserved communities have equitable access to affordable housing opportunities.
* New actions to protect renters and promote rental affordability. In January 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration announced new actions to increase fairness in the rental market and further principles of fair housing. This includes actions to identify practices that may unfairly prevent applicants and tenants from accessing or staying in housing such as the discriminatory use of tenant background checks and algorithms in tenant screenings. These actions align with a new Blueprint for a Renters Bill of Rights (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/White-House-Blueprint-for-a-Renters-Bill-of-Rights-1.pdf). The Blueprint lays out a set of principles to drive action by the federal government, state and local partners, and the private sector to strengthen tenant protections and encourage rental affordability.
* In March 2023, the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) awarded approximately $54 million in funding for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) to address violations of the Fair Housing Act and end housing discrimination. Included within these awards were seven FHIP grants that serve the AA and NHPI community. The grantees will provide education and outreach, translate materials into Asian and Pacific Islander languages and conduct enforcement related activities to address discriminatory acts against the AA and NHPI community.
* HUD's FHEO and its Fair Housing Assistance Program partners have reached conciliation agreements in 54 housing discrimination cases in FY2021 and FY2022 where an AA and NHPI individual filed a complaint based on race or national origin. For example, in May 2021, HUD reached a settlement with housing providers in California who had allegedly failed to provide language access services to Vietnamese residents. The settlement resulted in financial compensation to affected residents and with the housing providers agreeing to make available free oral interpretation services and translated documents when required by law.
* The Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has supported homeownership in the AA and NHPI community with a number of programs:
- FHA mortgage insurance facilitated affordable home financing or refinancing for over 55,000 AA and NHPI individuals and families over FY2021 and FY2022.
- More than 1,700 senior AA and NHPI homeowners used FHA's Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program to age in place in their own homes over FY2021 and FY2022.
- Through expanded COVID-19 forbearance options, more than 52,000 AA and NHPI homeowners with FHA-insured mortgages obtained a mortgage payment forbearance over FY2021 and FY2022.
- HUD-approved housing counseling agencies served more than 67,000 AA and NHPI clients over FY2021 and FY2022.
* Providing stable housing for Native Hawaiian families. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s Office of Native American Programs (ONAP) made available $5 million in Native Hawaiian Housing Block Grant (NHHBG) funding through the Biden-Harris Administration's American Rescue Plan, providing critical rental and utility assistance to 564 low-income Native Hawaiian families in FY 2022. HUD also supported homeownership by issuing 107 Section 184A mortgage loan guarantees in FY 2021 and FY 2022 representing over $30 million dollars in mortgage capital to Native Hawaiian families.
* The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s Office of Native American Program (ONAP) provided training and technical assistance to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands (DHHL) to create a tenant-based rental assistance program for kupuna (elders). HUD published a proposed rule on January 4, 2023, that would make changes to the NHHBG regulation to clarify that NHHBG funds may be used for tenant-based or project-based rental assistance, thereby diversifying the types of affordable housing options available for Native Hawaiian communities.
Ensuring Equitable Educational Opportunity in K-12 Schools and an Education Beyond High School. The Biden-Harris Administration has delivered the support necessary to enable every school to return to full-time, in-person instruction and ensure student success by accelerating academic recovery and addressing the mental health needs of students. The Administration has also made college more affordable, provided college students with supports for completion, and helped federal student loan borrowers as they recover from the pandemic. He has also worked to ensure equitable access to high-quality education for AA and NHPI students.
* Confronting COVID-19 related harassment in schools. In May 2021, the U.S. Department of Education wrote a letter to educators to address the increased harassment and violence directed at AA and NHPI students and families and remind schools about their roles in protecting AA and NHPI students as they returned to in-person learning. The Department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) shared a resource guide on how to navigate these situations, and also shared "How to File a Discrimination Complaint with the Office for Civil Rights" in 24 languages, including in 11 Asian languages. The Civil Rights Divisions of the Department of Justice and Department of Education also partnered to create a resource on Confronting COVID-19-Related Harassment in Schools, to assist AA and NHPI students who have reported bullying and harassment by classmates because of their race or national origin, including their ethnicity, ancestry, and language.
* Safely reopening K-12 schools. The ARP has provided more than $122 billion to help K-12 schools reopen safely. These investments include set asides at the local and state level to ensure states and districts address the learning loss and social and emotional needs of students disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, including AA and NHPI students, English learners, and students with disabilities.
* Supporting college students. The ARP provided more than $36 billion in support to institutions of higher education, including institutions that primarily serve AA and NHPI students, to help students stay enrolled, lower costs, keep faculty and staff employed, and slow the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. All students, regardless of citizenship, who met the appropriate criteria were eligible to receive emergency financial aid grants funded by the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. The Biden-Harris Administration delivered $5 billion in ARP funds to support Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs).
* In October 2022, The Department of Commerce (DOC)'s Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) awarded a Minority Colleges and Universities grant to a Native Hawaiian Serving Institution (NHSI), which is now the fourth MBDA Equity in Hawaii. Chaminade University of Honolulu, Hawaii received $300,711 and will develop and pilot a Sustainability Entrepreneurship course (expanding to a public certificate program) and develop a "Pathways to Entrepreneurship" series of workshops and seminars.
* The Department of Defense (DoD)'s SMART Program is creating University Liaison positions that will focus on building relationships with HBCUs, and MSIs, to include AANAPISIs and ANNHs, to strengthen and expand SMART's academic partnership opportunities. The SMART Program received:
- 2,555 applicants for the 2022 cohort.
- 128 applicants attended an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution (AANAPISI) and 8 attended an Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian (ANNH)-Serving Institution.
- Among all applicants (irrespective of institution), 8.9% identified as Asian and 0.1% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.
- 482 individuals were ultimately awarded a SMART scholarship as part of the 2022 cohort, with 21 awardees attending AANAPISI and 1 attending an ANNH.
- Among all awardees (irrespective of institution), 8.9% identified as Asian and 0.1% as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander.
- The SMART Program received 3,061 applicants for consideration in the 2023 cohort.
- 284 applicants attend an AANAPISI and 4 attend ANNH institutions.
- Among all applicants (irrespective of institution), 9.7% identified as Asian and 0.2% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. Awardees for the 2023 cohort will be announced in April 2023.
* On February 27, 2023, the Department of Commerce (DOC)'s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), awarded more than $175 million to 61 colleges and universities as part of the Connecting Minority Communities Pilot Program (CMC). These new awards cover colleges and universities in 29 states and four territories. American Samoa Community College was awarded $2.99 million and the College of Micronesia -FSM was awarded $1.2 million. The grants will provide access to affordable, reliable, high-speed internet service, which is necessary for minority students and local communities to fully access school, healthcare, and jobs.
* Providing support to borrowers. President Biden believes that a post-high school education should be a ticket to a middle-class life, but for too many AA and NHPI students and graduates, the cost of borrowing for college is a lifelong burden that deprives them of that opportunity.
In August 2022, President Biden announced a plan that:
* Provides one-time debt relief to low- and middle-income borrowers to make sure borrowers are not worse off with respect to their loans because of the pandemic. President Biden's one-time debt relief plan provides up to $20,000 in debt relief to Pell Grant recipients with loans held by the Department of Education, and up to $10,000 in debt relief to non-Pell Grant recipients. Borrowers are eligible for this relief if their individual income is less than $125,000 ($250,000 for married couples. No one in the top 5% of incomes will benefit from this action. While litigation is currently preventing the Administration from providing this debt relief, the Administration remains confident that the program is legal. In the less than four weeks that the application was available, 26 million people either applied for debt relief or had already provided sufficient information to the Department of Education to be deemed eligible for relief. Over 16 million of those borrowers' applications were fully approved by the Department and sent to loan servicers before the program was enjoined in litigation.
* Makes the student loan system more manageable for current and future borrowers. These steps include:
o Cutting monthly payments in half for undergraduate loans. The Department of Education is proposing an income-driven repayment plan that protects more low-income borrowers from making any payments and caps monthly payments for undergraduate loans at 5% of a borrower's discretionary income--half of the rate that borrowers must pay now under most existing plans. This means that the average annual student loan payment will be lowered by more than $1,000 for both current and future borrowers.
o Fixing the broken Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program by ensuring that borrowers who have worked at a nonprofit, in the military, or in federal, state, Tribal, or local government, receive appropriate credit toward loan forgiveness. These regulatory changes build on temporary changes the Department of Education made to PSLF, under which roughly 360,000 public servants received more than $24 billion in loan forgiveness.
o Ensuring targeted student loan forgiveness programs work. To date, the Department of Education has approved a total of more than $66 billion in relief to over 2.2 million student loan borrowers who were defrauded by their college, enrolled in a college that abruptly closed, are permanently disabled and unable to work, and borrowers who serve our country through government or non-profit work.
* Protecting future students and taxpayers by reducing the cost of college and holding schools accountable when they hike up prices. The President championed the largest increase to Pell Grants in the last decade - a combined increase of $900 to the maximum award for students over the last two years - and has a plan to double the maximum Pell Grant by 2029 to nearly $13,000. To further reduce the cost of college, the President will continue to fight to make community college free. Meanwhile, colleges have an obligation to keep prices reasonable and ensure borrowers get value for their investments, not debt they cannot afford. This Administration has already taken key steps to strengthen accountability, including in areas where the previous Administration weakened rules such as holding career colleges accountable for leaving their students with mountains of debt that they cannot repay.
Ensuring Language Access and Native Language Revitalization for AA and NHPI Communities. At the President's direction, agencies across the Biden-Harris Administration have taken a number of steps to improve access to vital federal programs for AA and NHPI communities.
* The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)'s Office of Field Policy and Management translated the Office of Davis-Bacon and Labor Standards' Construction Workers Pocket Guide (https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/Labor/documents/Davis-Bacon_Worker_Pocket_Guide.pdf) into Vietnamese and Chinese this year, along with other languages, to increase accessibility and broader understanding of federal wage protections in HUD-funded projects.
* The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducted initial assessments to determine which vital documents have been translated into top AA and NHPI languages encountered in select homeland security programs, specifically terrorist alerts and messaging on domestic extremism; access to civil rights complaints; immigration detention; immigration benefits; and security and safety statements related to immigration enforcement during disasters. DHS translated its National Terrorism Advisory System Bulletin into Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Korean, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese and its statements on safety and immigration issued during Hurricane Ida and Hurricane Ian into Chinese (Simplified and Traditional) and Vietnamese.
* The Federal Housing and Finance Agency (FHFA) translated multiple origination and servicing-related documents into Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Tagalog, and these translations are now available on FHFA's website. In March 2023, the requirement to ask for and maintain an applicants' preferred language was implemented. The industry is now required to ask borrowers their preferred language as part of an addendum to the loan application and that information will transfer to the mortgage servicer.
* The Social Security Administration (SSA) expanded its internet site to include Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog and Simplified Chinese translated publications. SSA also made linguistic updates to its visitor intake kiosks to better facilitate the check-in process at local field offices.
* In FY 2022, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) posted translations of 18 additional webpages in Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Tagalog and continued to assess its language access capabilities by reinvigorating its Language Access Working Group and beginning to identify potential updates to the agency's existing Language Access Plan.
* The Department of Interior (DOI)'s Office of Native Hawaiian Relations developed a Department Manual (DM) chapter to standardize the use of ʻOlelo Hawai'i by the Department.
* The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) now provides document translation, in-person and virtual interpretation, voice over/subtitle, web-support, and telephonic interpretation services, which are available for all EPA HQ and regional program offices. The telephonic interpretation service is available for use by all EPA employees 24/7 with over 175 languages available.
* The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) awarded a new translations contract which now allows the agency to provide enhanced translation capability including in AA and NHPI languages. The Commission created consumer-friendly fact sheets and other materials online about its Affordable Connectivity Program and translated them into Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Korean, Vietnamese, and Tagalog.
* The Department of Justice (DOJ) continued to make efforts to improve and expand language access across its department and to law enforcement agencies. Efforts include:
o Convening the Language Access Working Group which provides technical assistance and training across its components as they continue to improve language access for all, including AA and NHPI communities;
o Launching the Law Enforcement Language Access Initiative, a nationwide effort to assist law enforcement agencies in meeting their obligations to provide meaningful language assistance to Limited English Proficiency (LEP ) individuals; and
o Adding information to its website on reporting hate crimes in 24 languages, including 18 of the most frequently spoken AA and NHPI languages in the country.
* Implementing Language Access at HUD. HUD's language access plan outlines HUD's commitment to providing meaningful access for people with limited English proficiency across all programs, services, and activities conducted by the Department. HUD developed social media and web-based resources (https://www.hudexchange.info/programs/housing-counseling/fheo/) for housing counseling agencies to reach those with limited English proficiency who may be struggling to make their mortgage payments due to COVID-19. These materials are available in multiple languages, including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Samoan, Tagalog, Thai, Vietnamese, and Punjabi. Similarly, HUD has general homebuying information available for housing counselors to use with clients in multiple languages, including Korean, Laotian, Tagalog, Mandarin, and Vietnamese.
* Expanding language access and assistance for arts programs. Using ARP funds, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) expanded language access and language assistance, including for the first time translating guidelines and supporting materials (https://www.arts.gov/about/news/2021/nea-offers-relief-funds-help-arts-and-culture-sector-recover-pandemic) into Chinese. The NEA has also held grant workshops with the Asian American Arts Alliance, the Asian American Writers' Workshop, the Consortium of Asian American Theaters & Artists, and HowlRound. These workshops provided technical assistance for ARP grant applications, better equipping culturally-specific organizations to apply successfully for relief funding.
* Increasing access to contracting, grant, employment, and internship opportunities at the Department of Defense (DoD). Through the implementation of specific outreach programs to advance inclusivity, the Department of Defense's Taking the Pentagon To The People Program (TTPTTP) is aimed at increasing access to contracts, federal grants, resources, and employment programs for AA and NHPIs and other underserved communities. In addition, DOD is working to strengthen the capacity and the infrastructure of Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs) and other Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) and increase opportunities for AA and NHPI serving institutions to participate in Federal programs.
Advancing Equity for AA and NHPI Communities Through White House Leadership and Initiatives. On his first day in office, President Biden signed the historic Executive Order on Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. The President's Order emphasized the enormous human costs of systemic racism, persistent poverty, and other disparities, and directed the Federal Government to advance an ambitious whole-of-government equity agenda that matches the scale of the challenges we face as a country and the opportunities we have to build a more perfect union. Over the last two years, the Biden-Harris Administration has championed racial equity and advanced equal opportunity for underserved communities, including AA and NHPI communities. During the President's first year in office, 90 federal agencies across the federal government, including all Cabinet-level agencies as well as over 50 independent agencies, conducted equity assessments of three to five of their agency's high-impact services for the American people, to uncover where systemic barriers to access may exist. Using those findings, agencies developed Equity Action Plans for addressing--and achieving--equity in their mission delivery for all Americans. The Equity Action Plans include accountability mechanisms and identify success metrics and key milestones toward progress.
* Executive Order on Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. To strengthen the federal government's equity commitment, on February 16, 2023, President Biden signed a second Executive Order on equity that directs the federal government to continue the work to make the promise of America real for every American including communities of color, Tribal communities, rural communities, LGBTQI+ individuals, people with disabilities, women and girls, veterans and communities impacted by persistent poverty. This second equity Executive Order requires agencies to designate senior leaders accountable for implementing the Executive Order; directs agencies to produce Equity Action Plans annually and report to the public on their progress; requires agencies to improve the quality, frequency, and accessibility of their community engagement; formalizes the President's goal of increasing the share of federal contracting dollars awarded to small disadvantaged business by 50 percent by 2025; directs agencies to spur economic growth in rural areas and advance more equitable urban development; instructs agencies to consider bolstering the capacity of their civil rights offices and focusing their efforts on emerging threats like algorithmic discrimination in automated technology; directs the White House Office of Management and Budget to support agencies' Equity Action Plans and invest in underserved communities each year through the formulation of the President's budget; and further promotes data equity and transparency.
* Reestablishing and expanding the White House Initiative and President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. In May 2021, the President signed Executive Order 14031 (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/05/28/fact-sheet-president-biden-establishes-the-white-house-initiative-on-asian-americans-native-hawaiians-and-pacific-islanders/) reestablishing the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, and delivering on the President's commitment to reinstate and reinvigorate this historic Initiative. The Initiative is led out of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and is co-chaired by HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai. The Initiative is charged with driving an ambitious, whole-of-government agenda to advance equity, justice, and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities. In addition, the Executive Order establishes a Presidential Advisory Commission on AA and NHPIs to advise the President on ways the public, private and non-profit sectors can work together to advance equity and opportunity for AA and NHPI communities. The Commission is also charged with advising the President on policies to address anti-Asian xenophobia and violence, ways to build capacity in AA and NHPI communities through federal grantmaking, and policies to address the barriers that AA and NHPI women, LGBTQI+ people, and people with disabilities face. The Commission is made up of leaders who reflect the rich diversity of AA and NHPI communities across the country.
* Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) in the Federal Government. In June 2021, the President signed an Executive Order (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/06/25/executive-order-on-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-accessibility-in-the-federal-workforce/) advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility in the federal government. The Executive Order establishes that it is the policy of the Biden-Harris Administration to cultivate a workforce that draws from the full diversity of the nation. As the nation's largest employer, the federal government must be a model for diversity, equity, and inclusion, and accessibility, where all employees are treated with dignity and respect. In particular, the Executive Order directs agencies to mitigate barriers that AA and NHPI employees, first generation professionals, religious minorities, and workers with limited English proficiency face in accessing federal employment opportunities, including in positions of leadership.
* Signed the Respect for Marriage Act. In December 2022, President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law, which requires that interracial marriages and same-sex marriage must be recognized as legal in every state in the nation. The is a vital step towards advancing the civil rights of all Americans.
* Launching a National Strategy to Advance Equity, Justice, and Opportunity for AA and NHPI Communities: In January 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration released its first-ever national strategy (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/01/17/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-continues-to-uplift-asian-american-native-hawaiian-and-pacific-islander-communities/) to promote safety and equity for AA and NHPIs. The strategy, which comprises action plans prepared by 32 federal agencies--including all 15 executive departments in the President's Cabinet--builds on the Administration's broader equity agenda and details much needed investments in AA and NHPI communities and priorities, including data disaggregation, language access, and combatting anti-Asian hate.
* Strengthening the pipeline for AA and NHPIs in the Federal Workforce. On May 23, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration hosted a historic conference focused on supporting AA and NHPI federal employees and cultivating leaders within the federal government-marking the first time such an event has been held at this scale and by any administration since 2014. More than 1,000 employees representing over 100 federal agencies registered to attend the hybrid conference, which was organized by the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) in close partnership with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
Strengthening Partnerships with AA and NHPI Communities. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to strengthening our engagement efforts and foster greater collaboration with AA and NHPI communities.
* On May 3, 2023, the White House and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI) hosted The White House Forum on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AA and NHPIs) in Washington DC, kicking off AA and NHPI Heritage Month under the theme 'Visible Together.' The all-day event drew more than 1,300 AA and NHPI community members from over two dozen states and U.S. territories, making it one of the largest in-person events ever hosted by the Biden-Harris Administration in celebration of AA and NHPI Heritage Month.
* In October 2022, the Department of Transportation (DOT)'s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) launched its national series of public transit listening sessions in New York City before holding its second session in San Francisco in January 2023 and its third session in Houston in April 2023. As a follow-up to those listening sessions, DOT is directly engaging specific stakeholders. FTA also plans to host additional listening session throughout 2023 in cities across the country, including Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas.
* The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Bureau of Consumer Protection staff conducted outreach and consumer education campaigns to and through ethnic media outlets, as well as directly to communities, including AA and NHPI communities, about the financial impact of the pandemic.
* The Department of the Interior (DOI), for the first time in the agency's history, will require formal consultation with the Native Hawaiian community. Two new Department Manual (DM) chapters that provide the policy and process for consultation were reviewed by all necessary internal officials at DOI and shared with the Native Hawaiian community and then publicly in October 2022. Consultations were held on November 10 and December 5, 2022, and comments were received through February 1, 2023. Input is now being reviewed and deliberated.
* In September 2022, the Department of the Interior (DOI) also released new guidance from the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to improve federal stewardship of public lands, waters, and wildlife in collaboration with the Native Hawaiian community. DOI's expanded outreach and engagement are in recognition of its distinct obligations to the Native Hawaiian community.
* The Department of Interior's Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) provided $55 million through CARES Act grant assistance for facilities, medicine, food, and supplies to Pacific Islander populations in the U.S. territories, the Republic of Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and to support OIA's Insular Area Pacific Islander populations in the contiguous United States.
* Building upon extensive engagement from Massachusetts to Los Angeles, U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai and USTR officials continue to meet consistently with domestic AA and NHPI community-based leaders and organizations. In recent meetings within Houston and with Commissioner Victoria Huynh and Atlanta Metropolitan Area community members, the discussions focused both on the Administration's intentional design of inclusive, worker-centered trade policy and the work of WHIAANHPI and the Commission. Ambassador Tai also tasked the entire agency to identify opportunities for engagements concerning upcoming key trade and investment activities.
o For example, USTR is integrating economic inclusion for AA and NHPIs and other underserved and underrepresented groups into engagement planning during the United States' host year of Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). The theme is "Creating a Resilient and Sustainable Future for All." In March 2023, USTR released additional information about its inclusive trade work in the Congressional Budget Justification (https://ustr.gov/about-us/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2023/march/ustr-releases-fiscal-year-2024-congressional-budget-justification) and the President's 2023 Trade Agenda and 2022 Annual Report (https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/2023-02/2023%20Trade%20Policy%20Agenda%20and%202022%20Annual%20Report%20FINAL%20(1).pdf), which specifically mentions WHIAANHPI for the first time in the history of the report.
* In May 2021 and May 2022, the United States Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) hosted an AA and NHPI Innovation and Entrepreneurship event series that offered opportunities for AA and NHPI independent inventors, entrepreneurs, and small business owners to learn about resources and opportunities to use their creative works to reach their full potential. The USPTO is hosting the 2023 AA and NHPI Innovation on May 31, 2023. The 2023 Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Innovation and Entrepreneurship Program offers opportunities for independent inventors, entrepreneurs, small business owners, and intellectual property (IP) professionals to learn about resources available to the AA and NHPI innovation community.
* In FY 2022, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Regional Network (RN) members and other outreach staff conducted or participated in 279 events nationwide for 12,213 attendees, including listening sessions, roundtables, technical assistance programs, and webinars, many in coordination with other federal agencies. Notable events include:
o In August 2022, EEOC staff from the Southwest participated in a Region 9 AA and NHPI Health Summit in Phoenix, Arizona. The summit engaged stakeholders in a discussion about the health care needs and priorities of AA and NHPI communities across the state, highlighted available federal resources and programs, and provided a forum to share current trends, experiences, and outreach efforts. [100 attendees]
o In April 2022, EEOC RN members led a WHIAANHPI Region 9 SW roundtable on COVID-19 Response and Recovery. This was an historic event as the first in-person national event for WHIAANHPI and Region 9 Southwest post-pandemic. Participants included Commissioners Kerry Doi and Dr. Raynald Samoa of the President's Advisory Commission on AANHPIs, state and elected officials, state senior appointees, AA and NHPI community leaders and stakeholders, academic partners, and federal officials and staff. The event was livestreamed and supported by the California Attorney General's office. [150 attendees]
o In March 2022, EEOC RN members participated in a WHIAANHPI Region 4 event that included breakout sessions focused on housing, health care, education, and workers' rights. Language interpretation was provided in Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean, and Vietnamese. [275 attendees]
* The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) trained all Outreach and Education Coordinators on the agency's new data visualization tool to better understand where national origin groups are located, levels of limited English proficiency, and other demographic characteristics.
* The Department of Energy (DOE) actively partnered with an external Asian American organization, Asian Americans in Energy, the Environment, and Commerce, on two engagement events (August 2022 in Washington, D.C., and October 2022 in Boston) to inform the community about contracting and business opportunities as well as employment opportunities resulting from investments via the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. The DOE also participated in two WHIAANHPI Regional Summits in Seattle and New York City to share Federal and DOE opportunities related to careers, grants, financial assistance, and internships. Finally, the DOE will be sponsoring the upcoming Federal Asian American Pacific Council (FAPAC)'s 2023 National Leadership Training Program in Long Beach, CA in May. The Department is partnering with the DOE's Asian American Pacific Islander Network (AAPIN) Employee Resource Group to sponsor ERG members in the Federal workforce for professional development, capacity-building, and enhancing leadership skills.
* The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)'s First Annual Asian American and Pacific Islander Conference and Career Expo in February 2023, collaborated with PepsiCo Foundation and two higher education institutions, California State University (Cal State), Fresno and York College in Queens, NY. As part of the conference, USAID hosted an Innovation and Diversity Engagement case competition (IDEA) where students had the opportunity to win cash awards, totaling $30,000. This case competition tackled the issue of ocean plastics in support of women and youth-led solutions in the Philippines.
* In May 2022, the Department of Commerce (DOC)'s National Oceanic and Atmosphe
Shaw AFB: 20th Fighter Wing Performs Mission-Critical F-16 Modernization
SHAW AFB, South Carolina, June 1 -- Shaw Air Force Base issued the following news:By Airman 1st Class Erin Stanley, 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
The summer of 1978 meets the spring of 2023 as 45 years of progress and modernization to the F-16 Fighting Falcon airframe continues in the form of ongoing mission-critical upgrades to the 20th Fighter Wing's (FW) fleet here in line with the U.S. Air Force's Service Life Extension Program (SLEP).
In conjunction with SLEP, maintainers assigned to the 55th, 77th and 79th Fighter Generation Squadrons (FGS) worked together over the past year to install ... Show Full Article SHAW AFB, South Carolina, June 1 -- Shaw Air Force Base issued the following news: By Airman 1st Class Erin Stanley, 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs The summer of 1978 meets the spring of 2023 as 45 years of progress and modernization to the F-16 Fighting Falcon airframe continues in the form of ongoing mission-critical upgrades to the 20th Fighter Wing's (FW) fleet here in line with the U.S. Air Force's Service Life Extension Program (SLEP). In conjunction with SLEP, maintainers assigned to the 55th, 77th and 79th Fighter Generation Squadrons (FGS) worked together over the past year to installthe APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar, a multifunction, active electronically scanned array radar, replacing the legacy APG-68 model and providing 22 modification upgrades to the more than 70 F-16s at Shaw.
These modifications give the fleet the same advanced radar equipment that is standard for fifth generation F-22 Raptors and F-35A Lightning II aircraft, ensuring 20th FW aircraft are ready for tomorrow's missions, today.
"What this upgrade means for Shaw is that not only just one or two jets in a formation are the most lethal, but the increased situational awareness across the formation is going to be incredible, making us a total lethal force," said U.S. Air Force Capt. Matthew "Cash" Croghan, 79th Fighter Squadron chief of weapons. "Our adversaries haven't slowed down getting new technology, so it's critical that we ensure the F-16s stay relevant and stay lethal to be able to compete with [them.]"
The updated F-16 radar systems allow pilots to use Synthetic Aperture Radar mapping to detect and deploy weapons against air-to-air and air-to-ground threats at much longer ranges, keeping the aircraft in the fight as the 20th FW progresses into the next decade of threats.
"These modifications not only enhance the training that aircrew and pilots receive, but also better equip them in an Area of Responsibility environment," said U.S. Air Force Tech. Sgt. Bryan Ellis, 79th FGS specialist expeditor. "All the units on Shaw will be more lethal, more combat-ready, and able to perform better against new types of threats we may encounter [down range]."
These upgrades enhance the Wild Weasels' real-world and training capabilities, allowing 20th FW pilots and aircrew to train to the nation's adversaries' more advanced threats, which ultimately allows the 20th FW to be more lethal and survivable in combat scenarios. Paired with initiatives like the South Carolina Electronic Warfare Range (SCEWR) Initiative, which innovatively uses standard training airspace in new, dynamic ways, 20th FW pilots are leveraging a full range of tools to sharpen their combat capabilities.
"We are upgrading to the foundational capabilities that will make the F-16 a valuable part of the U.S. Air Force's '4 plus 1' future fighter fleet," said 20th Operations Group Commander Col. Kevin Lord.
The training value and real-world impact to missions cannot be overstated, he added, referencing U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown, Jr.'s comments in the March 2023 timeframe that the F-16 will be included in the Air Force's long term plans.
"Upgrading our F-16s with the most advanced equipment cements what we already know: that our pilots can deter and defeat any adversary in the ever-changing threat landscape," said U.S. Air Force Col. Kristoffer "Smirk" Smith, 20th FW commander.
The upgrades are expected to continue as the 20th FW modernizes its fleet into the next year, making the wing the U.S. Air Force's largest combat-capable active duty F-16 wing providing combat airpower to combatant commanders around the world.
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Original text here: https://www.shaw.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3411149/20th-fw-performs-mission-critical-f-16-modernization/
President Biden Issues Proclamation Honoring National Immigrant Heritage Month
WASHINGTON, June 1 -- President Biden issued the following proclamation on May 31, 2023, honoring National Immigrant Heritage Month:* * *
America is more than a place; it is an idea. It is the idea that everyone is created equal and deserves to be treated equally throughout their lives and that everyone should have a fair shot and an equal chance to get ahead. That is what has drawn people to our shores for centuries. It is what makes us who we are. And that very idea of America has been advanced by immigrants from every part of the world -- my ancestors and yours. Their dreams built America, ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, June 1 -- President Biden issued the following proclamation on May 31, 2023, honoring National Immigrant Heritage Month: * * * America is more than a place; it is an idea. It is the idea that everyone is created equal and deserves to be treated equally throughout their lives and that everyone should have a fair shot and an equal chance to get ahead. That is what has drawn people to our shores for centuries. It is what makes us who we are. And that very idea of America has been advanced by immigrants from every part of the world -- my ancestors and yours. Their dreams built America,and during National Immigrant Heritage Month, we celebrate their courage.
The First Lady and I are proud descendants of immigrants -- the Giacoppas, from the northeast corner of Sicily in Italy, and the Finnegans of County Louth and the Blewitts of County Mayo in Ireland. Vice President Harris was born in Oakland, California, to parents who emigrated from India and Jamaica. Like so many who still come here seeking a better future, our parents and great-grandparents could not be sure what life would bring. But they had faith that, for their children and grandchildren, anything would be possible in America. And they were right.
Many families also came to America in search of a better future and the promise of the American Dream, and each wave of newcomers brings energy and new ideas to move our Nation forward. Today, one third of our doctors and nearly three quarters of our farmworkers are immigrants, and so many more are essential workers, first responders, and military service members. Immigrants own approximately one in five businesses, create millions of jobs, pay hundreds of billions in taxes, and spend even more on American goods. Almost half of all Fortune 500 companies were started by immigrants or their kids. Immigrants help strengthen our diplomatic and people-to-people ties around the world. It's simple: immigrants keep our Nation strong and our economy growing.
That truth used to be something most of us agreed on. President Ronald Reagan proudly signed a law giving an opportunity to 2.7 million undocumented people to seek permanent residence. President George W. Bush pushed hard for comprehensive immigration reform. On day one of my Presidency, I sent the Congress my plan that includes a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, people with temporary status, farmworkers, and essential workers; smarter border solutions, including more equipment and modern infrastructure; and provisions to clear court backlogs, speed up processing, and protect families. Let us come together again in a bipartisan way to fix our broken immigration system for good.
Until the Congress acts, my Administration will keep using every tool we have to make the system more orderly, safe, and humane. We have announced new pathways for nationals of Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, and other countries in the region to come here lawfully. And in May, we joined with partners across the Western Hemisphere to launch a plan to open new centers where people can receive help with applying to come to the United States, rather than making the dangerous trek at the mercy of criminal organizations and smugglers. At home, we have expanded whistleblower protections for undocumented workers so they too can call out wage theft or unsafe working conditions, improving things for everyone. And we have strengthened the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that for more than 10 years has allowed 800,000 Dreamers to live and work freely in the only country they know as home. In addition, we have recently proposed a plan to expand DACA recipients' access to health care through the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid.
Immigration has always been essential to America, and this month, we reflect on the strength and spirit of immigrants that have been passed down through families and infused in our Nation. This spring, I had the chance to travel back to Ireland, to walk the ground my ancestors walked, and to celebrate the bonds that connect us still. Over the years, stories of that place have become part of my soul. I stood beside a cathedral built of bricks that my great-great-great-grandfather supplied. I imagined his son bringing his family across the ocean during the famine of 1850, leaving all they had known for hope on a distant shore. I remembered stories of his son -- my great-grandfather -- who kept those roots alive in Scranton, helping to found the Irish American Association, chairing the St. Patrick's Day Parade, and passing that pride on to his granddaughter -- my mom. It is a pride that speaks to the history and the values that bind us: immigrant values of hard work, dignity, and respect that I have tried to pass on to my own children and grandchildren.
Most Americans have their own version of that same story: ancestors who overcame incredible odds to build new lives in this promised land and contribute to the fabric of our Nation. And we see those same values alive at the White House every time we celebrate our proud immigrant communities, whose holidays and rich cultures give new life to our Nation -- including Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights; Eid, the feast ending Ramadan; Greek Independence Day, a celebration of freedom and democracy; and the Lunar New Year, a festivity committing to new beginnings. We see that spirit of hope at every naturalization ceremony, when we celebrate the journey completed by millions of people whose courage and commitment have earned them a title that is equal to that of President in our democracy -- the title of "citizen." This month, we honor our ancestors by working to keep the torch of liberty lit and held high.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2023 as National Immigrant Heritage Month. I call upon the people of the United States to learn more about the history of our Nation's diverse and varied immigrant communities and to observe this month with appropriate programming and activities that remind us of the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-three, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-seventh.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
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Original text here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2023/05/31/a-proclamation-on-national-immigrant-heritage-month-2023/
NRC Proposes $8,750 Civil Penalty to G2 Consulting Group
WASHINGTON, June 1 -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued the following news release:The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed an $8,750 fine to G2 Consulting Group LLC for two violations of NRC requirements associated with the control of NRC-regulated material.
The first violation involved the loss of a portable moisture density gauge containing radioactive material. The gauge is used for measuring the moisture content and density of soil and aggregate.
The second violation involved the failure of the company to implement appropriate procedures requiring the authorized user to log ... Show Full Article WASHINGTON, June 1 -- The Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued the following news release: The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has proposed an $8,750 fine to G2 Consulting Group LLC for two violations of NRC requirements associated with the control of NRC-regulated material. The first violation involved the loss of a portable moisture density gauge containing radioactive material. The gauge is used for measuring the moisture content and density of soil and aggregate. The second violation involved the failure of the company to implement appropriate procedures requiring the authorized user to logand return the gauge to a properly locked storage after use.
The NRC identified the proposed violations during a July 2021 inspection following the company's discovery that the gauge had been missing for six months. The NRC conducted its inspection at the company's offices in Troy and Ann Arbor, Michigan, and at temporary job sites in Troy and Canton, Michigan.
G2 Consulting responded to the violations documenting its corrective actions to prevent recurrence of the loss of a gauge.
The company has 30 days to pay the proposed penalty or contest the penalty in writing.
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Original text here: https://www.nrc.gov/cdn/doc-collection-news/2023/23-013-iii.pdf
Hill Airman Competes in Esports Invitational
HILL AFB, Utah, June 1 -- The U.S. Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center issued the following news:By Senior Airman Seth Haddix, 2D Audiovisual Squadron
Staff Sgt. Tristan Biese with the 2d Audiovisual Squadron participated in the Department of the Air Force Esports Invitational 2023 in San Antonio, Texas, May 27-28.
Biese, a video production specialist at Hill was one of 12 gamers representing the DAF and one of six on his team in the professional tournament featuring the video game, Overwatch 2.
During the competition, service members from across different branches of the Department ... Show Full Article HILL AFB, Utah, June 1 -- The U.S. Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center issued the following news: By Senior Airman Seth Haddix, 2D Audiovisual Squadron Staff Sgt. Tristan Biese with the 2d Audiovisual Squadron participated in the Department of the Air Force Esports Invitational 2023 in San Antonio, Texas, May 27-28. Biese, a video production specialist at Hill was one of 12 gamers representing the DAF and one of six on his team in the professional tournament featuring the video game, Overwatch 2. During the competition, service members from across different branches of the Departmentof Defense showcased their skills and passion for gaming as military members.
"This tournament didn't just allow me to show what we've got, but to represent the Air Force," Biese said. "We were excited."
Biese said he channels the passion he had for gaming as a kid into total focus when he plays.
"When I pick up a controller, I get into my zone," he said. "I don't think about anything else, just the game. I am addicted to winning."
At the age of 18, Biese joined the Air Force. He has since become a skilled photographer and videographer for the 2d AVS, which specializes in storytelling through productions and live broadcasts by sharing stories of global DAF and DoD missions. Although he has been serving the country for multiple years, it hasn't stopped him from continuing his passion of competitive gaming.
"Gaming is a common shared interest between people, including service members," said Biese. "I found people in my service branch who not only shared my interest in video games, but also my competitiveness."
Surprised to see a banner on the Air Force website promoting the tournament, Biese decided to apply for the Esports team. After being accepted, he put in weeks of practice.
"We went down to San Antonio with one goal in mind; to win," said Biese. "We wanted to take this opportunity to compete as a team on the big stage."
Since its creation, the Air Force Gaming League has aimed to provide opportunities for Airmen and service members such as Biese.
"The purpose of this invitational is to foster camaraderie and friendly competition between service branches while also promoting resiliency and social connection," said Steve Sarandos, Chief, DAF Esports. "It is a great event to build esprit de corps."
Biese and his team placed second out of five participating teams, losing to the Army in the final competition. Although not the result that he hoped for, he demonstrated his true skill-set and love for gaming which he never lost, dating back to his early days in Appleton.
"I am just happy to be able to participate in something like this," said Biese. "This tournament has been a great opportunity to bring people from all over the world together to compete and share a love of video games. I might not become a professional video game player, but at least I got to compete with the best of the best in the U.S. military."
Department of the Air Force Gaming, founded in 2019, digitally connects Airmen and Guardians through their shared love of gaming. Managed by the Air Force Services Center, DAF Gaming is focused on supporting Air Force resiliency and retention through a global esports effort that delivers community experiences and competitive leagues. Find out more about the program at http://www.airforcegaming.com.
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Original text here: https://www.afimsc.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3412017/hill-airman-competes-in-esports-invitational/
Defense Information Systems Agency Representatives Recognized for IT Leadership
FORT MEADE, Maryland, June 1 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Defense Information Systems Agency issued the following news:By David Marin, Digital Communications
Three representatives from the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency were honored at AFCEA Washington, DC's 16th Annual Military IT Leadership Awards in Washington, D.C., May 11.
The event recognized twelve service members from each military branch, including enlisted personnel and officers stationed worldwide, for their significant contributions to the warfighter through information technology. It served as a tribute to the dedication ... Show Full Article FORT MEADE, Maryland, June 1 -- The U.S. Department of Defense's Defense Information Systems Agency issued the following news: By David Marin, Digital Communications Three representatives from the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency were honored at AFCEA Washington, DC's 16th Annual Military IT Leadership Awards in Washington, D.C., May 11. The event recognized twelve service members from each military branch, including enlisted personnel and officers stationed worldwide, for their significant contributions to the warfighter through information technology. It served as a tribute to the dedicationand service of these information technology warfighters, acknowledging their sacrifices in defending the nation.
In addition to the twelve awards, four extra awards were presented to service members who demonstrated exceptional leadership while serving in a joint billet, with special consideration given to acts of bravery.
During the event, U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Robert J. Skinner, DISA director and Joint Force Headquarters-Department of Defense Information Network commander, delivered the keynote address.
The DISA award winners were:
* Navy Petty Officer 1st Class James Greeves, an information systems technician assigned to DISA's Joint Staff Support Center, was recognized for his management and maintenance of daily operations at the National Military Command Center, Command and Control Systems. He oversees configuration management, project management, logistics support and continuity of operations.
The Joint Staff Support Center's mission is to provide leading-edge capabilities for command and control, information assurance, multimedia and continuity of operations to warfighters, National-level leaders and other mission partners.
The Joint Staff Support Center operates together with the Joint Staff and national leadership whose footprint includes the National Capital Region, Hampton Roads and alternate sites.
* Air Force Master Sgt. Craig R. Maxson, Jr., System Administration and DOD Mobility Classified Capabilities section chief at DISA's Central Field Command, located at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida. In his role, he leads two teams responsible for network and system maintenance in the Central Field Command. The Joint Cyber Operations System Administrations office is a three-member team that handles daily network maintenance. Additionally, the DOD Mobility Classified Capabilities office, a nine-member team across two locations, manages the provisioning and maintenance of classified mobile devices within the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility.
The DISA Central Field Command's mission is to plan, coordinate, integrate, synchronize and direct DODIN Operations and Defensive Cyber Operations-Internal Defensive Measures in collaboration with domestic and international mission partners. Their aim is to provide resilient Mission Assured Coalition, Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance capabilities in the Southwest Asia theater of operations, enabling the mission command warfighting function for USCENTCOM, its subordinate commands and mission partners.
* Air Force Tech. Sgt. Ronald Richardson, Cyber Network Defense Systems Operations noncommissioned officer in charge at DISA Europe Regional Field Command, leads a joint team of five individuals. Their responsibilities include administering two weapon systems with over 70 circuits and 700 devices. Additionally, Richardson is involved in engineering, deployment and maintenance of the architecture for the Defensive Cyber Operations team. The team plays a critical role in actively defending key DOD assets across the European Command.
DISA Europe provides, operates, maintains and defends to assure DODIN Enterprise Solutions and capabilities while executing unified command and control throughout the full spectrum of operations supporting U.S. European Command, U.S. Africa Command and other mission partners.
Congratulations to these three DISA representatives, and all the award recipients, for their contributions to our nation's defense!
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Original text here: https://disa.mil/en/NewsandEvents/2023/DISA-representatives-recognized-for-IT-leadership