DoD Forbids Use of CBD Products by Service Members

Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff.

As each military service has been rolling out its new policy regarding hemp-derived products like cannabidiol, or CBD, the Defense Department issued this warning: “It’s completely forbidden for use by any service member in any of the services at this point of time,” reports Military.com.

The Pentagon’s new Space Command will start operations at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado, reports Air Force Times. Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO) hopes Peterson will become the command’s permanent headquarters.

The Navy has a new plan is to establish a special assistant to the secretary for information management/chief information officer with broad authority over technology, data, digital strategy, and cybersecurity, reports Defense Systems.

The United States is ready to restart nuclear negotiations with North Korea, reports The Associated Press, a day after US and South Korean militaries ended their regular drills that North Korea called an invasion rehearsal.

Japan has selected the F-35B variant of the Lightning II, which was the only contender for its short take-off and vertical landing requirement, reports IHS Jane’s 360.

South Korea will scrap a key military intelligence sharing pact with Japan, Stars and Stripes reports, as an escalating trade spat between the two US allies spilled into the security arena.

DefSec Mark Esper told Fox News that China is the Pentagon’s “number one priority,” and the United States is watching Beijing “very carefully” in order to safeguard America. He said that China has engaged in the “greatest theft of intellectual property in human history” and is also expanding its military to “push the United States out of [the Indo-Pacific] theater.”

The Navy has fired five senior leaders so far in August, reports Task & Purpose. A spokesman said there is no connection between any of the five officers relieved of command, adding that each relief is looked at separately.

A US MQ-9 drone was shot down over Yemen last week, reports Reuters. This is the second such incident in recent months.

DoD terminated the contract to develop the Redesigned Kill Vehicle, effective last Friday, reports Defense News,  due to technical design problems. The Pentagon plans to move forward with a new, next-generation interceptor competition. Breaking Defense reports Michael Griffin, undersecretary for research and engineering, said “ending the program was the responsible thing to do.”

Acting Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said that despite record D0D budgets there won’t be enough funds to cover the service’s long-term needs for modernization, reports Military.com.

The US Army is nearing a decision on who will build its Lower-Tier Air-and-Missile Defense Sensor, or LTAMDS, reports Defense News.

Deputy DefSec David Norquist has OK’d the consolidation of military commissaries and exchanges, reports Military Times, pending changes in law that would allow that consolidation. But advocates are concerned that the consolidation might pose a threat to the stores’ future and are concerned that the DoD is moving too quickly.

Contracts:

BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services Inc., Rockville, Maryland, is awarded a $34,872,647 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract.  This contract provides for up to 505,560 man-hours of technical, engineering, operations and maintenance support for communication-electronic equipment/systems and subsystems.  These services are in support of the Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division’s Special Communications Mission Solutions Division.  Work will be performed at various locations outside the continental U.S. (90%); and California, Maryland (10%), and is expected to be completed in August 2024.  No funds will be obligated at time of award; funds will be obligated on individual delivery orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured via an electronic request for proposals; two offers were received. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity (N00421-19-D-0077).

The University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, California, was awarded a $19,843,137 cost-no-fee contract for a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency research project. Work will be performed in Marina del Rey, California; Arlington, Virginia; and Columbia, Maryland, with an expected completion date of August 2023. Fiscal 2019 research, development, test and evaluation funding in the amount of $2,905,000 are being obligated at time of award. This contract was a competitive acquisition under a broad agency announcement and nine offers were received. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HR0011-19-C-0084).

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is awarded $2,426,326,544 for modification P00002 to previously awarded firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N00019-19-D-0015 F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter initial spares for the Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, non-US Department of Defense (DoD) participants, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers. Spares to be procured include global spares packages, base spares packages, deployment spares packages, afloat spares packages and associated consumables. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (24.4%); El Segundo, California (9.1%); Owego, New York (8.6%); Samlesbury, United Kingdom (7.2%); Cheltenham, United Kingdom (6.2%); Nashua, New Hampshire (5.8%); Torrance, California (5.5%); Orlando, Florida (4.9%); Cedar Rapids, Iowa (3.7%); San Diego, California (3.6%); Phoenix, Arizona (3.1%); Melbourne, Florida (3.1%); Irvine, California (2.5%); North Amityville, New York (2.4%); Windsor Locks, Connecticut (2.2%); Baltimore, Maryland (2.2%); Papendrect, The Netherlands (1.9%); Rolling Meadows, Illinois (1.8%); and Alpharetta, Georgia (1.8%). All orders are expected to be placed no later than December 2020. No funds will be obligated at time of award, funds will be obligated on individual delivery orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Co., San Diego, California, is awarded a $1,077,009,532 fixed-price-incentive modification to previously awarded contract N00024-19-C-2235 for the procurement of detail design and construction of Expeditionary Sea Base (ESB) 6 and ESB 7, as well as definitization of ESB 6 long lead time material, pre-production and engineering support. Work will be performed in, San Diego, California (57.9%); Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (6.0%); Santa Fe, California (5.9%); Beloit, Wisconsin (4.8%); Crozet, Virginia (4.5%); Mexicali, Mexico (3.1%); and various other locations, each accounting for less than 2% (17.8%), and is expected to be complete by January 2025. This contract includes options, which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $1,626,008,493, and be complete by January 2025. Fiscal 2019 and 2018 shipbuilding and conversion (Navy) funding in the amount of $1,004,317,973 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with US Code 2304(c) (1) – only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, District of Columbia, is the contracting activity.

Signature Renovations LLC, Capital Heights, Maryland, has been awarded a $100,000,000 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract. The work to be performed provides various design-build/bid-build construction services at the Pentagon and the surrounding Pentagon Reservation. No funds will be obligated at time of award. Fiscal 2019 Pentagon Reservation Maintenance Revolving Fund will be obligated on individual task orders issued during the contract period. Work performance will take place in Arlington, Virginia. The expected completion date is Aug. 23, 2023. Washington Headquarters Services, Arlington, Virginia, is the contracting activity (HQ0034-19-D0018).

Science Applications International Corp., McLean, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $48,000,000 modification (P00087) exercising the second two-year option period of a three-year base contract (SPE5EY-14-D-0562) with two two-year option periods and one three-year option period for supply chain management of industrial hardware used in aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul. This is a firm-fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-quantity contract. Locations of performance are Virginia, North Carolina, Florida and California, with a Sept. 30, 2021, performance completion date. Using military service is Navy. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2019 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Booz Allen Hamilton, McLean, Virginia, has been awarded an $8,004,263 modification (P00005) to contract FA4890-17-F-3042 for Cyber Command readiness inspection. This contract will support at 15 US Air Force bases in the continental US. The contract modification provides for the exercise of an option for an additional year of cyber security support services under the multiple year contract. Work will be performed in accordance with the performance work statement and is expected to be completed by Sept. 24, 2020. Air Combat Command, Acquisition Management and Integration Center, Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, is the contracting activity.

Next Century Corp., Annapolis Junction, Maryland, has been awarded a $7,607,221 cost-plus-fixed-fee/completion type contract for Multimodal Open Interfaces for Reasoning by Artificial Intelligence software prototype system. This contract provides for an integrated platform that hosts algorithms developed by Technical Area 1 (TA1) and TA2 Knowledge-directed Artificial Intelligence Reasoning Over Schemas performers. Work will be performed in Falls Church, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by May 22, 2024. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition and 35 offers were received. Air Force Research Laboratory/RIKE, Rome, New York, is the contracting activity (FA8750-19-C-0105).