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Cost Estimating NewsBrief: August 7, 2026
DoD eyes accounting reforms to lower barriers for commercial firms
(Federal News Network) The Defense Department is looking for ideas on how to streamline data and audit requirements for business systems as it seeks to lower compliance costs and make it easier for commercial firms to do business with the department. In an open letter to DoD stakeholders, Michael Duffey, the department’s top acquisition official, and Michael Powers, acting Pentagon comptroller, asked industry to recommend “common sense contract accounting changes.” The officials said the department is particularly interested in creating a framework that aligns its data and audit requirements with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, more commonly known as GAAP, and internal controls companies already maintain under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Read More
Priority Open Recommendations: Department of Defense
(U.S. Government Accountability Office) In May 2025, GAO identified 79 priority recommendations for the Department of Defense. Since then, the Department has implemented 17 of those recommendations. In June 2026, GAO identified an additional seven priority recommendations and removed the priority designation from 16 recommendations, bringing the total to 53 priority recommendations. GAO is highlighting the following three areas that warrant timely and focused attention: Sustaining U.S. military readiness, Ensuring weapon system acquisition and modernization, and Improving financial and fraud risk management. Addressing GAO’s recommendations in these areas would support combat readiness by maintaining the Department’s current weapon capabilities; Read More
The government wants your help solving today’s biggest challenges
(NextGov/FCW) A few years ago, I tried to help a team of astronauts survive a Martian dust storm. Fortunately, nobody was actually in danger. I was participating in the second NASA MarsXR Challenge, a government-sponsored competition hosted on the HeroX open-innovation platform. NASA wanted members of the public to design virtual reality scenarios that could someday help train astronauts for missions on Mars. The first phase focused on storyboarding, so participants did not need to know how to program a VR simulation. They needed to imagine a realistic challenge, explain how astronauts would respond and take advantage of the immersive capabilities offered by virtual reality. Read More
Pluto’s atmosphere is collapsing as it drifts away from the sun into a deep freeze
(Space.com) Pluto’s atmosphere appears to be freezing out as the dwarf planet moves ever further away from the sun, according to careful observations of Pluto astronomers made as it was seen passing in front of stars in the sky. Pluto is already cold. Its surface temperature is about –382 degrees Fahrenheit (–230 degrees Celsius), while its upper atmosphere is a little warmer at –333 degrees Fahrenheit (–203 degrees Celsius). As Pluto moves away from the sun it will grow even colder and its nitrogen-rich atmosphere should start to collapse and freeze out, condensing as frost on the frigid surface. Now, a team led by Amanda Sickafoose of Arizona’s Planetary Science Institute believe they have seen the onset of this process. Read More
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