NTIA FSDS PM Q_A Brief-11062023.pdf

Unclassified

Federal Spectrum Data System

Program Manager Questions & Answers

U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA)

Office of Spectrum Management (OSM) Spectrum National Security Systems (SNSS) Program Management Office (PMO)

November 6, 2023

UNCLASSIFIED

U.S. Department of Commerce – National Telecommunications and Information Administration

• Welcome

• Acquisition Updates

• FSDS Goals

• FSDS Complexities

• Legacy Tools

• Data Overview

• Ongoing Work

• Data Standard Development

• Cloud Transition

• Lessons Learned & Risks

• Notional Schedule

Agenda

NTIA FSDS Leadership Team

• Alan Rosner, Spectrum National Security Systems Program Manager

• David Wicker, Spectrum National Security Systems Deputy Program

Manager

• Tamara Severe Lead for Acquisition\Contracts

Rules of Engagement

• Please post any questions in the chat or use the hand raise feature

• Any questions that can’t be answered in this forum will be addressed afterwards

• All information will be posted to sam.gov following the event

Welcome

• FSDS is currently in the Market Research phase

• RFI has been conducted

• Sources Sought released on the October 23rd (Responses due November 17th)

• Lightning Networking Sessions will be conducted on November 8th

• Participation intent and slides due by COB Today, November 6th

• Challenge-Based Acquisition is currently the strategy being developed

• Market Research will inform final strategy chosen

• GWACs are being looked at as a potential contract vehicle

• Scenario-based, dynamic oral proposals are being considered as a down select

• Market research is focused on creating strong partnerships

• NTIA is working to release solicitation 3rd quarter of FY24

• Intention is to award by the end of FY24

Acquisition Updates

• Strengthen Security - Enhance the security of NTIA Spectrum IT Systems to ensure their continued availability for essential federal missions, and to protect spectrum data from unauthorized release and improper modification

• Modernize IT Platform, Including Application Stack - Improve the enhance-ability and scalability of NTIA Spectrum Information Technology (IT) Systems, and provide the IT foundation for future spectrum capabilities

• Enhance Spectrum Analyses - Provide capabilities that execute more accurate, trusted and repeatable spectrum analyses to improve Federal spectrum use efficiencies

• Improve and Streamline Spectrum Processes - Improve timeliness, reduce level of effort, and increase transparency of Federal spectrum processes

• Improve Spectrum Data - Improve accessibility, interoperability and comprehensiveness of spectrum data

FSDS - IT Modernization Goals

FSDS Project Overview

Improved process transparency

Improved data quality and availability

Improved system sustainment information

Improved systems and data security

Improved operational availability

Timely assignment enhancements

Visualized & more accessible spectrum data

Reduced Level of Effort or Assignments & STAs

Improved timeliness for Certifications & Assignments

Improved NTIA Manual accessibility & navigability

Updated spectrum engineering tools

Key Improvements

Frequency Assignment

Spectrum Certification

Special Temporary Authorization

(STA)

Reallocation & Transition

IRAC Management

Spectrum Data Access and Visualization

Scope (U.S. Federal Processes)

Online User Interface

Enabling Architecture

Applications Services Data Lake Secure & Scalable

Infrastructure

Data Underpins the IT Modernization

“If only we could see the data”

• Apply business intelligence automation to existing data to analyze data faster

• Spend less time manipulating data and more time understanding it.

• Integrate data together across business process

• Use to drive decision-making and answer key-issues

Use Data Smarter

As-Is Systems

Unclassified Environment

Classified Environment

EC

FMRS

SXXI

(Classified)

FreqCoord

IRACnet

IQ-LINK

IRACnet

Frequency Assignment Systems Certification Systems Other Systems

SXXI

(Unclassified)

DCFS EC

ECO

Spectrum Transition Tool

STA Tool

Light Red / Italics

White rectangle

Acronyms DCFS - Data Capture and

Forward System EC - Equipment Location –

Certification Information Database

ECO - Equipment Location – Certification Information Database Online

FMRS - Frequency Management & Reporting System

IRACnet - Interdepartment Radio Advisory Committee-net

LOE - Level of Effort STA Tool – Special Temporary

Authorization Tool

SXXI - SPECTRUM XXI

Key

Classified system

Unclassified System

• GMF includes about 650,000 Records

• Mostly unclassified, fewer that 4,000 classified systems

• Roughly 390,000 Federal Systems, 260,000 non-federal systems

• Roughly 100,000 assignments have certifications associated with them

• NTIA processed 84,000 GMF records in 2023

• 24,000 New

• 53,000 Modifications

• 7,000 Deletions

• NTIA processed nearly 2,000 requests for Special Temporary Authorizations (STA), from NTIA and FCC.

GMF Data Overview

• Spectrum Information Technology (IT) systems, regulations and processes must align as they evolve

• Forcing regulatory or process change through IT change is generally not effective

• Spectrum IT, regulatory and process changes often requires significant subject matter expertise and long lead times. For example:

• Automating Special Temporary Authorizations

• Changing or evolving spectrum data standards

• Instituting process changes (e.g., automatic assignment)

• Modifying or collecting additional data fields

• Legacy IT system documentation is limited

• Detailed FSDS requirements have not been developed

• Limited availability of OSM SMEs supporting business processes

FSDS Complexities

• Evolve GMF Card Format (CF) to a modern data standard

• Transitions to modern technologies

• Enforces data quality, which improves spectrum data

• Simplifies software, which reduces costs and risks & facilitates process modernization

• Addresses interoperability issues with Pseudo GMF / Standard Frequency Action Format

• Make version 1.0 backward compatible and a platform for future enhancements

Make Data More Interoperable

GMF CF and XML Illustration

XAD01 XXG016B/30G0.1B/20G.25B

XAP01 LLR

XAZ01 NB

REM01 *SGN,30.1T

REM02 *CLU ALL DATA NOT LISTED IN *CLC OR *CLS

<transmitter> <spaceAntennas orientation=“earthCoverage” classification=“unclassified”>

<antenna polarization=“leftHandCircular” gainDB=“30.1” beamwidthDegrees=“16” /> <antenna polarization=“leftHandCircular” gainDB=“30” beamwidthDegrees=“0.1” /> <antenna polarization=“rightHandCircular” gainDB=“20” beamwidthDegrees=“0.25” />

</spaceAntennas> </transmitter>

GMF Card Format snippet:

Draft new data standard snippet (notional):

• XAD denotes transmitter antenna dimensions

• Lack of elevation and height values indicate space antenna instead of earth station or terrestrial

• XXG indicates gain value longer than two characters and specified elsewhere

• Two numbers followed by a G are gain in decibels, three numbers or two numbers with a decimal point followed by a B are beamwidths in degrees

• Slashes separate up to three space antennas

• XAP denotes transmitter antenna polarization

• Since three characters are used, each is for the ordered space station antenna

• L is left hand circular, R is right hand circular

• XAZ denotes transmitter antenna orientation

• Specific codes are used for space station transmitters

• NB indicates narrower than earth coverage orientation

• *SGN remark indicates a value requiring extra spaces for space gain values

• A numeric value followed by T indicates applicability to a transmitter

• Lack of *CLC or *CLS remarks indicates the data for this transmitter is unclassified

• Legacy Applications are migrating (Lift-Shift) from on-prem to a commercial GCC Azure Cloud environment as an initial step towards system/application modernization

• FSDS Modernization efforts should be built for modern authentication (MFA, CBA, SAML)

• NTIA modernized applications will maintain compliance with all applicable laws, policies, and will utilize applicable guidance e.g.,

• Executive Order (EO) 14028

• CISA Zero Trust Maturity Model Version

• NIST SP 800-27

NTIA Cloud/Zero Trust Transition

Stakeholders and Communication

Identify and engage all stakeholders early and throughout the life cycle

Define roles and responsibilities

Plan, communicate, coordinate impacts to end-users

Ensures proper messaging and cadence of engagement

Promote acceptance and adoption of minimum viable products in the business process

Promote innovate solutions

Software/Systems Engineering

Establish formal requirements management, configuration management, change management

Maintain requirements traceability matrix

Use best practices for modern, secure government web applications

Manage architecture commitment and evolution

Consider security, scalability, and useability from the outset

Program and Contract Management

Apply Independent Verification and Validation

Include mechanisms to ensure requirements are met

Improve controls for monitoring contract performance against cost, schedule, scope and quality requirements

Share or transfer risks to contractor

Deliver minimum viable product frequently

Use performance-based acquisitions

Stop poorly performing efforts

Resources

Require contractor expertise in:

• modern, secure, government application development and operations

• electromagnetic physics (interference and compatibility)

• federal spectrum management and allocation compliance rules, workflows and data

Lessons Learned Recommendations

• Changes to data standards and business process require NTIA Manual updates and potentially legislative or FCC rule changes, with long lead times

• User adoption and change in a multi-stakeholder environment of federal and non-federal end users and advisors with disparate missions

• Stakeholder buy-in to best practice strategies for agile delivery, user adoption of minimum viable products, and less prescriptive/more innovative solutions

• Size and complexity of the mission need and acquisition

• Dependency on accurate and complete spectrum data for visualization, engineering analysis and physics-based logic capabilities

• Trusted spectrum engineering analysis and physics-based logic

• Reverse engineering legacy system requirements and documentation

• Business processes that cross domains (low-to-high, high-to-low)

• Need to deliver useable end-user capabilities frequently

Highlighted Risks

FY 2024 FY 2025

O N D J F M A M J J A S O N D

Notional FSDS Acquisition Schedule

Project Definition & Development

Milestone 2/3 Definition & Implementation

Approval

Project Implementation

G Contract Award

G

NITRB

G

CITRB

B Completed G On Track Y = At Risk / Issue R Significant Issue / Failure Today Major Event

NITRB = NTIA Information Technology Review Board

CITRB = Commerce Information Technology Review Board

G

G

ARB

ARB = Commerce Acquisition Review Board

G

Market Research Complete G

Request for Proposal

G Kick-off

U.S. Department of Commerce · National Telecommunications and Information Administration

Questions