The Justice Department, on behalf of DOD, has filed an appeal to the ruling issued earlier this year by US District Court Judge Emmett Sullivan that would alter the Pentagon’s plan for labor relations under the new National Security Personnel System. According to the judge, NSPS fall short in the collective bargaining arena. Pentagon officials disagreed, saying the new system provided them flexibilities and preserved employee protections. DOD has been proceeding with other elements—such as performance management and compensation and classification—to move 11,000 non-bargaining unit employees in “spiral 1.1” under at least those aspects by late spring.
The Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital is giving a $150 million conditional loan to Rocket Lab meant to increase the launch rate for its new reusable Neutron rocket, which is slated for its first flight next year.