In the run-up to a midterm election that is one of the most important in recent memory and which will be decided by turnout, it's worth reviewing some of the voter suppression efforts that have taken place in the last year. Here are some of the most notable and egregious suppression measures affecting the 2018 midterms: Georgia Here are two … [Read more...]
Search Results for: congressional review act
When the President and the Law Collide
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the federal agency responsible for auditing the actions of the Federal Government and ensuring that Congress and all agencies within the government are meeting their duties and spending taxpayer dollars according to law. In May of this year, the GAO released its report on the Federal … [Read more...]
Big Companies Have Money for Stock Buybacks, CEO Salaries, Not Increased Worker Pay
How's the economy doing? Your answer to that question will depend on who you are. If you're the CEO or high-ranking executive of a major corporation, things are going very well indeed. Executive compensation is at an all-time high, and their companies are benefiting enormously from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed in December of 2017. In the … [Read more...]
Administration Slows Down Release of Important Scientific Study
People like Hope Grosse know first-hand the public health effects of per-fluorinated chemicals, or PFCs, having seen their family and fellow community members fall ill, seemingly out of nowhere. These substances, which include but are not limited to PFOA and PFOS, have been used in firefighting foam at military bases around the country for decades … [Read more...]
Federal Court Strikes Down Redistricting Map in North Carolina
On February 9th, a federal court in North Carolina struck down a redistricting map, agreeing with the Plaintiffs’ that it was an example of unconstitutional partisan gerrymandering. A three-judge panel rendered the unanimous decision and, in doing so, made history, as this was the first-ever federal court decision to strike down a map due to … [Read more...]
States and Cities are Banning Bump Stocks Used in Las Vegas Massacre
Increasingly frustrated by Speaker Paul Ryan’s close relationship with the National Rifle Association (NRA), states and cities are banning the so-called “bump stock” recoil devices that gunman Stephen Paddock used to fire on a crowd of concert-goers gathered on the Las Vegas Strip, killing at least 59 people and injuring more than 500. Officials … [Read more...]
Senate Appropriations Bill Would Cut Important EPA Program
On November 20th, the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee released the Environmental Appropriations Bill for FY 2018. The bill, if implemented, would cut a program responsible for monitoring the negative health impact of certain chemicals. That program, known as the Integrated Risk Information System (or IRIS), would be combined with the … [Read more...]
Trump’s One-for-Two Regulation Rollback Order Challenged in Court
The Trump administration’s executive order to eliminate two preexisting regulations for every new regulation adopted by the government has been challenged in a lawsuit, which the Department of Justice has so far failed to dismiss despite its efforts. Arguments Against Executive Order No. 13771 Public Citizen v. Trump, filed by a dozen health … [Read more...]
Administration Reverses Position in Major Labor Case
Last week, the Trump administration submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court that effectively reversed the administration’s position on arbitration agreements as originally stated in a petition for review, filed in 2016. The Office of the Solicitor General rarely changes its position on a major case like this, even if there’s a … [Read more...]
Two House Bills Could Relax Regulations on E-Cigarettes
At the end of April, a bill was introduced in the US House of Representatives that, if implemented, would weaken the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) regulatory authority over e-cigarettes. The bill – or “The Cigarette Smoking Reduction and Electronic Vapor Alternatives Act of 2017” (HR 2194) – would overturn the Obama-era regulation known as … [Read more...]