The Library of Congress, Federal Research Division, Country Profile: Kyrgyzstan, December 14, 2006.
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Daily Archives: December 15, 2006
GAO Assesses FinCEN and IRS Effectiveness At Ensuring Bank Secrecy Act Compliance
Bank Secrecy Act: FinCEN and IRS Need to Improve and Better Coordinate Compliance and Data Management Efforts, Full text GAO-07-212, and Highlights, December 15, 2006: “…FinCEN and IRS lack a documented and coordinated strategy with time frames, priorities, and resource needs for improving NBFI compliance with BSA requirements.” Continue Reading
GAO Recommends More Oversight for National Flood Insurance Program
National Flood Insurance Program [NFIP]: New Processes Aided Hurricane Katrina Claims Handling, but FEMA’s Oversight Should Be Improved, Full-text, GAO-07-169, and Highlights, December 15, 2006. NFIP paid an unprecedented dollar amount for a record number of claims from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Congress increased NFIP’s borrowing authority with the U.S. Treasury from a pre-Katrina level… Continue Reading
AP Reports White House Tightens Publishing Rules for USGS Scientists
AP: “The Bush administration is clamping down on scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey, who study everything from caribou mating to global warming, subjecting them to controls on research that might go against official policy. New rules require screening of all facts and interpretations by agency scientists. The rules apply to all scientific papers and… Continue Reading
GAO Reports on Rebuilding Iraq–Status of DOD's Reconstruction Program
Rebuilding Iraq–Status of DOD’s Reconstruction Program GAO-07-30R, December 15, 2006 “While financial data show that DOD has obligated most (97 percent) of its $13.5 billion in fiscal year 2004 reconstruction funds, work-in-place data show that about 29 percent, or $2.3 billion, of DOD’s construction program is incomplete, as of October 8, 2006. Continued congressional oversight… Continue Reading
Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance in the United States
“Using data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Current Population Surveys, this series of AARP Public Policy Institute Fact Sheets examines the American distribution of: Median household income, whether it increased or decreased, and how various age groups fared during the year; Poverty, its presence in various age groups, and whether the poverty rate went up… Continue Reading
FCC Refuses Release of Cell Phone Service Outage Records For Security Reasons
MSNBC: “Consumers have no idea how reliable their cell phone service will be when they buy a phone and sign a long-term contract. The Federal Communications Commission could offer some guidance, but it won’t. The agency refuses to make public a detailed database of cell phone provider outages that it has maintained since 2004. A… Continue Reading
DHS Targets High Risk Hazardous Materials in Transit
Press release: “The Department of Homeland Security issued today a notice of proposed rulemaking [143 pages, PDF) to vastly strengthen the security of the nation’s rail systems in the highest threat urban areas. The proposed rule is part of a package of new security measures that will require freight rail carriers to ensure 100 percent… Continue Reading
Pentagon Releases New Counterinsurgency Field Manual
Press release: “The Army and Marine Corps announce the release of the Counterinsurgency Field Manual…the new manual pursues a general approach to counterinsurgency, not one aimed specifically at any of the ongoing operations.” From the Forward: “It has been 20 years since the Army published a field manual devoted exclusively to counterinsurgency operations. For the… Continue Reading
Nearly Half of our Lives Spent with TV, Radio, Internet, Newspapers
Press release: Nearly Half of our Lives Spent with TV, Radio, Internet, Newspapers, According to Census Bureau Publication, December 15, 2006. “Adults and teens will spend nearly five months (3,518 hours) next year watching television, surfing the Internet, reading daily newspapers and listening to personal music devices. Thats only one of thousands of nuggets of… Continue Reading
Foundation Report: Assessing U.S. Diplomatic Options Toward Iran
Dealing with Tehran – Assessing U.S. Diplomatic Options Toward Iran, by Flynt L. Leverett, The Century Foundation, 12/4/2006: “In a new report for The Century Foundation, Flynt Leverett, a senior fellow and director of the Geopolitics of Energy Initiative in the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation, lays out a comprehensive strategy for… Continue Reading
FEC Collects $630,000 In Civil Penalties From Three 527 Organizations
Press release: “The Federal Election Commission announced today that it has reached settlements with three 527 organizations accused of violating the federal campaign finance laws during the 2004 presidential election. The League of Conservation Voters 527 and 527II, MoveOn.org Voter Fund, and Swiftboat Veterans and POWs for Truth have collectively paid almost $630,000 to settle… Continue Reading
