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Monthly Archives: September 2008

Senate To Vote Wednesday on Financial Bailout Plan

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  • RollCall.com: “Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) set up a vote on a Wall Street rescue plan for Wednesday night. The $700 billion package to buy up troubled mortgages will include tax-extender legislation and a $150,000 increase on the amount of deposits the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. insures. Don Stewart, spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), sent out an alert saying the measure would be subject to a filibuster-proof, 60-vote threshold.”
  • New York Times: Senate to Vote Wednesday on Bailout Plan: “The Senate tax bill would cost more than $100 billion and extend and expand many individual and business tax breaks, including tax credits for the production and use of renewable energy sources, like solar energy and wind power. The bill would also extend the business tax credit for research and development, expand the child tax credit, protect millions of families from the alternative minimum tax, and provide tax relief to victims of recent floods, tornadoes and severe storms.”
  • Related postings on financial system
  • And for additional perspective, Economics Blog Directory & Ranking

EPA Issues Final Yucca Mountain Radiation Standards

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Follow up to previous postings related to Yucca Mountain spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste disposal facility, from EPA today: Public Health and Environmental Radiation Protection Standards for Yucca Mountain, Nevada (PDF), Administrator’s Signature Version (137 pages) News Brief: EPA Issues Final Yucca Mountain Standards Fact sheet: Final Amendments to the Public Health and… Continue Reading

New GAO Reports: NASA, Climate Change, Coastal Zone Management, Lobbying Disclosure, Export Promotion

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NASA: Agency Faces Challenges Defining Scope and Costs of Space Shuttle Transition and Retirement, GAO-08-1096, September 30, 2008 Climate Change: Federal Actions Will Greatly Affect the Viability of Carbon Capture and Storage As a Key Mitigation Option, GAO-08-1080, September 30, 2008 Influenza Pandemic: HHS Needs to Continue Its Actions and Finalize Guidance for Pharmaceutical Interventions,… Continue Reading

Social Security Number Misuse for Work and the Impact on the Social Security Administration's Master Earnings File

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Office of Inspector General: Social Security Number Misuse for Work and the Impact on the Social Security Administration’s Master Earnings File, A-03-07-27152, 09/29/08 “While SSA had controls to detect some instances of SSN misuse in its records, we believe the Agency still has work to do. To assist victims of SSN misuse, the Agency needs… Continue Reading

SEC Office of the Chief Accountant and FASB Staff Clarifications on Fair Value Accounting

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News release: “The current environment has made questions surrounding the determination of fair value particularly challenging for preparers, auditors, and users of financial information. The SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant and the staff of the FASB have been engaged in extensive consultations with participants in the capital markets, including investors, preparers, and auditors, on… Continue Reading

DHS OIG: Progress Made In Strengthening DHS IT Management, But Challenges Remain

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OIG-08-91 – Progress Made In Strengthening DHS Information Technology Management, But Challenges Remain, September 2008. “DHS budgets more than $5 billion a year for its IT programs. Since its formation in 2003, DHS has faced significant challenges to establish an effective IT management structure to oversee and guide the department’s IT resources. However, DHS has… Continue Reading

Politically-interested Internet Users' Perceptions of Blog Credibility

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Johnson, T. J., Kaye, B. K., Bichard, S. L., & Wong, w. J. (2007). Every blog has its day: Politically-interested Internet users’ perceptions of blog credibility. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), article 6. “This study employs an online survey to examine U.S. politically-interested Internet users’ perceptions of the credibility of blogs. The article focuses on… Continue Reading

Online Guide: History of U.S. Government Bailouts

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Pro Publica: “With the flurry of recent government bailouts, we decided to try to put them in perspective. The circles below represent the size of U.S. government bailout, calculated in 2008 dollars. They are also in chronological order. Our chart focuses on U.S. government bailouts of U.S. corporations (and one city). We have not included… Continue Reading