LC CRS Reports – Tracking Federal Awards in States and Congressional Districts Using USAspending.gov, May 11, 2020: “USAspending.gov, available to the public at https://www.USAspending.gov, is a government source for data on federal awards by state, congressional district (CD), zip code, city, and county. The awards data in USAspending.gov is provided by federal agencies and represents grants, contracts, loans, and other financial assistance. Grant awards include money the federal government commits for projects in states, local jurisdictions, regions, territories, and tribal reservations, as well as payments for eligible needs to help individuals and families. Contract awards refer to bids and agreements the federal government makes for specific goods and services. USAspending.gov does not include data on actual spending by recipients. USAspending.gov also provides tools for examining the broader picture of federal spending obligations within the categories of budget function, agency, and object class.Budget function refers to the major purpose that the spending serves, such as Social Security, Medicare, and national defense. Object class refers to the type of item or service purchased by the federal government, such as grants, contracts, and personnel compensation and benefits. The COVID-19 pandemic has spurred multiple pieces of legislation providing relief to individuals and families, state and local governments, businesses, and healthcare providers. According to an Office of Management and Budget memorandum from April 10, 2020, there are plans to identify COVID-19-related federal awards in USAspending.gov effective for the June 2020 reporting period.”
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Daily Archives: May 12, 2020
Coronavirus: How Law Firms Are Handling The Downturn
Law360: “UPDATED May 12, 2020, 12:28 PM EDT | The spreading coronavirus pandemic has upended the legal industry, forcing firms to cut salaries, lay off attorneys and make changes to summer associate programs. Here is a roundup of how law firms are responding. Click firms below for more details. This list will be updated with new… Continue Reading
COVID-19 and China: A Chronology of Events December 2019-January 2020
LC CRS Reports – COVID-19 and China: A Chronology of Events (December 2019-January 2020), May 12, 2020: I”n Congress, multiple bills and resolutions have been introduced related to China’s handling of a novel coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China,that expanded to become the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) global pandemic. This report provides a timeline of key… Continue Reading
For Bookstore Owners, Reopening Holds Promise and Peril
The New York Times – For Bookstore Owners, Reopening Holds Promise and Peril – “Across the country, booksellers are wrestling with how to safely open their stores. Some are racing ahead. Others feel it’s too risky. Among retail businesses, bookstores, especially smaller independent stores, face particular challenges as they navigate reopening. Many indies occupy cramped… Continue Reading
Winners of the 2020 Big Picture Natural World Photography Competition
The Atlantic – “Entrants in this year’s contest were invited to submit images showcasing the Earth’s biodiversity and showing some of the mounting threats to the natural world. These images originally appeared on bioGraphic, an online magazine about science and sustainability and the official media sponsor for the California Academy of Sciences’ BigPicture Natural World… Continue Reading
Op-Ed: Coronavirus tracing apps are coming. Here’s how they could reshape surveillance as we know it
LA Times: “…First, there are only so many things tech companies can control. Google and Apple are promising to serve as staunch gatekeepers of the system they are creating. They plan to allow only government health authorities to create the apps that can use the tracing capabilities. To protect civil liberties, the companies say they… Continue Reading
Removal of Inspectors General: Rules, Practice, and Considerations for Congress
LC CRS Reports – Removal of Inspectors General: Rules, Practice, and Considerations for Congress, May 12, 2020: “Introduction: In 1978, Congress passed the Inspector General Act (IG Act;P.L. 95-452) with the intent to improve oversight within certain executive branch agencies.During the floor debate on the legislation, Senator Thomas Eagleton described independence as the “most important”… Continue Reading
NFL star wants to close legal ‘loopholes’ after Ahmaud Arbery’s death. He’s calling on AG Barr to help.
NBC News: “More than 60 current and former NFL players and coaches signed their names to a letter last week asking Attorney General William Barr to use the full force of federal law to investigate the fatal shooting of Ahmaud Arbery, a black man who was followed and fatally shot by white men in his… Continue Reading
The Global Pandemic and Run on Shadow Banks
KC Fed Economic Bulletin – Rajdeep Sengupta, Economist and Fei Xue, Research Associate, May 11, 2020 | “In March, the global coronavirus pandemic led to a period of financial stress in which credit conditions tightened at an unprecedented pace. Elements of this stress period can be explained as a classic run on “shadow banks”—nonbank financial… Continue Reading
The Four Men Responsible For America’s COVID-19 Test Disaster
Rolling Stone – “The White House’s inability to track the disease as it spread across the nation crippled the government’s response and led to the worst disaster this country has faced in nearly a century – Despite months of alarms that the coronavirus was lurking at our doorstep, the Trump administration failed to mount an… Continue Reading
Antisemitic Incidents Hit All-Time High in 2019
“The American Jewish community experienced the highest level of antisemitic incidents last year since tracking began in 1979, with more than 2,100 acts of assault, vandalism and harassment reported across the United States, according to new data from ADL (the Anti-Defamation League). The record number of incidents came as the Jewish community grappled with vicious… Continue Reading
New map shows where DC sidewalks are wide enough to socially distance
Greater Greater Washington – Matthew Holden: “…Meli Harvey, an urban planner based in New York, published the site sidewalkwidths.nyc. This interactive map highlights which sidewalks pedestrians might have an easy time social distancing, and which sidewalks where this would be challenging, if not impossible. Helpfully, not only did Meli publish the site, but they shared their code… Continue Reading
