“In testimony before Congress today, the Federal Trade Commission renewed its call for data security legislation and provided an update on its efforts to protect consumers’ privacy in the face of growing reports of data breaches. Testifying on behalf of the Commission before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, Chairwoman Edith Ramirez told lawmakers that… Continue Reading
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Author Archives: Sabrina I. Pacifici
New GAO Reports – Critical Infrastructure Protection, Federal Contracting, Int’l Food Aid, Medicare, USDA Litigation
CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROTECTION: Observations on Key Factors in DHS’s Implementation of Its Partnership Approach, GAO-14-464T: Published: Mar 26, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 26, 2014. FEDERAL CONTRACTING: Noncompetitive Contracts Based on Urgency Need Additional Oversight, GAO-14-304: Published: Mar 26, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 26, 2014. F-35 JOINT STRIKE FIGHTER: Slower Than Expected Progress in Software Testing May Limit Initial Warfighting Capabilities, GAO-14-468T: Published: Mar… Continue Reading
Pew – State of the News Media 2014
Amy Mitchell, State of the News Media 2014 – “In many ways, 2013 and early 2014 brought a level of energy to the news industry not seen for a long time. Even as challenges of the past several years continue and new ones emerge, the activities this year have created a new sense of optimism… Continue Reading
EPA and Army Corps of Engineers Clarify Protection for Nation’s Streams and Wetlands
News release: “The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) today jointly released a proposed rule to clarify protection under the Clean Water Act for streams and wetlands that form the foundation of the nation’s water resources. The proposed rule will benefit businesses by increasing efficiency in determining coverage of… Continue Reading
From Digitally Disrupted to Digital Disrupter
Accenture Technology Vision 2014 – Every Business Is a Digital Business “Big companies are back in the digital game. Procter & Gamble, Tesco, Disney, GE—these are just a few of the global 2,000 that are now in a race to become digital. Those that get there first will be able to disrupt their existing markets and penetrate new ones. They… Continue Reading
Economic Policy Review – Federal Reserve Bank of New York
A Special Issue on Large and Complex Banks Volume 20, Number 2, March 2014 Do Big Banks Have Lower Operating Costs? Anna Kovner, James Vickery, and Lily Zhou Evidence from the Bond Market on Banks’ “Too-Big-to-Fail” Subsidy – João Santos Do “Too-Big-to-Fail” Banks Take on More Risk? – Gara Afonso, João Santos, and James Traina Components of U.S. Financial Sector… Continue Reading
CFPB Data Point: Payday Lending
“In this Data Point we present the results of several analyses of consumers’ use of payday loans. The focus of the analyses is loan sequences, the series of loans borrowers often take out following a new loan. Key findings of this report include: Over 80% of payday loans are rolled over or followed by another… Continue Reading
FHFA Oversight of Enterprise Controls Over Pre-Foreclosure Property Inspections
Audit Report, AUD-2014-012, March 25, 2014: “The pre-foreclosure property inspection process needs improvement to ensure that pre-foreclosure inspection objectives are achieved in the most effective manner. There is limited assurance that the Enterprises have effective controls in place to ensure the quality of inspections conducted and that inspectors issue reports consistent with contractual requirements. Overall, several servicers reviewed… Continue Reading
Federal Reserve survey provides information on mobile financial services
News release: “The use of mobile phones to access a bank account, credit card, or other financial account continued to increase in prevalence among adults in the United States last year, according to the Federal Reserve Board’s latest report on the use of mobile financial services. As of December 2013, 33 percent of all mobile… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports – Architect of the Capitol, VA Information Security
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL: Incorporating All Leading Practices Could Improve Accuracy and Credibility of Projects’ Cost Estimates, GAO-14-333: Published: Mar 25, 2014. Publicly Released: Mar 25, 2014: “GAO’s Cost Estimating and Assessment Guide (Cost Guide) defines 12 leading practices that are associated with four characteristics—comprehensive, well documented, accurate , and credible —that are important to developing high-quality, reliable project-cost estimates.” INFORMATION SECURITY: VA Needs… Continue Reading
Census Data Mapper – Beta
“The Census Data Mapper is a web mapping application intended to provide users with a simple interface to view, save and print county-based demographic maps of the United States. The data are from the 2010 Census.” Continue Reading
2014 Global Retirement Index
“The Natixis CoreData Global Retirement Index is an international comparison tool with an objective of providing a global benchmark for retirees and future retirees to evaluate and compare the suitability of nations globally in meeting retirement expectations, needs and ambitions. Welfare in retirement is an increasingly relevant issue in modern societies as demographic compositions continue… Continue Reading
