EFF – “The ongoing NSA leaks, Freedom of Information Act lawsuits and government declassification continue to bring vital information to the public about the the ongoing efforts of the NSA and its allies to spy on millions of innocent people. What started out as news detailing the agency’s collections of users’ calling records, phone calls,… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Legislation
Politico – Surprisingly large’ numbers of young people enrolling in health coverage
POLITICIO’s Natalie Villacorta [behind a paywall: “Initial numbers from several corners of the country show that nearly a quarter of new enrollees have been between 18 and 35 years of age, the demographic bubble whose general vigor and well-being is crucial to the financial stability of Obamacare’s new health exchanges. They’re waiting through website error… Continue Reading
Reframing Commodity Pools in the Wake of Dodd-Frank and the Volcker Rule
Reframing Commodity Pools in the Wake of Dodd-Frank and the Volcker Rule by Jenny Liu, Cornell Law Review, Volume 99 Issue 1. 2013. “The massive financial disaster of 2008 and the international credit catastrophe that subsequently developed was a “historic economic crisis” that led to a near collapse of the U.S. and global economic systems. In its aftermath, widespread demands for regulatory reform… Continue Reading
CRS – Expiring Unemployment Insurance Provisions
Expiring Unemployment Insurance Provisions – Katelin P. Isaacs, Analyst in Income Security, November 22, 2013 “Several key provisions related to extended federal unemployment benefits are temporary and, therefore, scheduled to expire: • Authorization for the temporary Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08) program is scheduled to expire the week ending on or before January 1, 2014 (i.e., December 28, 2013, in all states except… Continue Reading
CRS – Pay Equity: Legislative and Legal Developments
Pay Equity: Legislative and Legal Developments – Benjamin Collins, Analyst in Labor Policy; Jody Feder, Legislative Attorney. November 22, 2013 “The term “pay gap” refers to the difference in earnings between male and female workers. While the pay gap has narrowed since the 1960s, female workers with a strong attachment to the labor force earn about 77 to 81 cents… Continue Reading
CFPB – study on the impact of regulations at financial institutions
“Today, we’re releasing findings from a study we conducted on the operational effects of certain regulations for banks, in order to better understand the day-to-day activities they perform to comply with regulations. We chose a narrow scope for the study, in the expectation that depth over breadth would create findings of lasting value. We looked at ongoing operational… Continue Reading
FDIC’s Progress in Implementing Systemic Resolution Authorities under the Dodd-Frank Act
Office of Audits and Evaluations. Report No. AUD-14-001. The FDIC’s Progress in Implementing Systemic Resolution Authorities under the Dodd-Frank Act Continue Reading
Trends in Health Care Cost Growth and the Role of the Affordable Care Act
Council of Economic Advisors, November 2013 – Trends in Health Care Cost Growth and the Role of the Affordable Care Act “The Affordable Care Act (ACA) was passed against a backdrop of decades of rapid growth in health care spending in the United States. While much of this historical increase reflects the development of new… Continue Reading
Cryptographer and Harvard Scholar – NSA broke Internet’s security for everyone
Sean Gallagher, Ars Technica: “To say that there are a lot of people who are angry with the National Security Agency (NSA) right now would be an understatement. But the things that are getting the most political attention right now—such as the invasion of the privacy of American citizens and spying on the leaders of American… Continue Reading
THOMAS will now redirect to congress.gov
Via Jennifer Manning on GovDoc – “Starting Tuesday, November 19, the main URLs for THOMAS [http://www.thomas.gov, http://thomas.gov and http://thomas.loc.gov] will be redirected to the new beta congress.gov system [ http://beta.congress.gov ]. Permanent links (e.g. “handles”) and links to subpages (for example: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/nomis.html), will not be affected. THOMAS will remain fully operational and updated, and available at the following URL: http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas.php These changes will remain in effect until late… Continue Reading
GAO Report – Government Support for Bank Holding Companies
Statutory Changes to Limit Future Support Are Not Yet Fully Implemented, GAO-14-18, Nov 14, 2013 “During the 2007-09 financial crisis, the federal government’s actions to stabilize the financial system provided funding support and other benefits to bank holding companies and their subsidiaries. Agencies introduced new programs with broad-based eligibility that provided funding support to eligible institutions,… Continue Reading
CBO – Options for Reducing the Deficit: 2014 to 2023
“The Congress faces an array of policy choices as it confronts the dramatic increase in the federal government’s debt over the past several years and the prospect of large annual budget deficits and further increases in that debt that are projected to occur in coming decades under current law. To help inform lawmakers about the… Continue Reading
