“With the tax side of the fiscal cliff narrowly averted, CCH has issued a new Tax Briefing: American Taxpayer Relief Act, covering provisions of the new legislation. The American Taxpayer Relief Act allows the Bush-era tax rates to sunset after 2012 for individuals with incomes over $400,000 and families with incomes over $450,000; permanently patches… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Legislation
Infographic – Health Coverage Under the Affordable Care Act
“Visualizing Health Policy | December 26, 2012. Medicare’s Role and Future Challenges, Kaiser Family Foundation. This month’s Visualizing Health Policy provides a step-by-step guide through the options and requirements for health coverage under the Affordable Care Act beginning in 2014, including coverage through an employer, coverage through a health insurance exchange, and coverage through Medicaid.”… Continue Reading
CRS – The Protection of Classified Information
The Protection of Classified Information: The Legal Framework. Jennifer K. Elsea, Legislative Attorney. December 17, 2012 “This report provides an overview of the relationship between executive and legislative authority over national security information, and summarizes the current laws that form the legal framework protecting classified information, including current executive orders and some agency regulations pertaining… Continue Reading
CALM Act Regulates Volume of TV Commercials
“The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) established new rules for the volume of television commercials that started on December 13, 2012. The new regulation, known as the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation (CALM) Act, requires commercials to have the same average volume as the programs they accompany. The CALM Act requires TV stations, cable operators or other… Continue Reading
Electronics TakeBack Coalition: Extended Producer Responsibility
“Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) (also called Producer Takeback) is a product and waste management system in which manufacturers not the consumer or government take responsibility for the environmentally safe management of their product when it is no longer useful or discarded. When manufacturers take responsibility for the recycling of their own products they:… Continue Reading
FTC Issues Dodd-Frank Report to Congress, Focused on Debit Card Transactions
News release: “The Federal Trade Commission issued a report to Congress explaining steps the agency has taken in connection with new rules on debit card transactions that were put in place last year by the Federal Reserve Board as required by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The FTC shares authority to… Continue Reading
Legislative Procedures for Adjusting the Public Debt Limit: A Brief Overview
Legislative Procedures for Adjusting the Public Debt Limit: A Brief Overview, Bill Heniff Jr. Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process. November 26, 2012 “Almost all borrowing by the federal government is conducted by the Treasury Department, within the restrictions established by a single, statutory limit on the total amount of debt that may be… Continue Reading
Presidential Appointee Positions Requiring Senate Confirmation and Committees Handling Nominations
CRS – Presidential Appointee Positions Requiring Senate Confirmation and Committees Handling Nominations, November 15, 2012 “This report identifies, by Senate committee, presidentially appointed positions requiring Senate confirmation based on referrals as of the date of passage of S. 679, which became P.L. 112-166 on August 10, 2012. This public law removed numerous presidentially appointed positions… Continue Reading
CRS: Presidential Reorganization Authority
Presidential Reorganization Authority: History, Recent Initiatives, and Options for Congress, December 11, 2012: “On January 13, 2012, President Barack Obama announced that he would ask Congress to reinstate so-called presidential reorganization authority, and his Administration conveyed a legislative proposal that would renew this authority to Congress on February 16, 2012. Bills based on the proposed… Continue Reading
Right to Work Laws: Legislative Background and Empirical Research
CRS – Right to Work Laws: Legislative Background and Empirical Research, Benjamin Collins, Analyst in Labor Policy. December 6, 2012 “The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) establishes most private-sector workers rights to unionize and collectively bargain over wages, benefits, and working conditions. Enacted in 1935, the NLRA also permits collective bargaining contracts between employers and… Continue Reading
CRS Reports – Irans Ballistic Missile and Space Launch Programs, Syria's Chemical Weapons, Egypt, Right to Work Laws
The following reports are via FAS: Irans Ballistic Missile and Space Launch Programs, Steven A. Hildreth, Specialist in Missile Defense. December 6, 2012 Syria’s Chemical Weapons: Issues for Congress, December 5, 2012 Egypt: Background and U.S. Relations, December 6, 2012 Afghanistan Casualties: Military Forces and Civilians, December 6, 2012 Detention of U.S. Persons as Enemy… Continue Reading
Dodd-Frank Progress Report Generated using the Davis Polk Regulatory Tracker December 2012
Davis Polk – “As of December 3, 2012, a total of 237 Dodd-Frank rulemaking requirement deadlines have passed. This is 59.5% of the 398 total rulemaking requirements, and 84.6% of the 280 rulemaking requirements with specified deadlines. Of these 237 passed deadlines, 144 (61%) have been missed and 93 (39%) have been met with finalized… Continue Reading
