Category: Federal
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Federal judge rules California’s ban on assault weapons is unconstitutional
Federal District Court Judge Roger Benitez ruled on June 4 that California’s Assault Weapons Control Act of 1989, which banned all assault weapons in California, violates the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and unlawfully restricts the kinds of firearms protected under previous U.S. Supreme Court rulings. He wrote, “Like the Swiss Army Knife, the…
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COVID-19 policy changes and events one year ago this week
Although the first case of COVID-19 in the U.S. was confirmed on Jan. 21, 2020, it wasn’t until March when the novel coronavirus upended life for most Americans. Throughout the year, states issued stay-at-home orders, closed schools, restricted travel, issued mask mandates, and changed election dates. Here are the policy changes that happened June 15-19,…
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SCOTUS decides case concerning Armed Career Criminal Act in 5-4 opinion
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued an opinion in one case on June 10, Borden v. United States, which involved the use-of-force clause in the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA). The case was argued during the November argument sitting. Charles Borden Jr. pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm as a felon. The…
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Federal Register weekly update: 87 new final rules
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s overall regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions. From June 7 through June 11, the Federal Register grew by 1,296 pages for a…
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Val Demings announces she’s running for U.S. Senate from Florida
U.S. Rep. Val Demings (D) officially announced her candidacy for the U.S. Senate on June 9. Demings currently represents Florida’s 10th Congressional District. Marco Rubio (R) is Florida’s incumbent U.S. Senator who is up for election in 2022. He was first elected to the Senate in 2010. Demings announced she was running in a three-minute…
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U.S. Supreme Court issues opinion in case regarding grants of Temporary Protected Status to non-citizens
The U.S. Supreme Court issued orders on June 7 emanating from their June 3 conference and issued an opinion in one case. The court accepted one new case to be argued during the upcoming 2021-2022 term, Federal Bureau of Investigation v. Fazaga. The case concerns the state-secrets privilege and originated from the U.S. Court of…
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Exploring the history of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996
You may have heard about Section 230, but what exactly is it? Section 230 is a federal law passed as part of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (CDA) which contains two provisions that prevent internet service providers and website companies from being held liable for most content created by users of their services, including…
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Federal Register weekly update: Year-to-date total tops 30,000 pages
The Federal Register is a daily journal of federal government activity that includes presidential documents, proposed and final rules, and public notices. It is a common measure of an administration’s overall regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions. From May 31 through June 4, the Federal Register grew by 958 pages for a…