Category: Federal

  • Transition Tracker: Harris casts third tie-breaking vote on coronavirus recovery bill

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    President Joe Biden (D) and his team have been preparing for the transition between presidential administrations since the election, including selecting senior White House staff and appointees to top government positions. In 2020, there were 1,472 government positions subject to presidential appointment: 1,118 positions required Senate confirmation and 354 did not. The new administration is…

  • Candidate filing deadline passes in Texas’ 6th Congressional District

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    Candidates interested in running in the special election for Texas’ 6th Congressional District had until March 3, 2021, to file. The general election is scheduled for May 1. The special election was called after Ronald Wright (R) passed away due to complications from COVID-19 on February 7, 2021. Wright served from 2019 to 2021. As…

  • White House withdraws first Cabinet nominee

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    President Joe Biden (D) withdrew the nomination of Neera Tanden for director of the Office of Management and Budget on Tuesday after several senators, including Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), said they would vote against confirming her. This marks the first failed nomination of Biden’s administration. Biden said in a statement, “I have accepted Neera Tanden’s…

  • Ballot Bulletin: U.S. Census Bureau postpones release of redistricting data

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    Welcome to The Ballot Bulletin, where we track developments in election policy at the federal, state, and local levels. Each issue includes an in-depth feature—such as an interview or legislative analysis—and discussions of recent events relating to electoral and primary systems, redistricting, and voting provisions. U.S. Census Bureau postpones release of redistricting data On Feb. 12,…

  • Biden made no federal judicial appointments through March 1, same as previous administrations

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    President Joe Biden (D) has not yet made any Article III federal judicial appointments through March 1 of his first year in office. This is equal to the number of Article III judicial appointments through this point in all presidencies since President Ronald Reagan (R).  Both the average and median numbers of federal judges appointed…

  • Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for March 1

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    Suggested headline: Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for March 1 Type: Monthly update In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies to all United States Article III federal courts from February 1, 2021, to March 1, 2021. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each…

  • SCOTUS grants review in two cases for its 2021-2022 term

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    On March 1, the U.S. Supreme Court accepted two cases for review during its 2021-2022 term. With the addition of these two cases, the court has granted review in a total of seven cases for the term, which is scheduled to begin on October 4, 2021.  • Babcock v. Saul concerns the requirements and interpretation…

  • U.S. Supreme Court to hear case challenging regulations related to abortion under Title X family planning program

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    On February 22, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear _American Medical Association v. Cochran_. The case concerns whether the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and federal healthcare laws when it issued a 2019 rule that placed abortion-related restrictions on healthcare providers receiving federal funds under…

  • Federal Register weekly update: Biden administration’s highest weekly page total to date

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    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 regulatory activity. From February 22 through February 26—the sixth week of the Biden administration—the Federal Register grew by 1,408 pages for a year-to-date total of…

  • OIRA reviewed 16 significant rules in February

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    Image of the south facade of the White House.

    The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) reviewed a total of 16 significant regulatory actions issued by federal agencies in February 2021. The agency approved no rules without changes and approved the intent of eight rules while recommending changes to their content. Agencies withdrew eight rules from the review process. OIRA reviewed…