Category: Federal

  • Val Demings announces she’s running for U.S. Senate from Florida

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    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…

  • U.S. Supreme Court issues opinion in case regarding grants of Temporary Protected Status to non-citizens

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    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…

  • Exploring the history of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996

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    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…

  • Federal Register weekly update: Year-to-date total tops 30,000 pages

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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 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…

  • Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for May 2021

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    In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies in Article III courts from May 1 to June 1. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month. HIGHLIGHTS • Vacancies: There have been six new judicial vacancies since the April 2021 report. There are 82 vacancies…

  • Democrat Melanie Ann Stansbury wins special election in New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District

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    Melanie Ann Stansbury (D) defeated Mark Moores (R) and four other candidates in New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District special election. Stansbury received 63% of the vote to Moore’s 33%. The election took place after the U.S. Senate confirmed incumbent Debra Haaland (D) as secretary of the on March 15, 2021. Stansbury served in the New…

  • Supreme Court accepts case regarding copyright infringement for next term

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    The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) released orders on June 1 emanating from its May 27 conference, granting one new case for argument during the upcoming 2021-2022 term.  Unicolors, Inc. v. H&M Hennes & Mauritz, LP originated from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit and concerns copyright infringement claims involving…

  • Supreme Court issues rulings in two cases

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    The U.S. Supreme Court issued rulings in two cases on June 1, Garland v. Dai (consolidated with Garland v. Alcaraz-Enriquez) and United States v. Cooley. As of this writing, the court had issued opinions in 41 cases this term. Seven cases were decided without argument. Garland v. Dai was argued before the court on February…

  • OIRA reviewed 35 significant rules in May

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    The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) reviewed a total of 35 significant regulatory actions issued by federal agencies in May 2021. The agency approved five rules without changes and approved the intent of 30 rules while recommending changes to their content. OIRA reviewed 56 significant regulatory actions in May 2020, 36…

  • Federal Register weekly update: No significant rules issued

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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 overall regulatory activity, accounting for both regulatory and deregulatory actions. From May 24 through May 28, the Federal Register grew by 1,376 pages for a…