Category: Federal
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Federal Register weekly update: Two new significant regulations issued (2020)
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 September 28 to October 2, the Federal Register grew by 1,856 pages for a year-to-date total of 62,538 pages. Over the same period in 2019 and…
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Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs reviewed 48 significant rules in September
The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) reviewed a total of 48 significant regulatory actions issued by federal agencies in September 2020. The agency approved four rules without changes and approved the intent of 42 rules while recommending changes to their content. Agencies withdrew two rules from the review process. OIRA reviewed…
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Ballotpedia releases federal judicial vacancy count for September
In this month’s federal judicial vacancy count, Ballotpedia tracked nominations, confirmations, and vacancies from September 2, 2020, to October 1, 2020. Ballotpedia publishes the federal judicial vacancy count at the start of each month. HIGHLIGHTS • Vacancies: There have been two new judicial vacancies since the previous report. There are 59 vacancies out of 870 active Article…
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What happens if a presidential nominee becomes incapacitated before the election?
Political parties set procedures for how to fill vacancies on the national ticket in the event that a presidential or vice-presidential candidate withdraws from the race or becomes incapacitated. The Democratic National Committee outlines the process it uses to fill vacancies in its Charter and Bylaws. In the event of a vacancy on the national…
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Trump has appointed second-most federal judges through October 1 of a president’s fourth year
Donald Trump has appointed and the Senate has confirmed 218 Article III federal judges through October 1, 2020, his fourth year in office. This is the second-most Article III judicial appointments through this point in all presidencies since Jimmy Carter (D). The Senate had confirmed 260 of Carter’s appointees at this point in his term.…
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President Donald Trump tests positive for the coronavirus
On Oct. 1, President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tested positive for the coronavirus. In a tweet on Oct. 2, Trump said, “Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately.” To date, Ballotpedia has tracked the following government officials and candidates who have died,…
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U.S. Supreme Court begins 2020 term on October 5
The U.S. Supreme Court begins its 2020–2021 term on Monday, October 5, after being in recess since July. The court announced it would hear oral arguments via teleconference and would provide live audio of the arguments for its October sitting following the same format that was used during its May sitting in the 2019-2020 term.…
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Federal Register weekly update: 2020 page total tops 60,000 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 regulatory activity. From September 21 to September 25, the Federal Register grew by 1,510 pages for a year-to-date total of 60,682 pages. Over the same period in 2019 and…
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Ballotpedia to cover general elections in all five permanently-inhabited U.S. Territories
In 2020, Ballotpedia is covering the general elections in all five permanently-inhabited U.S. territories: American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. The general election in each territory is scheduled for November 3, 2020. Candidates are running in elections for the following federal and territory-level offices: • American Samoa:…