Category: Federal
-
Steve King (R) becomes second member of Congress to lose a primary in 2020
State Sen. Randy Feenstra (R) defeated Rep. Steve King (R) in the Republican primary for Iowa’s 4th Congressional District. As of 10:30 p.m. Central Time, Feenstra had received 40.6% of the vote to King’s 38.7%. No other candidate had received more than 10% of the vote. Feenstra will face Democratic nominee J.D. Scholten in the…
-
Theresa Greenfield wins Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Iowa
Theresa Greenfield defeated Michael Franken, Kimberly Graham, and Eddie Mauro to win the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Iowa. As of 9:30 p.m. Central Time, Greenfield had received 44.9% of the vote with 6% of precincts reporting. Franken followed with 26.6%, while Graham had 15.6%, and Mauro had 11.7%. A fifth candidate, Cal Woods,…
-
Victoria Spartz wins Republican nomination in Indiana’s 5th Congressional District
First-term state Sen. Victoria Spartz (R) defeated 14 other candidates to win the Republican nomination to succeed outgoing Rep. Susan Brooks (R) in Indiana’s 5th Congressional District. As of 7:20 p.m. Central Time, Spartz had received 39.0% of the vote to Beth Henderson’s (R) 19.2% and Micah Beckwith’s (R) 11.6%. No other candidate had received…
-
2,910 major party candidates filed for 2020 Congress elections
As of June 1, 2,910 major party candidates have filed to run for the Senate and House of Representatives in 2020. So far, 441 candidates are filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to run for U.S. Senate. Of those, 355—180 Democrats and 175 Republicans—are from one of the two major political parties. In 2018,…
-
Group of states and cities sue Trump administration over rollback of Obama administration fuel efficiency standards
A group of 23 states, 4 cities, and the District of Columbia are challenging in court Trump administration efforts to change federal fuel efficiency requirements established by the Obama administration. On May 27, the group filed a lawsuit in the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit asking the court to review new…
-
Federal Register weekly update; smallest weekly final rule total since first week of January
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 May 25 to May 29, the Federal Register grew by 1,620 pages for a year-to-date total of 32,976 pages. Over the same…
-
New regulation allows U.S. Secretary of Labor to overturn agency appeal decisions
New regulations from the U.S Department of Labor (DOL) might allow the public to hold the agency more accountable for decisions it makes during adjudication. On May 20, Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia published a final rule that establishes a system allowing him to review cases decided by the agency Administrative Review Board (ARB) and…
-
U.S. Supreme Court rejects challenge to California law limiting church attendance
On May 29, 2020, the United States Supreme Court rejected a challenge to California’s religious gathering limits, which order attendance in churches or places of worship to a maximum of 25% or 100 attendees. The 5-4 decision was joined by Chief Justice Roberts who warned against intervening in emergencies: “Where those broad limits are not…
-
Trump executive order aims to protect procedural rights in agency adjudication
President Donald Trump (R) on May 19 issued an executive order aimed at providing regulatory relief to spur economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. In addition to targeted regulatory actions, the order also contains provisions that seek to promote economic recovery by safeguarding procedural rights and ensuring fairness in agency adjudication and enforcement. The order…
-
Trump executive order targets regulations waived during pandemic for potential permanent repeal
On May 19, President Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies to remove regulatory barriers to economic activity as part of a coronavirus pandemic recovery effort. The order specifically directs agency leaders to determine whether regulations modified or waived during the pandemic should be repealed permanently. It also encourages agencies to use emergency powers…