Category: Federal

  • Six presidential tickets will appear on the ballot in Massachusetts this November

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    Massachusetts’ Nov. 5, 2024, general election ballot will feature six presidential candidates and their running mates. They are: Jill Stein’s running mate is Butch Ware, but she filed to appear on Massachusetts’ ballot before selecting Ware, so she will appear on Massachusetts’ ballot with Caballero-Roca instead. This is the same number of candidates that appeared…

  • Congressional Republicans reintroduce REINS Act with new provisions

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    Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) on Sept. 18 reintroduced the Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act in the 118th Congress with four additional provisions that would: The background The REINS Act is a legislative proposal that would require congressional approval of major agency rules with an economic…

  • President Biden has appointed 213 federal judges through October 1 of his fourth year

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    President Joe Biden (D) has appointed and the Senate has confirmed 213 Article III federal judges through October 1, 2024, his fourth year in office. This is the second-most Article III judicial appointments through this point in all presidencies since President Ronald Reagan (R). The average number of federal judges appointed by previous presidents through…

  • New federal SNAP work requirements take effect: age exemption rises to 54

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    On October 1, 2024, the final phase of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA) will take effect, raising the age limit for exemptions from certain Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) work requirements. Individuals will now age out of the able-bodied adult without dependents (ABAWD) work requirements at age 54, instead of 52. This means that able-bodied…

  • Joe Biden ends Sept. with highest presidential approval rating since Sept. 2023

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    At the end of Sept., approval polling averages showed President Joe Biden (D) at 42% approval. Fifty-five percent of voters disapproved of his performance. This was the highest approval rating Biden has received since Sept. 2023. Throughout Sept., Biden’s approval rating ranged from 41% to 42%. The lowest approval rating he’s received during his presidency…

  • U.S. House passes two bills opposing ESG

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    The House of Representatives passed two bills opposing ESG on Sept. 18 and Sept. 19. HR 5339 would require fiduciaries to make investment decisions based on financial factors. HR 4790 proposed limiting the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) climate risk disclosure requirements. Ballotpedia tracks support for and opposition to the environmental, social, and corporate governance…

  • Tracker: Article III federal judicial nominations by president by days in office since 2001

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    There were 44 vacancies out of 890 authorized federal judicial posts as of September 18, 2024. All 44 of those were for Article III judgeships. This report is limited to Article III courts, where appointees are confirmed to lifetime judgeships. From August 1 to September 18, 2024: By September 18, 2024—1,338 days in office—President Joe…

  • Air Force cites Loper Bright in refusal of EPA order

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    What’s the story? The U.S. Air Force announced in July it would not comply with an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) order to clean polluted drinking water in Tucson, Arizona. The Air Force argued federal regulators did not have the authority to issue the order, citing Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo—the June 2024 SCOTUS case overturning…

  • For a fourth straight month, the number of members of Congress who have announced retirement so far this year is 53

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    Fifty-three members of Congress—eight senators and 45 representatives—have announced they will not seek re-election this year. That’s the same number that was reported in our August 21 update on congressional incumbents not seeking re-election. Since then, there have been no new retirement announcements. The last incumbent to announce their retirement was Rep. Garret Graves (R-La.)…

  • Continuing unemployment insurance claims up 35% from a 54-year low in June 2022; FED focuses on job market ahead of Sept. 18 interest rate decision

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    New applications for U.S. unemployment insurance benefits rose 2,000 for the week ending Sept. 7 to a seasonally adjusted 230,000. The four-week moving average as of Sept. 7 increased by 500 from the previous week’s revised average to 230,750.  The number of continuing unemployment insurance claims, which refers to the number of unemployed workers who…