Category: Uncategorized

Five states are holding gubernatorial or state legislative elections this year: Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Virginia. All five states could see a change in trifecta status as a result.   A state government trifecta exists when one party controls a state’s governorship and holds majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. There…

Trump administration officials asked the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to immediately lift the injunction blocking enforcement of President Trump’s (R) three civil service executive orders. Government attorneys argued that the injunction has created uncertainty and stalled collective bargaining negotiations between federal agencies and union groups.   A three-judge…

On July 24, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) gave the public more time to comment on new guidance related to how federal agencies should address greenhouse gas emissions. The guidance tells agencies to focus on the reasonably foreseeable environmental consequences of major actions. It also tells agencies that they do not have…

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.   During the week of July 22 to July 26, the number of pages in the Federal Register increased by 1,452 pages, bringing…

On July 25, Idaho Governor Brad Little announced four changes to the state rulemaking process: The state will post all notices and schedules for public hearings during the rulemaking process on one website. Citizens may now subscribe to a state newsletter informing them when new rules are published. Agencies will have to include a cover…

On July 3, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) asked the Federal Labor Relations Authority (FLRA) to issue a rule change that would allow federal employees to resign from their unions and revoke dues payroll deductions at any time after the first year of membership.   What is the current policy? Section 7115(a) of the…

Each week, we report the number of pageviews received by 2020 presidential campaigns on Ballotpedia. These numbers show which candidates are getting our readers’ attention.   Sen. Kamala Harris’ campaign page on Ballotpedia received 3,594 pageviews for the week of July 6-13.   Harris’ pageview figure represents 8.7 percent of the pageviews for all Democratic…

In a July 9, 2019, letter, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) asked the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold for-cause removal protections, which limit the circumstances in which presidents can remove the heads of agencies. The FHFA told the court that the agency’s new director had reconsidered the constitutionality of the agency’s structure.…

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.   During the week of July 8 to July 12, the number of pages in the Federal Register increased by 1,436 pages, bringing…

President Donald Trump (R) announced on July 11, 2019, that his administration would cease efforts to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census. Instead, Trump stated that he would issue an executive order directing federal government agencies to provide citizenship information to the United States Department of Commerce.   “I am hereby ordering every…