Tag: news

  • Georgia legislature sends two measures to the 2022 ballot during its 2021 session

    Posted on

    Image of the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta, Georgia.

    The Georgia State Legislature adjourned its 2021 legislative session on April 1, 2021. The legislature passed two measures requiring voter approval at the general election in 2022: a constitutional amendment to suspend compensation for certain public officials while they are suspended from office due to a felony indictment and a measure to expand a property…

  • OIRA reviewed 28 significant rules in March

    Posted on

    Image of the south facade of the White House.

    The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) reviewed a total of 28 significant regulatory actions issued by federal agencies in March 2021. The agency approved three rules without changes and approved the intent of 25 rules while recommending changes to their content. OIRA reviewed 41 significant regulatory actions in March 2020, 27…

  • Unanimous U.S. Supreme Court rules that FCC changes to broadcast ownership regulations passed the arbitrary-or-capricious test

    Posted on

    On April 1, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion in _FCC v. Prometheus Radio Project_, a case about how courts should review the actions administrative agencies take. The court ruled unanimously that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) did not violate the Administrative Procedure Act’s (APA) arbitrary-or-capricious test and that the agency properly considered the…

  • Special election to be held in Oklahoma Senate district

    Posted on

    A special election is being held on April 6 for District 22 of the Oklahoma State Senate. Molly Ooten (D) and Jake Merrick (R) are running in the general election. The seat became vacant after Stephanie Bice (R) was elected to represent Oklahoma’s 5th Congressional District on Nov. 3, 2020. Bice had represented the district…

  • U.S. Supreme Court issues rulings in three cases

    Posted on

    The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued opinions in three cases argued during the 2020-2021 term on April 1.  Florida v. Georgia The case came to the court under its original jurisdiction over disputes between states and concerned the apportionment of waters of the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint River Basin. In 2013, Florida filed a complaint…

  • Arizona Supreme Court Justice Andrew Gould retires

    Posted on

    Andrew Gould retired as an associate justice of the Arizona Supreme Court on April 1. He had announced that he would retire from the court on March 12. Governor Doug Ducey (R) appointed Gould to the state supreme court on Nov. 28, 2016, after a new bill expanded the court from five justices to seven.…

  • SCOTUS concludes March sitting

    Posted on

    The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) concluded its March sitting for its 2020-2021 term on March 31. This sitting ran from March 22 through March 31, during which time the court heard six hours of oral argument. The cases argued before SCOTUS during its March sitting included: • March 22: Cedar Point Nursery…

  • SCOTUS accepts case, issues opinion

    Posted on

    On March 29, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) released orders from its conference that was held on Friday, March 26. The court issued an opinion in one case that was not argued before the court and accepted one case to its merits docket for the 2021-2022 term. The court accepted and issued…

  • Federal judge strikes down 5% petition requirement for minor-party and unaffiliated U.S. House candidates in Georgia

    Posted on

    On March 29, 2021, Judge Leigh Martin May, of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, struck down a Georgia law requiring minor-party and unaffiliated candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives to submit petitions signed by at least 5 percent of the district’s registered voters in order to appear on the…

  • Congressional resolution would reverse Trump-era rule about how banking laws apply to certain loans

    Posted on

    On March 25 and 26, 2021, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and U.S. Representative Jesus Garcia (D-Ill.) introduced companion resolutions in the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives under the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to block a rule made by the U.S. Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in October 2020.  The rule, published…