Legislation

Farm Safety Net Costs Projected at $30B as Congress Eyes Farm Bill

Federal crop insurance premium subsidies reached approximately $15 billion in 2026, equal to about 66% of total premiums on average, with no statutory caps...

Legislation

Congress Approves $877.9 Million in Federal Payments to D.C.

Congress approved $877.9 million in federal payments for the District of Columbia under the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 (P.L. 119-75), signed Feb....

Congress

Permit Reform Bill Would Narrow Historic Preservation Review

A pending permitting-reform bill would substantially rewrite Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), narrowing which projects face...

Politics

Congress Runs on Stopgap Through Dec. 11 With Pay Frozen at $174K

Congress has not enacted a regular fiscal 2027 legislative branch appropriations bill, leaving the government funded only through Dec. 11 on a continuing...

Legislation

Gun Dealers Can Now Screen Employees Through Background Checks

Gun dealers and other federally licensed firearms businesses will be able to run FBI criminal background checks on employees who handle weapons, under a...

Lobbying

SESAC Lobbies On Radio Royalties As Music Copyright Bills Stack

SESAC, which originally stood for the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers, is the client in this filing, listed as SESAC Rights Management Inc....

Law and Order

Federal Ban on Synthetic Hemp Cannabinoids Takes Effect Nov. 12

A provision excluding products containing cannabinoids that cannot be naturally produced by the cannabis plant, such as THC-O, from the federal definition...

Social Welfare

Clergy Act Opens New Window to Reverse Social Security Exemption

Clergy members who once opted out of Social Security permanently now have a time-limited chance to reverse that decision, according to a new Congressional...

Congress

Congress Faces Continuing Gap in State Department Authorization

Congress has not enacted a comprehensive Department of State (DOS) authorization since 2002, and annual appropriations bills have carried standing waivers...

Follow the Money

Federal Farm Support for 2025 Crop Year Estimated at $13.2 Billion

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates federal farm income support payments through Price Loss Coverage (PLC) and Agriculture Risk Coverage...

Legislation

Two Declaration of Independence Time Capsules Authorized

Congress authorized two semiquincentennial time capsules for the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, one of which remains without a burial...

Legislation

Commission Lets Consumers Revoke Consent For Some Robocalls

The Federal Communications Commission will let consumers revoke consent for specific categories of robocalls while keeping others they want, and will make...

Legislation

Treasury May Bar Large Investors From Buying Single-Family Homes

Treasury has proposed a rule explaining how the ban on large institutional investors buying single-family homes will work, including key terms, exceptions,...

Environment

New Rule May Curb State Water Certification and Double Permit Terms

A bipartisan Senate bill, S. 5653, introduced September 30 would narrow state authority over water quality certifications, extend National Pollutant...

Legislation

Kratom Compounds Face Federal Scheduling as DEA Prepares 7-OH Rule

Three kratom-derived compounds, mitragynine pseudoindoxyl (MP), MGM-15, and MGM-16, are now Schedule I controlled substances under federal law through Aug....

Politics

Textile Recycling Push Faces Funding and Infrastructure Gap

The Textile Circular Economy: Policy Options for the U.S. report, published Oct. 16 by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), examines policy...

Legislation

Zurich Lobbies Litigation Funding as H.R.1109 Gets Markup

Zurich American Insurance Co. is among the organizations associated with H.R.1109, the Litigation Transparency Act of 2025, whose latest recorded action is...