"The Bag Bill"
Activist Jennie Romer, a lawyer who got bills banning plastic bags from stores passed in California, moved to New York to do the same thing in New York City.
Source: New Yorker, 04/29/2016
Laws & Regulations
"Vets Hit VA With Federal Lawsuit Over Camp Lejeune Water Poisoning"
"The quest for answers for thousands of veterans sickened -- in some cases terminally -- by contaminated water at Camp Lejuene has been stymied by a federal agency that refuses to hand over key documents, attorneys from Yale Law School charged Wednesday."
Source: Fox, 04/29/2016
"Mass. Firefighters Seek Ban On Flame Retardants"
"Amid growing concern that flame retardants are responsible for elevated cancer rates in firefighters, Massachusetts lawmakers are pushing legislation that would go further than any other state’s in banning the use of chemicals meant to slow the spread of fires."
Source: Boston Globe, 04/29/2016
"Large Graffiti Carved At Arches National Park In Utah"
"Rangers at southern Utah's Arches National Park were investigating large graffiti Thursday that was carved so deeply into a famous redrock arch that it might be impossible to erase, officials said."
Source: AP, 04/29/2016
"House Committee Passes Pipeline Safety Bill"
"The House Energy and Commerce Committee voted Wednesday to pass a bill to reauthorize the federal government’s safety oversight for hazardous pipelines."
Source: The Hill, 04/28/2016
Citizens Group Says Libel Suit from Landfill Company Meant To Silence
Black Belt Citizens Fighting for Health and Justice says the landfill, which has accepted millions of pounds of coal ash from the 2008 Tennessee spill, violates their civil rights. The community surrounding the landfill is predominantly poor and African-American.
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Can House, Senate, Meld FOIA Bills In Politicized Election Year?
The Congressional Research Service has compiled a side-by-side analysis comparing the two bills. With only a few months of real work remaining in this volatile election year, it is not a sure thing that Congress will clear the legislation. Open-government groups on March 16, 2016, urged Obama to declare support for the legislation.
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Money Woes Weaken Media's Ability To Defend 1st Amendment: Editors
A survey of 66 top-level U.S. editors suggests that the media's ability to defend the First Amendment is wilting — and that lack of money is one of the problems. The survey was conducted by a partnership of Knight Foundation, the American Society of News Editors, the Associated Press Media Editors, and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press.
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"Zika Funding Battle Steals States’ Public Health Emergency Money"
"Cities and states preparing for possible Zika outbreaks this spring and summer are losing millions of federal dollars that local officials say they were counting on, not only for on-the-ground efforts to track and contain the spread of the mosquito-borne virus but also to respond to other emergencies that threaten public health."
Source: Wash Post, 04/27/2016
"Mitsubishi: We've Been Cheating On Fuel Tests For 25 Years"
"The situation at Mitsubishi Motors just went from bad to much, much worse. The Japanese automaker admitted Tuesday that it had falsified fuel efficiency tests for the past quarter century, the latest revelation in a scandal that has rocked the company."
Source: CNN, 04/27/2016
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