Supreme Court Upholds Right to Run Genuine Issue Ads during Elections

On June 25, the U.S. Supreme Court announced its decision in Federal Election Commission vs. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc., ruling 5-4 that the federal electioneering communications ban is unconstitutional when applied to genuine issue ads. The case challenged a provision in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) that bars corporations, including nonprofits, from paying for broadcasts that mention federal candidates 60 days before a general election or 30 days before a primary (known as the blackout period). Though the Court ruled in favor of groups that run issue ads during elections, the debate will likely continue throughout the upcoming presidential election and beyond.

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Vice President Avoids Oversight, Claims Office not Part of Executive Branch

On June 21, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

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Congress Moves to Create a Greenhouse Gas Inventory

In an effort to combat the causes of climate change, proposals to collect and publicly disclose accurate information on releases of greenhouse gases are moving forward in Congress. Two recently introduced bills seek to create an inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, and during the week of June 18, the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee included a provision in its bill that would require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create such an inventory.

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Congress Critical of EPA's Information on 9/11

In recent House and Senate hearings, Congress called to task the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and former EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman for misrepresenting the health dangers World Trade Center (WTC) dust posed to the public in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. The Senate hearing, chaired by Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY), was held by the Committee on Environment and Public Works' Superfund and Environmental Health Subcommittee on June 20; the House hearing, chaired by Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), was held June 25 by the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.

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House Bills Address Mining Health and Safety Shortfalls

Two House bills introduced June 19 address health and safety issues left out of the MINER Act passed in 2006 after coal miners died in three separate accidents in Kentucky and West Virginia. The bills also include provisions that will allow the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), often criticized for slow implementation of mining laws, to better address new and existing protections.

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House Legislation Would Force Regulatory Review

The House has approved legislation that would expand the ability of the Small Business Administration (SBA) to aid small businesses in complying with federal and state regulations. However, the bill would also allow SBA to target regulations that the small business community finds objectionable.

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Emanuel Proposes Defunding Part of the OVP

Jun 26, 2007 by Matt Lewis

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) is leading a charge to cut funding for the Office of Vice President, in response to arguments the OVP has made that it isn't subject to disclosure requirements that apply to the executive branch. Emmanuel's amendment is such that unless the OVP complies with the requirements, it will lose the funding it gets in the appropriations bill that funds the President's administration, and will only get funding through the appropriations bill that funds legislative branch activities.

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The Vice President's Budget?

Jun 26, 2007 by Craig Jennings

The Washington Post is running a multi-part series on Vice President Dick Cheney and his impact on federal policies. Today, the series' authors, Jo Becker and Barton Gellman, examine the veep's role in influencing domestic policy. This section about the budget-making process is enlightening:

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President Follows Shining Path to $933 Bn.

Jun 26, 2007 by Dana Chasin

Threatens Veto of Interior-Environment Bill Yesterday, the administration issued its third veto threat of the appropriations season, this time against H.R. 2643, the House's $27.6 billion Interior-Environment Bill. Again, yesterday's Statement of Administration Policy reflects the administration's aggregate $933 billion discretionary spending topline approach to vetoing spending bills as they make their way through Congress:

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EPA Announces Proposed Smog Standard

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced proposed changes to the national standard for ground-level ozone, also known as smog. Scientific consensus supports a limit substantially lower than the current standard. EPA's proposal has drawn criticism for being too weak to fully protect the public from the adverse health effects of ozone. A lack of transparency in the rulemaking process has left the public in the dark as to whether EPA, the White House or industry lobbyists may be to blame.

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