Monthly archives: June, 2012

Forbes Investigative Report – The truth about the Fast and Furious scandal

“A Fortune investigation reveals that the ATF never intentionally allowed guns to fall into the hands of Mexican drug cartels. How the world came to believe just the opposite is a tale of rivalry, murder, and political bloodlust.” – by Katherine Eban Statement of Eric H. Holder, Jr., Attorney General, United States Department of Justice …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Legal Research

Quarterly Survey of Public Pensions: 1st Quarter 2012

“This quarterly survey (formerly known as the Finances of Selected State and Local Government Employee Retirement Systems Survey) provides national summary statistics on the revenues, expenditures and composition of assets of the 100 largest state and local public employee retirement systems in the United States. These 100 systems comprise 89.4 percent of financial activity among …

Subjects: Government Documents

Census – Texas Dominates List of Fastest-Growing Large Cities Since 2010 Census

News release: “Texas had eight of the 15 most rapidly growing large cities between Census Day (April 1, 2010) and July 1, 2011, according to population estimates for all of the nation’s incorporated cities and towns and minor civil divisions released today by the U.S. Census Bureau…Although Texas dominated the list as a whole, the …

Subjects: Government Documents

FHFA's Oversight of the Federal Home Loan Banks' Unsecured Credit Risk Management Practices

FHFA’s Oversight of the Federal Home Loan Banks’ Unsecured Credit Risk Management Practices, Evaluation Report 2012-005, June 28, 2012 “Extensions of unsecured credit by the FHLBanks to, among others, European financial institutions, increased substantially in 2010 and 2011, even as the risks associated with doing so were intensifying. For example, FHFA-OIG found that in 2011 …

Subjects: Government Documents

FOIA Request by ACLU Produces More Information on National Security Letters

Ars Technica: “As the result of a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, the Department of Justice has revealed, for the first time, the types of secret letters that the government can send out to ISPs and other tech companies being asked to reveal personal data about their users …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Government Documents, Patriot Act, Privacy

Earthjustice: Deal Reached on Transportation Bill Excludes Dangerous Coal Ash Provision

“[June 27, 2012] the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released information revealing the existence of hundreds of previously unknown coal ash dumps nationwide. The information comes pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act request (FOIA) by Environmental Integrity Project and Earthjustice. The data released…by the EPA reveal that there are at least 451 more coal ash …

Subjects: Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legislation

FTC Report: Many Consumers Believe "Up To" Claims Promise Maximum Results

News release: “The Federal Trade Commission today released an FTC-commissioned study indicating that when marketers use the phrase “up to” in claims about their products, many consumers are likely to believe that they will achieve the maximum “up to” results. The study describes what a test group of consumers thought about ads for replacement home …

Subjects: Government Documents

Kaiser – Medicaid Enrollment: June 2011 Data Snapshot

Medicaid Enrollment – June 2011 Data Snapshot: “This snapshot finds that between June 2010 and June 2011, while enrollment continued to grow as an additional 2.2 million people enrolled in Medicaid programs nationally, enrollment growth in the program slowed as the economy started to improve. Enrollment growth over this period was 4.4 percent, down significantly …

Subjects: Government Documents

New GAO Reports: Critical Infrastructure Protection, Employment for People with Disabilities, Military Base Realignments, Oil Dispersants

Critical Infrastructure Protection – DHS Could Better Manage Security Surveys and Vulnerability Assessments, GAO-12-378, May 31, 2012 Employment for People with Disabilities – Little Is Known about the Effectiveness of Fragmented and Overlapping Programs, GAO-12-677, June 29, 2012 Military Base Realignments and Closures – The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s Technology Center Construction Project, GAO-12-770R, June 29, …

Subjects: Government Documents