Monthly archives: February, 2015

GAO Reports – HHS and Programs related to mental illness, Violation of Anti-Lobbying Provision and the Antideficiency Act

HHS Leadership Needed to Coordinate Federal Efforts Related to Serious Mental Illness, GAO-15-113, Published Dec 18, 2014. Publicly Released: Feb 5, 2015: ““Agencies identified 112 federal programs that generally supported individuals with serious mental illness in fiscal year 2013. The majority of these programs addressed broad issues, such as homelessness, that can include individuals with …

Subjects: Government Documents, Health Care, Housing, Legislation

Who Regulates Whom and How? An Overview of U.S. Financial Regulatory Policy for Banking and Securities Markets

Who Regulates Whom and How? An Overview of U.S. Financial Regulatory Policy for Banking and Securities Markets. Edward V. Murphy, Specialist in Financial Economics. January 30, 2015. “Financial regulatory policies are of interest to Congress because firms, consumers, and governments fund many of their activities through banks and securities markets. Furthermore, financial instability can damage …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Government Documents, Legal Research, Securities Law

Bitcoin: Questions, Answers, and Analysis of Legal Issues

CRS – Bitcoin: Questions, Answers, and Analysis of Legal Issues. Craig K. Elwell, Specialist in Macroeconomic Policy; Maureen Murphy, Legislative Attorney; Michael V. Seitzinger, Legislative Attorney, January 28, 2015 “Bitcoin first appeared in January 2009, the creation of a computer programmer using the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. His invention is an open-source (its controlling computer code …

Subjects: Congress, Cybercrime, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents, Privacy, Securities Law

Legislation Email Alerts on Congress.gov

News release via Andrew Weber – Moving from a 20-year-old system to our new, modern Congress.gov platform has many advantages. One of these is that, starting today, email alerts are available on Congress.gov. There are three different types of alerts in this initial release: Member of Congress, legislation, and the Congressional Record. Bill and member …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Legal Research, Legislation, Libraries

The US Treasury’s Credit Rating Agency Exercise

The US Treasury’s Credit Rating Agency Exercise – First Steps Out of the Private-Label Securities Desert. Laurie Goodman, Jim Parrott. Feburary 5, 2015. “As part of an effort to revive the moribund private-label securities (PLS) market, the US Treasury Department recently conducted an exercise with the major credit rating agencies. This exercise was intended to boost …

Subjects: Economy, Financial System, Government Documents, Housing

Child Poverty Pervasive in Large American Cities, New Census Data Show

Commentary and statistics from National Center for Children in Poverty: “Years after the end of the Great Recession, child poverty remains widespread in America’s largest cities. Nearly three children in five living in Detroit are poor, according to the most recent Census figures, a rate that has grown by 10 percentage points since the onset …

Subjects: Economy, Food and Nutrition, Government Documents, Poverty

U.S. Solar Photovoltaic Manufacturing: Industry Trends, Global Competition

U.S. Solar Photovoltaic Manufacturing: Industry Trends, Global Competition, Federal Support. Michaela D. Platzer, Specialist in Industrial, Organization and Business. January 27, 2015. “Every President since Richard Nixon has sought to increase U.S. energy supply diversity. Job creation and the development of a domestic renewable energy manufacturing base have joined national security and environmental concerns as …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Energy, Government Documents

Study – Decoding sugar addiction

Separate neural circuits control sugar cravings and healthy eating, researchers find. Picower Institute for Learning and Memory. January 29, 2015 “Together, obesity and Type 2 diabetes rank among our nation’s greatest health problem, and they largely result from what many call an “addiction” to sugar. But solving this problem is more complicated than solving drug …

Subjects: Health Care, Medicine

Google’s slow fade with librarians

medium.com article by Jessamyn West – Written in response to Never trust a corporation to do a library’s job “Don’t get me wrong, we’re doing pretty great on our own, better than ever really. We’ve gotten a bit more independent, not putting all of our eggs into any one basket, gotten better at establishing boundaries. …

Subjects: Internet, Knowledge Management, Libraries, Search Engines

CDC Vital Signs: Secondhand Smoke

Vital Signs: Disparities in Nonsmokers’ Exposure to Secondhand Smoke — United States, 1999–2012. February 3, 2015 / 64 (Early Release);1-7 “No level of secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure is safe. SHS exposure occurs when nonsmokers breathe in smoke exhaled by smokers or from burning tobacco products. It kills more than 400 infants and 41,000 adult nonsmokers …

Subjects: Government Documents, Health Care, Poverty

CDT Letter on Body Cameras to the Task Force on 21st Century Policing

“The Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) provided recommendations related to body-worn cameras in response to the Task Force on 21st Century Policing consideration of the issue and request for public comment. With use of body cameras rapidly expanding across the country2 and federal legislation being offered for nationwide use, CDT is pleased to see the Task Force addressing …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, E-Government, Government Documents, Legal Research, Privacy

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