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Follow up to this March 12, 2007 posting, OMB Releases Database on Earmarks in Appropriations Bills for FY 2005, today the OMB “updated its earmarks database with details on 13,496 earmarks totaling more than $19 billion for Fiscal Year 2005 appropriations.”
TRAC press release: “Among the observations that can be made from the new December 2006 data – measured in per-capita terms, Wyoming led all districts in federal drug and weapons convictions. For that month, Wyoming ranked first among judicial districts with more than six times the conviction rate for the U.S. as a whole in …
“The Copyright Renewal Database makes searchable the copyright renewal records received by the US Copyright Office between 1950 and 1993 for books published in the US between 1923 and 1963. Note that the database includes ONLY US Class A (book) renewals. The period from 1923-1963 is of special interest for US copyrights, as works published …
Politicizing National Security, by Aziz Huq, April 4, 2007: “Aziz Huq directs the Liberty and National Security Project at the Brennan Center for Justice. He is co-author of Unchecked and Unbalanced: Presidential Power in Times of Terror, and recipient of a 2006 Carnegie Scholars Fellowship.” Mr. Huq focuses on three recent issues to highlight his …
Press release: “Today, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Memorandum Opinion and Order (Order) that terminates its proceeding on the use of cellular phones on airplanes. In December 2004, the FCC adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to examine the existing rule that requires cellular phones to be turned off once an aircraft …
Iraq: Post-Saddam Governance and Security, Updated March 27, 2007 Pakistan and Terrorism: A Summary, March 27, 2007 Post-War Iraq: Foreign Contributions to Training, Peacekeeping, and Reconstruction, Updated March 21, 2007 U.S. Foreign Aid to Lebanon: Issues for Congress, March 21, 2007 Iran: U.S. Concerns and Policy Responses, Updated March 13, 2007
Antitrust Modernization Commission Report and Recommendations, April 2007. Full Report (540 pages) Press Release
Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration – Internal Revenue Service Is Not Adequately Protecting Taxpayer Data on Laptop Computers and Other Portable Electronic Media Devices. March 23, 2007. Reference Number 2007-20-048. “IRS employees reported the loss or theft of at least 490 computers and other sensitive data in 387 separate incidents between January 2, 2003, …
From First Monday this month, What open access research can do for Wikipedia, by John Willinsky: “This study examines the degree to which Wikipedia entries cite or reference research and scholarship, and whether that research and scholarship is generally available to readers. Working on the assumption that where Wikipedia provides links to research and scholarship …
“Chairman Waxman and Subcommittee Chairman Kucinich have requested information on the plan by Dr. David Schwartz, the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), to privatize Environmental Health Perspectives, a leading journal on environmental health read in over 190 countries. The Oversight Committee also requested information relating to Dr. Schwartzs conduct as …
Follow up to previous postings on U.S. Attorney firings, this press release: “Senators Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), sent a letter to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales asking the Department of Justice (DOJ) to establish appropriate safeguards to avoid potential conflicts of interest as the Judiciary Committee continues its ongoing investigation into the dismissals …
Press release: “The Federal Communications Commission has strengthened its privacy rules by requiring telephone and wireless carriers to adopt additional safeguards to protect the personal telephone records of consumers from unauthorized disclosure. These new safeguards will help prevent unauthorized access to customer proprietary network information, or CPNI.” Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed …
