Category «Congress»

Oversight Committee Releases Proposed Tillman Report

News release: “A proposed Committee report on the investigations into the death of Corporal Patrick Tillman and the capture of Private Jessica Lynch discloses important new details about the incidents, but could not resolve “the key issue of what senior officials knew” because “the investigation was frustrated by a near universal lack of recall.” The …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents

EPIC Calls for Protection of Passport Privacy During Senate Hearing

“EPIC testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee [hearing: Passport Files: Privacy Protection Needed For All Americans], urging new protections for passport information privacy. The hearing, held at a time of increased information collection and dissemination by the government, addressed an Inspector General report [Review of Controls and Notification for Access to Passport Records in the …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Legislation, Privacy

FTC Submits Do Not Call Report to Congress for FY 2007

News release: “The Commission has approved the issuance of a report to Congress regarding the Do Not Call Registry for Fiscal Year 2007. The report..has been submitted to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce and the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, as required by Section 4(b) of the …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents, Privacy

OMB Report: The Human Resources Line of Business, 2008

Report to the Congress on the Human Resources Line of Business, June 25, 2008 “This report addresses Section 747 of Division D of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008, which requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to submit to the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents

FISA Amendments Act of 2008 Passed by Senate

On June 20, 2008 the House passed H.R. 6304, the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. Today the Senate passed the bill. Related commentary and articles as follows: ACLU: Senate Passes Unconstitutional Spying Bill And Grants Sweeping Immunity To Phone Companies New York Times: Senate Approves Bill to Broaden Wiretap Powers WSJ Law Blog: “As the …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Legal Research, Legislation, Patriot Act, Privacy

Oversight Committee Holds Hearing on Manufacturers of FEMA’s Toxic Trailers

News release, includes links to witness testimony and related documents: “As part of its continuing investigation into the FEMA’s toxic trailers, the Committee held a hearing on July 9, 2008, in 2154 Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing examined the role of four manufacturers who provided trailers with dangerous levels of formaldehyde to victims of …

Subjects: Congress

Overview of Selected Tax Provisions Relating to Financing Of Surface Transportation Infrastructure

Overview Of Selected Tax Provisions Relating To The Financing Of Surface Transportation Infrastructure, Scheduled for a Public Hearing Before the Senate Committee on Finance on July 10, 2008, Prepared by the Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation. “This document…provides a description of present-law provisions relating to Highway Trust Fund and its dedicated taxes, a …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents

New GAO Report Reveals Agencies are Not Complying with Requirements to Preserve E-mails

Committee on Oversight: “Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay, and Rep. Paul W. Hodes released a new GAO report that finds that senior federal officials are failing to comply with requirements to preserve e-mail records. On Wednesday, the House is expected to consider legislation (H.R. 5811) to modernize the Federal Records Act and …

Subjects: Congress, E-Mail, Government Documents, Legislation

National War Powers Commission Report Released

News release: “The Miller Center’s National War Powers Commission, co-chaired by former Secretaries of State James A. Baker, III and Warren Christopher, today recommended that Congress repeal the War Powers Resolution of 1973 and substitute a new statute that would provide for more meaningful consultation between the president and Congress on matters of war. In …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Legislation

DHS 2008 Data Mining Letter Report

2008 Data Mining Letter Report (PDF, 46 pages): “This is the third report by the Privacy Office to Congress on data mining. This letter report identifies the data mining activities deployed or under development within DHS, as defined by the Data Mining Reporting Act, and describes the framework the Department will use to report on …

Subjects: Civil Liberties, Congress, Government Documents, Legislation, Privacy

DOJ Announces Final National Guidelines for Sex Offender Registration and Notification

News release: “The Department of Justice today announced the final guidelines for Title I of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA). The Guidelines provide necessary tools for states, the District of Columbia, territories and certain federally recognized Indian tribes to incorporate SORNA minimum …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents, Legislation

Committee Chairs Introduce Bill to Strengthen GAO

“Chairman Henry A. Waxman and 18 other committee chairs introduced legislation to strengthen the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and restore GAO’s authority to pursue litigation if documents are improperly withheld from the agency. One key provision of the Government Accountability Office Improvement Act of 2008 (H.R. 6388) repudiates the district court decision in Walker v. …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Freedom of Information, Government Documents, Legal Research, Legislation