Policy

The agency at the center of the raid on Rep. Ilhan Omar’s home this week, Homeland Security Investigations, isn’t exactly a household name. But some Republicans hailed HSI last spring, as they sought to end a shutdown of its parent agency, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, following the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens by federal […]

The Supreme Court on Wednesday grappled with how far a law Congress passed to cover video rentals in the 1980s should stretch to cover the modern advertising-supported internet. The case turns on the justices’ interpretation of the Video Privacy Protection Act, first passed in 1988 and last amended in 2013, and the protection it is […]

Social Security benefits will increase by 3.6 percent in 2027, a jump from the 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment provided this year, the Social Security Administration announced Wednesday. Monthly benefits for nearly 72 million recipients are set to increase by an average of $75 for all retirees beginning in January, the agency said. Increased payments to […]

A key supporter for an age minimum on social media is not giving up hope that such a provision could be included in a potential compromise online safety package after the midterm elections. Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., whose original age-minimum bill was amended in committee to replace the age minimum with a related parental consent […]

Senate Commerce Committee ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., released a framework for artificial intelligence regulation Wednesday that includes a major role for the federal government in setting safety standards and testing models for catastrophic risk. The six-point framework, which does not include legislative text, stands in contrast to a focus from the White House and […]

A majority of the Supreme Court appeared skeptical Monday of an effort by Boulder, Colo., to hold major oil producers accountable in state courts for the harms caused by climate change. Across almost two hours of oral arguments, the justices raised concerns about upsetting the balance between states and the federal government and Congress’ power […]

The Trump administration’s buyouts of offshore wind leaseholders to stifle the nascent clean energy projects have drawn plenty of criticism from Democrats and environmental groups. Now comes a new argument from a nonpartisan watchdog group: Taxpayers are taking it on the chin from the controversial lease deals — which cost the Treasury nearly $4 billion […]

A bipartisan bill aimed at pressuring state utility regulators to reduce data center-related costs stalled in the Senate again Wednesday after a procedural vote to take up the bill fell short of the 60 supporters needed to move forward. The cloture vote on the motion to proceed was 57-43, keeping the measure bottled up for the […]

In the last two months of the fiscal year that ends Wednesday, the Pentagon spent tens of billions of mandatory dollars from last year’s reconciliation law, intensely accelerating spending from its unusually large overall budget for the year, congressional sources said this week.  The Pentagon spends scores of billions of dollars each year, and the Sept. […]

The Transportation Department released a final rule Monday that aims to “reset” the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s fuel economy standards, rolling back substantial required mileage increases for automakers’ fleets implemented under the Biden administration. Dubbed “Freedom Means Affordable Cars” by the department, the 892-page rule will impact Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards for cars […]