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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a $95,000 settlement with Intelligent Design Corp., based in Maple Grove, Minnesota, to resolve alleged violations of federal Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting regulations.

Washington, D.C. – According to a new CORVI climate rapid risk assessment produced by the Stimson Center, the Caribbean island nation of Dominica is increasingly vulnerable to severe weather events, flooding, and extreme heat. The report noted these adverse weather events negatively impact the island’s economy and the health and safety of its citizens. While financial and other constraints have posed difficulties in addressing these challenges, ongoing efforts to enhance climate resilience remain a priority.

In response to the surge of attention, excitement, and fear surrounding AI developments since the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022, governments worldwide have rushed to address the risks and opportunities of AI. In the United States, policymakers have sharply disagreed about the necessity and scope of potential new AI legislation. By contrast, stakeholders ranging from government officials and advocates to academics and companies seem to agree that it is essential for policymakers to utilize existing laws to address the risks and opportunities of AI where...

The Justice Department, together with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), announced a civil enforcement action against Adobe Inc. and two Adobe executives, Maninder Sawhney and David Wadhwani, for alleged violations of the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA). The lawsuit alleges that the defendants imposed a hidden “Early Termination Fee” on millions of online subscribers and that Adobe forced subscribers to navigate a complex and challenging cancellation process designed to deter them from canceling subscriptions they no longer wanted.

On June 14, 2024, the European Commission hosted the United States in Brussels for a bilateral dialogue on the impacts of the climate crisis and environmental degradation on global peace, security, and defense. Representatives from U.S. and European Union diplomatic, defense, and development agencies convened to discuss their respective whole-of-government approaches to addressing the security implications of climate change through national security and foreign policy strategies.

The U.S. Department of Education will issue a Request for Information (RFI) to better understand the operational aspects of potentially expanding Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) for workers in early childhood education (ECE) settings.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the filing of a settlement agreement with three parties for the payment of cleanup costs at the Findett Corp. Superfund Site in St. Charles, Missouri. The settlement was filed in the United States District Court of the Eastern District of Missouri.

NFIB’s Jeff Brabant Discusses Top Main Street Concerns on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the USDA is making new clean energy investments in Colorado through the Powering Affordable Clean Energy (PACE) program, part of President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda. The selected applications amount to more than $81 million in partially forgivable loans from the Inflation Reduction Act, aimed at partnering with rural communities to deliver clean, affordable energy to rural Coloradans.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on June 17, 2024, that it has awarded $1.5 million to three organizations through the Promoting Readiness and Enhancing Proficiency to Advance Reporting and Data (PREPARED) program. This initiative aims to provide technical assistance to enhance the capacity of EPA grant recipients in generating data and information necessary for evaluating program outcomes and understanding community impacts.

The Justice Department announced today that the Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the Eastern, Northern, Southern, and Western Districts of Texas have secured settlement agreements with Colorado County, Runnels County, Smith County, and Upton County. These settlements resolve findings that the counties violated Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by maintaining election websites that discriminate against individuals with vision or manual disabilities.

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced today that it has awarded $1.5 million to three organizations through the Promoting Readiness and Enhancing Proficiency to Advance Reporting and Data (PREPARED) program. This initiative aims to provide technical assistance to enhance EPA grant recipients' ability to generate data and information necessary for evaluating program outcomes and understanding community impacts.

Consumer Reports, the Electronic Privacy Information Center, and Restore the Fourth have voiced opposition to a new privacy bill in Rhode Island. These groups argue that the proposed legislation, HB 7787/SB 2500, would not significantly protect consumers' personal information or regulate major tech companies like Google and Facebook.

"Privacy policies are presented as something useful for individuals," said Calli Schroeder, senior counsel and global privacy counsel at the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a privacy and civil rights research institution. "Even pretty well-written ones are not ... really there to help the individual. They're there to cover the company's back."

Guidehouse Inc., headquartered in McLean, Virginia, has paid $7.6 million and Nan McKay and Associates (Nan McKay), headquartered in El Cajon, California, has paid $3.7 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by failing to meet cybersecurity requirements in contracts intended to ensure a secure environment for low-income New Yorkers to apply online for federal rental assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced a Notice of Intent to allocate up to $900 million to support the initial deployments of Generation III+ Small Modular Reactor (SMR) technologies in the United States. This funding, partially enabled by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, aims to strengthen the domestic nuclear industry and stimulate further reactor projects crucial for achieving national clean energy and climate objectives.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is taking action against Adobe and two of its executives, Maninder Sawhney and David Wadhwani, for allegedly deceiving consumers by hiding early termination fees for its most popular subscription plan and making it difficult for consumers to cancel their subscriptions.

The Department of State has designated Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya (HAAA) and its Secretary General, Haydar Muzhir Ma’lak al-Sa’idi, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists. HAAA is an Iraq-based militia group aligned with Iran and is part of the "Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI)," a coalition that includes several Iran-aligned terrorist organizations such as Kata’ib Hizballah, Harakat al-Nujaba, and Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada. These groups have been responsible for multiple attacks on Global Coalition forces in Iraq and Syria.

The Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) has submitted an amicus brief in the case of Doe v. Grinder, currently before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The case examines the interplay between Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which offers protections to interactive computer services (ICSs), and product liability claims against these services.

Maryland Governor Wes Moore has announced a mass pardon for over 175,000 low-level marijuana convictions. Akua Amaning, director for Criminal Justice Reform at the Center for American Progress, responded to this decision with the following statement:

AMSTERDAM — June 17, 2024 — On Monday at HLTH Europe, the Trustworthy & Responsible AI Network (TRAIN), a consortium of healthcare leaders, announced its expansion to Europe. The objective is to help organizations in the region operationalize responsible AI through technology-based guardrails. European TRAIN includes Erasmus MC (the Netherlands), HUS Helsinki University Hospital (Finland), Sahlgrenska University Hospital (Sweden), Skåne University Hospital (Sweden), Universita Vita-Salute San Raffaele (Italy), and University Medical Center Utrecht (the Netherlands). Microsoft...

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard R. Verma and President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan inaugurated the U.S.-Armenia Local Democracy Forum on June 17 in Yerevan, Armenia. This inaugural event brought together U.S. and Armenian mayors along with regional, state, and provincial leaders for a two-day discussion on local leadership in a democratic context.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced today the inclusion of three new cancer types in the list of presumed service-connected disabilities due to military environmental exposure under the PACT Act. This move aligns with the Biden-Harris administration’s Unity Agenda and the Biden Cancer Moonshot initiative, aiming to support Veterans nationwide.

New Federal Trade Commission data reveals that government impersonation scammers are targeting consumers for payments in cash, with the amount of cash reported lost to these scams nearly doubling from 2022 to 2023.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) exceeded its statutory authority by classifying bump stocks as machine guns. This decision has sparked reactions from various quarters, including Nick Wilson, senior director for Gun Violence Prevention at the Center for American Progress.