News published on Federal Newswire in April 2021

News Release: Interagency effort will coordinate resources across the federal government to bring immediate relief to irrigators, Tribes, and western communities WASHINGTON, April 21, 2021 – The Biden-Harris administration today announced the formation of an Interagency Working Group to address worsening drought conditions ...

USDA Seeks Comments on Food System Supply Chains in Response to President Biden’s Executive Order to Support Resilient, Diverse, Secure Supply Chains

News Release: Federal Register Notice Outlines Information Requested by May 21 WASHINGTON, April 21, 2021 — Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is seeking comments on a Department-wide effort to improve and reimagine the supply chains for the production, ...

USDA Invests $21.7M in Research Innovations to Improve Soil Health and Climate Smart Agriculture and Forestry

News Release: WASHINGTON, April 21, 2021 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) will invest at least $21.7 million in several key programs to help agricultural producers manage the impacts of climate change on ...

USDA Expands and Renews Conservation Reserve Program in Effort to Boost Enrollment and Address Climate Change

News Release: USDA Also Announces Investments in Partner Programs to Support Climate-Smart Policies WASHINGTON, April 21, 2021 – Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that USDA will open enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) with higher payment rates, new incentives, and a more targeted ...

FACT SHEET: Update on USDA Activities to Contain the COVID-19 Pandemic

News Release: USDA Has Deployed 1,171 Disaster, Public Health Specialists to Assist with Federal Response WASHINGTON, Apr. 21, 2021 — In January 2021, President Biden released the National Strategy for the COVID-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness. The plan is driven by science, data, and public health to improve the effectiveness of our nation’s fight against COVID-19 and to restore trust, accountability and a sense of common purpose in our response to the pandemic.

Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty to $6.5 million Health Care Fraud Schemes

News Release: A New York woman pleaded guilty today to perpetrating schemes to defraud health care programs, including obtaining more than $6.5 million from Medicare Part D Plans and Medicaid drug plans.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Announces Investigation of the City of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the Minneapolis Police Department

News Release: Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced today the Justice Department has opened a pattern or practice investigation into the City of Minneapolis (the City) and the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD). The investigation will assess all types of force used by MPD officers, including uses of force ...

Georgia Correctional Officer Pleads Guilty to Civil Rights Offense for Assaulting Inmate

News Release: A Georgia correctional officer pleaded guilty today to violating the civil rights of an inmate.

Colorado Businessman Indicted for Employment Tax Fraud

News Release: A federal grand jury in Denver, Colorado, returned an indictment charging a Bow Mar, Colorado, businessman with tax evasion, failing to pay over employment taxes, and failing to file tax returns.

California Man Charged with COVID-Relief Fraud Scheme

News Release: A federal grand jury in Los Angeles, California, returned an indictment on Apr. 13, charging a California man with stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).

New York Fisherman and Fish Dealer Charged with Conspiracy, Fraud, and Obstruction

News Release: Today, a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of New York unsealed the indictment of one fisherman, a wholesale fish dealer, and two of its managers for conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and obstruction in connection with a scheme to illegally overharvest fluke and black sea bass. All four defendants are from Montauk.

Mathematics Professor and University Researcher Indicted for Grant Fraud

News Release: Note: A full copy of the indictment can be viewed here.

Manager of Hospice and Home Health Companies Sentenced to Prison for Role in $150 Million Health Care Fraud Scheme

News Release: A Texas man was sentenced today to 27 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy at the Merida Group, a chain of hospice and home health agencies throughout Texas, to falsely convince thousands of patients with long-term incurable diseases they had less than six months to live in order to enroll the ...

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor and Puerto Rico Supreme Court Chief Justice Maite Oronoz Address Latin American Judges at Justice Department’s Judicial Studies Institute

News Release: U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Puerto Rico Supreme Court Chief Justice Maite Oronoz today addressed over 157 judges from Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama and Peru as part of a Department of Justice training ...

Readout of Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco's First Day

News Release: Today, Lisa O. Monaco was sworn in as the 39th Deputy Attorney General (DAG) of the United States. She returns to the Department of Justice where she first arrived as an intern 26 years ago, and went on to hold a variety of leadership roles at both the Department and the FBI. DAG Monaco held a series ...

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry to Participate in the Leaders Summit on Climate

News Release: Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will join President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and several U.S. cabinet secretaries and private sector and civil society leaders at the Leaders Summit on Climate. President Biden will host leaders from ...

Imposing Sanctions on Two Burmese State-Owned Enterprises

News Release: The Burmese military regime continues to ignore the will of the people of Burma to restore the country’s path to democracy. Instead of acceding to the clear aspirations of its citizens, the regime has intensified its violent crackdown, killing more than 650 people, including many children, and detaining more than 3,200 others since February 1.

Additional Civilian Assistance to Afghanistan

News Release: President Biden was clear that while the United States will withdraw military forces from Afghanistan, our support for the country will continue. As part of our commitment to invest in and support the Afghan people, we are working with Congress to provide nearly $300 million in additional civilian assistance ...

Secretary Blinken’s Roundtable with CARICOM Foreign Ministers