Government News

  • Congress has sent President Joe Biden a short-term spending bill that would avert a looming partial government shutdown and fund federal agencies into March.

    January 18, 2024
  • New guidance from lead cybersecurity agencies and industry partners provides both individual developers and large companies with software supply chain security best practices

    December 13, 2023
  • Congress has ended the threat of a government shutdown until after the holidays. The Senate gave final approval to a temporary government funding package Wednesday night and sent it to President Joe Biden for his signature. The bill sets up a final confrontation on the government budget in the new year. The Senate worked into the night to pass the bill with days to spare before government funding expires Saturday. The spending package keeps government funding levels at current levels for roughly two more months while a long-term package is negotiated.

    November 16, 2023
  • The threat of a federal government shutdown ended late Saturday night after Congress approved a temporary funding bill to keep federal agencies open until Nov. 17. The bill passed just hours before the midnight deadline and President Joe Biden quickly signed it. He called it “good news for the American people.” The package drops aid for Ukraine but adds money for U.S. disaster assistance. House approval came after Speaker Kevin McCarthy abandoned plans for steep spending cuts and relied on Democratic help. Biden said he expects McCarthy to keep “his commitment” to the Ukrainian people and push for aid “at this critical moment” in the war with Russia.

    October 01, 2023
  • Allies of Speaker Kevin McCarthy are working furiously to shore up support for the latest Republican plan to prevent a government shutdown.

    September 23, 2023
  • President Joe Biden has nominated a former Obama administration official to lead the Federal Aviation Administration, which has been without a permanent leader for a year and a half. The White House said Thursday that Biden has nominated Michael Whitaker. He's currently the chief operating officer of a Hyundai affiliate that is working to develop an air taxi aircraft. The FAA faces a number of challenges including a shortage of air traffic controllers, aging technology, and alarm over close calls between planes. Whitaker worked at TWA and United Airlines, then was deputy FAA administrator from 2013 to 2016.

    September 07, 2023
  • Congressional leaders are pitching a stopgap government funding package to avoid a federal shutdown after next month. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy raised the idea to House Republicans on a members-only call. On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the two leaders had spoken about such a temporary measure. It's an acknowledgement the Republican-led House and Democratic Senate are nowhere near agreement on spending levels. The fiscal year starts Oct. 1, when funding will be needed. The stopgap measure would fund operations into December but McCarthy needs support from Republicans who are loathe to agree as they push for steeper cuts.

    August 15, 2023
  • State Sen. John Scott, a longtime South Carolina lawmaker who served in state government for more than three decades, has died after a stint in the hospital. In a statement released by Senate President Thomas Alexander, Scott’s family says he “passed away peaceably while surrounded by family and close friends.” He was 69. Scott had been at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston since Friday when he was hospitalized for an undisclosed medical issue, according to Senate officials. The Columbia Democrat operated a realty company and had been in the Legislature for more than 30 years. A special election will be held to fill his seat.

    August 13, 2023
  • President Joe Biden has praised leaders from both parties for unifying behind veterans a year ago, when they joined in passing the largest expansion of veterans benefits in decades. The PACT Act is intended to improve health care and disability compensation for exposure to toxic substances, such as burn pits used to dispose of trash on military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan. More than 348,000 veterans have had their claims approved in the last year. An additional 111,000 who are believed to have toxic exposure have enrolled in health care. The president and Utah's Republic governor, Spencer Cox, joined in Salt Lake City on Thursday to speak about the act on its anniversary.

    August 10, 2023
  • The Securities and Exchange Commission has adopted rules to require public companies to disclose within four days all cybersecurity breaches that could affect their bottom lines. Delays will be permitted if immediate disclosure poses serious national security or public safety risks. The new rules, passed by a 3-2 vote on Wednesday, also require publicly traded companies to annually disclose information on their cybersecurity risk management and executive expertise in the field.

    July 26, 2023
  • Hugh “Sonny” Carter Jr. has died. He's the Carter who helped organize the “Peanut Brigade” that helped elect his cousin Jimmy to the White House and later enforced the president’s frugal ways in the West Wing. The Carter Center announced his death without saying the cause. Hugh Carter was among the many extended family members who campaigned alongside Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter and their children early in the 1976 presidential campaign, when the Georgia Democrat was considered a longshot candidate. The 39th president then assigned Hugh Carter the task of curtailing waste among White House staffers, a job that earned him the nickname “Cousin Cheap.”

    July 26, 2023
  • The White House has nominated a career airlift and cargo pilot with key deployments in Afghanistan and Europe to serve as the Air Force's next top general. In a notice to Congress posted Wednesday, the White House nominated Gen. David W. Allvin to serve as the service's next chief of staff.

    July 26, 2023
  • The House has overwhelmingly passed a bill that would give the Federal Aviation Administration more money to hire air traffic controllers. It also aims to address pilot shortages by raising the mandatory retirement age. The measure, passed Thursday, seeks to improve air travel and reauthorize FAA programs for the next five years. Lawmakers in both parties widely supported the bill as they respond to this summer’s wave of cancellations and delays. It passed by a vote of 351-69. The Senate is working on its own version of the legislation. Aviation programs are set to expire Oct. 1 unless Congress approves the measure.

    July 21, 2023
  • The House has passed a sweeping defense bill that provides a pay raise for service members but strays from traditional military policy with Republicans add-ons blocking abortion coverage, diversity initiatives at the Pentagon and transgender care.

    July 14, 2023
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