California
The California Supreme Court agreed Wednesday, 9/22, to give some additional leeway by extending the preliminary map deadline to 11/15 and final certification to 12/27…
Officials unveiled a new COVID-19 Vaccine Action Plan that outlines how the state will immediately begin administering COVID-19 vaccine doses to eligible residents, continue the state’s equity focus on eligible but unvaccinated individuals, and expand operations once more residents become eligible and booster shots become available…
Pacific Gas & Electric's legal troubles continued to mount on Friday, 9/24, as a district attorney charged the utility with numerous felonies tied to the 2020 Zogg Fire in Shasta County that killed four people…
Coronavirus
On Friday, 9/24, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky overruled a recommendation delivered by an advisory panel of her agency - paving the way for teachers to receive booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine…
In a pivotal development for school COVID-19 safety, Pfizer-BioNTech announced last week that its vaccine was safe and created a “robust” antibody response for children ages five to 11 in trials…
With more than 40 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines available, U.S. health authorities said they’re confident there will be enough for both qualified older Americans seeking booster shots and the young children for whom initial vaccines are expected to be approved in the not-too-distant future…
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Thursday, 9/23, declared his support for mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for eligible schoolchildren, saying the FDA’s full approval of jabs for certain adolescents should clear the way for state officials to implement plans to begin vaccinations…
Last week, Johnson and Johnson announced promising booster data showing 94% efficacy for its COVID-19 vaccine when given after six months of the initial dose…
President and Administration
Just one week after his inauguration, President Joe Biden did what his predecessor would not: He issued an executive order to create a special enrollment period through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), citing a need created by the pandemic…
The Biden administration is struggling to ease congestion in the nation’s freight system, as mounting backlogs threaten to dash the president’s hopes for a smooth economic recovery with higher prices and spot product shortages…
President Biden announced on Wednesday, 9/22, the 30 science and technology leaders who will serve on the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, a group of external advisers tasked with making science, technology and innovation policy recommendations to the White House and the president…
Last week, the Department of Labor announced the appointments of 29 members to serve on the Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship, and provide advice and recommendations on issues related to Registered Apprenticeship…
More than 50 CEOs of major companies including Vanguard, Re/Max, Pizza Hut and others are calling on lawmakers to allocate more federal dollars for childcare, calling lack of affordable and quality childcare “one of the biggest barriers to economic recovery and growth”…
Congress
The House passed a fiscal rescue package Tuesday, 9/21, intended to prevent a government shutdown this week and a U.S. debt default in the coming weeks - if only Senate Republicans would go along…
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) announced yesterday, 9/26, that debate on the Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill will start today, 9/27, right on time to fulfill the promise made to centrists last month…
House Budget Democrats approved their $3.5 trillion spending plan in a rare Saturday session on 9/25, sending more than 2,400 pages of text to the floor as the party looks to signal progress on the massive bill heading into a critical week…
The House on Thursday, 9/23, easily passed a $768 billion National Defense Authorization Act in a 316-113 vote…
Allowing lawmakers of differing parties to be chief sponsors on legislation and requiring committees to adopt civility standards are two of the proposals being floated for lowering the temperature on Capitol Hill…
Education
Since COVID-19 first shuttered schools last spring, American children have been subjected to a kind of natural experiment in inactivity…
The Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) at the Education Department is understaffed, as its staffing levels haven’t kept pace with the growing student loan portfolio, according to findings by the Government Accountability Office…
The College Board announced Wednesday, 9/22, that the CSS Profile -- used by about 300 colleges to determine aid eligibility -- would become free to all students with a family income of up to $100,000…
Nineteen higher education organizations and associations are urging senators to preserve a provision in the Build Back Better Act that would repeal the taxability of Pell Grants once the upper chamber begins its work on the budget reconciliation bill…
Teens are still reporting negative impacts of the pandemic on their mental health and overall well-being. Half of teens from a recent EdChoice/Morning Consult survey say they have received the COVID-19 vaccine, while about a quarter aren’t vaccinated and don’t plan to get the vaccine in the future…