California
On Monday, 12/12, the Supreme Court rejected a request from tobacco companies, including R.J. Reynolds and Altria, to block California’s ban on flavored tobacco…
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the nation's largest water supplier, declared a drought emergency for all of Southern California on Thursday, 12/15…
Coronavirus
On Wednesday, 12/14, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) published a report that revealed more than 3,500 Americans have died due to what is known as “chronic COVID” or “long haul COVID”…
In an effort to prepare for another potential COVID-19 surge this winter, the Biden administration is reopening its partnership with the U.S. Postal Service for a limited time to mail free at-home COVID-19 tests…
President and Administration
The U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office awarded a team of researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), University of Puerto Rico, North Carolina State University and Fearless Fund more than $2 million to investigate how to convert seaweed and wood waste in Puerto and the Caribbean into sustainable aviation fuel and graphite…
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $45 million in competitive grants to help states and partnering organizations implement updated building energy codes and lower energy bills for American families and businesses…
On Tuesday, 12/13, President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act…
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk has blocked the Biden administration’s attempt to terminate the “Remain in Mexico” policy at least until Texas and Missouri resolve legal challenges against the federal government to keep the policy in place…
Congress
On Thursday, 12/14, the Senate passed a bill that would extend federal funding until December 23, 2022, averting a government shutdown…
A group of former ambassadors to Afghanistan sent a letter to congressional leaders requesting that the Afghan Adjustment Act be included in the omnibus spending bill…
On Thursday, 12/15, the House passed the Puerto Rico Status Act (H.R. 8393), which would enable island voters to decide whether the territory becomes a state in 2023…
According to Representative Garret Graves (R-LA), a Republican House Transportation Committee plans to pressure the Department of Transportation to provide an explanation on how they administer and prioritize grants…
Education
On Friday, 12/16, the Department of Education published an updated list of federal education assistance funds that proprietary institutions of higher education have to include as federal revenue…
Due to nearly three years of the COVID-19 pandemic, in combination with other stressors such as climate disaster and political incivility, faculty members of higher education continue to push for greater and improved student mental health services…
According to a new report by Complete College America (CCA), which draws on both publicly available data and data from the CCA Alliance, student completion rates at four-year universities and two-year colleges rose by six percent from 2016 to 2021…
In response to concerns from the American Council on Education and other higher education organizations, the Department of Veterans Affairs is delaying the rollout of a new enrollment management system that will be used to certify GI Bill benefits…
According to an investigation by ProPublica and The Seattle Times, Northwest School of Innovative Learning (SOIL), Washington state’s largest publicly funded private school for children with disabilities, collected more than $38 million in tax funding for special education services that families and former teachers say it did not provide…
According to data released by the California Department of Education, chronic absenteeism increased from 14.3 percent in 2020-21 to 30 percent last school year…
Democratic and Republican state lawmakers have introduced legislation to increase awareness about the presence of fentanyl on California’s K-12 campuses…