"Wildfires are ravaging the West Coast, burning homes and prompting evacuations. Responding to wildfires has proven costly and now the Obama administration is reevaluating how it pays to fight them.""

"When Washington lobbyists fail to derail regulations proposed by federal agencies, they often find a receptive ear within the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, an arm of the White House Office of Management and Budget that conducts much of its business in secret."

"U.S. EPA is on the verge of having more vacancies than Senate-confirmed officials in its top jobs."

"MINNEAPOLIS — When city leaders and state legislators agreed last year to fund roughly half the $1 billion cost of a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings, they attached the usual strings for such projects: It had to be architecturally iconic, employ steel made from Minnesota iron ore and offer at least a few cheap seats."

The head of the largest union representing Environmental Protection Agency employees says agency leaders are showing a 'failure to manage.' The top of the agency, the union leader said, has a "'country club' mentality" when it comes to dealing with top managers."

"A proposal by House appropriators to carve out $442 million of the Interior Department and U.S. EPA budgets to pay for rural county services has raised concerns among lawmakers of both parties that it could sap money from other important agency functions, including land conservation, wildfire prevention and clean water."