"The House on Wednesday passed a bill approving construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline, setting up a confrontation with President Obama, who has vowed to veto the measure."
Congress keeps secret the top-notch nonpartisan explainers from the Congressional Research Service. Or tries to. Thanks to the Federation of American Scientists' Government Secrecy Project, you can read the reports your tax dollars paid for below.
The Senate Judiciary Committee, despite changing from Democrat to Republican control, unanimously approved a FOIA bill (S 337) on February 5, 2015. A similar House bill (HR 653) was introduced February 2 and awaits action by the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
Is the State Department review of whether to permit the Keystone XL pipeline transparent? Not at all. State spokesperson Jen Psaki stiff-armed the Associated Press' Matt Lee February 3, 2015, when he asked whether all eight agencies invited to comment had done so.
A coalition of journalism and photography groups, including SEJ, objected to requirements for permits and fees for photography in the public parks of Fairfax County, Virginia, a suburb of Washington, DC. In a February 4, 2015, letter to the Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA), the 14 groups asked the agency to revise its rules to protect photojournalists' First Amendment rights.
As the current measles vaccine flap shows, bad science (from the fraudulent to the sloppy) sometimes pollutes public health policy discussions. Especially environmental health policy. Mainstream media with a weak understanding of the subject can make it worse.
"The shared waters of New Jersey and New York's harbors, long battered by industry and neglect, have 'advanced considerably' over the last five years, according to a report released Monday."
"On a postcard-perfect winter morning, harbor pilot Charlie Hand steers his boat up the crowded Seybold Canal, a 2,000-foot stretch of Wagner Creek dredged and straightened a century ago, scooping up discarded plastic bags."
"Apple has committed nearly $850 million to help build a solar energy farm in Monterey County that will generate power for its California facilities, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced Tuesday."
"The Fish and Wildlife Service advised its fellow land management agencies to impose the most stringent protections on roughly 16.5 million acres of high-value sage grouse habitat in order to save the bird from the threat of extinction."
