The 30-Second Senate Session: In order to prevent President Bush from making recess appointments, the U.S. Senate will technically stay open over the Thanksgiving holiday. The result? A U.S. Senate session that lasts, gavel-to-gavel, exactly 30 seconds.
posted on Nov 21, 2007 - View this thread

Closeted gay GOP elected official with an anti-gay voting record #756,394 --(Special Halloween Edition!) GOP Washington State Representative Richard Curtis says he’s not gay, but police reports and court records indicate the Republican lawmaker from southwestern Washington dressed up in women’s lingerie and met a Medical Lake man in a local erotic video store which led to consensual sex at a downtown hotel and a threat to expose Curtis’ activities publicly…. He resigned today.--Curtis is the third conservative lawmaker in just as many months to resign amid allegations of soliciting gay sex.
Bubbling up--and being sat on--by the DC Press Corps is a potentially devastating sexual scandal involving a leading Presidential candidate.
posted on Oct 31, 2007 - View this thread

The US Clean Air Act makes it illegal to sell highly environmentally-friendly cars in 42 states. Apparently.
posted on Sep 4, 2007 - View this thread

Is there a link between donations given and bills passed? MAPLight.org aims to help you find out, giving you the ability to compare contributions with how legislators voted. [Via]
posted on Aug 15, 2007 - View this thread

Slashdot poster has brilliant legislative reform idea: "Source Control for Bills in Congress." What if sneaky changes to pending legislation showed up as soon as they were made instead of in ominously worded media reports months later?
posted on Mar 7, 2007 - View this thread

The new war on hunger. No strangers to controversy, the Food Not Bombs Network generated further discord while distributing meals to others. In the course of its work, FNB's food lines often neglect the issue(s) of sanitation disposal. In response, Legislation has been swiftly drafted to correct problem; feeding the destitute in public gathering areas has since become a criminal offense in a number of cities.
posted on Jul 27, 2006 - View this thread

Foreign owner of internet gambling site arrested as he attempted to change planes in Dallas. The Department of Justice announced his indictment on 22 counts and caused stock prices to drop rapidly on publicly traded gambling issues. A cynic might suppose that the arrest was related to his outspoken role as a critic of the pending anti-gambling legislation. The proposed legislation is clarified on the Daily Show
posted on Jul 18, 2006 - View this thread

The Health Insurance Marketplace Modernization and Affordability Act (S. 1955) has passed out of committee and is now slated for a floor vote. The bill is ostensibly designed to save small employers money and extend health insurance options to employees who hadn’t had them. What it is actually likely to do is end basic health insurance coverage for women (and diabetics); birth control, regularly taken prescriptions, cancer screenings, maternity care, and more. Women in every state will lose benefits. S. 1955 would allow insurance plans to ignore important state laws that protect patients, directly affecting more than 90 million Americans. [more inside]
posted on May 2, 2006 - View this thread

Wikipedia wrangling once more: the entire German edition was shut down this week over the contents of a single entry. The parents of the article's subject, a German hacker who died in 1998 under mysterious circumstances, are displeased with his real name being disclosed in the encyclopedia. It is now back online; however, the future of the family's efforts is currently unclear, not only due to the German order's debatable validity in the US - but also because the order was, initially at least, mistakenly addressed to St. Petersburg, Russia, instead of St. Petersburg, Florida.
posted on Jan 20, 2006 - View this thread

Make Your Own Law Psst, Newsfilter
Assemblyman Jimmy Meng wants his Flushing, New York constituents to submit their best ideas for new legislation. The best proposal will be introduced as a bill in Albany.
posted on Oct 8, 2005 - View this thread

A bill, quietly up for debate before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and backed by the Whitehouse, proposes to improve the performance of the Executive branch of the US Government by requiring that all Governmental agencies be given a 10 year shelf life at the end of which time they must be reinstated by a Presidentially appointed "Sunset Committee" or fade into the history books.
posted on Sep 26, 2005 - View this thread

Draft legislation was published today that proposes that fifteen parcels in the National Park System be sold off for "purposes of commercial and residential development." Many of the parcels are in Alaska, but one is Theodore Roosevelt Island park, developed to honor one of our country's most recognizable environmentalists. It seems the Onion gives us the news from the future once again...Way to go, DCist for breaking the story!
posted on Sep 23, 2005 - View this thread

"Justifying or glorifying terrorism anywhere" will become an offence in the UK under hastily-drafted new legislation. Will the police arrest historians who celebrate the French Resistance and the Warsaw Uprising, or Americans who claim that it's okay to bomb Cuban airliners? What form of words could you suggest for the legislation to use, that would define "terrorism" to include al-Qaeda and the pro-Aristide fighters in Haiti, but exclude the Miami-based ex-Cubans?
posted on Aug 6, 2005 - View this thread

A Senate bill to overhaul federal bankruptcy laws, a top priority of retailers, auto lenders and banks, cleared a key hurdle Tuesday afternoon. Sixty-nine senators -- nine more than needed -- voted for "cloture," a procedural move that limits debate. Republican leaders hope to push the bill to a final vote by the end of the week. Earlier, the Senate turned back a controversial, abortion-related amendment that has scuttled previous efforts to pass bankruptcy legislation. The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 was first introduced in 1998 as The Consumer Bankruptcy Reform Act.
posted on Mar 8, 2005 - View this thread

How many lawmakers does it take to declare war? Used to be 218 of the 435. Now, in a time of crisis, it's potentially less than 12. This is something that has been looked at before. Is this the best possible solution?
posted on Jan 10, 2005 - View this thread

Only in 1967 did Loving v. Virginia overturn vigorously-enforced laws against interracial marriage in these 15 states--Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. Only in 1964 did the Civil Rights Act overturn laws against equal access to voting, public accommodation, and public education. Only in 1963 did the Equal Pay Act mandate that men and women be paid the same wage for the same work at the same job. History isn't a superhighway, leading us in straight lines toward utopia. We fall back and we move forward, but over the past fifty years, the United States has become considerably more inclusive and equality of access to opportunity has widened. Take a look at this article from the Atlantic Monthly in 1956--1956!--if you don't believe me.
posted on Nov 4, 2004 - View this thread

Orrin Hatch thinks of the children. As a convenient lever for shutting down P2P networks.
posted on Jun 23, 2004 - View this thread

Benton County bans ALL marriages. In a move to elicit legislative action, Benton County in Oregon has halted all marriages until the issue of who can and cannot marry is decided. This gets more interesting every day.
posted on Mar 23, 2004 - View this thread

Minimum wage is San Fransisco is now $8.50. Minimum wage in New York City is $5.15 per hour. Minimum wages from around the United States.
posted on Feb 2, 2004 - View this thread

Marijuana Buzz Linked to 'Runner's High.' How do I begin to pose one suitable question? Will we see tapped-out stoners jogging roadside in Phish-logo sweats and Nikes? Will the DEA outlaw running? Will states enact "medical running" legislation? Will the ONDCP be forced to release new "Now go tell your teammates you were caught getting high from running; they'll understand" ads?
posted on Jan 10, 2004 - View this thread

The Endangered Species Act marked its 30th anniversary this December. Some say we need it while others say we need to change it. Whatever its faults, many species have benefited from it.
posted on Dec 30, 2003 - View this thread

"Our enemies seek to inflict mass casualties, without fielding mass armies. They hide in the shadows, and they're often hard to strike," says Bush while signing a new defense bill that includes millions of dollars for a small nuclear bomb designed to destroy deep, hardened underground bunkers. The legislation repeals a decade-old ban on research into low-yield nuclear weapons.
posted on Nov 26, 2003 - View this thread

It's illegal to answer questions about where something is produced... if it's produced in Israel. Or so a Missouri company has just discovered. They've been fined for answering the question, "Are any of these products made in Israel, or made of Israeli materials?"
posted on Aug 12, 2003 - View this thread

VeriSign Can Be Sued for Losing Your Domain Name A Federal appeals court (Ninth Circuit) has ruled that the owner of the sex.com domain, who lost the domain when VeriSgin transferred it on the basis of a forged letter, can sue VeriSign for damages resulting from VeriSign's mistake. The sex.com case is worth millions, but anyone who has lost a domain name due to VeriSign's incompetence may now be able to draw their pound of flesh straight from those entrusted with making sure the registry process works.
posted on Jul 27, 2003 - View this thread

A University, far away. Tens of thousands of U.S. students will lose most or all of their financial aid.
posted on Jul 18, 2003 - View this thread

The times, they are etcetera-ing. Jean Chrétien drew applause and a few whoops of joy at a fundraising dinner Tuesday night when he said that legislation decriminalizing possession of marijuana in Canada would soon be announced. "Don't start to smoke yet," he quickly cautioned the celebrants in the audience. Meanwhile, across the border, there are more than 236,000 drug offenders in state prisons. Hands up who's heading north.
posted on Apr 30, 2003 - View this thread

The Government is acting quickly. Quickly, to stem the deluge of Mexican terrorists.
posted on Apr 29, 2003 - View this thread

PATRIOT forever. Toppling one regime to build another, U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and a Republican coalition are pushing legislation to make the PATRIOT Act permanent. It's daylight forever.
posted on Apr 9, 2003 - View this thread

It Could Happen in Oregon: Protest = Terrorism = A Minimum of 25 Years in Prison
Proposed Oregon Senate Bill 724 is an anti-terrorism act that could jail street-blocking protesters for a minimum of 25 years by defining "street-blocking" as an act of terrorism. This act is being opposed by several different coalitions. You can find a copy of Senate Bill 742 online here. There is also an Acrobat PDF version of the bill available.

"Extra bling" points: Rapturists may wish to note that this bill seeks to amend "section 19, chapter 666, Oregon Laws 2001."
posted on Apr 3, 2003 - View this thread

Use a misleading domain name, go to prison. A new bit of pending legislation (warning: PDF) called the "Child Abduction Prevention Act" (and really, who WOULDN'T vote for that?) has made the use of misleading domain names for sites of "purient interest" punishable by a sentence of up to two years in prison. Seriously. This is going to be very troubling to the White House. No, this White House.
posted on Mar 28, 2003 - View this thread

crunch time for ANWR [nytimes link] the administration wants to push through drilling despite what the residents think, a couple of senators in minnesota, oregon, and arkansas will cast the deciding votes... is the issue worth a call to you senator?
posted on Mar 14, 2003 - View this thread

Rep. Zoe Lofgren's BALANCE act attempts to protect "Fair Use" rights from harmful legislation like the DMCA. Some related links: [summary] [whats wrong with the DMCA?]
posted on Mar 7, 2003 - View this thread

"We decided not to run it..."
In the surreal world that is today's media, Colin Powell has no opposition. None. There is no alternative view. None. In this Kafkaesque place, Reps. DeFazio and Paul didn't conduct a press conference yesterday. Nor did they introduce legislation that counters George Bush and Colin Powell's world view...a world view, mind you, that the world doesn't share.

Does corporate media serve the interests of the people and democracy or the elites and profit? Did you hear about this bill? Do you think this is an important story that deserved media coverage?
posted on Feb 7, 2003 - View this thread

More mischief in Florida: Jeb's "devious plans" Unaware that a reporter with a tape recorder was present, Jeb Bush told Florida lawmakers last wednesday about his "couple of devious plans" to thwart the will of Florida voters. And that's not all....
posted on Oct 6, 2002 - View this thread

Have you told the powers in Washington what kind of world you want? You're busy. You don't have time to be a professional "Congress watcher." So we'll be your eyes and ears. We'll track the debates and compromises and bills that will shape the world.
posted on Sep 3, 2002 - View this thread

E-mail is trespass? A disgruntled employee's emails to his former co-workers are a legally actionable form of 'trespass to chattels', says Intel. Have you ever trespassed to chattels? Should you fined or even jailed for it? 3 lower courts in Claifornia have said 'yes' to all or part of that last question. (linked to in a thread today, but it deserves it's own).
posted on Aug 14, 2002 - View this thread

The RAVE Act, which stands for "Reducing America's Vulnerability to Ecstasy" courtesy of Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) (via LA Times)
posted on Aug 3, 2002 - View this thread

Senate Approves Canada Drug Imports! "Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah, said, "If this proposal becomes law, we are just placing our country in the hands of foreign terrorists who could easily get hold of various prescription drug products and spread desolation and disease." Really, Senator, what hallucinogen are you on, and which drug company is buying it for you? I'm sure this bill still faces hurdles, but sounds great to me.
posted on Jul 17, 2002 - View this thread

Berman's P2P Hacking bill (mentioned last week) has caught the notice of a few people, and it's worth noting their suspicions. Cory from boingboing wonders why there needs to be a law for something that is on the surface, not illegal. Declan McCullagh's request for comments about the bill netted a handful of scary responses. Berman's clearly in Hollywood's pocket, but how far will he go to get his legislation passed? And what will happen once P2P hacking is legally permitted for big studios?
posted on Jul 2, 2002 - View this thread

Minnesota passes internet privacy bill. How enforcable is this? How long before other States follow suit? Many questions. Same story on Yahoo.
posted on May 24, 2002 - View this thread

It's said that you should never watch either sausage or laws being made. Well, here's sausage. As they do it in the Old Country. Starting with a live pig. Now, anyone got something comparable for laws? [more inside]
Found on The Cellar's Image of the Day.
posted on May 12, 2002 - View this thread

Peru goes GNU. And I quote: "You may have heard about this if you watch the free software news, but I just want to repeat it for anyone who hasn't. The Peruvian government has introduced legislation requiring government offices to use free software; Microsoft is unhappy; and a member of the Peruvian Congress has written a response which I highly recommend reading, in which he explains in strong terms why it's out of the question for the government of a democratic nation to use proprietary software."
posted on May 2, 2002 - View this thread

Hollings privacy bill really a trojan horse for spyware and data miners? But Hollings' bill should outrage Internet users just as much as Brilliant Digital's spyware. For while it talks a good game about protecting "sensitive" information, the truth is that it would place a congressional stamp of approval on precisely the kinds of practices that purveyors of spyware are eager to engage in.
posted on Apr 28, 2002 - View this thread

If you live in Cali and have been getting bizarre hang-up calls from this number -- 954-623-4620 -- here's the skinny (scroll about a third of the way down). Telemarketing legislation, where are you?
posted on Apr 5, 2002 - View this thread

Well this is is odd
posted on Apr 4, 2002 - View this thread

The need for an economic stimulus bill appears to have taken on new urgency, now that the recovery is already underway. I'm glad both parties found enough irrelevent stuff they wanted to pass anyway that they could get a bill through.
posted on Mar 8, 2002 - View this thread

God's gonna outlaw abortion whether you legislators walk out or not.
posted on Mar 6, 2002 - View this thread

The new COINTELPRO? In an age of massive databases, shared law enforcement intranets, and wire-taps that can collect terabytes of data, privacy may well become an antiquated notion as legislators and law enforcement work to fight the current menace.
posted on Jan 28, 2002 - View this thread

If you can smell your neighbor's cigarette smoke, it could cost them $750.
Man, talk about being conflicted.
posted on Nov 20, 2001 - View this thread

Hackers face life imprisonment under 'Anti-Terrorism' Act
Hackers, virus-writers and web site defacers would face life imprisonment without the possibility of parole under legislation proposed by the Bush Administration that would classify most computer crimes as acts of terrorism.
posted on Sep 25, 2001 - View this thread