Tag Archives: feds

FCC: Cable Providers Must Disclose “All In” Price In Ads

Deadline reports: The FCC passed new rules that will require cable and satellite providers to clearly disclose the “all in” price of subscriptions in promotional materials. “The advertised price for a service should be the price you pay when your bill arrives,” FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said. “It shouldn’t include a bunch of unexpected junk fees that are separate from …

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Liberty University Fined $16M For Covering Up Rapes

The Washington Post reports: The Education Department will impose a record $14 million fine on Liberty University, department officials announced Tuesday, for violations of federal law on campus safety. Liberty must also spend $2 million on campus safety improvements — in addition to the money it has already budgeted for Clery operations — during a two-year post-review monitoring period, the …

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Super Bowl Security: Drones, Dogs, And Lots Of Feds

NBC News reports: Super Bowl LVIII will feature a tough defensive scheme that has nothing to do with a football. This one is about stopping drones. The NFL and federal law enforcement officials are taking a hard line Sunday to keep players and fans safe from unauthorized drones at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas where the Kansas City Chiefs will …

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Feds: Insurers Can’t Use AI To Deny Medicare Coverage

Ars Technica reports: Health insurance companies cannot use algorithms or artificial intelligence to determine care or deny coverage to members on Medicare Advantage plans, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) clarified in a memo sent to all Medicare Advantage insurers. The memo—formatted like an FAQ on Medicare Advantage (MA) plan rules—comes just months after patients filed lawsuits claiming …

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Federal Scientists Recommend Decriminalizing Weed

The New York Times reports: Marijuana is neither as risky nor as prone to abuse as other tightly controlled substances and has potential medical benefits, and therefore should be removed from the nation’s most restrictive category of drugs, federal scientists have concluded. The recommendations are contained in a 250-page scientific review provided to Matthew Zorn, a Texas lawyer who sued …

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X Loses SCOTUS Appeal On Surveillance Disclosures

Reuters reports: The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a request by Elon Musk’s X Corp to consider whether the social media company, formerly called Twitter, can publicly disclose how often federal law enforcement seeks information about users for national security investigations. The justices declined to hear X’s appeal of a lower court’s ruling holding that the FBI’s restrictions on …

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US Postal Service To Increase Rates Starting Jan. 21

The Hill reports: The price to ship your letters and packages is going up in the new year. Starting Jan. 21, 2024, the price for a First-Class Forever U.S. Postage Stamp will increase from 66 cents to 68 cents, according to the U.S. Postal Service. In addition to stamp prices increasing, the price to send priority mail and other postal …

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FDA: Applesauce Lead Poisonings May Be Intentional

NBC News reports: The lead contamination in recalled cinnamon applesauce pouches that potentially poisoned at least 65 children may have been intentional, the Food and Drug Administration said on Friday. The FDA has been investigating the lead contamination in the cinnamon-flavored applesauce products from Florida-based food manufacturer WanaBana since October. The agency has homed in on the cinnamon specifically as …

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Feds Propose In-Car Tech To Stop Extreme Speeding

Fast Company reports: The traffic signal on North Las Vegas’s North Commerce Street had been red for at least 29 seconds, but the Dodge Challenger did not slow down. Instead, it flew through the intersection with Cheyenne Avenue at 103 mph, almost three times the 35 mph speed limit. Carnage ensued. The crash that occurred on January 29, 2022, was …

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Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test Set For Oct 4

Via press release from FEMA and the FCC: The purpose of the Oct. 4 test is to ensure that the systems continue to be effective means of warning the public about emergencies, particularly those on the national level. In case the Oct. 4 test is postponed due to widespread severe weather or other significant events, the back-up testing date is …

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Bank Of America Fined $150M For Shady Practices

The Associated Press reports: Bank of America must pay more than $100 million to customers for doubling up on some fees, withholding reward bonuses and opening accounts without customer consent. Bank of America will pay $90 million in penalties to its organization and $60 million in penalties to the OCC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Tuesday. The Office of …

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FTC Sues Amazon Over Prime Signup “Deceptions”

CNBC reports: The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday sued Amazon, alleging the nation’s dominant online retailer intentionally duped millions of consumers into signing up for its mainstay Prime program and “sabotaged” their attempts to cancel. The agency claims Amazon violated the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act by using so-called dark patterns, or deceptive design tactics meant …

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US To End Vaccine Requirement For Foreign Visitors

Reuters reports: The United States will end its COVID-19 vaccination requirements for international travelers and federal workers on May 11, when the coronavirus public health emergency ends, the White House said on Monday. In February, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to lift the requirement that most foreign air travelers be vaccinated against COVID-19, one of the few remaining pandemic …

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Supreme Court To Hear Challenge To Federal Agencies

The Washington Post reports: The Supreme Court on Monday said it would take up a case that could do away with a decades-old precedent that tells judges to defer to federal agencies when interpreting ambiguous federal laws, a deference long targeted by conservatives concerned about the power of the administrative state. As the Supreme Court has become more conservative, the …

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Feds Move To Protect Deposits At Silicon Valley Bank

The Washington Post reports: The Biden administration announced Sunday night that all depositors at the failed Silicon Valley Bank would have access to all their money on Monday morning, approving an extraordinary intervention aimed at averting a crisis in the financial system. Authorities said they were also extending protection to depositors of a second bank, Signature Bank of New York, …

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Wells Fargo Ordered To Pay $3.7B For “Illegal Activity”

Via press release from the CFPB: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is ordering Wells Fargo Bank to pay more than $2 billion in redress to consumers and a $1.7 billion civil penalty for legal violations across several of its largest product lines. The bank’s illegal conduct led to billions of dollars in financial harm to its customers and, for …

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U.S Bank Fined $37M Over Unauthorized Accounts

Via press release: Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) took action against U.S. Bank for illegally accessing its customers’ credit reports and opening checking and savings accounts, credit cards, and lines of credit without customers’ permission. U.S. Bank pressured and incentivized its employees to sell multiple products and services to its customers, including imposing sales goals as part of …

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Feds Buy 500,000 More Monkeypox Vaccine Doses

The Hill reports: Health officials announced on Friday that the White House has ordered 500,000 more doses of a vaccine believed to be effective against monkeypox. Dawn O’Connell, assistant secretary for preparedness and response for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), announced during a press briefing that the U.S. had ordered half a million liquid, frozen doses of …

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Live Nation Companies Took $19M In COVID Bailouts

The Washington Post reports: Live Nation Entertainment — the corporate parent of Ticketmaster and a dominant force in the entertainment industry — urged Democrats and Republicans in Congress to let it be directly eligible for the $15 billion emergency relief program. Congress was wary of allowing grants to publicly traded companies such as Live Nation, worrying that the funds could …

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Abbott Reaches Deal To Reopen Baby Formula Plant

CNBC reports: Abbott has reached an agreement with the Food and Drug Administration to reopen its manufacturing plant in Michigan to help ease a nationwide shortage of baby formula, the company announced Monday. Abbott said it can restart the Michigan plant within two weeks subject to FDA approval. However, it would take six to eight weeks from the start of …

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