The House of representatives this week barred the labor secretary from imposing new safety rules for children working on farms, putting a legal stamp on a Labor Department decision to put off action on the rules. The Labor Department announced …
A program that puts billions of dollars in the pockets of farmers whether or not they plant a crop may disappear with hardly a protest from farm groups and the politicians who look out for their interests. The Senate is …
The Bush administration is proposing that workplace hazard standards be subject to more public and expert scrutiny before being adopted. Critics say the proposals could make it harder to limit worker exposure to carcinogens and other toxic materials. The federal …
The U.S. Senate last week officially rejected a bid by Gulf state senators to add wind coverage to a financially strapped federal program that provides flood insurance. Lawmakers from Louisiana and Mississippi cited problems that occurred after Hurricane Katrina and …
People seeking genetic testing to learn if they are predisposed to serious diseases would not have to fear losing their jobs or their health insurance under anti-discrimination legislation the Senate was to vote on Thursday. H.R. 493, within sight of …
Internal Revenue Service records, including taxpayer information, are vulnerable to tampering or disclosure because it has not yet fixed dozens of information security weaknesses, according to a government report. The existing problems, the congressional Government Accountability Office said, included giving …
Two House lawmakers from fire-struck California won approval this week for legislation to set up a national registry to track convicted arsonists. The bill, which was passed by voice vote, requires convicted arsonists to report to authorities on where they …
he House acted this week to reduce the working hours of railroad crews, with lawmakers saying employee fatigue is a major factor in train accidents. The labor rule changes were part of a railroad safety bill that also called for …
A Democratic-controlled House would look into insurance industry practices criticized for shifting the financial burden of Hurricane Katrina claims onto the taxpayer, a lawmaker who headed a Katrina task force said Thursday. Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., said the Democratic task …
The federal flood insurance program, still reeling from historic losses from Hurricane Katrina, may get a helping hand from Congress. The House voted 416-4 Tuesday to phase out subsidies on some vacation homes and commercial property and raise premiums at …
