The leading cause of railroad-related deaths is not collisions or derailments, but trespassing, explains a neatly argued new issue brief from the Congressional Research Service. See Rail Safety Efforts Miss Leading Cause of Fatalities, CRS Insights, April 2, 2015.
Other new and newly updated CRS reports that Congress has withheld from public distribution include the following.
Net Neutrality: Selected Legal Issues Raised by the FCC’s 2015 Open Internet Order, April 6, 2015
Ballistic Missile Defense in the Asia-Pacific Region: Cooperation and Opposition, April 3, 2015
An Overview of Unconventional Oil and Natural Gas: Resources and Federal Actions, April 7, 2015
U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Production in Federal and Non-Federal Areas, April 3, 2015
Marijuana: Medical and Retail — Selected Legal Issues, April 8, 2015
Social Media in the House of Representatives: Frequently Asked Questions, April 2, 2015
The No Fly List: Procedural Due Process and Hurdles to Litigation, April 2, 2015
Datasets and variables that do not align with Administration priorities, or might reflect poorly on Administration policy impacts, seem to be especially in the cross-hairs.
One month of a government shutdown is in the books, but how many more months will (or can) it go? Congress is paralyzed, but there are a few spasms of activity around healthcare and the prospects of a continuing resolution to punt this fight out until January or later.
At a period where the federal government is undergoing significant changes in how it hires, buys, collects and organizes data, and delivers, deeper exploration of trust in these facets as worthwhile.
Moving postsecondary education data collection to the states is the best way to ensure that the U.S. Department of Education can meet its legislative mandates in an era of constrained federal resources.