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  June 11, 2013, 11:21 am

New regs for Wednesday: DHS extending immigration zone

By Julian Hattem

A whole bunch of new regulations will be issued in the Federal Register on Wednesday. Get ready:

Immigration:
The Department of Homeland Security is extending the distance that some Mexican nationals can travel in New Mexico without obtaining a form from Customs and Border Protection.

The new rule would allow Mexicans with a border crossing card, which the department calls "one of the most secure travel documents," to travel up to 55 miles into New Mexico, up from the 25 miles that the law currently allows.

"This change is intended to promote commerce and tourism in southern New Mexico while still ensuring that sufficient safeguards are in place to prevent illegal entry to the United States," the department asserts.

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Archived under: Pending Regs
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  June 11, 2013, 10:28 am

Consumer watchdog eyes overdraft fees

By Julian Hattem

The government's consumer financial watchdog is taking a look at the overdraft fees charged by banks and credit unions as a possible precursor to regulations.

A new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) report on the fees indicated that overdraft practices vary widely across the industry, a pattern officials said was troubling.

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Archived under: Banking/Financial Institutions, Finance
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  June 11, 2013, 9:00 am

Lifesaving protections vanishing down regulatory ‘rabbit hole,’ study says

By Ben Goad

The federal government’s failure to finalize key regulations is compromising the American public’s health, safety and finances, according to a study issued Tuesday by a coalition of more than 100 public interest groups.

The Coalition for Sensible Safeguards (CSS) report blames the lack of action on outsize industry influence over the rule-making process, a judicial review system run amok and a lack of transparency at the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).

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Archived under: Pending Regs
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  June 11, 2013, 8:03 am

News bites: Regulators take aim at overdraft fees

By Ben Goad

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is set to criticize banks for confusing and redundant fees, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is finalizing the Affordable Care Act’s 10 percent tanning tax, RegWatch reports.

The Obama administration is halting efforts the limit sales of the morning after pill, according to The New York Times.

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Archived under: Finance
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  June 10, 2013, 6:20 pm

Feinstein: Kids should not be BPA ‘guinea pigs’

By Ben Goad

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on Monday introduced a bill to create new labeling regulations for food packaging containing Bisphenol-A, arguing the chemical is hazardous to kids. 

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Archived under: Legislation
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  June 10, 2013, 5:14 pm

Coalition criticizes Lautenberg’s chemical safety overhaul

By Ben Goad

A coalition of public health and environmental groups called the bipartisan proposal “sincere," but said it didn't go far enough.

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Archived under: Legislation
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  June 10, 2013, 5:03 pm

FTC allows rocket engine manufacturer sale, despite concerns

By Julian Hattem

Federal regulators are granting deference to the Defense Department and allowing the parent company of one rocket engine manufacturer to purchase its main rival, despite worries that it could be setting up a monopoly.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Monday announced that it had unanimously voted to close its ten-month investigation and allow the corporate sale to continue, after the Pentagon expressed that national security risks could arise from the transaction being blocked

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Archived under: Industry, Business
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  June 10, 2013, 3:57 pm

House will vote to boost international 'swap data' sharing

By Pete Kasperowicz

The House this week is expected to pass legislation that is meant to ensure regulators in the United States and other countries are able to continue sharing "swap data," or records of various financial hedges that various companies make.

These hedges are seen as part of the reason for the financial meltdown in 2007 and 2008, as collateralized debt obligations and other financial tools quickly lost value and proved ruinous for several large financial institutions. As a result of that crisis, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank financial reform law.

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Archived under: House, Finance
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  June 10, 2013, 2:50 pm

Surveillance revelations highlight long-neglected privacy board

By Julian Hattem

Revelations about classified government surveillance activities should emphasize the need, advocates hope, for a government board that has long been powerless and largely unknown.

For years since its official creation, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) has been unstaffed and unable to function.

Yet recent reports about the scope of phone and Internet surveillance operations carried out by the National Security Agency (NSA) could serve as a chance for the troubled young board, now with all its seats filled for the first time, to hit the ground running.

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Archived under: Administration
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  June 10, 2013, 1:47 pm

Small business lobby voices objections to Senate immigration bill

By Kevin Bogardus

The legislation would impose “significant new costs, bureaucracy, and regulations on small employers,” according to the NFIB.

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Archived under: Business & Lobbying, Legislation
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