Tag: Washington D.C

Government Shutdown 2013: What’s changing, what’s not

Government Shutdown 2013: What’s changing, what’s not

By The Associated Press
October 1, 2013 – 07:05 am

WASHINGTON (AP) – Campers in national parks are to pull up stakes and leave, some veterans waiting to have disability benefits approved will have to cool their heels even longer, many routine food inspections will be suspended and panda-cams will go dark at the shuttered National Zoo.

Those are among the immediate effects when parts of the government shut down Tuesday because of the budget impasse in Congress.

In this time of argument and political gridlock, a blueprint to manage federal dysfunction is one function that appears to have gone smoothly. Throughout government, plans are ready to roll out to keep essential services running and numb the impact for the public. The longer a shutdown goes on, the more it will be felt in day-to-day lives and in the economy as a whole.

A look at what is bound to happen, and what probably won’t: Continue reading “Government Shutdown 2013: What’s changing, what’s not”

NRDC-Farmworker Justice: Overdue Standards Better Protect People from Human Pesticide Tests

Environmental News: Media Center

Natural Resources Defense Council

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NRDC-Farmworker Justice: Overdue Standards Better Protect People from Human Pesticide Tests

WASHINGTON (February 8, 2013) – The Environmental Protection Agency today strengthened federal standards to make it harder for the chemical industry to use people as test subjects in pesticide research that is sent to EPA to help set health protection standards.

“This will better protect Americans from often unethical and unscientific human testing by pesticide manufacturers,” said Jennifer Sass, senior scientist in the Natural Resources Defense Council’s health and environmental program. “While the new standards do not completely ban human testing, they prohibit the EPA from considering pesticide tests conducted on pregnant women and children. They also protect people by ensuring that the EPA puts sound science in determining whether a human study can be relied upon for setting human health standards. Continue reading “NRDC-Farmworker Justice: Overdue Standards Better Protect People from Human Pesticide Tests”

The Government Does Make Jobs and I Wish Everyone Could Take One

The Government Does Make Jobs and I Wish Everyone Could Take One

By Kim Z Dale, Wednesday at 12:35 pm

One of the recurrent issues in the presidential race is the question of who does and should make jobs. Mitt Romney has repeatedly said, “Government does not create jobs.” I’m sorry, Mr. Romney. The government does create jobs. They are good ones, and our democracy would be stronger if everyone took a government job for a while.

I got a master’s degree under the CyberCorps Scholarship for Service program. Yes, that means that tax dollars paid for me to go to school. I await your angry comments. However, this was not an outright gift. I needed to do a 10 week internship with a government agency during my program then work for at least 6 months for every semester of school. For me that ended up being two years at the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

While I was still working on my degree, former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill spoke at my school. He talked about being inspired as a kid hearing President Kennedy‘s call to service. You know the one: “Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.” He credited that speech with inspiring him to do community service and eventually accept a job in government. Continue reading “The Government Does Make Jobs and I Wish Everyone Could Take One”

Part 1: ‘It’s Complicated’: The Federal Government And The D.C. Region

WAMU 88.5

Part 1: ‘It’s Complicated’: The Federal Government And The D.C. Region

If the workforce shrinks, what happens to the D.C. area?

By: Rebecca Blatt // July 26, 2012
 Decisions about the size of the federal government are not so easy in the D.C. region, which has a huge number of residents with ties to Uncle Sam.

Decisions about the size of the federal government are not so easy in the D.C. region, which has a huge number of residents with ties to Uncle Sam.

The thing about living in the D.C. area is that pretty much everyone has some tie to the federal government. Business owners have customers who work for the federal government.  Doctors have patients who do. WAMU, for instance, receives federal funding and support from federal contractors.

The U.S. is right in the throes of the debate on the appropriate size of the government right now: presidential campaigns are in full swing amidst concern about the growing federal deficit. But those conversations take on different meanings in the D.C. area.  Perhaps because of that co-dependency between area residents and the fed, people who live in the D.C. region are asking some pointed questions about the size and role of the federal government.  Continue reading “Part 1: ‘It’s Complicated’: The Federal Government And The D.C. Region”

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