The Senate approved legislation Thursday to temporarily extend funding for airport and highway renewal projects, averting a shutdown. By a 92-6 vote, the Senate extended the operating authority of the Federal Aviation Administration through January. Transportation Department highway and transit programs through March. The House approved the measure Tuesday by voice vote. According to Reuters, [...]
The final report of the largest government probe into the Gulf of Mexico oil spill lays the majority of blame on BP, holding it responsible for 21 of the 35 contributing causes. The Coast Guard and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released the second volume of its final report Wednesday, saying BP shared responsibility [...]
Closing more than 250 mail processing centers and reducing service standards for First-Class Mail could help save the financially troubled Postal Service more than $3 billion, the corporation said Friday. The Postal Service is also considering cutting mail processing equipment in as much as half. The closures would affect nearly 35,000 workers. The Postal Service [...]
Federal agencies will aim to cut in half the window in which small business contractors get paid, the White House announced Thursday. Current policy states that contractors must be paid within 30 days from when the government receives an invoice. Jeff Zients, federal chief performance officer, said the government will aim to pay small business [...]
The National Institute of Standards and Technology has announced it is seeking advice on building a national wireless broadband network dedicated to public safety. A Sept. 12 Federal Register notice asks for comments as to whether the network is plausible with today’s technology or technology in the near future. The proposed network would use a [...]
A new multi-disciplinary team will aim to quickly respond to human and animal foodborne illness outbreaks, the Food and Drug Administration said Thursday. The FDA Coordinated Outbreak Response and Evaluation Network will be comprised of epidemiologists, veterinarians, microbiologists, environmental health specialists, emergency coordinators, and risk communications specialists. CORE will work with the Centers for Disease [...]
The Space Shuttle made its final landing in July, leaving NASA to plan for future manned missions. The space agency unveiled the Shuttle’s replacement Wednesday, announcing it is moving forward with the Space Launch System. The Space Launch System would carry astronauts into deep space in a capsule, Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle, placed on top [...]
A rule limiting tarmac delays to no more than three hours increases the likelihood airlines will cancel flights, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office. In a 111-page report released Thursday, GAO said U.S. airlines were at least 24 percent more likely to cancel a flight in 2010 after the three-hour time limit [...]
If anyone needed more proof of the country’s economic struggles, the latest report from the Census Bureau should suffice. The bureau’s annual report of statistics on income, poverty and health care statistics for year 2010 paints a bleak picture of the state of the economy. In 2010, real median income was $49,445, a 2.3 percent [...]
Citing an accident that may have been caused by a distracted semi-truck driver, the National Transportation Safety Board has recommended banning cell phone use by commercial drivers except for emergencies. NTSB investigators determined a March 2010 crash in Kentucky, killing 11, was caused by a distracted driver of an 18-wheel truck. The driver, who died [...]