Search Results for keywords:"Kumho P

The U.S. Department of Justice has proposed a Consent Decree with The Manitowoc Company, Inc. and its subsidiaries for allegedly violating the Clean Air Act by selling heavy construction equipment with non-compliant diesel engines. As part of the settlement, the companies will pay a $42.6 million fine and undertake a project to address the environmental damage caused by emissions. The public is invited to comment on the proposed decree within 30 days, and details can be accessed online.

The Department of Justice has lodged a proposed Consent Decree with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The Decree is part of a lawsuit where the U.S. government is seeking recovery of costs related to cleaning up contamination from uranium processing at a site in North St. Louis County. The Cotter Corporation, Norfolk Southern Railway Company, and the U.S. will together pay nearly $164 million for these costs. Public comments on this proposal are invited for thirty days following the notice's publication, and the document can be reviewed online.

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service of the USDA released a correction to a previous notice about the Rural Energy for America Program. The original notice contained mistakes regarding the points given for the size of the funding request and for applicants who hadn’t received grants or loan commitments in the past two years. The corrections specify that applicants who haven’t recently received funding can earn 5 extra points. Additionally, smaller grant requests can qualify for 10 extra points, with a total maximum score possible of 100 points for those applications.

The Public Buildings Reform Board (PBRB) will hold its tenth public meeting as allowed by the Federal Assets Sale and Transfer Act of 2016 (FASTA). The meeting is set for January 28, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Washington, DC, at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Board will talk about its past work and plan for future actions. People interested in attending should register online, and a transcript of the meeting will be available on the PBRB website afterward.

The Department of Defense's Defense Acquisition Regulations System has made editorial revisions to the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS). These updates are intended to ensure the regulations follow DFARS drafting standards. Changes include updates to parts 206, 217, 219, and 252, such as altering wording and formatting to improve clarity and consistency. The rule becomes effective on January 17, 2025.

On January 19, 2021, the Department of Justice filed a proposed change to the 2016 Consent Decree involving the City of Palmer, Alaska, to make updates to the city's wastewater treatment system. The existing decree required Palmer to install secondary clarifiers by August 31, 2020, to meet environmental standards. The proposed modification extends this deadline to July 1, 2022, and suggests alternative actions in the meantime. Public comments on this change are invited within 30 days from publication, and people can view the proposal on the Justice Department's website.

The Department of Transportation has announced an increase in the rail passenger transportation liability cap. This adjustment is mandated by the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act and raises the cap from $294,278,983 to $322,864,228 to account for inflation. The new cap ensures that the total compensation for all claims from a single accident, including punitive damages, reflects current dollar value. This change will be effective 30 days after February 25, 2021.

The General Services Administration (GSA) has finalized a rule that changes how relocation miscellaneous expenses allowances (MEA) are handled for federal employees. Previously, the lump sum amounts were listed in the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR); now, they will be published in FTR Bulletins, making it easier to update the amounts based on the Consumer Price Index. This change aims to provide more flexibility and accurate compensation for employees, but it may lead to a small increase in costs for the federal government. The rule also clarifies which expenses may or may not be reimbursed under MEA and ensures that the rules are easy to follow.

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) implemented new export control rules to manage the global distribution of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) models and computing technologies. These rules introduce tighter controls on exporting certain AI model weights and advanced computing chips to protect national security. The measures include new licensing requirements, exceptions, and procedures for companies to follow when exporting these technologies. Additionally, BIS aims to balance securing these technologies with allowing their beneficial uses, ensuring that they are shared responsibly and securely.

The Department of State has released a detailed report on gifts received by federal employees from foreign governments in 2023. This report, compiled by the Office of the Chief of Protocol, includes gifts that exceed a minimal value of $480, as defined by U.S. law and regulations. It also incorporates certain gifts from prior years that were not included in earlier reports because they were not reported on time. The publication of this report in the Federal Register is required by federal law.