12/16 - CISA Publishes Draft National Cyber Incident Response Plan for Public Comment (CISA; direct to draft)
12/16 - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Seeks Public Input to Improve Access to Federal Lands (FWS)
12/16 - The 2024 Congress.gov Top 24 and Year in Review (LOC)
12/16 - NASA Finalizes Strategy for Sustaining Human Presence in Low Earth Orbit (NASA; direct to strategy)
12/16 - USDA Releases the 2023 Census of Aquaculture Results (NASS; direct to data page)
12/16 - Secretary Haaland Designates 19 New National Historic Landmarks (NPS)
12/17 - Census Bureau Releases Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates for States, Counties and School Districts (Census; direct to data page; see also, release highlights)
12/17 - CISA Directs Federal Agencies to Secure Cloud Environments (CISA; direct to guidance)
12/17 - U.S. Department of Energy Completes LNG Study Update, Announces 60-Day Comment Period (DOE; direct to report page; see also, secretary’s statement)
12/17 - EPA Report Highlights Water Affordability Challenges in the U.S. (EPA; direct to report and broader website)
12/17 - DHS, FBI, FAA & DoD Joint Statement on Ongoing Response to Reported Drone Sightings (FAA)
12/17 - Federal Trade Commission Announces Bipartisan Rule Banning Junk Ticket and Hotel Fees (FTC)
12/17 - “Can We Capture This?”: An Interview on Website Archivability (LOC)
12/17 - An Open Letter to the Society of American Archivists (NARA; see also, 12/2 SAA press release)
12/17 - Statement on the Equal Rights Amendment Ratification Process (NARA; see also, Rolling Stone article with link to source document | Sen. Gillibrand statement)
12/17 - Introducing the New NIH Public Access Policy! (NIH; direct to policy)
12/17 - World Magnetic Model 2025 Released (NOAA; direct to website)
12/17 - DHS Publishes Final Rule for the Application of Certain Mandatory Bars in Fear Screenings (USCIS; direct to rule)
12/17 - USGS: Greenhouse gas emissions from federal lands trended mostly downward since 2009 peak (USGS; direct to report and data page)
12/18 - CDC Confirms First Severe Case of H5N1 Bird Flu in the United States (CDC)
12/18 - Senior Defense Official Briefs on 2024 China Military Power Report (DOD; see also, CMPR and factsheet)
12/18 - Former Member of Congress Charged with Acting as an Unregistered Agent of a Venezuelan National (DOJ)
12/18 - Commission transmits 2024 legislative recommendations (FCC; direct to recs)
12/18 - Introducing DiscoverGov: GPO’s New Discovery Search Tool (GPO; direct to website)
12/18 - 25 Films Named to National Film Registry for Preservation (LOC)
12/19 - Net International Migration Drives Highest U.S. Population Growth in Decades (Census; direct to data page; see also, press kit page)
12/19 - DOD Releases the Annual Report on Civilian Casualties in Connection With U.S. Military Operations in 2023 (DOD; direct to report)
12/19 - Fact Sheet: National Law Enforcement Accountability Database (DOJ; direct to BJS report page)
12/19 - Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker issues statement on 2023 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (DOL; dierct to CFOI)
12/19 - FDA Updates “Healthy” Claim, Providing a Refreshed Tool for Consumers (FDA; direct to info page)
12/19 - ICE releases Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report (ICE; direct to report; see also, CNN article)
12/19 - What’s New Online at the Library of Congress: December 2024 (LOC)
12/19 - VA releases annual Veteran suicide prevention report, analyzing 2001-2022 data (VA; direct to report page)
12/19 - Fact Sheet: President Biden Sets 2035 Climate Target Aimed at Creating Good-Paying Union Jobs, Reducing Costs for All Americans, and Securing U.S. Leadership in the Clean Energy Economy of the Future (WH; direct to 2035 NDC)
12/20 - CFPB Sues JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo for Allowing Fraud to Fester on Zelle (CFPB)
12/20 - DOE Releases New Report Evaluating Increase in Electricity Demand from Data Centers (DOE; direct to report)
12/20 - U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights Resolves Complaints against Universities within the University of California Alleging Discrimination Based on Shared Ancestry (ED; direct to resolution letter and agreement; see also, UCSD statement)
12/20 - Office for Civil Rights Releases Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report (ED OCR; direct to report)
12/20 - HHS Launches Let’s Get Real Campaign to Highlight Facts About Childhood Vaccines and Share Stories from Confident Parents Who Vaccinate Their Kids (HHS; direct to website)
12/20 - HHS Launches Healthy Border 2030 Framework Highlighting Health Priorities and Actions to Support Border Communities and Populations (HHS; direct to framework)
12/20 - USTR Publishes 2024 Report on the Implementation and Enforcement of Russia’s World Trade Organization Commitments (USTR; direct to report)
12/20 - Fact Sheet: Office of the National Cyber Director Publishes an Energy Modernization Cybersecurity Implementation Plan to Secure an Ambitious Energy Future (WH/ONCD; direct to plan)
12/16 - Council of Inspectors General on Financial Oversight Presidential Transition Handbook released (CIFGO)
12/18 - Interim Findings Department of Energy Loan Programs Office Conflicts of Interest (DOE)
12/19 - Special Inquiry of the FDIC’s Workplace Culture with Respect to Harassment and Related Misconduct – Part 1 (FDIC)
12/19 - Redesigned website rolled out (SIGAR)
12/19 - OIG Perspective Report: The Importance of Strengthening Internal Controls in Federal Student Aid (ED)
12/17 - Proposals to Amend the U.S. Constitution: Fact Sheet (CRS)
12/17 - Admission of States to the Union: A Historical Reference Guide (CRS)
12/17 - Navy Ship Modernization: Poor Cruiser Outcomes Demonstrate Need for Better Planning and Quality Oversight in Future Efforts (GAO; see also, DefenseOne article)
12/18 - Effects of Illustrative Policies That Would Increase Tariffs (CBO; see also, Senate Budget chair statement)
12/19 - The Risks of Climate Change to the United States in the 21st Century (CBO)
12/19 - Direct File: IRS Successfully Piloted Online Tax Filing but Opportunities Exist to Expand Access (GAO)
12/20 - Artificial Intelligence and Its Potential Effects on the Economy and the Federal Budget (CBO)
12/16 - OPM finally issues regulations implementing 2016 administrative leave reforms (via GovExec, with link to source document)
12/17 - Redesigned House Ethics Committee website rolled out (Congress)
12/17 - December 2024 GNEB Comment Letter #1 [re: drinking water availability in the U.S.–Mexico border region] (EPA GNEB)
12/17 - Gerry Connolly Beats AOC in Race for Key Democratic Congressional Post (via Mother Jones)
12/17 - Bidenomics Was Wildly Successful (via The New Republic)
12/18 - In reversal, key House panel votes to release Matt Gaetz ethics report (via CNN)
12/18 - Elon Musk leads charge to kill spending bill meant to avert government shutdown (via NBC News)
12/18 - Congress approves 2025 NDAA with important cyber provisions (via NextGov)
12/18 - Congress Again Fails to Limit Scope of Spy Powers in New Defense Bill (via Wired)
12/18 - Judge violated code of conduct with critical Alito op-ed: Ruling (via Yahoo News/The Hill, with source document)
12/19 - Key Homeland Security Metrics (KHSMs) added to Office of Homeland Security Statistics site (DHS)
12/19 - Wyden Investigation Highlights Dangers of Post-Dobbs Emergency Medical Care for Pregnant Women (Senate Finance; direct to report)
12/19 - FAA bans drones in parts of NJ, notice threatens 'deadly force' for 'imminent security threat' (via 6abc.com; see also, FAA statements and TFR page)
12/19 - CBP Replaces Top Doctor Accused of Misconduct (via POGO)
12/19 - In rare move, Republican senators call for Hegseth’s FBI report (via Politico)
12/20 - Subcommittee Chairwoman Stephanie Bice Releases Modernization Accomplishments Subcommittee Print (House Modernization Committee; direct to committee print)
12/20 - Biden Withdraws Proposed Regulations on Student Loans and Trans Athletes (via NYT)
Information below is from congress.gov. Date listed is date signed into law, and the description is an abbreviated version of bill summary available on that website.
12/17 - S.2781, Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hardrock Mines Act of 2024 - requires the EPA to establish a pilot program, under which EPA may issue certain permits to allow “Good Samaritans” to remediate historic mine residue at abandoned hardrock mine sites
12/17 - S.3613, Improving Federal Building Security Act of 2024 - requires Facility Security Committees to respond to security recommendations issued by the Federal Protective Service (FPS) regarding facility security
12/21 - H.R.10545 - American Relief Act, 2025 - provides FY 2025 appropriations to Federal agencies through March 14, 2025 (see also, president’s statement)
See full weekly list of Congressional hearings on congress.gov.
12/18 - Next to Fall: The Climate-Driven Insurance Crisis is Here – And Getting Worse (Senate Budget; see also, 12/16 JEC Democrats report | 12/17 Senate Budget release with report | 12/18 Senate Budget release with staff report and data)
12/18 - Trade Wars & Higher Costs: The Case Against Trump’s Tariffs (JEC)
Classified documents search warrant/indictment:
None this week
2020 election/January 6 indictment:
None this week
2020 election/Georgia indictment:
Docket Watch: Trump Prosecuted in Fulton County (via Lawfare; provides access to documents)
12/19 - Trump Gets Massive Win as Fani Willis Disqualified From Georgia Case (via New Republic, with link to source document)
NY criminal trial (Stormy Daniels payoff):
Court documents (via NY Courts) | Court transcripts and exhibits (full/searchable PDFs, via Law360)
12/16 - Judge rules Trump does not have presidential immunity protections in hush money conviction (via CNN)
Transition-related News
Tracking Trump’s Cabinet and Staff Nominations (via NYT)
12/14 - A.T.F. Braces for a Likely Rollback of Its Gun-Control Efforts (via NYT)
12/15 - Anxious scientists brace for Trump’s climate denialism: ‘We have a target on our backs’ (via The Guardian)
12/18 - Trump’s transition is happening over private emails. Federal officials are nervous. (via Politico)
12/19 - Trump calls for abolishing the debt ceiling (via NBC News)