Proposed federal rule would protect public housing residents from secondhand smoke

The New York Times reports: Smoking would be prohibited in public housing homes nationwide under a proposed federal rule announced on Thursday, a move that would affect nearly one million households and open the latest front in the long-running campaign to curb unwanted exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke. The ban, proposed by the U.S. Department […]

“Could Your Social Media Footprint Step On Your Credit History?”

…asks a story from NPR's Morning Edition this morning. A recent story in the Financial Times (entitled "Being 'wasted' on Facebook may damage your credit score" but behind a paywall) suggests this is a possibility, although the credit reporting industry denies it. Listen to an analysis of the ways in which various information is, or might […]

Congressional Research Service on regulatory secrecy

More than 70% of the 7,000-plus meetings of federal advisory committees in 2014 were conducted behind closed doors, according to a recent study by the Congressional Research Service. The committees influence federal regulatory policy by advising federal agencies, and the committees often include industry representatives. The Hill covers the CRS report here; the report itself […]

American Banker: Why that Orwellian Anti-CFPB Ad Could Backfire

Allison posted yesterday about the anti-CFPB ad.  The American Banker's Rachel Witkowski and Rob Blackwell have more here. Among their reasons for saying it could backfire: "the ad is over the top;" "Consumer credit isn't tighter since the CFPB's creation;" and "The ad's sponsor has connections to a company under investigation by the CFPB."

Tyson Foods v. Bouaphakeo argued in the Supreme Court

This morning, the Supreme Court considered whether a group of workers at an Iowa meat-processing plant appropriately proceeded as a class on their federal and state wage-and-hour claims where their proof of the amount of hours worked was based in part on an expert time study because the company failed to keep legally required records […]

Conservative group to run television ads attacking CFPB

The Wall Street Journal reports: Most Americans have probably never heard of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Many will learn about it on Tuesday night when millions tune in to watch the next Republican presidential debate. The American Action Network, a right-leaning advocacy group that has spent heavily to elect Republicans, plans to blanket the Fox […]