Nuclear missiles / Food stamp fraud

Missoulian:  Rehberg amendment to protect Malmstromnuclear missiles passes House

H.R.4310: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013
H.AMDT.1140 (A042)
“An amendment numbered 59 printed in House Report 112-485 to ban any reductions to the strategic nuclear triad unless the Secretary of Defense certifies that: (1) further reductions in the Russia Federations arsenal are needed for compliance with New START limits; and (2) Russia is not developing or deploying nuclear delivery systems not covered by New START limits. Amendment would also protect all three legs of the nuclear triad from elimination.”

Missoulian: Gov't taking new steps to combat foodstamp fraud

USDA Proposes Additional Steps to Fight Fraud and Enhance SNAP Integrity
“Agriculture Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today announced new measures to further reduce fraud in USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) as part of the Obama administration's ongoing Campaign to Cut Waste. The new measures will help root out waste, fraud and abuse so that federal dollars are invested wisely by giving states new tools to examine excessive requests for replacement benefit cards”

Census Under/Overcount / Fiscal Cliff

Missoulian: 2010 census missed more than 1.5M minorities

Census Bureau Releases Estimates of Undercount and Overcountin the 2010 Census

“The U.S. Census Bureau released today results from its post-enumeration survey, providing a measure of the accuracy of the 2010 Census. The results found that the 2010 Census had a net overcount of 0.01 percent, meaning about 36,000 people were overcounted in the census. This sample-based result, however, was not statistically different from zero.”

Missoulian:  CBO warns of US falling off 'fiscal cliff'

Economic Effects of Reducing the Fiscal Restraint That IsScheduled to Occur in 2013 

 “In fact, under current law, increases in taxes and, to a lesser extent, reductions in spending will reduce the federal budget deficit dramatically between 2012 and 2013—a development that some observers have referred to as a “fiscal cliff”—and will dampen economic growth in the short term. CBO has analyzed the economic effects of reducing that fiscal restraint. It finds that reducing or eliminating the fiscal restraint would boost economic growth in 2013, but that adopting such a policy without imposing comparable restraint in future years would have substantial economic costs over the longer run.”

Rockets /Race to the Top

Missoulian: Private supply ship rockets toward space station

SpaceX Launches Falcon 9/Dragon on HistoricMission

“SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket thundered into space and delivered a Dragon cargo capsule into orbit on May 22, 2012. The launch began an ambitious mission to show that the company is ready to deliver cargo to the International Space Station.”

Missoulian: Administration sets criteria for new schoolgrants
Announcing the Race to the Top District Competition

“Secretary Duncan and the Department of Education announced a new Race to the Top District competition today, one that is aimed squarely at the classroom level with a focus on the relationship between teachers and students.

The proposed competition offers nearly $400 million in grants and invites school districts to create plans for individualized classroom instruction aimed at closing achievement gaps and preparing each student for college and career.”

Astrue v. Capato

Missoulian: Twins conceived after dad died won't get benefits 

Astrue v. Capato 

“Eighteen months after her husband, Robert Capato, died of cancer, respondent Karen Capato gave birth to twins conceived through invitro fertilization using her husband’s frozen sperm. Karen applied for Social Security survivors benefits for the twins. The Social Security Administration (SSA) denied her application, and the District Court affirmed. In accord with the SSA’s construction of the Social Security Act (Act), the court determined that the twins would qualify for benefits only if, as 42 U. S. C. §416(h)(2)(A) specifies, they could inherit from the deceased wage earner under state intestacy law. The court then found that Robert was domiciled in Florida at his death, and that under Florida law, posthumously conceived children do not qualify for inheritance through intestate succession. The Third Circuit reversed. It concluded that, under §416(e), which defines child to mean, inter alia, “the child or legally adopted child of an [insured] individual,” the undisputed biological children of an insured and his widow qualify for survivors benefits without regard to state intestacy law.”