Women in Industries/ Obamacare

Missoulian: More women looking for work in the oil industry

Women in the Labor Force: A Databook

Missoulian: Federal appeals court delivers serious setback to Obama health care law

Jacqueline Halbig v. Sylvia Mathews Burwell
“Section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code, enacted as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ( ACA or the Act ) , makes tax credits available as a form of subsidy to individuals who purchase health insurance through marketplaces — known as “American Health Benefit Exchanges,” or “Exchanges” for short — that are “ established by the State under section 1311” of the A ct. 26 U.S.C. § 36B(c)(2)(A)(i) . On its face , this provision authorizes tax credits for insurance purchased on an Exchange established by one of the fifty states or the District of Columbia. See 42 U.S.C. § 18024(d). But t he Internal Revenue Service has interpreted section 36B broadly to authorize the subsidy also for insurance purchased on an Exchange established by the federal government under section 1321 of the A ct. See 26 C.F.R. § 1.36B - 2(a)(1) (hereinafter “IRS Rule”) “

Malaysian Jet/ Medal of Honor/ Protecting Gay and Transgender Employees

Missoulian: UN to vote on crash resolution; Russia has doubts

Downing of Malaysian jet highlights urgency of resolving Ukraine crisis – UN official
"Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, carrying 298 people, was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it crashed on Thursday in eastern Ukraine, near the Russian border.
Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman said that while the UN has at this point no independent verification of the circumstances regarding the tragic crash, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is alarmed at what seem to be “credible, numerous reports” that suggest that a sophisticated surface-to-air missile was used."

Missoulian: Obama to bestow Medal of Honor on NH veteran

President Obama to Award the Medal of Honor"On July 21, 2014, President Barack Obama will award Ryan M. Pitts, a former active duty Army Staff Sergeant, the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry.  Staff Sergeant Pitts will receive the Medal of Honor for his courageous actions while serving as a Forward Observer with 2nd Platoon, Chosen Company, 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, during combat operations at Vehicle Patrol Base Kahler, in the vicinity of Wanat Village in Kunar Province, Afghanistan on July 13, 2008."
History- The Medal of Honor

Missoulian: Obama gives protection to gay, transgender workers
Executive Order -- Further Amendments to Executive Order 11478, Equal Employment Opportunity in the Federal Government, and Executive Order 11246, Equal Employment Opportunity "By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including 40 U.S.C. 121, and in order to provide for a uniform policy for the Federal Government to prohibit discrimination and take further steps to promote economy and efficiency in Federal Government procurement by prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, it is hereby ordered as follows:
Section 1. Amending Executive Order 11478. The first sentence of section 1 of Executive Order 11478 of August 8, 1969, as amended, is revised by substituting "sexual orientation, gender identity" for "sexual orientation"."

New Earthquake Hazard Map

2014

The 2014 U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Seismic Hazard Maps display earthquake ground motions for various probability levels across the United States and are applied in seismic provisions of building codes, insurance rate structures, risk assessments, and other public policy. The updated maps represent an assessment of the best available science in earthquake hazards and incorporate new findings on earthquake ground shaking, faults, seismicity, and geodesy. The USGS National Seismic Hazard Mapping Project developed these maps by incorporating information on potential earthquakes and associated ground shaking obtained from interaction in science and engineering workshops involving hundreds of participants, review by several science organizations and State surveys, and advice from expert panels and a Steering Committee. The new probabilistic hazard maps represent an update of the seismic hazard maps; previous versions were developed by Petersen and others (2008) and Frankel and others (2002), using the methodology developed Frankel and others (1996). Algermissen and Perkins (1976) published the first probabilistic seismic hazard map of the United States which was updated in Algermissen and others (1990).
The National Seismic Hazard Maps are derived from seismic hazard curves calculated on a grid of sites across the United States that describe the frequency of exceeding a set of ground motions. Data and maps from the 2014 U.S. Geological Survey National Seismic Hazard Maps are available for download below. Maps for available periods (0.2 s, 1 s, PGA) and specified annual frequencies can be calculated from the hazard curves. The figure depicts probabilistic ground motion (PGA) with a 2 percent probability of exceedance. All ground motions are calculated for 5 percent damped linear elastic oscillators at site conditions corresponding to the B/C Boundary (Vs30 = 760 m/s).

• Map - Conterminous US, PGA, 2% in 50 years (2MB PDF)
• Data
• Source code (available September 2014)
• Catalogs (available later in 2014)
• Faults Database Search
• Fault Source Map (available later in 2014)
• Documentation - Open File Report 2014-1091

Pabst PAC Trouble/ Same Sex Marriage O.K./ For Profit College Closing

Missoulian: PAC that backed Pabst violated law, state official finds
Fletcher v Pabst/Montanans for Veracity Diversity and Work COPP ... 

Missoulian: Court rules for gay marriage in Oklahoma case

Opinion of the Court in Nos. 14-5003 & 14-5006, Bishop, et al v. Smith, et al

“This appeal was brought by the Court Clerk for Tulsa County, Oklahoma, asking us to overturn a decision by the district court declaring un enforceable the Oklahoma state constitutional prohibition on issu ing marriage licenses to same-s ex couples. It followed quickly on the heels of an analogous appeal br ought by State of Utah officials requesting similar relief. Recognizing that the ruling in the Utah case would likely control the disposition of her appeal, the Oklahoma appellant asked that we assign these cases to the same panel. Our court did so “

Missoulian: Prosecutor to monitor for-profit college chain

U.S. Department of Education – Corinthian Colleges
“The U.S. Department of Education and Corinthian Colleges Inc. have agreed to an operating plan that provides students at the company’s career colleges a chance to complete their education and protects taxpayers’ investment while Corinthian works to either sell or close its campuses across the country in the next six months.
The plan calls for an independent monitor that will oversee this process for all programs owned by Corinthian, including Everest, Heald and Wyotech campuses.”

Fires/ Immigration

Missoulian: Washington wildfire burns through Alp-like terrain

InciWeb Current Incidents

Missoulian: Senate chairman warns against border policy change

Chairman Menendez’s Opening Remarks at Hearing, “Dangerous Passage: Central America in Crisis and the Exodus of Unaccompanied Minors”

“Just as it’s important that we address this humanitarian crisis, in my view, it’s equally important that we don’t rush to change our laws in a way that would strip these children of their rights to due process. In dealing with this crisis, it is imperative that we understand its root causes and why it is not about America putting out a welcome mat, it’s about a desperate effort by desperate parents to do what any parent would do to protect their child from violence and the threat of death.”