The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently issued the first Federal policy guidelines for automated vehicles. The nonbinding guidelines are a preliminary step designed to lay out goals and work with manufacturers and designers of driverless cars to improve the technology without stifling innovation. NHTSA called on makers of “highly autonomous vehicles” — those in which the vehicle can take full control in some circumstances — to test new features and share the data with the agency at least four months before the technology hits the road. Other portions of the policy apply to lower-levels of automation, including some…

The drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan, resulted from a 2014 decision by the city to switch its water supply from Lake Huron to the Flint River. The change was made without adding chemicals to prevent pipe corrosion, so lead leaked into residents’ water, creating a serious public health problem. As the crisis gained national attention in the fall of 2015, Michigan’s congressional representatives called for action. On February 10, the House passed, 416 to 2, H.R. 4470, introduced by Representative Dan Kildee (MI-D), to require the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to notify the public within 15 days after discovering…

On September 29, the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade held a hearing titled “The Disrupter Series: How the Sharing Economy Creates Jobs, Benefits Consumers, and Raises Policy Questions.” The Background Memo on the hearing stated, “The sharing economy typically is described as the facilitation of peer-to-peer transactions, many of which would be impossible or too costly without sharing platforms.” It also cited a study estimating that the sharing economy generated $15 billion in revenues in 2013, and is projected to generate $335 billion in 10 years. The hearing looked at the influence the sharing economy and its emerging…

Congressional Digest covered 10 important domestic issues in 2010, from consumer financial protection to child nutrition. Some of those topics – such as Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the DREAM Act immigration bill – are still being hotly debated during the final days of the session. Here’s an update on all these issues as the 111th Conngress winds down.

Although Toxic Substances Control Act reform, the focus of the October Congressional Digest, is moving slowly through Congress, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has called it a “top priority” and some States have taken action, as well.