May 1, 2018 - Energy & Environment

California, 17 other states sue EPA over fuel regulation rollback

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra speaks at a press conference. Photo: Stephen Lam/Getty Images

California is leading a group of 18 states in suing the Environmental Protection Agency, accusing the agency of failing to follow regulations and violating the Clean Air Act with its plan to roll back Obama-era mileage regulations on vehicles.

The state of play from Axios' Amy Harder, who argued last month that two factors might require a rewrite of the emissions regulations: Gasoline prices have dropped and revived Americans’ longstanding preference for pickup trucks and SUVs over smaller, more fuel-efficient cars, and the Obama administration also rushed a technical review of the standard in November 2016 after Trump’s surprise election victory.

Extra: The states joining California in the lawsuit are Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.

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Rebecca Falconer
Updated 33 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Supreme Court blocks Alabama curbside voting measure

Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images

The Supreme Court on Wednesday evening blocked a lower court order that would have allowed voters to cast ballots curbside at Alabama polling places on Election Day.

Whit it matters: With less than two weeks until Election Day, the justices voted 5-3 to reinstate the curbside voting ban and overturn a lower court judge's ruling designed to protect people with disabilities during the coronavirus pandemic.

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Axios
Updated 1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

  1. Politics: Senate Democrats block vote on McConnell's targeted COVID relief bill — McConnell urges White House not to strike stimulus deal before election.
  2. Economy: Why the stimulus delay isn't a crisis (yet).
  3. Health: New York reports most COVID cases since May — Studies show drop in coronavirus death rate — The next wave is gaining steam.
  4. Education: Schools haven't become hotspots — San Francisco public schools likely won't reopen before the end of the year.
  5. World: Spain becomes first nation in Western Europe to exceed 1 million cases.
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Jacob Knutson
2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

U.S. officials: Iran and Russia aim to interfere in election

Iran and Russia have obtained voter registration information that can be used to undermine confidence in the U.S. election system, Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe announced at a press conference Wednesday evening.

Why it matters: The revelation comes roughly two weeks before Election Day. Ratcliffe said Iran has sent threatening emails to Democratic voters this week in states across the U.S. and spread videos claiming that people can vote more than once.

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