Civicslog

The Department of Energy cut the "overhead rate" on academic grants from 30% to 15%. Overhead fees fund "indirect" costs related to research such as administrative work, libraries, utilities, and others. Previously the National Institutes of Health cut its overhead rate to academic bio-medical labs. A federal judge has said the NIH cannot cut its overhead rates.

The FBI has suspended an agent, Brian Auten, who had worked on two high-profile investigations: Russian meddling in the 2016 election and the analysis of Hunter Biden's laptop. FBI chief Kash Patel included Auten's name in a list of federal employees contained in a book he wrote ("Government Gangsters").

The Trump II Social Security Administration added the names of 6,000 immigrants into a database it uses to track dead people, essentially eliminiating the ability for those people to work legally in the United States or otherwise participate in the economy.

The head of a U.S. military base in Greenland was fired after she wrote and sent an email critical of Vice President Vance's comments during his visit to the base on March 31.

The order directs Federal agencies to modify reciprocal tariff rates in response to trading partner retaliation and alignment. If a trading partner retaliates against the U.S. through import duties on U.S. exports or other measures, the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) may be modified to increase or expand the duties imposed. Conversely, if a trading partner takes significant steps to remedy non-reciprocal trade arrangements and align with the U.S. on economic and national security matters, the HTSUS may be modified to decrease or limit the duties imposed. The order modifies the rate paid by China to 125%. The _de minimus rate, for small shipments, is modified from 90% to 120%. [Editor: The 125% referenced above does not include the 20% tariff ordered previously; the cumulative rate is 145%.]

The order directs Federal agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by Miles Taylor and individuals at entities associated with him, pending a review of whether such clearances are in the national interest. This directive involves the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and all other relevant executive department and agency heads. The Secretary of Homeland Security is also directed to review Taylor's activities as a government employee, identify any instances of unauthorized dissemination of classified information, and prepare a report with recommendations for appropriate remedial or preventative actions. [Editor: Miles Taylor is a former Trump I administration official (DHS) who criticized the president's handling of classified documents and other conduct.]

The order directs Federal agencies to revoke any active security clearance held by Christopher Krebs. It instructs the Attorney General, the Director of National Intelligence, and other relevant agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by individuals associated with Krebs, including those at SentinelOne, pending a review. Additionally, the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security are directed to review Krebs' activities as a government employee, including his leadership of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and to evaluate all of CISA’s activities over the last six years, with a joint report to be prepared upon completion. [Editor: Christopher Krebs is a former Trump I administration cyber-security official. Later he was a cyber-security official in the Biden administration. He was critical of the president in November of 2020 as the president sought to spread falsehoods about the election. The president fired Krebs via tweet.]

The order directs Federal agencies to suspend any active security clearances held by individuals at Susman Godfrey LLP, pending a review of whether such clearances align with national interest. The Office of Management and Budget is instructed to identify all government goods and services provided for the benefit of Susman Godfrey LLP, and agency heads are to cease such provision where legally permissible. Government contracting agencies are directed to require contractors to disclose any business they do with Susman Godfrey LLP, and agency heads are to review and potentially terminate contracts with Susman Godfrey LLP or entities doing business with them, in accordance with the law. [Editor: Susman Godfrey represented election systems maker Dominion Voting Systems in its succesful defamation lawsuit against Fox News. Fox News and Trump allies had spread falsehoods about Domion's machines following the president's election loss in 2020.]

The order directs Federal agencies to update duties applied to low-value imports from the People's Republic of China. It instructs a modification of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) to increase the duties imposed on China in response to their retaliation from 34% to 84%. Additionally, the order mandates an increase of the ad valorem rate of duty (30% to 90%) and the per postal item containing goods duty ($25 to $75), as set forth in prior executive orders, to ensure the efficacy of the imposed tariffs.

The order directs Federal agencies to identify unlawful and potentially unlawful regulations within 60 days and initiate plans to repeal them. The review and repeal effort should prioritize evaluating the lawfulness of each regulation under specific United States Supreme Court decisions. Following the review period, agencies are instructed to immediately repeal any regulation that clearly exceeds the agency’s statutory authority or is otherwise unlawful, and within 30 days, submit a summary of each regulation not targeted for repeal to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, explaining the decision.

The order directs Federal agencies to modernize defense acquisitions and stimulate innovation within the defense industrial base. The Secretary of Defense is ordered to submit a plan for reforming the Department of Defense's acquisition processes within 60 days, prioritizing speed, flexibility, and execution. Furthermore, within 120 days, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of the Navy, the Secretary of the Air Force, and Component Acquisition Executives, is directed to develop a plan to reform, right-size, and train the acquisition workforce.

The order directs Federal agencies to review all regulations under their authority and identify those that may be anti-competitive. The heads of these agencies are to collaborate with the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and the Attorney General, and within 70 days, provide a list of such regulations and recommendations for their rescission or modification. The Chairman, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, will then consolidate these lists and decide on the proposed changes.

The order directs Federal agencies to review all regulations under their rulemaking authority, in consultation with the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and the Attorney General. This review is aimed at identifying regulations that create monopolies, unnecessary barriers to new market entrants, limit competition, unduly limit competition through licensure or accreditation requirements, burden procurement processes, or impose anti-competitive restraints on the free market. Within 70 days, agency heads must provide a list of such regulations and recommendations for rescission or modification due to their anti-competitive effects.

The order directs Federal agencies to revitalize and rebuild domestic maritime industries and workforce for national security and economic prosperity. The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (APNSA), in coordination with the Secretaries of State, Defense, Commerce, Labor, Transportation, Homeland Security, the United States Trade Representative, and other relevant executive departments, is required to submit a Maritime Action Plan within 210 days. Additionally, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretaries of Commerce, Transportation, and Homeland Security, is tasked with providing an assessment of investment options for the expansion of the Maritime Industrial Base within 180 days.

The order directs Federal agencies to incorporate a sunset provision into their regulations governing energy production, compelling these agencies to periodically reexamine their regulations to ensure public benefit. The agencies affected include the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DoE), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and several subcomponents of the Department of the Interior and the United States Army. The order applies to all regulations issued under specific statutes, as detailed in the order, by each of these agencies.

The White House says the cuts are the result of civil rights violations at both universities.

The order directs Federal agencies to identify and evaluate state and local laws, regulations, and practices that burden the identification, development, use, or investment in domestic energy resources, particularly those addressing climate change or involving environmental initiatives. The Attorney General, in consultation with the heads of appropriate executive departments and agencies, is tasked with identifying these laws and regulations that may be unconstitutional, preempted by Federal law, or unenforceable. The focus is on laws that potentially undermine the goal of "American energy dominance,"" such as those that impose barriers to interstate and international trade, control energy development on Federal land, or impose fines on energy producers.

The order directs Federal agencies to exempt coal- and oil-fired power plants from compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) rule on National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. The exemption extends the current exemption for two years beyond the rule's compliance date, starting from July 8, 2027 to July 8, 2029. During this period, these sources will be subject to the compliance obligations under the preexisting Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) rule, prior to the amendments made by the EPA's rule.

The order directs Federal agencies to increase domestic energy production, particularly in the coal industry. The National Energy Dominance Council is to designate coal as a "mineral," thus allowing it to receive all benefits under Executive Order 14241. The Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, and Energy are to identify coal resources on federal lands and propose policies to address any impediments to their mining, with a focus on the potential impact on electricity costs and grid reliability. The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture are also instructed to prioritize coal leasing and expedite environmental reviews to facilitate coal mining on public lands.

The order directs Federal agencies to strengthen the reliability and security of the United States' electric grid. The Secretary of Energy is instructed to streamline processes for issuing orders under section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act during periods of grid operations, and to develop a uniform methodology for analyzing current and anticipated reserve margins for all regions of the bulk power system regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Additionally, the Secretary of Energy is to establish a process by which the methodology and its results are assessed regularly, and a protocol to identify critical generation resources within a region for system reliability.

Acting IRS Commissioner Melanie Krause is resigning over an agreement share immigrants's sensitive tax data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE would use the data to indentify and deport undocumented people living in the United States. The agreement was signed Monday by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Several IRS officials have resigned or been fired over access to sensitive financial and personal data since the president's inauguration.

The U.S. attorney announced the formation of the "Homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force. It will investigate "waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption" associated with funds allocated to eradicate homelessness in southern California.

The National Institutes of Health ahs been directed to cut $2.6 billion of contracts. The deadline for the cuts is April 8. The figure represents 35% of the agency's spending on contracts. These contracts support scientists at NIH labs, as well as scientists and staff and academic institutions, and in the private sector.

Tucked into Last Week's emergency order opening millions of acres of national forests to logging was a further notice that the Agriculture Secretary would open thousands of acres of land in Nevada and New Mexico to gas drilling, mining, and geo-thermal development. These lands had been set aside by the Biden administration late in the former president's term.

The order directs Federal agencies including the Treasury, State, Justice, Homeland Security, Defense, Commerce, Labor, Energy departments, the United States Trade Representative, the Director of National Intelligence, and the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to review the proposed acquisition of the United States Steel Corporation by Nippon Steel Corporation, Nippon Steel North America, Inc., and 2023 Merger Subsidiary, Inc. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) is tasked with conducting a de novo, confidential review of the acquisition, identifying potential national security risks, and providing an opportunity for the parties to respond to such concerns.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last month that the State Department has revoked 300 or more students’ visas, seeming to target foreign-born students who participate in political activism. Several high-profile pro-Palestinian scholars have been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The visas of more than three dozen students and alumni of California universities have been nullified in the last week. Schools did not provide details, citing privacy concerns.

Trump II Agriculture Secretary declares an emergency and OKs logging in millions of acres of U.S. national forests. The memo cites risks of wildfire and pest infestation and the president's executive order directing the agency to boost logging to justify the declaration.

The order directs Federal agencies to extend the enforcement delay of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act pertaining to TikTok until June 19, 2025. During this period, the Department of Justice is instructed not to enforce the Act or impose penalties for noncompliance, including actions related to foreign adversary controlled applications. The Attorney General is tasked with issuing written guidance to implement these provisions, issuing a letter to each provider stating no violation of the statute has occurred, and preserving and defending the Executive's exclusive authority to enforce the Act.

The order directs Federal agencies to take measures to prevent child abuse and neglect and to promote the psychological, physical, and emotional development of children. It discourages public schools from discussing transgender issues and eliminates taxpayer funding to any institution involved in providing gender affirming care of youth. Additionally, it calls for increased efforts to secure the southern border to end child trafficking.

The order directs Federal agencies to recognize April 2025 as National Donate Life Month. It encourages all eligible individuals, regardless of age or medical history, to consider becoming organ donors and share this decision with family and loved ones. The order also mentions the option to register through state registries, the Department of Motor Vehicles, or www.organdonor.gov.