Week in Review

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Supreme Court rulings, the Clean Water Act, misleading mine safety reports, and more.

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  • The Supreme Court invalidated a provision in an Arizona law that awarded public funds to candidates for state public office who agreed to certain conditions and restrictions on their campaigns. The Court found that the program violated the First Amendment rights of candidates who did not opt in.
  • In another First Amendment case, the Supreme Court held unconstitutional a California statute that banned the sale and rental of violent video games to minors. Supporters of the law argued that the games allow children to simulate grotesque acts of violence.
  • The EPA alerted Congress to its legal analysis that a bill currently under review would effectively reverse longstanding, major provisions of the Clean Water Act.
  • The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed rules aimed at protecting investors in securities-based swaps, one of the financial instruments blamed for worsening the financial crisis. The proposed rules are intended to assist the Commission’s agenda to exert more oversight over the previously lightly regulated trade in derivatives.