“Skinny” Coronavirus Package Blocked. Congress returned to Washington, D.C., this week following an August recess, but didn’t do much to move the ball forward on pressing issues such as coronavirus relief, postal service aid,...more
9/14/2020
/ Civil Rights Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
FEMA ,
H-1B ,
Joint Employers ,
NLRB ,
Title VII ,
Unemployment Insurance ,
USCIS
DOL Issues Back-to-School Leave Guidance. On August 27, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) updated its frequently asked questions regarding paid leave under the Families First Coronavirus...more
8/31/2020
/ Child Care ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
DACA ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Final Rules ,
Public Schools ,
Remote Working ,
Students ,
USCIS ,
Wage and Hour
Congress’s Compromise Clues? There was lots of scuttlebutt in Washington, D.C., this week about a subsequent stimulus package, but nothing to show for it. Senate Republicans are reportedly poised to introduce a new...more
8/24/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Furloughs ,
GAO ,
Immigration Procedures ,
Joe Biden ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NPRM ,
Presidential Elections ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Secretary of DHS
Congress Dithers Over Pandemic Relief. Well, the update is that there is no update. Both Republicans and Democrats continue to dig in their heels over a fourth federal pandemic relief package. While many reports focus on the...more
On August 8, 2020, President Donald Trump issued a memorandum, which establishes a “lost wages assistance program” to help workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic by dipping into the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s...more
Legislative Relief Package Stalls. The Buzz recently predicted that negotiations over a fourth COVID-19 legislative relief package would be like an immovable object facing an unstoppable force. Unfortunately, it appears that...more
Congress Debates Next Relief Package. As the Buzz has anticipated for a while now, this week the U.S. Senate began crafting a “Phase 4” response to the COVID-19 pandemic. While progress was made, as of this writing, no...more
7/28/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Forced Labor ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NLRB ,
Offensive Language ,
Pay Data ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Relief Measures ,
Travel Ban ,
Visas
Congress to Debate UI and Liability? For several weeks now, the Buzz has been discussing what might be included in the next federal legislative package to address the ongoing pandemic. Legislative discussions will begin to...more
Congress Set to Work on Subsequent Pandemic Relief. Congress is out on a two-week summer recess and will return the week of July 20, 2020. Upon return, it is expected that Senate Republicans will begin legislative discussions...more
Spring Regulatory Agenda Released. Last week, the Buzz wondered when we might see the administration’s spring regulatory forecast. Well, the administration must have noticed our comment, because on June 30, 2020, it released...more
7/6/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Federal Contractors ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
OSHA ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
TRICARE ,
USCIS
SCOTUS: Title VII Protects LGBTQ and Transgender Employees. On June 15, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States released its historical decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia, holding that discrimination against...more
6/19/2020
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Citizenship ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
DACA ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Homeland Security v Regents of the University of California ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
OSHA ,
Path To Citizenship ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Rescission ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
Trump v NAACP ,
USCIS ,
Visas ,
Wolf v Vidal ,
Work Permits
PPP Flexibility Act Clarification. Buzz readers likely recall that President Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Flexibility Act into law last week. One of the prominent features of the legislation lowers from...more
6/15/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Certification Requirements ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Safe Harbors ,
SBA
PPP Fix Enacted. On June 5, 2020, President Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Flexibility Act into law, just two days after the bill was approved in the U.S. Senate by unanimous consent. As the Buzz discussed...more
Historical Week in the House. The U.S. House of Representatives reconvened this week for its first multi-day workweek since March (the U.S. Senate remained at home this week on a prescheduled Memorial Day week break). The...more
Congressional Coronavirus Update. On May 20, 2020, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), evoked the proxy voting provision of House Resolution 965. The Speaker’s action will trigger a...more
On May 12, 2020, Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives unveiled the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act, the latest effort to respond to the ongoing coronavirus health care crisis....more
Senate Returns. The U.S. Senate returned to Washington, D.C., this week for the first time since late March 2020, and held several hearings and votes. In an effort to adhere to social distancing protocols, senators were...more
5/11/2020
/ Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
EEO-1 ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
J-1 Visas ,
NLRB ,
OFCCP ,
Ombudsman ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Relief Measures ,
SCOTUS
May the Fourth Be With You? Not so Much. As the Buzz discussed previously, Congress was scheduled to return to Washington, D.C., next week. This week, however, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) announced that the U.S....more
5/4/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Benefits ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
IRS ,
Oral Argument ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
SBA Lending Programs ,
SCOTUS ,
Social Distancing ,
Unemployment Benefits
On April 24, 2020, President Trump signed the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, which will allocate over $480 billion in additional funding for the federal COVID-19 response, including:
..$320...more
Congressional Update. Despite our elected officials being out of town, there was a lot of action coming out of Congress this week....more
Phase 3.5? Or CARES Act 2.0? On April 9, 2020, the U.S. Senate failed to approve a measure that would have added $251 billion in funding for the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program established...more
Phase 4 Legislative Response? While the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is only one week old, some federal policymakers are already discussing a subsequent “Phase 4” legislative response to dealing...more
On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, intended to stimulate the national economy in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would provide $2...more
On March 18, 2020, the U.S. Senate passed the U.S. House of Representative’s “Families First Coronavirus Response Act,” by a vote of 90-8, and President Trump signed the act into law the same day. The law does not contain any...more
On March 16, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives approved new legislative text for the emergency coronavirus bill. The amendments to the “Families First Coronavirus Response Act,” (H.R. 6201) were intended to correct...more