Jocelyn Shaw: Government Document News

Opt out of catalogs

Tue, 06 May 2008 17:26:29 GMT

Opt of out catalogs, etc

Do you get lots of unwanted catalogs, credit card offers, spam email, etc? This post from GovGab may help. It lists ideas for getting off all sorts of direct mailing lists. I know the credit card offers directions work because I recently registered to be off those lists and the offers stopped almost immediately. Good luck!

Open Congress

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 16:39:39 GMT

Open Congress

Do you use Facebook? Do you follow bills in Congress? If so, you might be interested in the Open Congress Facebook Application. "With the OpenCongress Facebook app, you can put bills that interest you on your Facebook profile. It's an easy way to tell your friends which pieces of legislation you are following. You can also add a comment about why you think the bill is important." (Found via the Free Government Information Blog)

Wind Turbines

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 17:04:17 GMT

Wind Turbines in Lake Michigan

The Red Tape Blog has a report on Wind Turbines in Lake Michigan that could possibly be manufactured in Muskegon

Congressional Research Tutorial

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:26:16 GMT

Congressional Research Tutorial

UC Berkley has created a wiki called CongresSearch which is a collection of tutorials on finding congressional information including bills, hearings, congressional debates, etc.

UNData

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 16:08:01 GMT

United Nations Statistics

Free Government Information reports on a new database of United Nations Statistics called UNData. "UNdata will improve the dissemination of statistics by UN's Statistics Division (UNSD) to the widest possible audience. It is an easy to use data access system that was developed to meet UNSD’s vision of providing an integrated information resource with current, relevant and reliable statistics free of charge to the global community. The design allows a user to access a large number of UN databases either by browsing the data series or through a keyword search."

Michigan's Labor Market Information

Tue, 18 Mar 2008 19:52:28 GMT

Michigan's Labor Market Information

The State of Michigan has created the Michigan's Labor Market Information website. "It is your one-stop source for reliable information on recent employment trends, wages, detailed industries, and jobs in demand. It also is a great source of economic information on Michigan regions and counties." Found via the Red Tape Blog.

Presidential Signing Statements

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 20:38:11 GMT

Presidential Signing Statements

The Free Government Information Blog reports that the American Presidency Project has archived all Presidential Signing Statements from Presidents Hoover through George W. Bush. The American Presidency Project is located at the Univeristy of California, Santa Barbara. The Signing Statements are searchable.

Paying for College

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 18:09:30 GMT

Paying for College

Are you worried about paying for college? This post from Gov Gab has lots of links to different methods of saving for college.

Privacy and Civil Liberty Oversight Board

Tue, 26 Feb 2008 18:35:30 GMT

Privacy and Civil Liberty Oversight Board

Free Government Information is reporting on a story from Wired about President Bush's failure to nominate any candidates to the Privacy and Civil Liberty Oversight Board.

Budget of the United States Government

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:20:11 GMT

Budget of the United States Government

If you want to see how your tax dollars are being spent, take a look at the Budget of the United States Government. "Issued by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the Budget of the United States Government is a collection of documents that contains the budget message of the President, information about the President's budget proposals for a given fiscal year, and other budgetary publications that have been issued throughout the fiscal year. Other related and supporting budget publications, such as the Economic Report of the President, are included, which may vary from year to year"

UN Treaties

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 19:15:09 GMT

UN Treaties

Do you need to have access to UN Treaties? Well, you are in luck, they are now freely available at UN Treaty Collection, according to the Free Government Information Blog.

US censors Arctic scientists' findings

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 17:54:17 GMT

US censors Arctic scientists' findings

From Free Governement Information Blog: "US censors Arctic scientists' findings as it prepares for oil and gas auction, By Daniel Howden, The Independent, January 22, 2008. The United States has blocked the release of a landmark assessment of oil and gas activity in the Arctic as it prepares to sell off exploration licences for the frozen Chukchi Sea off Alaska, one of the last intact habitats of the polar bear. Scientists at the release of the censored report in Norway said there was "huge frustration" that the US had derailed a science-based effort to manage the race for the vast energy reserves of the Arctic. The long-awaited assessment was meant to bring together work by scientists in all eight Arctic nations to give an up-to-date picture of oil and gas exploitation in the high north. In addition to that it was supposed to give policy makers a clear set of recommendations on how to extract safely what are thought to be up to one quarter of the world's energy reserves. Speaking yesterday from Tromso, one of the report's lead authors, who asked not to be named, said: "They [the US] have blocked it. We have no executive summary and no plain language conclusions."..."

My Open Congress

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 14:34:22 GMT

My Open Congress

"Announcing "My OpenCongress": Network, Comment and Vote on Congress January 14, 2008 - by Donny Shaw"

"As Congress returns tomorrow to start a new session, OpenCongress is excited to announce a major update that will put all the bills and votes at your fingertips. It's never been easier to track what's happening with your government."

"Now you can build a personal profile on OpenCongress of the bills and people you're tracking, network with other users, comment and vote on bills, and much more. To get started, create your own "My OpenCongress" profile, it's free and only takes a minute."

Universal Health Care

Tue, 08 Jan 2008 18:26:59 GMT

Universal Health Care in Michigan

The Red Tape blog is reporting on a ballot proposal on Universal Health Care.

Ballot Proposals in Michigan

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:31:34 GMT

Ballot Proposals in Michigan

The Red Tape Blog has a post on the upcoming ballot proposals we'll be facing in the next election.

Guide to House and Senate Members

Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:08:26 GMT

Guide to House and Senate Members

Need to get in contact with your representative? The Guide to House and Senate Members is a one stop source for making contacts with your Representative or Senator.

Domestic Spying

Tue, 04 Dec 2007 16:09:55 GMT

Hundreds of Documents Reveal Military’s Role in Domestic Spying

Check out the Free Government Information blog for information on the documents obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union through the Freedom of Information Act that show the role of the military in domestic spying.

Government Information News

Tue, 27 Nov 2007 20:47:16 GMT

New Michigan Legislation To Ban Light Bulb

Check out the Red Tape Blog to learn about a movement to ban the incandescent light bulb in Michigan.

Federal Case Law

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 17:26:52 GMT

Federal Case Law

Free Government Information is reporting that starting in 2008 "a large swath of federal case law and Supreme Court decisions will be released into the public domain". Read all about it at the original post

State of Michigan Winterwise Web Site

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:55:18 GMT

Michigan Government Info

The Red Tape Blog has information on the Be Winterwise Web Site that the State of Michigan has recently updated. The website has lots of information on ways to lower heating bills and information to help people with their bills.

Aids Podcasts

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 17:49:39 GMT

Aids Podcasts

The Department of Health and Human Services is now providing Aids Podcasts. These are short videos containing news and other information on Aids.

CRS Reports

Tue, 02 Oct 2007 16:50:37 GMT

CRS Reports

Need a CRS (Congressional Research Service) Report? Look no further than the CRS Reports at the University of North Texas Libraries. The UNT Libraries have an archive of over 8,000 of these reports. They are searchable and browsable.

Census Office offers RSS Feeds

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 19:38:05 GMT

Census Office offers RSS Feeds

From Free Government Information: "The Census Bureau offers over 40 RSS feeds on general topics (e.g., "Latest Releases," "Tip Sheets") and specific topics ("Aging Population," "Poverty") as well as pocasts (check out "Statistical Abstract 2006")!"

USA Trade Online

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 14:42:43 GMT

News about USA Trade Online

"Starting September 6, 2007, USA Trade Online, the definitive source for U.S. foreign trade statistics, gets a new look! Powered by Beyond's innovative Perspective 4.0 software and created in tandem with STAT-USA® and the Foreign Trade Division of the Bureau of the U.S. Census, the new USA Trade Online boasts a cleaner interface, new features and improved performance!"

USA Trade Online is a subscription database. Subscription information is available on their website.

From Bruce Sarjeant: Documents Librarian at Northern Michigan.

Soil Survey Maps

Tue, 21 Aug 2007 15:38:02 GMT

Soil Survey Maps Available Online

(From the Red Tape Blog): Soil survey maps have long been printed and bound into soil survey books free for the asking at local USDA Service Centers, NRCS field offices and public libraries. But they’re being slowly phased out. That’s because, starting today, the USDA Web Soil Survey site will provide secure public access to the national soils information system.

Currently, NRCS has soils maps and data available online for more than 95% of the nation’s counties and expects to have data for 100% of counties in the near future. The new site will be updated and maintained online as the single authoritative source of soil survey information, USDA says.