Celebrities often use their star power to shine a light on otherwise overlooked issues. Soccer star David Beckham has inadvertently used his celebrity status to highlight a trap for the famous and non-famous alike — local lobbying regulations. Last Wednesday, The Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust cleared “Becks” of violating the county’s lobbying
March 2014
Final Health Coverage Reporting Rules Offer Employers Little Relief
By Amy N. Moore
Many employers will face two significant new reporting requirements for employee health coverage starting next year:
- Section 6055 Return: Employers and insurers that provide minimum essential coverage must report information to the IRS about each covered individual for each month, and provide a copy of the report to covered employees and retirees.
- Section 6056 Return:
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FTC Announces Settlements with Two Mobile App Providers
Today, the Federal Trade Commission announced settlements with two mobile app makers that allegedly failed to provide reasonable security for the personal information collected in connection with their apps. In complaints against Credit Karma, Inc. and Fandango LLC, the FTC alleged that both companies’ apps failed to validate SSL certificates, a security shortcoming that could…
African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights Hears Landmark Free Speech Case
By Cov Africa
Late last week, the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights held a public hearing for the Matter of Lohé Issa Konaté v. Burkina Faso, the first freedom of expression case to be heard by the Court. In this landmark case, Konaté — and a number of journalists’ associations and human rights organisations who have…
Senate Commerce Committee Discusses Data Breaches
On Wednesday, the Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing on “Protecting Personal Consumer Information from Cyber Attacks and Data Breaches.” With recent high-profile breaches, and White House officials just this week telling industry executives that federal authorities notified more than 3,000 companies of cyber attacks last year, data security continues to attract the attention of…
Will States Ignore the Supreme Court’s Coming McCutcheon Decision?
The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon, in McCutcheon v. FEC, on whether the Federal Election Campaign Act’s biennial aggregate limits on individual political contributions are constitutionality permissible. Many have argued that, if the Supreme Court strikes down the federal limits, aggregate limits imposed by state law will likewise be tossed aside. That…
Upcoming New Legislation to Facilitate Shale Gas Operations in Poland
The Polish government has proposed new draft rules on the prospection, exploration and extraction of hydrocarbons as well as their taxation that aim to facilitate the development of shale gas operations in Poland.
The proposed amendments to the Geological and Mining Law would significantly streamline the procedures to grant concessions and also extend concession periods. …
EMA clarifies interpretation of new variation categories in an amended Q&A document
On 6 February 2014, the EMA released an amended Q&A document on the implementation of the new Variations Guidelines of 2013, which provides details on the different variation categories and the operation of procedures laid down in Commission Regulation 1234/2008 concerning the examination of variations to the terms of marketing authorizations for human and…
Senate Resolution Addresses Growing Security Risk in Gulf of Guinea
Earlier this year, the Senate passed a resolution endorsing and supporting efforts by the Obama Administration to improve maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea. The resolution could not be more timely, as pirate attacks off the coast of West Africa have increased in the first first months of 2014, prompting the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime…
Supplemental Unemployment Benefits Subject to FICA Tax, Supreme Court Holds
Earlier today, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in United States v. Quality Stores. The opinion, authored by Justice Kennedy, reverses the Sixth Circuit and concludes that the supplemental unemployment benefit payments (or “SUB” payments) at issue in the case are subject to tax under the Federal Insurance Contribution Act (“FICA”). The Government has…