Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) today announced 21 grants totaling more than $10 million have been awarded to universities to support critical water problems in rural and agricultural watersheds across the United States. The awards were made through NIFA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Water for Agriculture challenge area and the National Integrated Water Quality Program.

Washington, DC - Our country is in the midst of a heated and corrosive debate over what protections the law should afford to religious liberties. The matter reached its boiling point on March 17 when Indiana passed a now amended Religious Freedom Restoration Act that was, with significant variations, patterned on the federal 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA).

Washington, DC - President Obama is committed to combating the health impacts of climate change and protecting the health of future generations. We know climate change is not is not a distant threat, we are already seeing impacts in communities across the country. And while most Americans see climate change hitting their communities through extreme weather events - from more severe droughts and wildfires to more powerful hurricanes and record heat waves - there are other threats climate change poses to the American people.

Washington, DC - Does your company participate in the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework? It’s a voluntary international privacy program administered by the Department of Commerce that lets companies transfer data from the EU to the U.S. in compliance with EU law. Of course, data security and privacy are everyday obligations for companies, but are you honoring one particular once-a-year provision? And what about promises you make regarding how you resolve consumer disputes?

Washington, DC - Network Solutions LLC has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it misled consumers who bought its web hosting services by promising a full refund if they canceled within 30 days. In reality, the company withheld substantial cancellation fees from most refunds.

Washington, DC - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) are honoring 128 businesses and organizations in 33 states with the Energy Star’s Partner of the Year award for their commitment to saving energy and protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency achievements.  Awardees are helping families save money by saving energy in innovative ways including working with utilities to offer rebates to customers, creating more efficient products, and launching efficiency projects.