Jul 20 New rules for oil and gas leasing raise rates energy companies must pay to drill on public lands By Matthew Daly, Associated Press The Biden administration is proposing new rules for the nation's oil and gas leasing program to raise costs for energy companies to drill on public lands and strengthen requirements to clean up old wells where drilling is completed or abandoned. Continue reading
Jul 20 Solar panels built over water canals seem like a no-brainer. So why aren’t they widespread? By Brittany Peterson, Sibi Arasu, Associated Press In arid locations, besides the clean electricity, there is the added benefit of reducing evaporation. But the technology has been slow to take off. Continue reading
Jul 20 China-U.S. ties at a crossroads but could possibly stabilize, Xi tells Kissinger By Associated Press Chinese leader Xi Jinping has told former top U.S. diplomat Henry Kissinger that relations between the two countries are at a crossroads and both sides need to “make new decisions” that could result in stable ties and “joint success and… Continue reading
Jul 20 New U.S. sanctions aim to choke off Russia’s access to battlefield supplies and revenue By Fatima Hussein, Associated Press The sanctions imposed Thursday by the Treasury and State departments target people and companies from Russia to the United Arab Emirates to Kyrgyzstan. Continue reading
Jul 20 Russian prosecutors are seeking a 20-year sentence for opposition leader Navalny, ally says By Dasha Litvinova, Associated Press Prosecutors are asking a Russian court to sentence imprisoned opposition leader Alexei Navalny to a further 20 years in prison on extremism charges, according to his ally. Continue reading
Jul 20 Blinken heads to Tonga, New Zealand, Australia as U.S. aims to counter China’s influence in the region By Matthew Lee, Associated Press The State Department says Blinken will dedicate a new U.S. embassy in the Tongan capital of Nukuʻalofa on July 26 before heading to Wellington, New Zealand, where he will attend the women's World Cup match between the U.S. and the… Continue reading
Jul 20 Odesa, other Ukrainian port cities bombarded by Russia for 3rd consecutive night By Samya Kullab, Associated Press Russia pounded Ukraine’s southern cities with drones and missiles for a third consecutive night, keeping Odesa in its crosshairs after a bitter dispute over the end of a wartime deal that allowed Ukraine to send grain through the key Black… Continue reading
Jul 20 IRS moves forward with a new free-file tax return system, supporters and critics mobilize By Fatima Hussein, Associated Press On one side, civil society groups this week launched a coalition to promote the move toward a government-run free-file program. On the other, tax preparation firms like Intuit and H&R Block have been pouring millions into lobbying to try to… Continue reading
Jul 20 CMT pulls Jason Aldean music video that was filmed at a lynching site By Maria Sherman, Associated Press In the video, Aldean performs in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee -- the site of the 1946 Columbia race riot and the 1927 mob lynching of an 18-year-old Black teenager named Henry Choate. Continue reading
Jul 20 WATCH: Biden talks economy and unions in Philadelphia as possible strikes loom By Josh Boak, Darlene Superville, Associated Press Tensions are rising between unions and companies about a rapidly evolving economy in which AI, clean energy and e-commerce are rewriting some of the basic rules of work. Biden is trying to allay those concerns by saying unions should be… Continue reading