Every Wednesday, the Ferguson Group blog will be posting a series of articles published over the previous week that discuss topics of interest to local governments. Learn about emerging trends and keep up on key policy issues by browsing the TFG Wednesday News Roundup!
Senators Offer A Bipartisan Blueprint for Immigration
A bipartisan group of senators have agreed on a set of principles to overhaul the country’s immigration system. Under the plan, the nation’s 1 million undocumented immigrants would have a path to citizenship. The plan would also tighten immigration enforcement. The group hopes that this proposal will help to frame the upcoming immigration debate. Read more . . .
Senior Citizens Drive Infrastructure Spending
Mayors around the country are beginning to understand that mobility plays a big role in the health and well-being of America’s rapidly aging population. Policies that allow older people to maintain their social ties with the community encourage greater life expectancies. Investing in transportation infrastructure also allows older individuals, who may not have access to cars, to maintain community ties and easily access medical care. Read more . . .
Virginia’s Bold, New Transportation Funding Idea
Governor Bob McDonnell (VA) has a new plan to fund his state’s transportation needs. He plans on repealing the gas tax and raising a portion of the sales tax dedicated to transportation to pay for more than $3.1 billion in new transportation funding. Read more . . .
Rep. Paul Ryan Says He Thinks ‘Sequester Is Going To Happen’
Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) thinks that the sequester, a series of mandatory across the board federal spending cuts, will take place on March 1. He believes that the cuts will occur because Democrats have opposed Republican offers to replace those cuts with other cuts and have offered no alternative spending cut proposals. Read more . . .
Congress Takes Up Gun Violence
Today, the Senate Judiciary committee was scheduled to hear various proposals on stronger gun controls. One proposal would ban fast-firing semiautomatic weapons and ammunition magazines that can hold more than 10 bullets. Another proposal would make federal background checks universal, while another proposal would create a separate criminal offense for gun trafficking. Read more . . .
President Obama Signs $50B Sandy Relief Bill
The President signed into law a $50.5 billion emergency measure that would aid the victims of Hurricane Sandy. The bill will help residents and businesses in storm ravaged communities, rebuild and recover. As with past natural disasters, the Sandy aid bill is not offset with spending cuts. Read more . . .
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