PLI Bulletin

Full Disclosure, Overworked 911, Latest Indictment and More

Posted on August 10, 2023

Full Disclosure Act: America has a long history of cynicism about politics and politicians. It is essential to ensure not only that public officials are ethical, but that there is no appearance of impropriety. The Full Disclosure Act safeguards lawmakers’ ethics by requiring public disclosure of any possible conflicts of interest.

How to talk about the very latest Trump indictment: Finally, Trump was indicted for his illegal conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election. He and his allies responded with a flurry of excuses and lies. We’ll all be talking about this for the next year, so what do you say? Read about it in the latest IdeaLog, our blog intended to raise eyebrows and engage minds.

State and local efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles: The largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. is on our roadways, owned and run by state and local governments. This podcast from the U.S. Government Accountability Office describes what’s going on.

Poll of 911 staffers demonstrates an overworked and under-resourced system: A poll of 911 center workers finds that 82 percent of call centers are understaffed, 74 percent are plagued by staff burnout, and fewer than 20 percent use fairly current technology.

Giving AI direct control over anything is a bad idea: While AI can use and organize staggering amounts of data, the technology entirely lacks emotion and morality, explains a column in The Conversation.

Repro Rights Report: This edition lists how governors are using executive orders to protect abortion rights. It’s the appendix from an excellent Guttmacher Institute Policy Analysis.