Time’s Running Out for Voter Registration: Are You Eligible If Born Outside the U.S.?

Time’s Running Out for Voter Registration: Are You Eligible If Born Outside the U.S.?

People born in countries outside the United States but currently living here cannot, in most cases, vote in U.S. elections unless they’ve first been lawful permanent residents (with a green card) for some years then successfully applied for naturalized U.S. citizenship. This is frustrating for many who’ve applied for citizenship, because processing government delays currently stretch months and even years. The clock is ticking for anyone wishing to vote in the next U.S. election, especially since many states require registration…

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Federal Eviction Ban Provides Temporary Relief for Tenants, But Satisfies No One

Federal Eviction Ban Provides Temporary Relief for Tenants, But Satisfies No One

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a nation-wide order that bans evictions of tenants who can’t pay their rent due to the coronavirus pandemic. As of September 1, 2020 and until the end of this year, landlords may not initiate or complete evictions based on rent nonpayment, as long as the tenant qualifies for relief under the CDC’s order. To qualify, tenants must meet each of these requirements: They’ve used their best efforts to obtain government assistance…

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Attacking Store Workers for Enforcing Rules on Wearing Face Masks: Now a Felony in Illinois

Attacking Store Workers for Enforcing Rules on Wearing Face Masks: Now a Felony in Illinois

By E.A. Gjelten We’ve all seen the news: irate anti-maskers punching, shoving, or spitting on store employees or bus drivers who were trying to get them to cooperate with rules intended to slow the spread of COVID-19. Of course, it’s already a crime in most states to do anything like this (or to attack anyone else, for that matter). Still, unless the worker is seriously injured as a result, it’s usually only a misdemeanor. But not in Illinois, thanks to…

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Trump Signs Executive Orders on Payroll Taxes, Unemployment Benefits, and Student Loans

Trump Signs Executive Orders on Payroll Taxes, Unemployment Benefits, and Student Loans

After Congressional talks on a second coronavirus relief bill broke down, President Trump signed a series of executive orders intended to provide financial support to workers, the unemployed, and individuals with student loan debt. But because Congress—not the President—controls spending, some of these actions are likely to face legal challenges. Here are the highlights of the President’s orders, and some of the obstacles that could arise: Payroll Tax Suspension. The President ordered the IRS to suspend collection of the employee…

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$7.5 Million Google Settlement: How to Get Your Piece (or Crumb) of the Pie

$7.5 Million Google Settlement: How to Get Your Piece (or Crumb) of the Pie

Google recently settled a class-action lawsuit over its now-defunct Google+ social media service. This social network, designed to compete with Facebook, had a software glitch that potentially exposed the personal information—including names, email addresses, occupations, and ages—of up to 500,000 users since 2015. Google discovered and fixed the problem in 2018, but initially decided not to go public with it. After learning of the data breach, plaintiffs Matthew Matic, Zak Harris, Charles Olson, and Eileen M. Pinkowski filed a lawsuit…

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