Government And Institutions

Elected officials and drug-policy advocates hoped to make the nation's capital the first place on the East Coast with legal pot.

Average U.S. long-term mortgage rates edged higher this week after four weeks of declines, but they remained at historically low levels that could entice potential homebuyers.

The U.S. Labor Department reports on the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week.

The owners of the Trump Taj Mahal casino say Atlantic City's main casino workers' union has reneged on a deal to keep the casino open and save its 3,000 jobs.

The Treasury Department releases federal budget data for November.

Tens of thousands of protesters have brought Dublin to a standstill in a mass protest against Ireland's planned new tax on household water supplies, the most recently imposed measure from the country's six-year austerity drive.

A legislative rider in Congress' $1.1 trillion spending bill would delay protections for a wide-ranging Western bird that's been on a collision course with the oil and gas industry.

A new study says primary care doctors seeing low-income patients face a steep cut in Medicaid fees next year when a temporary program in President Barack Obama's health care law expires.

The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey approved a 2015 budget Wednesday that the agency said holds operating expenses at or below the rate of inflation for the ninth year in a row but was criticized for not allocating enough money to replace New York's aging bus terminal.

The Northern Arapaho Tribe has filed a federal lawsuit alleging proposed Internal Revenue Service rules could cause Native Americans to pay higher insurance premiums or lose health care benefits.

The food industry is likely to find a more receptive Congress come January in its fight against mandatory labeling of genetically modified foods.

IBM Corp. and the state of Indiana are turning to mediation in hopes of settling their dispute over IBM's failed attempt to privatize Indiana's welfare services.

A new government report shows that nearly 20 percent of U.S. consumers — nearly 43 million people — have unpaid medical debts.

The federal government's deficit for the first two months of the new budget year is down 21 percent from the same period a year ago, although much of that improvement is due to quirks in the calendar.

Retirees covered by financially troubled multiemployer pensions could soon see their benefits cut under a congressional spending deal to keep the government running.

Congress is taking some whole grains off the school lunch line.

China's government is likely to raise cigarette taxes in order to boost prices and deter smoking, an official said Wednesday, amid a push by the nation of 300 million smokers to crack down on the habit.

A congressional deal to finance the government leaves largely intact President Barack Obama's plans on global warming — at least until Republicans take control of Congress next month.

A huge, $1.1 trillion spending bill funding every corner of government faces its first test in the House, where conservatives are unhappy because it fails to challenge President Barack Obama's immigration policy and many Democrats are displeased because it weakens the 2010 Dodd-Frank regulation of risky financial instruments.

Slumping oil prices have helped push Alaska's potential budget deficit this year to $3.5 billion — an increase of $2.1 billion from what lawmakers expected in April.