Top Eight

Your Wednesday night briefing from the staff of Courthouse News

National

1.) Federal decriminalization of marijuana is on the table in the U.S. Senate following the proposal of new legislation to shake up regulations on cannabis from how its taxed and sold to restorative justice for nonviolent, weed-related convictions and arrests.

2.) An effort by a national landlord group to strike down the federal directive halting residential evictions during the Covid-19 pandemic was rebuffed Wednesday by a divided 11th Circuit panel, which ruled that the landlords failed to show they would suffer irreparable harm if they remained unable to evict delinquent tenants.

3.) Affordable Care Act enrollments have risen by 2 million since the Biden administration reopened the national health insurance marketplace in February, according to a report released Wednesday by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Regional

4.) A homeopathic doctor in Northern California’s wine country was arrested Wednesday for allegedly selling unapproved, natural-based Covid-19 immunizations and telling patients to falsify Covid-19 vaccination cards.

5.) A potentially lethal combination of low vaccination rates, popular tourist attractions with a high transient rate and the highly contagious delta variant has fueled a Covid-19 explosion in Missouri.

International

6.) In a bid to become a world leader on tackling climate change, the European Union on Wednesday unveiled a far-reaching package of draft rules and laws to force the 27-member bloc to cut its greenhouse gas emissions and meet its legal obligations under the Paris Agreement.

7.) Facing a tough reelection next spring and the grim prospect of another winter of coronavirus illness and lockdowns, French President Emmanuel Macron is making headlines across Europe with his decision to force the French to get vaccinated or not be allowed into cafes, cinemas, gyms and restaurants.

8.) The European Commission can move forward with its investigation into a Dutch tax deal with Nike, the EU’s second-highest court ruled Wednesday, finding no red flags in the 2019 decision to investigate a series of tax arrangements between the Dutch government and the Portland-based shoe giant. 

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