When you can enroll in Medicare, and what missing a deadline costs
Most people get Medicare at 65 during a seven-month initial enrollment window, and signing up late for Part B adds a permanent 10 percent penalty per year.
James Wellington
Social Security checks rise 2.8 percent in January 2026: what the COLA actually changes
The 2.8 percent cost-of-living adjustment announced in October 2025 raises the average retired-worker benefit by about $49 a month starting with January payments.
Asha VenkataswamyHow SNAP food benefits work, and who qualifies as of 2026
SNAP gives eligible households a monthly food benefit on an EBT card; most households must meet income limits set as a percentage of the federal poverty line.
Asha VenkataswamyWho qualifies for SNAP, and how to apply in 2026
SNAP eligibility runs on income and asset tests set by Washington but applied through your state; here's what the current federal rules say, what changed in 2026, and how the application actually works.
Asha VenkataswamyThe briefing
What changed, what the primary record says, and what remains uncertain.
How Social Security's cost-of-living adjustment works, and what the 2.8% increase means for 2026
Asha VenkataswamyHow Social Security's cost-of-living adjustment is calculated
Asha VenkataswamyWhat is Login.gov, and why do some government websites require it?
James WellingtonHow the SBA's 7(a) loan program works, and what changed in July 2026
Henrik LarsenHow federal rulemaking works, and how to comment on a proposed rule
Valentina SokolovHow federal inspectors general work, and what happens to their findings
Alexandria LucasPrograms
How unemployment benefits are calculated, and why states differ
Every state sets its own unemployment formula, benefit amounts, and duration — most replace about half of your wages up to a state-set weekly cap, but the caps range widely.
Asha VenkataswamyWhat the Weatherization Assistance Program covers, and how to apply
Asha VenkataswamyHow free school meals work under community eligibility
Asha VenkataswamySSI and SSDI are different programs: who qualifies for each
Asha VenkataswamyHow FEMA individual disaster assistance works
Asha VenkataswamyCivictech
How government benefit-finder tools match you to programs
James WellingtonWhat data.gov is, and what agencies must publish on it
James WellingtonWhat the Plain Writing Act requires of government documents
James WellingtonHow mobile driver's licenses work, and where you can use one
James WellingtonWhat the federal website design standards require agencies to build
James WellingtonAffairs
What county governments actually do
July 24 · James Wellington
How Stafford Act emergency and disaster declarations work
July 2 · James Wellington
What municipal bonds pay for, and who repays them
June 10 · James Wellington
How interstate compacts let states govern together
May 18 · James WellingtonAccountability
The pandemic relief ledger, as the oversight bodies close their books
SBA's inspector general estimated more than $200 billion in potentially fraudulent pandemic business loans, while across the government investigators logged over $57 billion in monetary findings.
Alexandria LucasAuditors to FAA: the air traffic upgrade is moving, but not fast enough
Alexandria LucasThe government's oldest computers are still waiting for replacement
Alexandria LucasGAO found the Education Department scaled back oversight of its loan servicers
Alexandria LucasFederal rental assistance still can't produce a reliable error rate
Alexandria LucasPolicy News
Medicare telehealth flexibilities now run through 2027. Here is what the February law changed
Asha VenkataswamyThe FAA picked a prime integrator in December. The air traffic rebuild now has an overseer
Asha VenkataswamyOne year on, REAL ID enforcement is routine — and a $45 fallback now covers stragglers
Asha VenkataswamyMedicaid's 2027 work-requirement deadline arrives in seven months. States are still building
Asha VenkataswamyThe FTC's junk-fee rule survived its first year. Enforcement, not litigation, is the story
Asha VenkataswamyGovernment News
TSP savers got Roth conversions and higher limits in 2026, plus a mandatory Roth catch-up rule
July 30 · Henrik Larsen
NHTSA's 2026 docket: faster exemptions for driverless vehicles and a proposed rewrite of fuel economy rules
July 8 · Henrik Larsen
SBA cuts upfront loan fees for small manufacturers in fiscal 2026 while other borrowers pay new rates
June 16 · Henrik Larsen