WASHINGTON, June 15 (Reuters) – The Obama administration
proposed stricter standards to control harmful soot from heavy
industry on Friday, a move expected to save lives but which drew
criticism from Republicans and industry worried the costs of
compliance will hurt the economy.

Under a court order, the Environmental Protection Agency
proposed tightening exposure to the particulate pollution that
threatens the elderly, people with heart disease, and children.

ATLANTA/WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) kicked off a sale on Memorial Day weekend that offered flyers one-way fares from New York’s LaGuardia Airport to Philadelphia for as low as $69.

The sale, which ended on Wednesday, was aimed at drawing attention to a host of new flights that forms the centerpiece of Delta’s effort to gain long-term supremacy in New York, the busiest U.S. air travel market.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The head of the National Weather Service has retired unexpectedly after an internal investigation found that agency employees improperly shifted millions of dollars in budget resources to weather service offices around the country.

As a result of the investigation, agency officials have now asked Congress permission to redirect some $36 million in spending in the 2012 budget to local weather forecasting and equipment upgrades, Scott Smullen, a spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), said on Tuesday.

May 21 (Reuters) – The U.S. economy needs “measured” efforts
to bolster growth, but the central bank should focus on
improving its communications because circumstances do not
warrant further bond buying at this time, a top Federal Reserve
official said on Monday.

Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart said
the central bank’s policy panel should push forward with efforts
to give the public and financial markets a better understanding
of how it would react to incoming information on the economy.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Pilots’ union leaders at United Continental Holdings (UAL.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), parent of the world’s biggest carrier United Airlines, called on Thursday for its members to hold a strike vote after failing to agree on a contract after two years of talks with management.

The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents pilots who flew for what were United and Continental Airlines before the two merged in 2010, did not set a date for a vote.

WASHINGTON, April 23 (Reuters) – Two U.S. senators have
asked the Obama administration to explain why it approved a $529
million loan to startup Fisker Automotive, which has suspended
U.S. production of a heavily touted plug-in electric car as it
revamps its business plan.

Charles Grassley, the top Republican on the Judiciary
Committee, and John Thune, a senior Republican member of the
Finance and Commerce committees, asked Energy Secretary Steven
Chu whether it was wise to grant financing to Fisker, which ran
into production problems after receiving part of the loan.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has become the latest big-name financial supporter to back away from a group that pushes conservative and corporate priorities in U.S. state capitals.

The foundation said it would not award another grant to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in the face of criticism of the council’s involvement in voting laws and in “stand your ground” gun laws such as one under scrutiny in the Trayvon Martin shooting in Florida.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Instead of curbing government spending, President Barack Obama’s healthcare law could add up to $530 billion to the federal debt over ten years, a Republican expert on U.S. government benefit programs said on Tuesday.

A study by Charles Blahous, a George Mason University research fellow and the Republican trustee for the Medicare and Social Security entitlement programs for the elderly, challenged the administration’s contention that the 2010 law would reduce healthcare costs.

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, April 5 (Reuters) – JetBlue’s
emergency response team barely had time to locate the Incident
Operations Center at their new headquarters in Long Island City,
Queens when they were summoned there to handle an emergency on
March 27, a day after they moved in.

JetBlue pilot Clayton Osbon was behaving erratically on
Flight 191 from New York to Las Vegas, running through the cabin
screaming about religion and terrorists. Passengers tackled him
in the galley. The plane had to be diverted to Amarillo, Texas,
where a co-pilot guided it to a safe landing.

WASHINGTON/CHICAGO, March 29 (Reuters) – With his captain
restrained and locked out of the cockpit, the co-pilot of
JetBlue Flight 191 acted calmly and quickly to get the Airbus
jet and 135 other passengers and crew down safely.

First Officer Jason Dowd was able to quietly signal to
flight attendants on Tuesday that Captain Clayton Osbon, who
abruptly left the cockpit and witnesses said in court documents
had been screaming incoherently about religion and terrorists,
might need to be restrained in the cabin.