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Treasury Secretary Bessent, Comptroller of the Currency Gould Highlight Community Bank Comeback at Arizona Bankers Association Roundtable
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould Highlight Community Bank Comeback at Arizona Bankers Association Roundtable
Local banks on the front lines of economic and national security
OCC acts to eliminate risks posed by extending financial services to illegal aliens
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Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould today highlighted the Trump Administration's
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The U.S. Department of the Treasury Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould Highlight Community Bank Comeback at Arizona Bankers Association Roundtable
Local banks on the front lines of economic and national security
OCC acts to eliminate risks posed by extending financial services to illegal aliens
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Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent and Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould today highlighted the Trump Administration'sefforts to alleviate regulatory burden on community banks, drive economic growth on Main Street, and protect America's financial system from illicit activity during remarks at the Arizona Bankers Association Roundtable.
Comptroller Gould traveled with Secretary Bessent to meet with Arizona manufacturers, business leaders, and community bankers to discuss the Trump Administration's pro-growth economic agenda and efforts to strengthen the integrity of the U.S. financial system.
Secretary Bessent remarks can be found here (https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0595).
Excerpts from Comptroller Gould's remarks are below. His full statement can be found here (https://occ.gov/news-issuances/speeches/2026/pub-speech-2026-66.pdf).
Alleviating Regulatory and Supervisory Burdens on Community Banks
Washington has subjected community banks to a regulatory and supervisory framework built for the largest and most complex financial institutions. The result since the Dodd-Frank Act has been that more than half of the community banks in the United States have disappeared. At the OCC, we have refocused supervision on material financial risk. That means spending less time on activities that do not improve safety and soundness and more time on the risks that actually matter.
Driving economic growth on Main Street
Community banks hold only a fraction of the banking industry's assets but account for an outsized share of small business and agricultural lending. President Trump's economic agenda and Secretary Bessent's vision of Parallel Prosperity depend on a strong community banking system. A Main Street comeback requires a community bank comeback.
Protecting America's financial system from illicit activity
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As a border state, it [Arizona] has seen how the consequences of open-border policies can extend beyond immigration and affect local communities, the economy, and ultimately the financial system.
As Secretary Bessent has said, economic security is national security. Banks have an important role to play. They need to know their customers, understand the risks they face, and make sound decisions based on the facts of each relationship. Under President Trump and Secretary Bessent's leadership, we are protecting our financial system from those who would abuse it and strengthening it for the Americans who depend on it. And community banks are essential to building it.
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Original text here: https://occ.gov/news-issuances/news-releases/2026/nr-occ-2026-66.html
Smithsonian Institution: Revitalized Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden Opens Oct. 31
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Smithsonian Institution issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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Revitalized Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden Opens Oct. 31
Redesign Installs 50% More Artworks, Including 24 Major Works From Joseph H. Hirshhorn's Foundational Gift
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The Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden will reopen Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, following a four-year revitalization that has repaired aging infrastructure and reorganized the 1.3-acre space to display more artworks, welcome more visitors and reunify the museum's campus. Sixty artworks, a 50% increase from the garden's previous
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Smithsonian Institution issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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Revitalized Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden Opens Oct. 31
Redesign Installs 50% More Artworks, Including 24 Major Works From Joseph H. Hirshhorn's Foundational Gift
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The Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden will reopen Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026, following a four-year revitalization that has repaired aging infrastructure and reorganized the 1.3-acre space to display more artworks, welcome more visitors and reunify the museum's campus. Sixty artworks, a 50% increase from the garden's previousincarnation, will be set within a landscaped garden of nearly 30,000 new plants and trees, inviting contemplation as viewers discover links between Joseph H. Hirshhorn's transformative gift and today's most exciting sculpture.
Architect-artist Hiroshi Sugimoto has redesigned the Sculpture Garden with careful consideration of Gordon Bunshaft's original design. His dry-stacked stone walls define key spaces and encourage exploration, particularly in the East Garden, where major Modernist bronzes from the Hirshhorn's holdings by the likes of Auguste Rodin, Henri Matisse and Henry Moore reveal the history of modern sculpture, appearing alongside recent acquisitions and commissions by leading contemporary artists.
"The revitalization of the Sculpture Garden marks the most significant rethinking of our campus since the Hirshhorn opened in 1974, and the reopening installation presents the seamless connection between the museum and the garden through works from the 1880s to the present day," said Hirshhorn Director Melissa Chiu. "From Rodin, Willem de Kooning, Barbara Hepworth and David Smith to artists leading the way today, including Sugimoto, the Sculpture Garden centers pivotal moments in sculpture within a landscape designed for discovery. We are proud to bolster Joseph H. Hirshhorn's vision for 21st-century audiences."
In 1974, the Hirshhorn Sculpture Garden opened with 52 artworks drawn from Joseph Hirshhorn's foundational gift to the nation of more than 2,000 sculptures. When the Hirshhorn outdoor galleries reopen on the National Mall in October, 60 artworks--39 from the founding donor's personal collection, including 21 that were installed in 1974--will be on view in the Sculpture Garden and Plaza. Among the reinstalled artworks will be renowned touchstones by Rodin, including "The Burghers of Calais" (1884-1889) and "Monument to Balzac" (1891-1898); a complete series of bronze reliefs, "The Backs I-IV," made by Matisse between 1909 and 1931; and essential abstract works by Hepworth, Moore, Smith, as well as Lucio Fontana and Alberto Giacometti.
The new curatorial arrangement will be accompanied by architectural modifications that expand public access to the Hirshhorn campus, including five points of entry, a wider "front door" on the National Mall, the introduction of east and west overlooks, and flexible interior spaces, including the East and Central Gardens and the West Lawn. The stacked-stone walls--hand-hewn from 950 tons of stone--define outdoor galleries and provide a timeless background for modern and contemporary sculpture.
Five sculptures by Moore and two by Hepworth, grounded in Joseph Hirshhorn's friendships with both artists, will be installed to highlight the depth of the museum's Modernist holdings. Nearby, in the walkway leading to the Central Garden, four Smith works, installed in a central planting bed, will form a group that underscores the sculptor's pivotal role in advancing Abstract Expressionist sculpture through his revolutionary approach to welding and metal. Elsewhere in the East Garden, sculptures gifted and bequeathed by Joseph Hirshhorn include works by Hans (Jean) Arp, Max Bill, Andrea Cascella, Elisabeth Frink, Willem de Kooning, Henri Laurens, Jacques Lipchitz, Aristide Maillol, Joan Miro, Pablo Picasso, Germaine Richier and Tomonori Toyofuku.
Interwoven with these historic sculptures are contemporary artworks such as Yoko Ono's "Wish Tree for Washington, DC" (2007), which invites visitors to tie handwritten wishes for peace to the branches of a Japanese dogwood--part of the artist's global "Wish Tree" project. The West Garden and allee, meanwhile, broaden the visitor's focus to groundbreaking contemporary sculpture, including recent acquisitions by Mark Grotjahn, Raven Halfmoon, Lauren Halsey, Izumi Kato, Liz Larner and Pedro Reyes.
Sugimoto reorganized the Sculpture Garden to further the Hirshhorn's mission to share more artwork, welcome more visitors and repair aging infrastructure. Working with Smithsonian experts, his team includes his Tokyo-based architecture firm, New Material Research Laboratory (NMRL), cofounded in 2008 by Sugimoto and Tomoyuki Sakakida in association with YUN Architecture, in Brooklyn, New York; Quinn Evans, in Washington, D.C., as architect of record; and Rhodeside & Harwell Inc., in Alexandria, Virginia, as landscape architect.
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About the Hirshhorn
The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden is the national museum of modern and contemporary art and a leading voice for 21st-century art and culture. Part of the Smithsonian, the Hirshhorn is located prominently on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Its holdings encompass one of the most important collections of postwar American and European art in the world. The Hirshhorn presents diverse exhibitions and offers an array of public programs on the art of our time--free to all. The Hirshhorn Museum is open Mondays noon-5:30 p.m. and Tuesdays-Sundays 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). For more information, visit hirshhorn.si.edu. Follow the museum on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
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Original text here: https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/releases/revitalized-hirshhorn-sculpture-garden-opens-oct-31
National Park Service Advances Railroad Preservation Through Historic Transfer of Norwood & St. Lawrence Locomotive No. 210
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service issued the following news release:
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National Park Service Advances Railroad Preservation Through Historic Transfer of Norwood & St. Lawrence Locomotive No. 210
SCRANTON, Pa. -- The National Park Service (NPS) has approved the transfer of historic Norwood & St. Lawrence Railroad Locomotive No. 210 from Steamtown National Historic Site to the St. Lawrence Power & Equipment Museum in New York, marking the successful completion of a complex, multi-year effort to ensure the locomotive's long-term preservation and
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service issued the following news release:
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National Park Service Advances Railroad Preservation Through Historic Transfer of Norwood & St. Lawrence Locomotive No. 210
SCRANTON, Pa. -- The National Park Service (NPS) has approved the transfer of historic Norwood & St. Lawrence Railroad Locomotive No. 210 from Steamtown National Historic Site to the St. Lawrence Power & Equipment Museum in New York, marking the successful completion of a complex, multi-year effort to ensure the locomotive's long-term preservation andinterpretation in the region where it spent nearly its entire operating career.
"Returning No. 210 to its place of origin is an excellent example of responsible stewardship strengthening the entire railroad preservation community," said Jeremy Komasz, superintendent of Steamtown National Historic Site. "Successfully transferring the locomotive to an organization dedicated to preserving its local history allows its story to be told where it is most meaningful."
Built in 1923 by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in Schenectady, New York, No. 210 served the Norwood & St. Lawrence Railroad for decades, becoming an enduring part of the industrial and transportation history of northern New York.
Steamtown National Historic Site connects visitors with the history of American railroading and its profound influence on the nation's industrial, commercial, and social development through the preservation of historic locomotives, rolling stock, railroad infrastructure, museum collections, archives, and the continued operation of historic railroad equipment.
The transfer highlights the collaborative nature of historic preservation throughout the United States. The National Park Service, museums, historical societies, nonprofit organizations, volunteers, and local communities each play an essential role in preserving America's railroad heritage. By working together, these organizations help ensure that historic resources remain accessible, relevant, and available to educate and inspire future generations.
No. 210 moving back to northern New York represents an important milestone but should not be viewed as establishing a routine process. The transfer was the culmination of a lengthy effort with unique historical, legal, operational, and stewardship considerations involving federal law and policy review and extensive coordination between federal and state agencies and the receiving organization.
The transfer also supports the park's long-term stewardship strategy to allocate preservation funding, restoration capacity, track space, and staff resources on nationally significant locomotives, passenger cars, freight equipment, railroad structures, and infrastructure that collectively tell the broad story of American railroading.
As No. 210 begins its next chapter, the National Park Service remains committed to working with preservation organizations across the country to ensure America's railroad heritage continues to be preserved, interpreted, and shared with current and future generations.
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www.nps.gov
About the National Park Service. Established in 1916, the National Park Service preserves America's most treasured natural and cultural places for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of current and future generations. Learn more at nps.gov.
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Original text here: https://www.nps.gov/stea/learn/news/national-park-service-advances-railroad-preservation-through-historic-transfer-of-norwood-st-lawrence-locomotive-no-210.htm
FCC Replaces National Broadcast Ownership Cap
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Federal Communications Commission issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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FCC Replaces National Broadcast Ownership Cap
New Approach Will Apply a Case-by-Case Review That Only Authorizes Deals That Satisfy the Agency's Public Interest Review Standard
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Today, the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal its 39% national television multiple ownership rule and replace it with a granular, case-by-case review. This will empower the FCC to approve deals that promote the public interest while allowing the agency to reject any deals that do not
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Federal Communications Commission issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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FCC Replaces National Broadcast Ownership Cap
New Approach Will Apply a Case-by-Case Review That Only Authorizes Deals That Satisfy the Agency's Public Interest Review Standard
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Today, the Federal Communications Commission voted to repeal its 39% national television multiple ownership rule and replace it with a granular, case-by-case review. This will empower the FCC to approve deals that promote the public interest while allowing the agency to reject any deals that do notmeet that standard. Through today's action, the Commission exercises its authority to modify the FCC rule for the first time in over 20 years and align it with current market realities.
The video marketplace has changed dramatically with the proliferation of digital platforms--all of which enjoy unrestricted national reach. Streaming services now reach over 80% of U.S. adults and this scale provides them with a competitive edge in terms of attracting investment capital and increased advertising revenue. Eliminating the national cap will allow broadcasters to better compete with these unregulated digital giants. The market also reflects a growing imbalance of power in the network-affiliate relationship, which the national cap intended, but failed to curb, as evidenced by network control over online video carriage, preemption rights and revenue sharing requirements.
In its current formulation, the national cap generally has operated as a blanket prohibition on transactions that would result in the merged entity achieving a national audience reach greater than 39% of television households. As applied, the rule generally presumed that it would not be in the public interest to allow a particular deal in excess of 39%. Shifting from a relatively inflexible, ex ante regulation to a case-by-case assessment will help ensure that the Commission carries out its statutory mandates without having to show special circumstances that would justify a waiver of a rule that no longer serves the public interest.
Under a case-by-case approach, the Commission's interests in localism, viewpoint diversity, and competition (to the extent they are implicated in a case) can be fully analyzed and vindicated in the context of a specific transaction. There may be transactions that would have exceeded the limits of the 39% national cap that do not promote the public interest and those will be denied. On the other hand, there may be transactions that would have exceeded the cap that do promote the public interest and could gain Commission approval.
Today's action reflects the Commission's position that it retains statutory authority to repeal the rule, as multiple agency Chairs--both Republican and Democrat alike--have consistently stated. While Congress has at times directed the Commission to change its rules, Congress has never withdrawn the Commission's authority under the Communications Act to regulate or change ownership limits.
Action by the Commission August 6, 2026 by Report and Order (FCC 26-53). Chairman Carr and Commissioner Trusty approving. Commissioner Gomez dissenting. Chairman Carr, Commissioners Gomez and Trusty issuing separate statements.
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Original text here: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-424076A1.pdf
FCC Proposed Efficiency Reforms to the Rural Health Care Program
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Federal Communications Commission issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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FCC Proposed Efficiency Reforms to the Rural Health Care Program
Improvements Will Reduce Costs and Administrative Burdens on Program Participants While Streamlining Funding Processes
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Today, the Federal Communications Commission proposed reforms to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its Rural Health Care Program. The proposed reforms would cut red tape, reduce administrative burdens on program participants, and ensure that limited program funding reaches the rural
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Federal Communications Commission issued the following news release on Aug. 6, 2026:
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FCC Proposed Efficiency Reforms to the Rural Health Care Program
Improvements Will Reduce Costs and Administrative Burdens on Program Participants While Streamlining Funding Processes
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Today, the Federal Communications Commission proposed reforms to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its Rural Health Care Program. The proposed reforms would cut red tape, reduce administrative burdens on program participants, and ensure that limited program funding reaches the ruralhospitals and clinics that need it most, given increased program participation and service costs.
Through the Universal Service Fund, the RHC Program helps rural health care providers obtain telecommunications and broadband services at discounted rates. This support facilitates the delivery of services to rural areas across the country, including some of the most remote areas in the nation, thereby effectively bridging the gap between rural patients and the critical care and expertise they need. These services are essential to the health and well-being of innumerable patients.
The RHC Program provides universal service support through two programs: the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect Fund Program. The Telecommunications Program subsidizes the difference between the rates for telecommunications services in the health care provider's rural area and rates for comparable urban service. To receive RHC Program funding support, an applicant must be an eligible health care provider requesting an eligible service. Eligible health care providers seeking program support must select the most cost-effective eligible service offering through a fair and open competitive bidding process.
With this Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Commission is seeking comment on defining the scope of "similar services" and "comparable rural areas" for purposes of determining rural rates in the Telecommunications Program; measures to lessen the burdens resulting from the cost study option of determining rural rates and the associated evidentiary requirements proposed previously; ways to encourage the use of lower-cost back-up services; and establishing an eligible services list for the RHC Program, modeled in part on the E-Rate program's eligible services list.
The Commission began the current series of program reforms in 2019, and since then has adopted numerous improvements that have expanded program participation and promoted program efficiency and effectiveness. Through today's actions, the Commission continues on that course by focusing on ways to reduce administrative burdens and costs on RHC Program participants while also examining how best to administer limited funding given increased program participation and service costs. The Order portion of today's action permits the use of previously approved rural rates for funding year 2027 that would otherwise require approval of a cost-based justification.
Action by the Commission August 6, 2026 by Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Order (FCC 26-54). Chairman Carr, Commissioners Gomez and Trusty approving. Chairman Carr and Commissioner Trusty issuing separate statements.
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Original text here: https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DOC-424077A1.pdf
CPSC Issues Recall Alert Involving Wnttmt Baby Walkers
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued the following recall alert:
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Name of Product: Wnttmt Baby Walkers
Hazard: The recalled infant walkers violate the mandatory standard for infant walkers because they can fit through a standard doorway and fail to stop at the edge of a step, posing a deadly fall hazard. In addition, the infant walkers have leg openings that allow the child to slip down until the child's head can become entrapped, posing a risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy: Refund
Recall Date: August 06, 2026
Units: About 1,310
Consumer Contact:
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued the following recall alert:
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Name of Product: Wnttmt Baby Walkers
Hazard: The recalled infant walkers violate the mandatory standard for infant walkers because they can fit through a standard doorway and fail to stop at the edge of a step, posing a deadly fall hazard. In addition, the infant walkers have leg openings that allow the child to slip down until the child's head can become entrapped, posing a risk of serious injury or death.
Remedy: Refund
Recall Date: August 06, 2026
Units: About 1,310
Consumer Contact:WURUI.BABY by email at wbabywalker-recall@outlook.com.
Recall Details
Description: This recall involves Wnttmt-branded infant walkers. The walkers are sold in gray with a white tray and round base. The walkers have eight-wheel assemblies and three adjustable levels. "Production Batch: 202509" is printed on a tracking label located under the seat.
Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled infant walkers immediately and contact WURUI.BABY for a full refund. Consumers will be asked to disassemble the walker, cut the fabric seat, write "Recalled" on the top of the tray in permanent marker and send a photo of the recalled infant walker to wbabywalker-recall@outlook.com.
Incidents/Injuries: None reported
Sold Online At: Amazon.com from February 2026 through March 2026 for between $65 and $75.
Retailer: Changsha Yuelu District Ruiwu E-Commerce Co., Ltd., dba WURUI.BABY, of China
Manufactured In: China
Recall number: 26-665
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Original text here: https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2026/Wnttmt-Baby-Walkers-Recalled-Due-to-Risk-of-Serious-Injury-or-Death-from-Fall-and-Entrapment-Hazards-Violate-Mandatory-Standard-for-Infant-Walkers-Sold-on-Amazon-by-WURUI-BABY
CPSC Issues Recall Alert Involving Liuqibax Adult Bed Rails
WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued the following recall alert:
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Name of Product: Liuqibax Adult Bed Rails
Hazard: The recalled bed rails violate the mandatory standard for adult portable bed rails because users can become entrapped within the bed rail or between the bed rail and the side of the mattress, posing a serious entrapment hazard and risk of death by asphyxiation. In addition, the bed rails do not bear the required hazard warning labels.
Remedy: Refund
Recall Date: August 06, 2026
Units: About 12,000
Consumer Contact: Luqiba by email at Liuqibax@outlook.com.
Recall
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WASHINGTON, Aug. 7 -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued the following recall alert:
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Name of Product: Liuqibax Adult Bed Rails
Hazard: The recalled bed rails violate the mandatory standard for adult portable bed rails because users can become entrapped within the bed rail or between the bed rail and the side of the mattress, posing a serious entrapment hazard and risk of death by asphyxiation. In addition, the bed rails do not bear the required hazard warning labels.
Remedy: Refund
Recall Date: August 06, 2026
Units: About 12,000
Consumer Contact: Luqiba by email at Liuqibax@outlook.com.
RecallDetails
Description: This recall involves Liuqibax-branded adult portable bed rails, Model BR-11. The black or white bed rails measure about 30.5 inches wide by 40.5 inches tall and weigh 6 pounds. "LIUQIBAX" is printed on the product packaging.
Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled bed rails immediately and contact Luqiba for a full refund. Consumers will be asked to destroy the bed rails by dismantling them, cutting off the safety strap and storage bag and writing in permanent marker "RECALLED" on the upper and lower rails, and email a photo of the destroyed rails to Liuqibax@outlook.com. Consumers should then dispose of the destroyed product.
Incidents/Injuries: None reported
Sold Online At: Amazon.com from July 2024 through May 2026 for about $60.
Importer(s): Changsha 678 Trading Co., Ltd., dba Luqiba, of China
Manufactured In: China
Recall number: 26-668
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Original text here: https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2026/Liuqibax-Adult-Bed-Rails-Recalled-Due-to-Risk-of-Serious-Injury-or-Death-from-Entrapment-and-Asphyxiation-Violate-Mandatory-Standard-for-Adult-Portable-Bed-Rails-Sold-on-Amazon-by-Luqiba
