Federal Independent Agencies
Here's a look at documents from federal independent agencies
Featured Stories
Understanding Ebola: What People Should Know
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The National Academy of Medicine issued the following Q&A involving International Secretary Carlos del Rio, distinguished professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University:
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Understanding Ebola: What People Should Know
Interview by Laura DeStefano
The May 2026 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has renewed concern about emerging infectious diseases and the world's ability to respond. Although Ebola outbreaks are typically concentrated in parts of Central and West Africa, the interconnected nature of modern
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The National Academy of Medicine issued the following Q&A involving International Secretary Carlos del Rio, distinguished professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University:
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Understanding Ebola: What People Should Know
Interview by Laura DeStefano
The May 2026 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda has renewed concern about emerging infectious diseases and the world's ability to respond. Although Ebola outbreaks are typically concentrated in parts of Central and West Africa, the interconnected nature of moderntravel means even geographically limited outbreaks deserve close international attention.
The current outbreak has raised additional questions because it involves a rare strain of Ebola, Bundibugyo that has a high fatality rate and for which no specific vaccines or treatments exist. It is also quickly proving to be a large outbreak. According to the World Health Organization as of May 20, 2026, approximately 600 suspected cases had been reported, including 139 deaths among suspected cases. 51 confirmed cases had been reported in DRC and two imported cases in Uganda. Public health officials, particularly the World Health Organization, are taking measures to contain the outbreak while researchers work to better understand the virus and evaluate potential medical countermeasures.
To help explain what Ebola is, how it spreads, and what the latest outbreak means for the broader public, we spoke with Carlos del Rio, MD, Distinguished Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University and the International Secretary of the National Academy of Medicine. Del Rio is the creator of a free online course on Ebola virus disease. In this interview, del Rio discusses the biology of Ebola, why hemorrhagic viruses are so dangerous, the challenges of vaccine development, and why continued global investment in outbreak preparedness remains essential.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
To start with the basics - what is Ebola and how does it spread?
Ebola is a severe viral hemorrhagic fever caused by a group of viruses that are believed to circulate primarily in fruit bats. Humans get infected through contact with infected animals or their bodily fluids. For example, a person can get infected if a bat pees on a mango and they pick the mango, but what's more likely is chimpanzees and gorillas eat that mango, get infected, and subsequently infect humans who are hunting them.
Ebola then spreads in a population through human-to-human transmission through direct contact with infected blood, vomit, saliva, or other bodily secretions. Caregivers and healthcare workers are especially vulnerable when they take care of infected persons without proper protective equipment.
What are the symptoms?
Ebola initially causes fever, fatigue, muscle aches, vomiting, and diarrhea. But the reason the disease is so dangerous is because it damages blood vessels and prevents blood from clotting properly, leading to widespread internal and external bleeding. Patients can develop a condition called disseminated intravascular coagulation, in which the body simultaneously forms clots and bleeds uncontrollably. Organs begin to fail and patients can essentially bleed to death.
Depending on the availability of medical care, which can be limited in remote areas, Ebola's fatality rate can be extremely high.
Is there a vaccine?
Yes, two vaccines have been developed and are pre-qualified by the WHO to be used in outbreak situations. However, these vaccines are for the Zaire strain of Ebola and it won't protect against the Bundibugyo strain. It's not necessarily going to be easy to create a vaccine for Bundibugyo just because we have a vaccine for a different strain. We need research to understand how this strain behaves and to produce and effective vaccine
Are there treatments?
Ebola patients get supportive care to help their bodies recover, including IV fluids, electrolyte management, and intensive care when necessary. They also get monoclonal antibodies - immune therapies that are also used to treat cancer and other diseases. There are currently two FDA-approved monoclonal antibodies ( Inmazeb and Ebanga) to treat Ebola virus disease caused by the Zaire ebolavirus strain. These antibodies function by binding to the virus surface glycoprotein, blocking it from entering and infecting human cells.
Why are Ebola outbreaks usually concentrated in parts of Africa? Could they occur elsewhere?
They happen in Africa because that's where the fruit bats that host the virus live. Ebola isn't likely to move out of the region unless it's carried by humans. Occasionally, infected travelers have carried Ebola to other countries - including the United States during the 2014 outbreak -but it didn't lead to an outbreak outside Africa.
Travel is always a concern because it's so easy and fast to carry a disease across borders. But Ebola is much harder to spread than airborne viruses (like COVID-19) because transmission requires close contact with bodily fluids. Public health measures like isolation and contact tracing are very effective at stopping Ebola outbreaks when they are implemented quickly.
How has the global response to Ebola changed since 2014?
We've learned a lot. We have vaccines and better diagnostics and therapeutics but only agains t the Zaire ebolavirus strain which is also the most common. We have also strengthened outbreak response systems. The World Health Organization (WHO) has played a really important role in coordinating surveillance, public communication, and emergency response. But the loss of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), which used to provide health care in Africa, and the U.S. withdrawal from WHO have been a real setback in responding to infectious disease outbreaks, particularly in remote areas.
Why should Americans care about outbreaks happening thousands of miles away?
Infectious diseases anywhere in the world can potentially become a global concern and arrive at the U.S. COVID-19 demonstrated how interconnected the world has become. Even when the immediate risk to Americans is low, monitoring and responding to outbreaks early is critical to preventing larger crises later.
Read More About Ebola:
* Are there proven treatments for Ebola?
* How does Ebola spread from person to person?
* Does the current Ebola vaccine protect against every type of Ebola virus?
Read the latest insights from the NAM community.
Read our Health Basics page.
Laura DeStefano is the Director of Strateg ic Communications & Engagement at the National Academy of Medicine and a science communicator.
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Original text here: https://nam.edu/news-and-insights/understanding-ebola-what-people-should-know/
Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute: When Human Movement Changes, Different Animal Species Respond in Their Own Ways
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSjou) -- The Smithsonian Institution National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute issued the following news release:
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When Human Movement Changes, Different Animal Species Respond in Their Own Ways
Tracking Animal Adaptations During the COVID-19 Lockdown, Scientists Show How Human Presence and Habitat Modifications Affect the Way Animals Behave
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A new analysis of GPS tracking data from 37 animal species, paired with cellphone location data from across the United States, shows that not only does animal behavior change when humans modify their environment, but
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WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSjou) -- The Smithsonian Institution National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute issued the following news release:
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When Human Movement Changes, Different Animal Species Respond in Their Own Ways
Tracking Animal Adaptations During the COVID-19 Lockdown, Scientists Show How Human Presence and Habitat Modifications Affect the Way Animals Behave
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A new analysis of GPS tracking data from 37 animal species, paired with cellphone location data from across the United States, shows that not only does animal behavior change when humans modify their environment, butthat animals respond directly to the physical presence of humans themselves. The study, an international collaboration led by the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute; UC Santa Barbara; the University of St. Andrews; and, Yale University, published today, May 21, in Science, also showed that animals' responses to landscape modification and human presence varies widely from species to species, suggesting that more nuanced approaches to wildlife management and animal conservation may be possible.
In 2020, COVID-19 lockdown policies went into effect that changed the way humans moved around. Despite the tragic circumstances that led to the lockdown, this situation gave the research team a rare opportunity to observe the effects of landscape modification and human presence on animal movements separately. During the same period in 2019 and 2020, the team analyzed GPS data on 4,581 mammals and birds across the continental United States on a weekly basis. But to measure the presence of humans, the team needed a more precise method than what is typically available.
Due to the dearth of publicly accessible human location data, scientists seeking to understand how human movement affects animals typically examine proxies for human presence such as urbanization, agriculture and, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown status. Yet these proxies do not offer a precise measure of human movement itself. So, the research team was the first to use anonymized geolocation data from people's cell phones at neighborhood-level resolution to study the impacts of human presence on animal movement.
"The cell phone data we used was made available to researchers during the pandemic to help reveal the impacts of COVID-19 shutdowns," said Scott Yanco, a research ecologist at the Zoo and co-lead author of the study. "Typically, these data are difficult or expensive to access, which made this a rare opportunity for us to quantify how human presence impacts wildlife, and to demonstrate that there is more to consider than just land modification to create robust conservation plans."
The research team studied human impacts on the physical area covered by each individual animal and each individual animal's environmental niche, a concept that describes how animals interact with habitats and resources. Overall, the team found that for most species, the impacts of humans cannot be understood without considering human presence.
As humans restricted their movements during the pandemic, about two-thirds of the mammal and bird species studied exhibited changes in the size of either the area they occupied or their environmental niche. For the species that were impacted by both human presence and landscape modification--more than half of those studied--the degree to which one factor affected an animal largely depended on the impact of the other. Further, about two thirds of mammal species and two fifths of bird species responded to human activity by shrinking their habitat, with human presence having the greatest impact in landscapes that were less modified, such as a national park versus a city.
The impacts seen among the animals varied widely among species. Wolves, for example, unlike the other animals studied, responded to humans by expanding their habitats, possibly due to their fraught history with humans and their desire to spread out and away from human activity. White-tailed deer, meanwhile, expanded their niches as landscape modification increased but shrank them as humans increased their presence, and sandhill cranes showed the opposite response.
"These findings highlight the critical importance of species-based conservation," said Ruth Oliver, an assistant professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara and a co-lead author on the study. "Every species has different habitat requirements, has its own behavioral tendencies and faces unique threats. Effective conservation requires that we understand the particular challenges that each species faces."
This study is a part of the COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative, which brought together researchers from around the world to investigate how wildlife responded to COVID-19 lockdowns, a period they termed the "anthropause." Previous work by this initiative has revealed widespread behavioral changes in mammals globally, dramatic shifts in marine traffic patterns and the importance of measuring human movements in understanding wildlife responses to the Anthropocene (the time period when human activities have had an environmental impact on the Earth).
"Through collaboration with over 600 partners around the globe, our initiative managed to collate tracking data for about 13,000 animals," said Christian Rutz, a professor at the University of St. Andrews and chair of the COVID-19 Bio-Logging Initiative. "It is inspiring how this research community pulled together during a period of crisis to learn important conservation lessons."
The findings from this study highlight the opportunity for research using emerging technologies to study the movements of both animals and people to enable more nuanced and targeted approaches towards conserving wildlife. The data let the researchers consider not just landscape modifications but also the distinct interactions between human infrastructure and the presence of humans themselves and their impact on individual species.
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About the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
The Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) leads the Smithsonian's global effort to save species, better understand ecosystems and train future generations of conservationists. Its two campuses are home to some of the world's most critically endangered species. Always free of charge, the Zoo's 163-acre park in the heart of Washington, D.C., features 2,200 animals representing 400 species and is a popular destination for children and families. At the Conservation Biology Institute's 3,200-acre campus in Virginia, breeding and veterinary research on 264 animals representing 20 species provide critical data for the management of animals in human care and valuable insights for conservation of wild populations. NZCBI's more than 300 staff and scientists work in Washington, D.C., Virginia and with partners at field sites across the United States and in more than 30 countries to save wildlife, collaborate with communities and conserve native habitats. NZCBI is a long-standing accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
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View journal here: http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adq3396
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Original text here: https://www.si.edu/newsdesk/releases/when-human-movement-changes-different-animal-species-respond-their-own-ways
Small Business Administration: Administrator Loeffler Applauds Signature of Investing in All of America Act
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The Small Business Administration issued the following news release on May 21, 2026:
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Administrator Loeffler Applauds Signature of Investing in All of America Act
H.R. 2066 strengthens the SBIC program, expanding access to capital for rural communities and critical industries
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Today, Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), applauded President Donald J. Trump for signing H.R. 2066, the Investing in All of America Act, into law. The legislation, which was sponsored by U.S. House Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Member
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The Small Business Administration issued the following news release on May 21, 2026:
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Administrator Loeffler Applauds Signature of Investing in All of America Act
H.R. 2066 strengthens the SBIC program, expanding access to capital for rural communities and critical industries
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Today, Kelly Loeffler, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), applauded President Donald J. Trump for signing H.R. 2066, the Investing in All of America Act, into law. The legislation, which was sponsored by U.S. House Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee MemberDan Meuser (R-PA), strengthens SBA's Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program by increasing existing leverage caps and expanding access to capital for investments in rural communities, manufacturing, and other critical industries.
"Powered by private investment, the Investing in All of America Act will expand the SBIC's capacity to power our nation's industrial resurgence by getting more capital to entrepreneurs and manufacturers in rural communities," said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. "This means faster scaling, more innovation, and the ability to compete in the critical industries that will strengthen America's economic and national security. I applaud Congressman Meuser and his colleagues for advancing this important legislation, and I am grateful to President Trump for signing it into law for America's small business owners and workers."
The SBIC program is a zero-subsidy public-private partnership that supports investment in American small businesses. Since 1958, the program's mission has been to stimulate and supplement the flow of financing that small businesses require to build, scale, and innovate. The SBA issues licenses to professionally managed equity and debt investment funds, which may access long-term capital to invest in qualifying small businesses. In FY2025, the SBIC program achieved a record $53 billion in combined private capital and SBA leverage.
H.R. 2066 will further President Trump's pro-growth economic agenda, which is unleashing business investment, by modernizing the SBIC program through updated leverage caps, stronger taxpayer protections, and reforms designed to attract long-term private investment. Those changes will help direct more capital to rural America and local businesses by ensuring investments in rural areas, manufacturing, and critical technologies do not count against an SBIC's leverage cap. In turn, the legislation will help small manufacturers and other job creators expand, innovate, and compete in the industries that are vital to America's economic strength.
To learn more about becoming an investor or partner of the SBIC program, visit https://www.sba.gov/partners/sbics.
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About the Small Business Investment Company Program
Since 1958, the mission of the Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) program has been to stimulate and supplement the flow of private equity capital and long-term debt financing that American small businesses need to operate, expand and modernize their businesses. SBA does this by licensing and providing capital to professionally managed equity and debt investment funds as Small Business Investment Companies. SBA capital comes in the form of a government-guaranteed loan to the fund to match privately raised capital. The SBA-guaranteed loan, paired with private capital, increases access to financing for qualifying U.S. small businesses and startups while potentially improving risk-adjusted returns for private investors.
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About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of entrepreneurship. As the leading voice for small businesses within the federal government, the SBA empowers job creators with the resources and support they need to start, grow, and expand their businesses or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
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Original text here: https://www.sba.gov/article/2026/05/21/administrator-loeffler-applauds-signature-investing-all-america-act
SBA Opens Business Recovery Center in Saipan to Help Small Businesses Impacted by Super Typhoon Sinlaku
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The Small Business Administration's Office of Disaster Assistance issued the following news release:
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SBA Opens Business Recovery Center in Saipan to Help Small Businesses Impacted by Super Typhoon Sinlaku
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WASHINGTON -The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today the opening of a Business Recovery Center (BRC) in Saipan County to assist businesses, private nonprofit (PNP) organizations, and residents affected by Super Typhoon Sinlaku occurring April 11 - 18.
Beginning Tuesday, May 26, SBA customer service representatives will be on hand at the BRC
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 22 -- The Small Business Administration's Office of Disaster Assistance issued the following news release:
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SBA Opens Business Recovery Center in Saipan to Help Small Businesses Impacted by Super Typhoon Sinlaku
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WASHINGTON -The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today the opening of a Business Recovery Center (BRC) in Saipan County to assist businesses, private nonprofit (PNP) organizations, and residents affected by Super Typhoon Sinlaku occurring April 11 - 18.
Beginning Tuesday, May 26, SBA customer service representatives will be on hand at the BRCin Saipan to answer questions and assist with the disaster loan application process. Walk-ins are welcome, and you can also schedule an in-person appointment in advance at appointment.sba.gov.
The center's hours of operation are as follows:
SAIPAN MUNICIPALITY
Business Recovery Center
Marianas Business Plaza
Second Floor, Suite 201-A
Nauru Loop, Susupe
Saipan, MP 96950
Opens Tuesday, May 26 at 9:00 a.m.
Mondays - Fridays, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
"SBA's Business Recovery Centers have consistently proven their value to business owners following a disaster," said Chris Stallings, associate administrator of the Office of Disaster Recovery and Resilience at the SBA. "Business owners can visit these centers to meet face-to-face with specialists who will guide them through the disaster loan application process and connect them with resources to support their recovery."
Businesses and nonprofits are eligible to apply for business physical disaster loans and may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets.
The SBA's Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program is available to small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, and PNPs -including faith-based organizations -with financial losses directly related to the disaster. The SBA is unable to provide disaster loans to agricultural producers, farmers, or ranchers, except for small aquaculture enterprises.
EIDLs are available for working capital needs caused by the disaster and are available even if the business or PNP did not suffer any physical damage. The loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills which could not be paid due to the disaster.
Homeowners and renters are eligible to apply for home and personal property loans and may borrow up to $100,000 to replace or repair personal property, such as clothing, furniture, cars, and appliances. Homeowners may apply for up to $500,000 to replace or repair their primary residence.
SBA representatives will also provide help to business owners and residents at disaster recovery centers when they are opened in the impacted area.
Interest rates are as low as 4% for small businesses, 3.625% for nonprofits, and 2.875% for homeowners and renters with terms of up to 30 years. Interest does not begin to accrue, and payments are not due until 12 months from the date of the first loan disbursement. The SBA determines eligibility and sets loan amounts and terms based on each applicant's financial condition.
To apply online, visit sba.gov/disaster. Applicants may also call SBA's Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov for more information on SBA disaster assistance. For people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, please dial 7-1-1 to access telecommunications relay services.
The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is June 22. The deadline to return economic injury applications is Jan. 25, 2027.
About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of business ownership. As the only go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow, expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
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Original text here: https://www.sba.gov/article/2026/05/22/sba-opens-business-recovery-center-saipan-help-small-businesses-impacted-super-typhoon-sinlaku
Inter-American Development Bank: 'Global Production Networks and Imperfect Competition.'
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper in May 2026 entitled "Global Production Networks and Imperfect Competition."
Here are excerpts:
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Introduction
Global value chains (GVCs) have transformed economic activity, as firms today transact with buyers and suppliers worldwide (e.g., Bernard and Moxnes, 2018; Antras and Chor ' , 2022). Both trade and market reforms have contributed to this development, with the rise of China after it joined the WTO in 2001 being a prominent example. This allowed great numbers of Chinese suppliers
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WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper in May 2026 entitled "Global Production Networks and Imperfect Competition."
Here are excerpts:
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Introduction
Global value chains (GVCs) have transformed economic activity, as firms today transact with buyers and suppliers worldwide (e.g., Bernard and Moxnes, 2018; Antras and Chor ' , 2022). Both trade and market reforms have contributed to this development, with the rise of China after it joined the WTO in 2001 being a prominent example. This allowed great numbers of Chinese suppliersto enter and thicken otherwise highly concentrated international goods markets, which in turn prompted producers around the world to restructure their supplier base. Yet GVCs today face policy polarization: Alongside a rise in trade disintegration (e.g., Brexit, US-China trade war) and protectionist industrial policy (Juhasz et al. ' , 2024), new deep trade agreements increasingly combine tariff cuts with regulatory harmonization, trade promotion, and competition policy, to facilitate firm entry and firm-to-firm transactions (Maggi and Ossa, 2021).
We study how firm network formation and imperfect supplier competition interact to shape GVCs and the welfare effects of trade and industrial policy. Intuitively, reforms that lower the costs of supplier entry, buyer-supplier matching, or international trade can each affect firms' marginal costs and ultimately consumer prices through two channels: Firms can both match with a larger set of potentially more productive suppliers (Antras et al. ` , 2017) and benefit from lower input markups due to tougher supplier competition (Alviarez et al., 2023). While these mechanisms have typically been studied in isolation, we show that the interaction of endogenous firm linkages and strategic supplier interaction has first-order consequences for the impact of policy on consumer welfare and heterogeneous firms.
We first develop a quantifiable model with two-sided firm heterogeneity, matching frictions, and oligopolistic competition upstream. In the model, more productive buyers match with more suppliers, inducing stronger competition among them, lower input costs, and higher profits.
Entry upstream benefits primarily high-productivity buyers, while lower trade or matching costs favor mid-productivity buyers. Exploiting rich customs data, we then empirically confirm that Chilean and French firms (especially large ones) import higher quantities at lower prices as more Chinese suppliers enter, and that suppliers charge diversified buyers lower markups. Finally, we estimate the model by adapting recent methods for combinatorial, discrete-choice problems to the context of network formation with strategic pricing. Counterfactual analysis reveals that the interaction of endogenous networks and markups significantly amplifies the welfare gains from policies that facilitate supplier entry or firm matching, as well as from modern trade agreements that combine trade cost cuts with such policies.
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View full text here: https://publications.iadb.org/publications/english/document/Global-Production-Networks-and-Imperfect-Competition.pdf
[Category: IADB]
Inter-American Development Bank: 'An Anatomy of the Great Reallocation in US Supply Chain Trade'
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper in May 2026 entitled "An Anatomy of the Great Reallocation in US Supply Chain Trade."
Here are excerpts:
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Introduction
Over the past decade, international trade and the conduct of trade policy have been severely upended by a series of events in quick succession. For the US, the wheels were set in motion with its adoption of unilateral tariff actions starting in 2018 under the first Trump administration.
These especially targeted imports from China, notably with the Section 301 tariffs
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following white paper in May 2026 entitled "An Anatomy of the Great Reallocation in US Supply Chain Trade."
Here are excerpts:
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Introduction
Over the past decade, international trade and the conduct of trade policy have been severely upended by a series of events in quick succession. For the US, the wheels were set in motion with its adoption of unilateral tariff actions starting in 2018 under the first Trump administration.
These especially targeted imports from China, notably with the Section 301 tariffsintended ostensibly to counter China's unfair practices on trade and market access. Implemented over four rounds in 2018-2019, these drove the US' average tariff rate against China up by around an additional 20 percentage points as of the end of 2019 (Bown, 2021; Chor and Li, 2024).1 By 2020-2021, amid the supply chain disruptions and bottlenecks during the Covid-19 pandemic, this push to reduce the US' dependence on China gained urgency with calls for more "friendshoring", "nearshoring", and even "reshoring".
These tariff shocks initiated a reshuffling in international trade and sourcing patterns, shifting the US away from China as a trade partner. Between 2017-2022, China's share in US direct imports fell from around 21% to 16%, with countries such as Vietnam and Mexico gaining much of this US import market share (see also, Dang et al., 2023; Grossman et al., 2024; Freund et al., 2024; Garred and Yuan, 2025). In our prior work (Alfaro and Chor, 2023), we had characterized this "great reallocation" in US supply chains as "looming" on the horizon. However, it is fair to say that this adjective can now be dropped without qualifications. While there was some initial uncertainty over whether the Biden administration might roll back the turn toward protectionism, it became clear by the middle of the 2020-2024 presidential term that the 2018-2019 tariff policies would remain largely in place for the foreseeable future. Hopes of a return to freer trade have since been further dashed by the Liberation Day tariff salvos fired off on 2 April 2025 by the second Trump administration.
In this paper, we set out to provide an update on this shakeup in US import patterns, to document the far-reaching impact of this ongoing reallocation in global trade and supply chain activity that has been centered for decades on the US as a key destination market. Our agenda is inherently descriptive. With a longer span of trade data up to 2025 now available, we are able to document the response of US import sourcing to the 2018-2019 wave of tariff shocks over the short- to medium-run. We investigate more closely the responses in these trade flows for detailed product codes (up to the HS 6-digit level of disaggregation), while correlating these with industry and product characteristics to ascertain the types of goods in which these sourcing shifts are occurring. We also take a preliminary look at the early aftermath of the Liberation Day tariff announcements, to examine the imprint these already have made on US import sourcing decisions.
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View full text here: file:///Users/moirasirois/Downloads/An-Anatomy-of-the-Great-Reallocation-in-US-Supply-Chain-Trade.pdf
[Category: IADB]
EPA IG: Independent Audit of the EPA's Fiscal Years 2024 and 2023 Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund Financial Statements
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Environmental Protection Agency Inspector General issued the following report (26-F-0032) entitled "Independent Audit of the EPA's Fiscal Years 2024 and 2023 Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund Financial Statements."
Here are excerpts:
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Why We Did This Audit
To accomplish this objective:
We conducted this audit pursuant to the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act. The Act requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to prepare and the Office of Inspector General to audit the accompanying financial statements of the
... Show Full Article
WASHINGTON, May 22 (TNSLrpt) -- The Environmental Protection Agency Inspector General issued the following report (26-F-0032) entitled "Independent Audit of the EPA's Fiscal Years 2024 and 2023 Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund Financial Statements."
Here are excerpts:
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Why We Did This Audit
To accomplish this objective:
We conducted this audit pursuant to the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act. The Act requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to prepare and the Office of Inspector General to audit the accompanying financial statements of theEPA's Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund. Our primary objectives were to determine whether the:
* Fund's financial statements were fairly stated in all material respects.
* EPA's internal control over financial reporting was in place.
* EPA's management complied with applicable laws, regulations, contracts, and grant agreements.
The Act also requires the OIG to analyze the fees collected and disbursed, the fee structure, the level of use of the Electronic Manifest system, and the success of the system in operating on a self-sustaining basis.
To support this EPA mission-related effort:
* Operating efficiently and effectively
The EPA Receives an Unmodified Opinion for Fiscal Years 2024 and 2023
We rendered an unmodified opinion on the EPA's fiscal years 2024 and 2023 Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest System Fund, known as the e-Manifest Fund, financial statements, meaning that the statements were fairly presented and free of material misstatement. We did not identify any matters that we consider to be material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in the fund.
Compliance with Applicable Laws, Regulations, Contracts, and Grant Agreements
We did not identify any instances of noncompliance that could result in a material misstatement to the audited financial statements.
Other Governmental Reporting Requirements We performed the audit requirements outlined in the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act. Specifically, we analyzed the (1) fees collected and disbursed, (2) reasonableness of the fee structure to meet current and projected costs, (3) level of use of the e-Manifest system, and (4) the success of the system in operating on a self-sustaining basis.
The e-Manifest system is a national system designed to track hazardous waste. Manifests are required shipping forms that detail the type and quantity of waste being transported and instructions for handling it. As authorized by the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act to support e-Manifest system costs, the EPA charges facilities fees for each manifest they submit. The fees vary based on the type of manifest submitted.
Our analysis did not identify any indication that the fee structure was not reasonable.
According to the EPA's data, from the launch of the e-Manifest system in fiscal year 2018 through fiscal year 2024, the Agency billed for more than 10.8 million manifests that were submitted by facilities receiving hazardous waste. Also, based on our analysis, it appears that the EPA has collected sufficient fees for the system to operate on a self-sustaining basis. However, despite the Agency's goal that facilities would submit at least 75 percent of their manifests electronically by 2022, as of September 2024 they had submitted less than 0.5 percent electronically. The EPA intends to conduct outreach activities that will assist with electronic manifest adoption.
This report does not contain any findings or recommendations.
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The report is posted at: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2026-05/_epaoig_20260519-26-f-0032_cert.pdf
