Federal Independent Agencies
Here's a look at documents from federal independent agencies
Featured Stories
Social Security Applauds Passage of Legislation Providing Historic Tax Relief for Seniors
WOODLAWN, Maryland, July 4 -- The Social Security Administration issued the following news release:
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Social Security Applauds Passage of Legislation Providing Historic Tax Relief for Seniors
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The Social Security Administration (SSA) is celebrating the passage of the One Big, Beautiful Bill, a landmark piece of legislation that delivers long-awaited tax relief to millions of older Americans.
The bill ensures that nearly 90% of Social Security beneficiaries will no longer pay federal income taxes on their benefits, providing meaningful and immediate relief to seniors who have spent a lifetime
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WOODLAWN, Maryland, July 4 -- The Social Security Administration issued the following news release:
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Social Security Applauds Passage of Legislation Providing Historic Tax Relief for Seniors
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The Social Security Administration (SSA) is celebrating the passage of the One Big, Beautiful Bill, a landmark piece of legislation that delivers long-awaited tax relief to millions of older Americans.
The bill ensures that nearly 90% of Social Security beneficiaries will no longer pay federal income taxes on their benefits, providing meaningful and immediate relief to seniors who have spent a lifetimecontributing to our nation's economy.
"This is a historic step forward for America's seniors," said Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano. "For nearly 90 years, Social Security has been a cornerstone of economic security for older Americans. By significantly reducing the tax burden on benefits, this legislation reaffirms President Trump's promise to protect Social Security and helps ensure that seniors can better enjoy the retirement they've earned."
The new law includes a provision that eliminates federal income taxes on Social Security benefits for most beneficiaries, providing relief to individuals and couples. Additionally, it provides an enhanced deduction for taxpayers aged 65 and older, ensuring that retirees can keep more of what they have earned.
Social Security remains committed to providing timely, accurate information to the public and will continue working closely with federal partners to ensure beneficiaries understand how this legislation may affect them.
For more information about Social Security programs and benefits, visit www.ssa.gov.
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Original text here: https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/releases/2025/#2025-07-03
Paraguay to Improve Rural Access to Services and Productive Markets With IDB Support
WASHINGTON, July 3 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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Paraguay to Improve Rural Access to Services and Productive Markets with IDB support
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WASHINGTON -- The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a $75 million multiple works loan to boost agricultural competitiveness and economic and social development in rural Paraguay by improving rural roads in the country's Eastern Region.
The operation, which has been approved by the IDB's Board of Executive Directors, aims to expand vulnerable populations' access to services and productive markets,
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WASHINGTON, July 3 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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Paraguay to Improve Rural Access to Services and Productive Markets with IDB support
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WASHINGTON -- The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a $75 million multiple works loan to boost agricultural competitiveness and economic and social development in rural Paraguay by improving rural roads in the country's Eastern Region.
The operation, which has been approved by the IDB's Board of Executive Directors, aims to expand vulnerable populations' access to services and productive markets,address local road infrastructure gaps, and make them more resilient by prioritizing positive social and economic impact.
The IDB-financed program will improve approximately 123 kilometers of local roads through drainage, erosion control, slope protection, and other measures. It will also build new bridges, replace ones in critical condition, and maintain the improved roads for four years.
The program will also implement road safety strategies to make the schools along the roads safer and easier for students to access.
In addition, the program will finance an updated Transportation Infrastructure and Services Master Plan, which will build the sector's institutional planning capacities and optimize public spending.
This program will benefit an estimated 170,000 people, including those who live and work in the areas served by the roads to be improved. Approximately 30 percent of this population lives in poverty. The stretches of road targeted by the project include Carayao-Nicolas Bo, Cristo Rey-Carpacue, and Abai-Taruma-Tuna, in the departments of Caaguazu and Caazapa. The program will also build a 100-meter bridge over the Monday River in Colonia Pengo San Miguel in Alto Parana, among others.
The IDB has been a strategic partner for Paraguay as the country integrates its regions and expands access to markets and social services for its rural population. In the last decade, the IDB has supported several rural road and highway improvement programs, and this operation complements and builds on that progress.
The IDB loan has a 22.5-year repayment term, an 8-year grace period, and an interest rate based on the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR).
About the IDB
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is devoted to improving lives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1959, the IDB works with the region's public sector to design and enable impactful, innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development. Leveraging financing, technical expertise and knowledge, it promotes growth and well-being in 26 countries. Visit our website www.iadb.org/en.
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Original text here: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/paraguay-improve-rural-access-services-and-productive-markets-idb-support
IDB and EIB Strengthen Partnership to Boost Development Impact
WASHINGTON, July 3 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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IDB and EIB Strengthen Partnership to Boost Development Impact
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SEVILLE -- At the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) in Seville, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed a cooperation agreement to increase financing and deliver stronger development impact in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The agreement reflects a shared commitment by both institutions to work closer and more effectively as a system to increase
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WASHINGTON, July 3 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release:
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IDB and EIB Strengthen Partnership to Boost Development Impact
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SEVILLE -- At the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (FFD4) in Seville, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed a cooperation agreement to increase financing and deliver stronger development impact in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The agreement reflects a shared commitment by both institutions to work closer and more effectively as a system to increaseresource mobilization for the financing of sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean. It also strengthens the pipeline of EU-aligned financing under the European Union's Global Gateway, helping to convert priorities into results on the ground in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The partnership aims to:
* Scale up joint financing - through increased co-financing, including joint sovereign-guaranteed operations such as Results-Based Loans in priority sectors.
* Mobilize private capital - by streamlining collaboration on non-sovereign operations and scaling financial innovations such as blended finance, de-linked guarantees, and co-guarantees to reduce risk and attract investment.
* Strengthen system-wide collaboration - by exploring exposure exchange agreements, expanding mutual reliance beyond procurement to include environmental and social standards and results frameworks, and promoting staff exchanges to deepen operational alignment.
* Align European resources with Latin America and Caribbean priorities - by translating Global Gateway objectives into actionable pipelines and maximizing the impact of EU funding across Latin America and the Caribbean.
"This agreement demonstrates what multilateral development banks can achieve when they act in a coordinated manner: aligning instruments, mobilizing capital, and accelerating results. With the EIB, we are also strengthening ties between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean, while generating impact on the ground," said IDB President Ilan Goldfajn.
"Europe stands with Latin America and the Caribbean. With this agreement, we are reinforcing our strategic partnership, which is key to the development of our projects and to achieving greater impact on the ground," said EIB President Nadia Calvino.
About the IDB
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is devoted to improving lives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1959, the IDB works with the region's public sector to design and enable impactful, innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development. Leveraging financing, technical expertise and knowledge, it promotes growth and well-being in 26 countries.
About EIB Global
The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by the Member States. It finances investments that pursue EU policy objectives.
EIB Global is the EIB Group's specialised arm devoted to increasing the impact of international partnerships and development finance, and a key partner of Global Gateway. It aims to support Euros100 billion of investment by the end of 2027 - around one-third of the overall target of this EU initiative. Within Team Europe, EIB Global fosters strong, focused partnerships alongside fellow development finance institutions and civil society. EIB Global brings the EIB Group closer to people, companies and institutions through its offices across the world.
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Original text here: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/idb-and-eib-strengthen-partnership-boost-development-impact
CIA Director John Ratcliffe Declassifies Internal Tradecraft Review of 2016 Election ICA to Promote Analytic Objectivity and Transparency
WASHINGTON, July 3 (TNSrpt) -- The Central Intelligence Agency issued the following news release on July 2, 2025:
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CIA Director John Ratcliffe Declassifies Internal Tradecraft Review of 2016 Election ICA to Promote Analytic Objectivity and Transparency
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Earlier this year, CIA Director John Ratcliffe tasked Agency career professionals with decades of experience to conduct a lessons-learned review of the procedures and analytic tradecraft employed in the Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) conducted shortly after the 2016 election. Today, Director Ratcliffe declassified the results
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WASHINGTON, July 3 (TNSrpt) -- The Central Intelligence Agency issued the following news release on July 2, 2025:
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CIA Director John Ratcliffe Declassifies Internal Tradecraft Review of 2016 Election ICA to Promote Analytic Objectivity and Transparency
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Earlier this year, CIA Director John Ratcliffe tasked Agency career professionals with decades of experience to conduct a lessons-learned review of the procedures and analytic tradecraft employed in the Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA) conducted shortly after the 2016 election. Today, Director Ratcliffe declassified the resultsof this review.
The tradecraft review identified multiple procedural anomalies in the preparation of the 2016 ICA, such as a compressed timeline, uneven access to compartmented information, marginalization of the National Intelligence Council, and excessive involvement of agency heads. The review notes that adhering to established analytic processes and rigorous tradecraft is essential to ensure credibility, objectivity, and accuracy of CIA analysis.
Director Ratcliffe declassified this review in order to promote analytic objectivity and transparency. "Agency heads at the time created a politically charged environment that triggered an atypical analytic process around an issue essential to our democracy," said Director Ratcliffe. "Under my watch, I am committed to ensuring that our analysts have the ability to deliver unvarnished assessments that are free from political influence."
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REPORT: https://www.cia.gov/static/Tradecraft-Review-2016-ICA-on-Election-Interference-062625.pdf
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Original text here: https://www.cia.gov/stories/story/cia-director-john-ratcliffe-declassifies-internal-tradecraft-review/
U.S. Office of Special Counsel: Whistleblowers Expose Lack of Mine Inspections Raising Serious Safety Concerns
WASHINGTON, July 2 -- The U.S. Office of Special Counsel issued the following news release on July 1, 2025:
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Whistleblowers Expose Lack of Mine Inspections Raising Serious Safety Concerns
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Today, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) alerted the President and Congress that a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) investigation substantiated serious safety and inspection concerns with active mines in the U.S. Pacific Territories of Guam, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Whistleblowers disclosed to OSC that the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)
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WASHINGTON, July 2 -- The U.S. Office of Special Counsel issued the following news release on July 1, 2025:
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Whistleblowers Expose Lack of Mine Inspections Raising Serious Safety Concerns
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Today, the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) alerted the President and Congress that a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) investigation substantiated serious safety and inspection concerns with active mines in the U.S. Pacific Territories of Guam, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Whistleblowers disclosed to OSC that the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA)repeatedly failed to inspect active underground and surface mines and falsely identified and reported them to Congress as "abandoned."
The DOL investigation substantiated the whistleblowers' allegations that 51 mines in the Pacific Territories had not been inspected since at least 2016, with inspections not scheduled until 2027. In connection, the DOL Office of Inspector General released an alert in 2024 during the investigation citing "urgent concerns for miner safety and health," while MSHA has been inaccurately reporting to Congress 100 percent inspection completion rates since at least 2023.
"OSC is thankful to the whistleblowers for bringing these disclosures to us, and we recommend that the DOL recognize their contributions to help ensure the safety of miners in the Pacific Territories," said Senior Counsel Charles Baldis.
A new OSC policy encourages agencies to provide monetary rewards in some whistleblower cases in line with agencies' existing statutory authority to grant whistleblowers rewards of up to $10,000, or more in some instances.
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Original text here: https://osc.gov/News/Pages/Whistleblowers%20Expose%20Lack%20of%20Mine%20Inspections%20Raising%20Serious%20Safety%20Concerns.aspx
Introducing the $5 Billion SHARE 2025 Advance Program
DALLAS, Texas, July 2 -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, a district bank in the Federal Home Loan Bank System, issued the following news release:
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Introducing the $5 Billion SHARE 2025 Advance Program
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* Bulletin No: 2025-18
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (Bank) is pleased to announce the 2025 Support for Housing Affordability Resource Enhancement (SHARE 2025) advance program to support members' commitment to housing affordability by providing a reduced interest rate on advances that support housing affordability initiatives. Under SHARE 2025, the Bank will make available
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DALLAS, Texas, July 2 -- The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas, a district bank in the Federal Home Loan Bank System, issued the following news release:
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Introducing the $5 Billion SHARE 2025 Advance Program
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* Bulletin No: 2025-18
The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (Bank) is pleased to announce the 2025 Support for Housing Affordability Resource Enhancement (SHARE 2025) advance program to support members' commitment to housing affordability by providing a reduced interest rate on advances that support housing affordability initiatives. Under SHARE 2025, the Bank will make available$5 billion in advances at rates that are significantly below standard advance rates. The program will be available from July 15, 2025 through January 15, 2026.
Uses and Advantages
* More favorable rate than traditional advances
* Affordable source of liquidity for funding loans and securities that support housing affordability
* Flexibility to use fixed-rate or SOFR-floating rate advances
Program Guidelines and Terms
* A total of $5 billion in reduced-rate advances will be offered through the program
* Total maximum advances per member will be capped at $1 billion
* $1.25 billion in capacity reserved until Wednesday, October 15, 2025 for Community Financial Institutions
* Minimum advance size must be at least $1,000
* Advance terms of six months to less than five years will be offered
Availability of Funds
* Funding requests must be made by calling Member Services at 844.345.2265
* Funds availability is subject to a member's calculated SHARE 2025 lending limit, a member's outstanding advances balance, SHARE 2025 program limits and remaining funds available in the program at the time of the request
* Rates pricing is subject to the Bank's Capital Markets Policy and will follow the standard rate pricing procedure. Advances under this program are subject to compliance with all Bank credit, collateral and capital management policies
* For more information about the SHARE 2025 program, including the calculation of your SHARE 2025 lending limit, please register for a member webinar that will be held from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 15, 2025.
Sincerely,
Sanjay K. Bhasin
President and Chief Executive Officer
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Original text here: https://www.fhlb.com/library/bulletins/2025/introducing-the-5-billion-share-2025-advance-progr
IDB Launches FX EDGE to Unlock Private Investment
WASHINGTON, July 2 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release on July 1, 2025:
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IDB Launches FX EDGE to Unlock Private Investment
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SEVILLE -- The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) today launched FX EDGE, a new platform to help countries attract more private investment in sustainable development.
Designed to provide tools to policymakers - a blended-finance and project-preparation facility, a liquidity facility, and an FX-derivative program - to overcome one of the oldest and most pressing barriers to investment, currency volatility, FX EDGE aims to
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WASHINGTON, July 2 -- The Inter-American Development Bank issued the following news release on July 1, 2025:
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IDB Launches FX EDGE to Unlock Private Investment
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SEVILLE -- The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) today launched FX EDGE, a new platform to help countries attract more private investment in sustainable development.
Designed to provide tools to policymakers - a blended-finance and project-preparation facility, a liquidity facility, and an FX-derivative program - to overcome one of the oldest and most pressing barriers to investment, currency volatility, FX EDGE aims toincrease resilience and unlock capital.
FX EDGE builds on Brazil's Eco Invest, a pioneering collaboration between the IDB and the Brazilian government and enabled by technical cooperation from the UK. Eco Invest, in its first mobilization effort via a blended financing auction, is already expected to attract $8 billion in private investment over the next two years. A second auction to recover degraded lands is underway, with more planned in the next months. These will focus on investments for the Amazon region, project structuring and equity mobilization- backed by a suite of FX hedging tools. These actions are part of New Brazil - The Ecological Transformation Plan from the Ministry of Finance, which aims to make Brazil one of the leaders in the low-carbon economy across different production sectors.
That experience now scales into a global platform - with backing from Brazil and the United Kingdom, which is also providing catalytic support to expand FX Edge's geographic reach.
"FX EDGE offers countries tools for policymakers, including to help overcome one of the biggest obstacles to private investment - foreign-exchange risk," said IDB President Ilan Goldfajn. "What began as a partnership in Brazil is now scaling up, backed by strong demand, multilateral cooperation, and a clear focus on impact."
"This partnership between the UK, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Brazil is a great example of how we can innovate together to reduce barriers to investment and mobilize more private-sector finance," said UK Minister for Development Jenny Chapman. "Solutions like this one are a key part of the UK's vision for how we can use finance to drive global progress over the next decade."
At the core of FX EDGE is a flexible and scalable package that includes:
* Blended-Finance and Project-Preparation Facility: customized to each country's needs to strengthen market readiness and attract co-investment.
* FX Liquidity Facility: A contingent credit line that activates when a country's currency sharply depreciates. It helps projects with local-currency revenues meet their repayment obligations in foreign currency - ensuring they can continue servicing debt during periods of exchange rate volatility.
* FX Derivatives Program: A structure that channels long-term currency hedging instruments via local central banks and financial institutions, backed by the IDB and other multilaterals' strong credit ratings.
With support from the UK government, through the UK Sustainable Infrastructure Programme, the IDB will provide technical assistance and financial backing to help countries across Latin America and the Caribbean tailor and implement FX EDGE. Brazil will act as co-implementer in the region, sharing its experience and lessons learned from its work with the IDB.
"It is a source of pride to see Brazil's experience with Eco Invest inspiring innovative financial solutions that are now gaining regional and global scale. By sharing this journey, we help other countries supported by the IDB also find ways to enable financing for the sustainable transition in emerging economies," said Fernando Haddad, Brazil's finance minister.
By addressing a core barrier to investment, FX EDGE delivers on the goals of the Financing for Development agenda - mobilizing international capital, enhancing financial resilience, and creating a scalable path to greater development impact.
About the IDB
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is devoted to improving lives across Latin America and the Caribbean. Founded in 1959, the IDB works with the region's public sector to design and enable impactful, innovative solutions for sustainable and inclusive development. Leveraging financing, technical expertise and knowledge, it promotes growth and well-being in 26 countries.
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Original text here: https://www.iadb.org/en/news/idb-launches-fx-edge-unlock-private-investment
