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Florida State Capitol, Tallahassee — illustrative for the Eleventh Circuit (covers Florida, Georgia and Alabama); not the Atlanta federal courthouse — Photo: public domain / site archive

Accountability · United States

11th Circuit vacates injunction blocking Georgia’s social-media age-verification law

In NetChoice v. Attorney General of Georgia (No. 25-12436, filed 15 October 2026), a three-judge panel held that NetChoice failed its facial First Amendment burden under Moody, and failed on vagueness and § 230 preemption. The panel vacated the Northern District of Georgia’s preliminary injunction against SB 351 and remanded. The law’s age checks, parental consent under 16, and minor-ad targeting limits can be enforced while the case continues.

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Verified brief

Verified brief — 16 October 2026

The Eleventh Circuit vacates the injunction on Georgia’s social-media age-verification law. DOJ sues California over mail ballots to more than 20,000 likely noncitizens. Eurostat’s full September HICP confirms 3.8%. EPA’s small-refinery RFS reallocation proposal is now in the published Federal Register.

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Parents & schoolsOnline speechImmigration capacityBail & street safetySex-based rightsEnergy & net-zeroTaxes & groceriesDigital ID & bankingMunicipal overreachCarneyIndependent pressFarmers & regulatorsCarbon & fuelHousing

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Bills, courts, agencies, and projects we are tracking.

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court · 11th Cir. vacated PI 15 Oct 2026; remanded to N.D. Ga.

U.S. — Georgia SB 351 social-media age verification (NetChoice v. Carr)

United States (11th Cir. / N.D. Ga.)

court · Complaint filed 15 Oct 2026 (2:26-cv-12025); PI briefing pending

U.S. — DOJ suit over California vote-by-mail ballots to likely noncitizens

United States (C.D. Cal.)

regulation · Proposed rule published 16 Oct FR; hearing 4 Nov; comments due 4 Dec

U.S. — EPA proposal to reallocate extra 2025 small refinery exemptions onto 2026–27 RFS

United States (EPA)

regulation · Commission proposal COM(2026) 569 adopted 14 Oct; awaits Parliament and Council

EU — proposal to delay Methane Regulation import obligations by one year

European Union (Commission / Parliament / Council)

How we verify

Primary documents and public statistics first. Every piece carries sources, a lean meter with rationale when set, and — on key files — a claim → finding box. We publish refused claims when rumours outrun evidence.

MethodologyCorrectionsTip lineRSS

Data snapshots

Illustrative public stats

Canada

Canada diesel (Kalibrate)

268.4 ¢/L

−1.9 ¢/L DoD

Source: Kalibrate DPPS via NRCan, 16 Oct 2026 (still latest as of 18 Oct; no weekend survey)

Canada

Canada regular gasoline

182.4 ¢/L

−0.1 ¢/L DoD

Source: Kalibrate DPPS via NRCan, 16 Oct 2026 (still latest as of 18 Oct; no weekend survey)

United States

U.S. on-highway diesel

$6.179/gal

−$0.020 WoW

Source: EIA GasDiesel, week of 12 Oct 2026 (released 14 Oct; still latest as of 18 Oct — next release 20 Oct)

United States

U.S. regular gasoline

$4.331/gal

−$0.023 WoW

Source: EIA GasDiesel, regular all formulations, week of 12 Oct 2026 (released 14 Oct; still latest as of 18 Oct — next release 20 Oct)

European Union

EU-27 diesel

€2.136/L

−0.6% WoW

Source: EC Weekly Oil Bulletin n°2329 (weighted EUR27), prices at 12 Oct 2026 (file dated 15 Oct; still current as of 18 Oct; vs €2.149 at 5 Oct)

European Union

EU-27 Euro 95 petrol

€2.010/L

+0.2% WoW

Source: EC Weekly Oil Bulletin n°2329 (weighted EUR27), prices at 12 Oct 2026 (file dated 15 Oct; still current as of 18 Oct; vs €2.006 at 5 Oct)

Canada

Canada federal debt / GDP

41.1%

+0.4 pp YoY

Source: Dept. of Finance Canada Spring Economic Update 2026 (2025–26; 2025–26 Annual Financial Report not yet published as of 18 Oct)

United States

U.S. unemployment rate

4.2%

+0.1 pp MoM

Source: U.S. BLS Employment Situation, Sep 2026 (released 2 Oct; still latest as of 18 Oct — Oct release due 6 Nov)

European Union

Euro area HICP (YoY)

3.8%

+0.6 pp MoM

Source: Eurostat full HICP, Sep 2026 (released 16 Oct 2026; confirms 2 Oct flash)

Latest

Data Desk →
California State Capitol, Sacramento — Photo: site archive / public domain illustration

Accountability|United States

DOJ sues California over vote-by-mail ballots to more than 20,000 likely noncitizens

In United States v. California, No. 2:26-cv-12025 (C.D. Cal., filed 15 October 2026), the Justice Department asks a federal court to stop California from tabulating federal vote-by-mail ballots from people on a federal list of more than 20,000 likely noncitizens until citizenship is verified. The complaint cites 18 U.S.C. § 611 and California’s practice of mailing ballots to every registered voter.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Syncrude Mildred Lake plant, Alberta — illustrative refinery-type image; not a U.S. small refinery — Photo: TastyCakes / Jamitzky, public domain

Policy Watch|United States

EPA proposes shifting 770 million extra refinery-exemption RINs onto 2026–27 fuel standards

After granting more 2025 small refinery exemptions than it had projected, EPA is co-proposing two ways to put the extra 770 million RINs back into the 2026 and 2027 Renewable Fuel Standard obligations. EPA estimates the change adds less than one cent a gallon to gasoline and diesel. Comments are due 4 December 2026; a virtual hearing is set for 4 November.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Berlaymont building, European Commission, Brussels — Photo: EmDee, CC BY-SA 4.0

Policy Watch|European Union

Commission proposes one-year delay to methane rules for EU oil, gas and coal importers

COM(2026) 569, adopted 14 October 2026, would push back by a year the obligations in the EU Methane Regulation that require importers to prove their foreign supply is monitored to EU standards, and the methane-intensity reporting and limits for importers and EU producers. The Commission cites the Hormuz supply shock. Parliament and Council still have to agree.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
John Deere tractor with trailer in the Netherlands, illustrating farm diesel use, not a U.S. farm — Photo: joost j. bakker, CC BY 2.0

Cost of Living|United States

IRS waives dyed-diesel highway penalties through year-end; 7508A tax deferral guidance still to come

IR-2026-122 (14 October 2026) says the IRS will not impose section 6715 penalties when dyed diesel is sold for or used on U.S. highways. Relief is retroactive to 1 October and runs to 31 December 2026; federal fuel-tank inspections for on-road dyed fuel are suspended for that window. The agency still says it will issue further guidance on postponing the backup diesel taxes under 26 U.S.C. 7508A — that piece is not in this release. State fuel taxes are unaffected.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Rio Grande in Big Bend National Park, Texas — illustrative border landscape; not a worksite named in the rule — Photo: Yinan Chen, public domain

Policy Watch|United States

DHS makes permanent its ban on automatic work-permit renewals while a new card is pending

A final rule published 14 October 2026 (91 FR 65306) adopts without change the October 2025 interim rule that ended automatic extensions of Employment Authorization Documents for people who timely renew in covered categories. Asylum seekers and green-card applicants are the two biggest groups. Renewals filed before 30 October 2025 can still get up to 540 days; those filed on or after that date cannot. The rule is effective on publication.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Daily Teabag policy graphic

Policy Watch|United States

EPA pushes the 2025 greenhouse-gas reporting deadline to 10 March 2027

An interim final rule published 14 October 2026 (91 FR 65112) moves the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program deadline for reporting-year 2025 data from 30 October 2026 to 10 March 2027. Nothing else in the reporting rule changes. EPA says it needs time to finish work on a separate reconsideration proposal. Comments on this deadline shift are due 30 November 2026.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Downtown Yonge Street, Toronto — illustrative; Toronto Police Service is one of 27 forces listed in the proposed order — Photo: Ken Lund, CC BY-SA 2.0

Policy Watch|Canada

Ottawa proposes letting 27 police services, from Toronto to Victoria, jam cellphone signals

A proposed Industry Minister’s order in the Canada Gazette (Part I, 10 October 2026) would exempt employees of 27 named police services, including the OPP, Sûreté du Québec, Toronto, Montréal, Calgary and Vancouver police, from the Radiocommunication Act’s ban on jammers. Until now only the RCMP, the military and prison services have been exempted. The order sets purposes and conditions, but no expiry, no warrant requirement and no public reporting of uses. Comments are open until about 9 November.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre
Farm and silos on Île d’Orléans, Quebec — illustrative; not a site named in the bill — Photo: Guillaume666 / Antoine Letarte, CC BY-SA 3.0

Policy Watch|Canada

Budget bill would end Canada’s automatic 15-year safety re-evaluation of pesticides

Division 13 of Bill C-31, the Budget 2025 Implementation Act, No. 2, would replace the Pest Control Products Act’s mandatory re-evaluation of every registered pesticide after 15 years with an “assessment” on available information. A full re-evaluation would follow only if the Health Minister has reasonable grounds to believe risks have “increased significantly.” The finance committee heard objections last week; amendments are due 22 October.

Daily Teabag Desk·Centre