Compliance News

Friday, August 28, 2009

Mass. regs could limit definition of biofuel to waste oil
The state Department of Energy Resources released its version of federal clean energy biofuel regulations last week, which would make biodiesel generated from waste oil the only compliant fuel — leaving out fuels derived from sources such as animal fat, algae or other biomass.
How I See It: State tax combined-reporting is unwise, misdirected
AIM's Richard Lord: The Massachusetts Department of Revenue (DOR) has now issued the combined-reporting regulations called for by the new corporate tax law enacted in July 2008. This is the final step in a long and difficult process — and like each previous step, it leaves the business community extremely frustrated and disappointed.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Mass. legislator: Revisit data security law
After months of outspoken complaints from business leaders who said Massachusetts data security laws were next to impossible to follow, one lawmaker, Sen. Michael Morrissey, D-Quincy, wants to make compliance easier for the smallest and largest of businesses.
Inside Finance Strategies: Court backs employers on noncompete agreements, mostly
Foley & Lardner's Russell Beck: Issued on May 4 and modified on May 21, EMC Corp. v. Donatelli is the latest noncompete decision out of the business court, and sends a clear message to the tech community that the court will neither hesitate to enforce reasonable noncompete agreements, nor necessarily enforce such agreements to the full extent written.

Monday, May 18, 2009

MITX announces technology award finalists
Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange, which includes more than 250 member companies, has announced the finalists of its 2009 MITX Technology Awards. The awards are given in 10 different categories, from cloud computing and gaming to mobile and social media.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Beyond the Bay State: Data privacy regs vary around New England
New Englanders have a reputation for being taciturn, and each state has its own data privacy regs to prove it. Massachusetts takes the cake for protecting its privacy, while Connecticut and Rhode Island have enacted proactive data privacy laws. And Maine, Vermont and New Hampshire have only reactive data laws.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Policy Tracker: Mass. lawmakers create stimulus ‘waste hotline’
Ranking Republican members of the Massachusetts House and Senate Ways & Means committees announced a new tool against wasteful spending this week: an e-mail hotline aimed at encouraging state taxpayers to report questionable spending of the federal stimulus package.
Policy Tracker: Bay State Deed registries focus on going digital
As deed registries find themselves with less business and more time on their hands, employees are ramping up efforts to digitize and post online all property transaction records.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Court Square Group buys e-records group
Court Square Group, an IT consulting firm for life sciences, information technology and network security, announced it has bought a Pennsylvania-based computer validation business unit of QA Edge Inc.

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Changes come to Mass. data privacy regs
Responding to pleas from the business community, the state Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation today altered data privacy regulations designed to protect Massachusetts residents.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

EPA cites Fall River firms for hazardous waste violations
The EPA has filed a federal district court complaint against Fall River’s NuChrome Inc., Nu-Chrome Restoration Corp. and Custom Chrome LLC, as well as the companies’ manager Donald Kemp, for allegedly violating hazardous waste management laws.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Business execs ask for more time for Mass. data security rules
A coalition of business leaders is asking the Patrick Administration to delay by two years its planned May 1 start date for new regulations designed to protect Massachusetts residents against identity theft, State House News Service reported late yesterday.

Friday, December 19, 2008

Inside Financial Services Technology: Preparing for new Bay State data compliance
Utimaco Safeware director of product marketing Nagraj Seshadrisome offers some recommendations for companies that need to demonstrate compliance with the 201 CMR 17.00 regulations ahead of the May 1, 2009 deadline.

Friday, December 12, 2008

How I See It: Data privacy: Is Massachusetts law up to the challenge?
Peter George, president and CEO of Fidelis Security Systems, on the limitations of Massachusetts data privacy laws: Most significantly, they create a patchwork of regulations that can be daunting for a large organization to navigate. They are next to impossible for a small firm to live with.

Friday, December 5, 2008

How I See It: Mass. data security regulations need work
Postponing the deadline for the Massachusetts data privacy regulations does not change that fact that Bay State employers face privacy regulations that go far beyond established federal standards, and will require in most instances significant operational and technological changes for entities that have custody of personal information, including employee records and customer data.

Friday, November 28, 2008

How I See It: The RIAA’s prosecution of copyright law is unconstitutional
The intersection between technological norms and law that governs social norms is one of the most academically interesting and practically frustrating issues professionals have grappled with in a long time. Better understanding of how today’s generations interact with digital media will help us shape our regulatory and educational frameworks in a way that advances the public interest.

Friday, October 3, 2008

Inside IP Law: Tech companies turn to ITC to resolve patent disputes
Fish & Richardson PC's Jeffrey Whieldon asks why the U.S. International Trade Commission is the fastest and most powerful vehicle to stop infringing imports.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Policy Tracker: Women urge Congress to block contracting program
Women business owners hope Congress will block a new procurement program that they say falls far short of what is needed to give women their fair share of federal contracts.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

EPA orders Presstek to pay fine, help schools
Presstek Inc. has agreed to pay $31,000 in fines and to volunteer on curriculum-building with local public schools in response to federal environmental violations related to a chemical spill at one of its Massachusetts manufacturing facilities in 2006.

Friday, August 22, 2008

Inside Life Sciences: FDA regs mean tighter management of foreign trials
Facing a tightening regulatory landscape, life sciences companies must examine the benefits and pitfalls of conducting clinical trials abroad.