US Domestic News Roundup: Biden to restore boundaries of protected areas that were reduced by Trump; U.S. House panel probing Jan. 6 Capitol riot issues more subpoenas and more

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Biden to restore boundaries of protected areas that were reduced by Trump

President Joe Biden will restore the boundaries of three American nature reserves, known as national monuments, that were reduced in size by former President Donald Trump to allow commercial activity, the White House said on Thursday. The restoration will protect more than 3.2 million acres (1.3 million hectares) in Southern Utah known as the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments, as well as the nearly 5,000 square miles (8,000 sq km) Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of New England.

U.S. House panel probing Jan. 6 Capitol riot issues more subpoenas

The U.S. House of Representatives Select Committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol said on Thursday it had issued more subpoenas seeking testimony and records related to a rally that took place the day mobs of former President Donald Trump's supporters stormed the seat of the U.S. government. The subpoenas are the latest in a series issued by the committee probing the insurrection, which left a handful of people dead and then-Vice President Mike Pence and lawmakers fleeing in fear of their lives.

Despite preparation, California pipeline operator may have taken hours to stop leak

The company that operates the pipeline that spilled an estimated 3,000 barrels of oil into the Pacific Ocean off California has an 800-page manual on handling an oil spill - but it is unclear whether its employees followed those procedures. Houston-based Amplify Energy Corp and several state and federal regulatory agencies have provided differing accounts of what happened on Oct. 2, when the pipeline spill that fouled beaches, killed wildlife and closed down fishing along miles of coastline was officially reported.

U.S. Senate approves temporary lift of debt ceiling, averts default

The U.S. Senate approved legislation on Thursday to temporarily raise the federal government's $28.4 trillion debt limit and avoid the risk of a historic default this month, but put off until early December a decision on a longer-lasting remedy. The Senate voted 50-48 to pass the bill following weeks of partisan fighting. Earlier, 11 Republicans voted in favor of a procedural vote allowing the bill to proceed.

California law prohibits secretly removing condom during sex

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill on Thursday that prohibits "stealthing," or removing a condom during sex without consent, making it a civil sexual battery offense. It is the first anti-stealthing law in the country, the Sacramento Bee reported. The bill passed the Senate and the Assembly a month ago without opposition, Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, the bill's sponsor, said in a statement.

U.S. charges 18 former NBA players with defrauding league's health plan

Eighteen former National Basketball Association players were charged on Thursday with defrauding the league's health and welfare benefit plan out of $3.9 million by seeking reimbursement for medical and dental work that was never performed. According to an indictment filed with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan, players received $2.5 million in fraudulent proceeds, with 10 paying the alleged ringleader, Terrence Williams, at least $230,000 in kickbacks.

'Solar warriors' train for Native America energy fight

It is a jump from doing office paperwork to building solar power systems but that is the leap Lorraine Nez is taking to bring renewable energy to her Native American reservation. Nez was one of a dozen Native trainees who took a month-long course this summer on South Dakota's Pine Ridge Reservation to become certified solar power installers and trainers.

Biden calls on more U.S. businesses to require COVID-19 vaccinations

President Joe Biden on Thursday said more U.S. businesses should obligate workers to receive COVID-19 vaccinations, calling the move vital to ending the pandemic and sustaining the economy. "Today I'm calling on more employers to act," Biden said.

Texas abortion provider resumes services after judge blocks near-total ban

A day after a federal judge blocked Texas' near-total abortion ban, at least one provider in the state said it had resumed services on Thursday for patients seeking to terminate pregnancies beyond the law's limit of about six weeks. Amy Hagstrom Miller, chief executive of Whole Woman's Health, told reporters that since the law went into effect on Sept. 1, the provider with four clinics in Texas had put patients on a waiting list if their pregnancies had advanced beyond the legal limit.

U.S. Senate Democrats give new details on Trump's bid to overturn election

A review by U.S. Senate Democrats of Donald Trump's attempt to use the Justice Department to overturn his 2020 election defeat provided new details on Thursday about an official's bid to push out the acting attorney general to advance Trump's false claims. The report by Senate Judiciary Committee Democrats details how Jeffrey Bossert Clark, then a senior Justice Department official, met with Trump more than once in late 2020. The then-president was growing angry that acting Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen would not launch a public investigation into Trump's false claim that his defeat to now-President Joe Biden was the result of widespread fraud.

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