WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A law regulating authorities' access to email drew a good deal of attention in Congress on Tuesday as a House panel quizzed Department of Justice and Google experts About it, and the Senate began taking on a bill to update the rules.

The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), passed in pre-Web 1986, does not require government investigators to have a search warrant when requesting access to old emails and messages stored online, providing less protection for them than, say, letters stored in a desk drawer or even messages saved on a computer's hard drive.

Investigators can access technical information about emails with a subpoena, which has a lower legal threshold than a warrant because it does not involve a judge and therefore easier to obtain. A subpoena also can give access to emails that are more than 180 days old and sometimes newer emails if they are opened.

But tech companies including Google Inc recently started to object, refusing to disclose old messages without a warrant, as privacy advocates say digital messages should not be treated differently than physical private communication.

Senator Patrick Leahy, the Vermont Democrat who chairs the Judiciary Committee and authored the original ECPA 27 years ago, on Tuesday introduced legislation to update the law by requiring a search warrant if the government wants to read emails stored with third-party providers.

A subpoena would still be enough for access to some technical data about the messages.

The bill also spells out a previously lacking requirement that government authorities notify the user whose emails are being disclosed and does away with distinction in legal standards based on the age of an email.

The elimination of distinctions based on how old communications are received backing from Elana Tyrangiel, acting assistant attorney general at the Justice Department, which interpreted the law for such differentiation.

"There is no principled basis to treat email less than 180 days old differently than email more than 180 days old," she told the a House judiciary panel on Tuesday.

"These 180-days, opened-unopened distinctions haven't kept pace with the way the technology is used today," she said.

Richard Littlehale of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations told the panel that more than anything, law enforcement authorities hope for a directive to third parties on how fast they should comply with proper legal requests for data - a divisive topic not addressed by Leahy's bill.

"Whatever the level of standard of proof, the thing that matters to us most ... is prompt response," Littlehale said.

At the same time, both government officials underscored that subpoenas are the norm for obtaining business records during corporate investigations.

Richard Salgado, law enforcement and information security director at Google, reiterated his company's refusal to honor subpoenas in either civil or criminal investigation.

Republican Representative Louie Gohmert of Texas questioned Google's access to customer email as the company places ads based on words that appear within messages. Google has said its automated scanners identify key words but do not disclose actual information about the user or message content to advertisers.

Gohmert wondered whether the federal government could request information on users whose emails or searches contain particular words. Google's Salgado rejected such possibility.

(Editing by Philip Barbara)

With interest growing in pools and hot tubs - especially at this time of year customers want and need objective, unbiased information about ownership and maintenance. This new online destination is the beginning of a growing platform that in coming months will become even more robust with a suite of information and other resources to help consumers make sound decisions about purchasing and owning pools, spas and hot tubs, said APSP President & CEO Bill Weber.

The Buyers & Owners section highlights the opportunities for relaxation, connection, entertainment and fun that pool and hot tub ownership brings to consumers while also offering tools to supplement knowledge and promote informed consumer decisions.

Consumers can find information on selecting and working with a skilled and reliable professional, including a series of questions for them to ask before they purchase or maintain.For those who have not yet established a relationship with a provider, the website provides links to APSPs member locator to help consumers make an informed selection, said Weber.

Special features on the site will help spark interest in and galvanize ideas for designing and using pools, spas and hot tubs. Easily navigated and highly searchable elements, divided between pools and hot tubs, will provide information on such topics as Renovating a Pool, Entertaining Ideas, Safety, and Pool & Hot Tub Glossary, while an Inspirational Gallery featuring photos of APSP International Awards of Excellence winning installations provides consumers with a creative platform on which to build.

To develop the site, APSP drew upon its extensive consumer market research as well as conducted interviews with pool, spa and hot tub owners who have had an ongoing relationship with an APSP member professional.Owners were asked about multiple facets of their experience, including their motivations, the value of ownership theyve experienced and the information they would have liked access to during the purchase and/or design selection process.

For more information about pools, spas and hot tubs, visit .

About APSP

is the worlds oldest and largest association representing swimming pool, hot tub, and spa manufacturers, distributors, manufacturers agents, designers, builders, installers, suppliers, retailers, and service professionals. Dedicated to the growth and development of its members businesses and to promoting the enjoyment and safety of pools and spas, APSP offers a range of services, from professional development to advancing key legislation and regulation at the federal and local levels, to consumer outreach and public safety. APSP is the only industry organization recognized by the American National Standards Institute to develop and promote national standards for pools, hot tubs, and spas. For more information, visit .

Lisa GreppsThe Association of Pool & Spa Professionals703.838.0083 179

The increase along with a jump in homebuilder confidence this month suggests the housing market continues to recover.

The National Association of Realtors said Monday that sales rose 2.1 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.79 million. That's up from 4.69 million in September, which was revised lower.

The sales pace is roughly 11 percent higher than a year ago. But it remains below the more than 5.5 million that economists consider consistent with a healthy market.

As the economy slowly recovers, more people have started looking to buy homes or rent apartments. Prices are steadily climbing, while mortgage rates have been low all year. At the same time, rents are rising, making the purchase of a single-family home or condominium more attractive.

"Altogether, the report is encouraging," said Michael Gapen, an economist at Barclays Capital. "Our view is that housing is in a recovery phase," he added, though it will be restrained by limited credit and modest job gains.

A separate report Monday showed confidence among homebuilders rose this month to its highest level in six and a half years. The increase was driven by strong demand for newly built homes and growing optimism about conditions next year.

The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo builder sentiment index increased to 46, up from 41 in October. Readings below 50 suggest negative sentiment about the housing market. The index last reached that level in April 2006. Still, the index has been trending higher since October 2011, when it stood at 17.

The Realtors' group said Superstorm Sandy delayed some sales of previously occupied homes in the Northeast. Sales fell 1.7 percent there, the only region to show a decline. Those sales will likely be completed in future months, the group said.

The median price for previously occupied homes increased 11.1 percent from a year ago to $178,600, the Realtors' said.

A decline in the number of homes available for sale is helping push prices higher. There were only 2.14 million homes available for sale at the end of the month, the lowest supply in 10 years. It would take only 5.4 months to exhaust that supply at the current sales pace. That's the lowest sales-to-inventory ratio since February 2006.

Prices are also benefiting from the mix of homes being sold. Sales of homes priced at $500,000 and above have jumped more than 40 percent in the past year. Sales of homes and condominiums that cost less than $100,000 fell 0.6 percent.

There have been other positive signals from the housing market. Applications for mortgage loans to buy homes jumped 11 percent in the week ended Nov. 9, compared with a week earlier, the Mortgage Bankers' Association said last week. Purchase applications are up 22 percent in the past year.

Foreclosures are slowing. The number of properties that began the foreclosure process in the first 10 months of the year fell 8 percent compared with the same period last year, RealtyTrac said last week.

And builders broke ground on new homes and apartments at the fastest pace in more than four years in September. The jump could help boost the economy and hiring.

Still, the market has a long way back to full health. Many potential home buyers cannot meet stricter lending standards or produce larger down payments required by banks.

That can be a particular problem for first-time homebuyers. They accounted for 31 percent of sales in October, down slightly from September and below the 40 percent that is common in a healthy market.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that banks' overly tight lending standards may be preventing sales and holding back the U.S. economy.

___

Veiga reported from Los Angeles.

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index closed slightly lower on Tuesday, hurt by widespread declines in the materials, energy and financial sectors, after a crucial vote in Cyprus threatened to push the country into default. Worries that Cyprus will reignite Europe's debt crisis took a toll on oil prices, which slumped to a three-month low and were a drag on the energy sector.

Cyprus lawmakers reject bank tax; bailout in disarray

NICOSIA (Reuters) - Cyprus overwhelmingly rejected a proposed levy on bank deposits as a condition for a European bailout on Tuesday, throwing international efforts to rescue the latest casualty of the euro zone debt crisis into disarray. The vote in the tiny legislature was a stunning setback for the 17-nation currency bloc, angering European partners and raising fears the crisis could spread; lawmakers in Greece, Portugal, Ireland, Spain and Italy have all accepted austerity measures over the last three years to secure European aid.

Canada factory sales raise concerns about January growth

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's hard-hit manufacturers failed to bounce back in January after a dismal year-end performance, an early sign that the economy may continue to stumble in early 2013, partially offset by more upbeat wholesale activity in the month. Factory sales slipped 0.2 percent in the month due to weak production in the volatile aerospace industry as well as in the auto and energy industries, Statistics Canada said on Tuesday.

Manulife pulls low-rate mortgage after Canada government pressure

TORONTO (Reuters) - Manulife Financialsaid on Tuesday it is reversing a decision to cut Canadian mortgage rates following pressure from Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who has raised concerns about record high consumer debt levels. Manulife, which is Canada's largest insurer but also offers banking services such as mortgages, said this week it would offer five-year loans at 2.89 percent, down from its previous 3.09 percent and lower than the posted rates of any of Canada's top five banks.

Canada's Rona brings in outsider as CEO; shares rise

(Reuters) - Rona Inc , Canada's top home-improvement retailer and distributor, has chosen a long-time supermarket chain executive as CEO, putting Robert Sawyer in charge as it fights back against growing competition from U.S. rivals. Rona shares rose as much as 6 percent on Tuesday after it said Sawyer, former chief operating officer at Metro Inc , would replace acting Chief Executive Dominique Boies next month. Rona's longtime CEO, Robert Dutton, stepped down in November.

Yahoo in talks to buy stake in video site Dailymotion: report

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Yahoo Incis in talks to acquire a controlling stake in Dailymotion, one of the world's most popular online video websites, in what would be Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer's largest deal since taking the reins in July, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. Yahoo could purchase as much as 75 percent of Dailymotion, which is owned by French telecommunications firm France Telecom-Orange, according to the newspaper report, which cited anonymous sources.

Microsoft backs review of foreign bribery allegations

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corpsaid on Tuesday that allegations of potential bribery by employees in China, Romania and Italy should be reviewed by U.S. agencies and its own compliance unit, but declined to address the specifics of any cases. The software giant's comments came after the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had launched investigations over tips from a former Microsoft employee that the company handed kickbacks to foreign government officials in return for software contracts.

Judge OKs Hostess's Twinkies, Ding Dongs sale

(Reuters) - Twinkies, Ding Dongs and Wonder Bread may soon be back in stores after a bankruptcy court judge on Tuesday approved sales of several iconic brands that had been owned by the failed Hostess Brands Inc. Buyout firms Apollo Global Managementand Metropoulos & Co teamed up for Hostess's snack cake brands, paying $410 million for Twinkies, Ho Hos, Ding Dongs and Donnettes.

Exclusive: Roche joins Life Tech auction; KKR, H&F team up - sources

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Roche Holding AGand a buyout group comprising KKR & Co LPand Hellman & Friedman LLC have joined the bidding for Life Technologies Corp , a genetic testing company coveted for its advanced diagnostics and steady cash flow, according to people familiar with the matter. Roche's interest in Life Tech, a biomedical laboratory equipment maker with an $11 billion market value, signals the Swiss drugmaker's continued interest in gene sequencing a year after its $6.8 billion hostile offer for Illumina Incfailed over price.

Ex-Oregon governor candidate charged in Facebook IPO fraud

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A former Oregon gubernatorial candidate was arrested on Tuesday for his alleged role in defrauding investors who had hoped to buy shares of Facebook Incbefore its initial public offering in May 2012, federal authorities said. Craig Berkman, 71, falsely told investors he had access to scarce pre-IPO shares of Facebook and other social media companies such as LinkedIn Corp , Groupon Incand Zynga Inc , the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said in a statement.

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Global warming may have contributed to low rain levels in Somalia in 2011 where tens of thousands died in a famine, research by British climate scientists suggests.

Scientists with Britain's weather service studied weather patterns in East Africa in 2010 and 2011 and found that yearly precipitation known as the short rains failed in late 2010 because of the natural effects of the weather pattern La Nina.

But the lack of the long rains in early 2011 was an effect of "the systematic warming due to influence on greenhouse gas concentrations," said Peter Stott of Britain's Met Office, speaking to The Associated Press in a phone interview.

The British government estimates that between 50,000 and 100,000 people died from the famine. But the new research doesn't mean global warming directly caused those deaths.

Ethiopia and Kenya were also affected by the lack of rains in 2011, but aid agencies were able to work more easily in those countries than in war-ravaged Somalia, where the al-Qaida-linked Islamic extremist group al-Shabab refused to allow food aid into the wide areas under its control.

The peer reviewed study will appear in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union.

Senait Gebregziabher, the Somalia country director for the aid group Oxfam, said climate change is increasing humanitarian needs.

"In the coming decades, unless urgent action is taken to slash greenhouse gas emissions, temperatures in East Africa will continue to rise and rainfall patterns will change. This will create major problems for food production and availability," Gebregziabher said.

Stott said that the evidence is "very strong" that the planet is warming due to an increase in greenhouse gases. He noted that the study indicates that both natural causes La Nina and the short rains and man-made causes contributed to Somalia's drought.

The Met Office's computer modeling study found that between 24 percent and 99 percent of the cause of the failure of the 2011 rains can be attributed to the presence of man-made greenhouse gases, Stott said.

Global warming is caused by the burning of fossil fuels coal, oil and natural gas which sends heat-trapping gases, such as carbon dioxide, into the air, changing the climate, scientists say.

Ahmed Awale works for the non-profit group Candlelight, which is dedicated to improving conservation and the environment. He believes Somalia's climate has been changing for many decades, with rainfall patterns becoming more erratic.

"If you miss one of the two rainy seasons we have a very severe drought. The other indicator is that there is a rise in temperature," he said, adding later: "This all negatively impacts the livelihood of the people. Most of Somalis depend mostly on pastoral production."

PARIS, March 16 (Reuters) - Wahbi Khazri scored one goal and created two as Olympique Lyon suffered another blow in the French title race with a 4-1 defeat at lowly Bastia on Saturday.

Khazri, the Tunisia midfielder, set up Florian Thauvin for the opener on the stroke of halftime following a 50-metre run then put Anthony Modeste through in the box in the 56th after Lisandro Lopez had levelled two minutes earlier.

Thauvin scored his second just after the hour following a fine team move and Khazri found the top corner with a splendid curling shot to wrap it up with three minutes left.

Lyon, who had drawn their previous two league games, stay second with 53 points from 29 games, four behind leaders Paris St Germain, who visit fourth-placed St Etienne on Sunday.

"I don't know how to explain what happened in the first half," Lyon's captain, Maxime Gonalons, who was playing his 100th league game, told Canal Plus.

"We were badly positioned on their goal. We tried to bounce back after the break but we made too many mistakes tonight.

"We have never said we were chasing the title. We have a very young squad, we lack experience. We will fight to keep the second spot, we'll do everything."

Marseille occupy the third and final Champions League qualifying berth on 51 points after they could manage only a goalless home draw against Ajaccio on Friday.

St Etienne and fifth-ranked Nice are on 48, two ahead of sixth-placed Lille, whose five-game winning run ended with a 2-1 shock home defeat to strugglers Evian Thonon Gaillard.

The 2011 champions had seemed to be on their way to fourth spot when Salomon Kalou opened the scoring from close range after seven minutes.

However, after Saber Khlifa netted a 30th-minute equaliser, the night turned into a nightmare for Kalou. The former Chelsea player diverted a Djakaridja Kone header into his own net in the 68th then missed from the penalty spot five minutes later.

In the the day's early kick-off, Bastia, who had already conceded 52 goals before the game, surrendered possession and banked on tight defence and their forwards' pace on the counterattack.

It paid off. Lyon seldom threatened goalkeeper Mickael Landreau and struggled to control Khazri.

Though Lisandro made it 1-1 from close range following a Yoann Gourcuff free kick in the 54th, Lyon collapsed when Modeste put the hosts back in front by converting a Khazri low pass.

Thauvin took advantage of Lyon's lethargy to add the third and Khazri completed his side's fine work as 14th-placed Bastia moved six points above the relegation zone on 33.

Elsewhere, the 17-year-old Corentin Jean, who had scored his first two league goals last weekend, fired home to earn second-from-bottom Troyes a 1-1 draw at champions Montpellier.

(Reporting by Gregory Blachier; Editing by Tom Pilcher and Stephen Wood)

The next big question for David Bowie and his remarkable comeback is whether the element of surprise and subsequent acclaim will turn into record sales.

"The Next Day" is in stores on Monday in Britain, where industry watchers are confident it will top the album charts, and on Tuesday in the United States, where the "Space Oddity" singer has enjoyed more patchy success in the past.

It is already available in other key markets, and the early signs are that the 66-year-old master of reinvention has a hit on his hands.

According to his official website, the deluxe version of the recording went to No. 1 on the digital iTunes album charts in 11 of 12 countries where it was released on Friday, including Australia, Germany and Sweden.

"There has been a lot of interest in both the social and traditional media which will connect not only with the established fan base but also with younger fans," said Gennaro Castaldo, head of press at British music retailer HMV.

"As a campaign, I can't think of many that have been more brilliantly orchestrated," he added.

Ironically, part of that "campaign" has been for Bowie to remain invisible, allowing collaborators like producer Tony Visconti to tell the media about how the star's first studio album since 2003's "Reality" came about.

So rare had sightings of the "Starman" become in New York, where he lives, that articles appeared in the British press late last year speculating the "recluse" had unofficially retired.

"GRETA GARBO OF POP"

Simon Goddard, author of new Bowie book "Ziggyology" published by Random House imprint Ebury, said his mystique was a part of the appeal, and showed that his interest in music far outweighed any appetite for the trappings of celebrity.

"He released two albums in the very early 70s featuring covers of himself in poses inspired by Greta Garbo," Goddard told Reuters.

"Fast forward three or four decades and he becomes a rarely-sighted paparazzi quarry living in New York ... He engages with the media on his strict terms because he's surpassed any desire to engage otherwise. His art is all the engagement he needs."

Bowie, who has shunned the limelight since he suffered a heart attack on tour in 2004, last performed on stage in 2006. It was with a sense of shock that his fans woke up on January 8, his 66th birthday, to the news he had released a new song.

"Where Are We Now?", a melancholic look back to the time Bowie spent in Berlin in the 1970s, was the first single from "The Next Day", followed weeks later by "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)".

Both came with inventive videos which baffled as much as they entertained, affirming that Bowie was still the enigma who wowed the pop world in the late 1960s, 70s and 80s with glam-rock, androgynous alter egos and a radical sense of fashion.

Critics had barely a bad word to say about the 14-track album, with the Independent's Andy Gill calling it possibly "the greatest comeback in rock'n'roll history" in a five-star review.

Alexis Petridis, writing in the Guardian, said: "Listening to it makes you hope it's not a one-off, that his return continues apace.

Whether the return will include live performances remains to be seen, although Bowie's guitarist Gerry Leonard whetted appetites when he told Rolling Stone magazine he thought it was "50-50" Bowie would tour again.

Author Goddard attempted to sum up the level of excitement that has accompanied Bowie's return.

"Bowie's appeal has lasted because his influence is fundamental to everything that we in the 21st century understand as pop music," he said. "Remove Bowie and pop's whole house of cards as built up over the last 40 years or so collapses."

Bowie's impact on modern music matched that of The Beatles - and the only contemporary star to combine music and art to the extent he did in the 70s was Lady Gaga, said Goddard.

"The hysteria is justified," he added.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White; Editing by Andrew Heavens)