Geological Survey, Northborough, Mass. (20,893 square feet)

House prices jumped another 9% last year, said the National Statistics Institute, a government body. Rents in and around the capital Lisbon, where around 1.5 million people live, last year saw the steepest rise in 30 years, climbing more than 7%, the institute said.The problem is compounded by Portugal being one of Western Europe’s poorest countries.

The average monthly salary last year was around 1,200 euros ($1,340) before tax, according to the statistics agency. The government-set minimum wage this year is 870 euros ($974) a month before tax.WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to block court orders requiring’s Department of Government Efficiency to turn over documents about its operations to a government watchdog group.

The Justice Department’s latest emergency appeal to the high court concerns whether DOGE, which has been central to President Donald Trump’s push to remake the government, is a federal agency that is subject to the Freedom of Information Act. The administration argues DOGE is merely a presidential advisory body that is exempt from requests for documents under FOIA.The administration wants the justices to freeze orders that would force DOGE to turn over documents to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and have acting DOGE administrator Amy Gleason answer questions under oath within the next three weeks. CREW sued in February, claiming that DOGE “wields shockingly broad power” with no transparency about its actions.

In March, U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper found that DOGE’s role is likely more than just advisory, noting its claims in helping to shutter USAID and cut billions of dollars in government contracts. “Canceling any government contract would seem to require substantial authority — and canceling them on this scale certainly does,” Cooper wrote. DOGE “likely has at least some independent authority to identify and terminate federal employees, federal programs, and federal contracts.”

A panel of the federal appeals court in Washington initially put Cooper’s order on hold, but a different panel later reinstated the order. Cooper has since set deadlines for the administration to comply by June 13.Margarita Salazar, 82, wipes the sweat off with a tissue inside her home amid high heat in Veracruz, Mexico, June 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)

Margarita Salazar, 82, wipes the sweat off with a tissue inside her home amid high heat in Veracruz, Mexico, June 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Felix Marquez)Pilgrims use umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun as they gather outside Nimrah Mosque to offer noon prayers in Arafat, during the annual Hajj, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, June 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

Pilgrims use umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun as they gather outside Nimrah Mosque to offer noon prayers in Arafat, during the annual Hajj, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, June 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)A patient suffering from heatstroke receives treatment at a hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, June 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)