Congressional Research Service Reports - 27 Matching Results
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- The Americans with Disabilities Act: Application to the Internet
- This report explains the American with Disabilities Act that provides nondiscrimination protection in employment, public services, public accomodations, and services operated by private entities, transportation, and telecommunications for individuals with disabilities.
- Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920 to 2015
- This report details the evolution of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees' subcommittee structure from the 1920s to the present.
- Armed Career Criminal Act (18 U.S.C. 924(e)): An Overview
- This report briefly explores the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e), which requires imposition of a minimum 15-year term of imprisonment for recidivists convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm under 18 U.S.C. 922(g). Section 924(e) applies only to those defendants who have three prior state or federal convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses. The report includes descriptions of constitutional challenges to the application of section 924(e), which have been generally unsuccessful.
- Armed Conflict in Syria: Overview and U.S. Response
- This report discusses the ongoing conflict in Syria and previous actions taken by the United States to intervene in the conflict, mediate peace, and assist refugees as well current considerations related to Syria in Congress.
- Bitcoin: Questions, Answers, and Analysis of Legal Issues
- This report has three major sections. The first section answers some basic questions about Bitcoin and the operation of the Bitcoin network and its interaction with the current dollar-based monetary system. The second section summarizes likely reasons for and against widespread Bitcoin adoption. The third section discusses legal and regulatory matters that have been raised by Bitcoin and other digital currencies.
- Brownfields and Superfund Issues in the 108th Congress
- This report discusses recent development and background issues, superfund issues, revenue issues, comprehensive reauthorization, and legislation regarding superfund program.
- DOE's Grid Resiliency Pricing Rule
- This report discusses a recently proposed rule by the Secretary of Energy "The Grid Resiliency Pricing Rule" which directs the Federal Energy Regulatory Committee (FERC) to establish "just and reasonable rates" for wholesale electricity sales in competitive markets. The rule is seen as as supporting coal-powered power plants, which have lost sales due to lower prices from more efficient and cheaper natural gas fired plants and alternative energy sources, because a recent report by the Department of Energy categorizes coal and nuclear powered plants as more fuel-secure and resilient due to supplies of fuel kept on hand that would allow the plants to be self-sufficient for a period after a a disaster.
- The Federal Budget: Issues for FY2011, FY2012, and Beyond
- This report is categorized into three categories: (I) Overview of Budget Cycle, (II) Budgeting in Tough Economics Times, and (III) Considerations for Congress.
- Federal Land Management Agencies’ Permanently Appropriated Accounts
- No Description Available.
- Federal Research and Development: Budgeting and Priority-Setting Issues, 109th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Government Assistance for AIG: Summary and Cost
- This report discusses the U.S. government's assistance to AIG during the 2007-2009 financial crisis and the costs and returns of the investment in the company.
- Homeland Security: Defending U.S. Airspace
- This report discusses about Air Defense Challenge, Command & Control, Intercept and Surveillance.
- Homeland Security Department: FY2011 Appropriations
- This report describes the FY2011 appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Administration requested a net appropriation of $45.0 billion in budget authority for FY2011. This amounts to a $1.1 billion, or a 2.4% increase from the $43.9 billion enacted for FY2010. Total budget authority requested by the Administration for DHS for FY2011 amounts to $52.6 billion as compared to $51.7 billion enacted for FY2010.
- Honduras: Political and Economic Situation and U.S. Relations
- This report discusses the relationship of United States with Honduras, characterized by significant foreign assistance, an important trade partnership, a U.S. military presence in the country, and cooperation on a range of transnational issues.
- Hurricanes Katrina and Rita: Fishing and Aquaculture Industries - Damage and Recovery
- This report summarizes damage assessments and recovery efforts, and will be updated as warranted to incorporate new information.
- The Internet of Things: Frequently Asked Questions
- This report was developed to assist Congress in responding to some commonly asked questions about the Internet of Things (IoT), a complex, often poorly understood phenomenon.
- Iran Sanctions
- This report discusses U.S. sanctions against Iran and the 2016 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement which led to the lifting of sanctions based on nuclear proliferation in Iran. The bulk of the report outlines the various sanctions against Iran and their current implementation status, international efforts to bring about compliance, and their effects. Recent discussions regarding President's Trump announcement that the U.S. was decertifying the nuclear agreement and the possibility of reinstating certain sanctions are also discussed.
- Navy Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the Aegis ballistic missile defense (BMD) program, which is carried out by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the Navy, and gives Navy Aegis cruisers and destroyers a capability for conducting BMD operations.
- Pesticide Use and Water Quality: Are the Laws Complementary or in Conflict?
- This report provides background on the conflict over interpretation and implementation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Clean Water Act. A brief discussion of the two laws is followed by a review of the major litigation of interest. EPA's efforts to clarify its policy in this area and the November 2006 rule and the 2009 federal court ruling are discussed, as well as possible options for EPA and Congress to further address the FIFRA-CWA issues. In June, EPA proposed a draft general CWA permit that it intends to finalize by April 2011 in response to the court ruling.
- Presidential Nominating Process: Current Issues
- This report discusses issues regarding the Presidential Nomination Process including information about the 2008 election, calendar changes from 1988 to 2008, changes to national party rules for 2012, an evaluation of the primary system, reform proposals, and legislative considerations.
- Public Health Service Agencies: Overview and Funding (FY2010-FY2016)
- This report gives a brief overview of the eight agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) which are designated components of the U.S. Public Health Services (PHS), and summarizes its funding for FY2010 through FY2016.
- Risk and Needs Assessment in the Criminal Justice System
- This report provides information on the use of risk and needs assessment in the criminal justice system. It starts with an overview of risk and needs assessment and a discussion of some of the critiques of it. The report concludes with a discussion of the issues policymakers might consider if they debate legislation to expand the use of risk and needs assessment in the federal prison system.
- Russian Compliance with the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report describes the current status of the INF Treaty and highlights issues that Congress may address as the United States pursues its compliance concerns with Russia. It includes a historical overview and summary of the provisions of the INF Treaty and Russia's concerns with U.S. compliance with the treaty and concludes with a discussion of options that the United States might pursue to address its concerns with Russia's activities and options that it might pursue if Russia deploys new INF-range missiles.
- State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs: FY2016 Budget and Appropriations
- This report provides an overview of the FY2016 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS) request, a discussion of key issues and historic context, and account-by-account funding comparisons with FY2014 actuals, available FY2015 estimates, and FY2016 legislation.
- Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues
- This report examines debates over what constitutes an unfunded federal mandate and the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act's (UMRA's) implementation. It focuses on UMRA's requirement that CBO issue written cost estimate statements for federal mandates in legislation, its procedures for raising points of order in the House and Senate concerning unfunded federal mandates in legislation, and its requirement that federal agencies prepare written cost estimate statements for federal mandates in rules. It also assesses UMRA's impact on federal mandates and arguments concerning UMRA's future, focusing on UMRA's definitions, exclusions, and exceptions that currently exempt many federal actions with potentially significant financial impacts on nonfederal entities. An examination of the rise of unfunded federal mandates as a national issue and a summary of UMRA's legislative history are provided in Appendix A. Citations to UMRA points of order raised in the House and Senate are provided in Appendix B.
- Use of the Annual Appropriations Process to Block Implementation of the Affordable Care Act (FY2011-FY2016)
- This report summarizes the Patient Protection and Affordable Care act (ACA)-related language added to annual appropriations legislation by congressional appropriators since the ACA was signed into law.
- Visa Issuances: Policy, Issues, and Legislation
- This report opens with an overview of visa issuances, with sections on procedures for aliens coming to live in the United States permanently and on procedures for aliens admitted for temporary stays. It includes a discussion of visa screening policies, including inadmissibility, databases, an analysis of visa refusals, biometric visas and other major visa policy procedures. Summaries of key laws revising visa policy enacted in the 107th Congress follows. The final section analyzes selected issues in the 108th Congress, notably the 9/11 Commission recommendations, visa revocation and removal, new technologies, potential impact on business, and other security concerns.