Congressional Research Service Reports - 88 Matching Results
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- Internet Firearm and Ammunition Sales
- This report discusses the sale of firearms and ammunition over the Internet, with a focus on the extent to which federal law regulates such activity.
- Cybersecurity: Authoritative Reports and Resources
- This report provides links to cybersecurity hearings and legislation under consideration in the 113th Congress and those considered in the 112th Congress, as well as executive orders and presidential directives, data and statistics, glossaries, and authoritative reports.
- Identity Theft: Trends and Issues
- This report first provides a brief federal legislative history of identity theft laws. It analyzes the current trends in identity theft, including prevalent identity theft-related crimes, the federal agencies involved in combating identity theft, and the trends in identity theft complaints and prosecutions.
- Domestic Terrorism Appears to Be Reemerging as a Priority at the Department of Justice
- This document examines an apparent shift in priorities at the Department of Justice (DOJ) towards a renewed focus on domestic terrorism with the reestablishment of its Domestic Terrorism Executive Committee, which had been defunct for several years. The report considers why the shift in focus may be occurring and also briefly examines different types of domestic terror threats.
- Sifting Domestic Terrorism from Hate Crime ad Homegrown Violent Extremism
- This report defines the terms domestic terrorism, hate crimes, and homegrown violent extremism as used by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security and how they can intersect.
- Parental Kidnapping
- No Description Available.
- International Terrorism: Threat, Policy, and Response
- This report examines international terrorist actions, threats, U.S. policies and responses. It reviews the nation’s use of tools at its disposal to combat terrorism, from diplomacy, international cooperation, and constructive engagement to physical security enhancement, economic sanctions, covert action, and military force.
- International Terrorism: Threat, Policy, and Response
- This report examines international terrorist actions, threats, U.S. policies and responses. It reviews the nation’s use of tools at its disposal to combat terrorism, from diplomacy, international cooperation, and constructive engagement to physical security enhancement, economic sanctions, covert action, and military force.
- Failure to Register as a Sex Offender: An Abridged Legal Analysis of 18 U.S.C. 2250
- Report that describes 18 U.S.C. 2250, which outlaws any individual convicted of a sex offense from not registering themselves in a jurisdiction which they live, work, or go to school. It describes elements of the law, and consequences for not following it.
- Failure to Register as a Sex Offender: An Abridged Legal Analysis of 18 U.S.C. 2250
- Report that describes 18 U.S.C. 2250, which outlaws any individual convicted of a sex offense from not registering themselves in a jurisdiction which they live, work, or go to school. It describes elements of the law, and consequences for not following it.
- Federal Assistance for Victims of Terrorism or Mass Violence: In Brief
- This report focuses solely on assistance available from Department of Justice's (DOJ's) Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)--the primary federal assistance available to victims of terrorism or mass violence. Jurisdictions and individuals may be eligible to receive various types of victim assistance both directly from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and indirectly from DOJ through their respective state victim assistance agencies or other programs following incidents of terrorism or mass violence in the United States.
- DOJ Brings Forfeiture Action to Seize and Return $1 Billion Embezzled Malaysian Government Assets
- This report discuses the Department of Justice's (DOJ's) civil forfeiture action against $1 billion worth of assets bought with money embezzled from the government of Malaysia by high-level officials in Malaysia from 2009 to 2015.
- Federal Crime Control: Background, Legislation, and Issues
- This report provides Background, Legislation, and Issues on Federal Crime Control. states and locality have the primary responsibility for the prevention and control of domestic crime while the federal government's role is limited.
- Federal Efforts to Address the Threat of Bioterrorism: Selected Issues for Congress
- This report focuses on four areas under congressional consideration deemed critical to the success of the biodefense enterprise: strategic planning; risk assessment; surveillance; and the development, procurement, and distribution of medical countermeasures. This report also discusses the effectiveness and sufficiency of programs implementing these aspects of the federal biodefense efforts, outside analysts' suggestions for improving the government's efforts, and current issues under congressional consideration.
- Gun Control
- This report provides basic firearms-related issues and a summary of legislative action.
- Polygraph Testing of Employees In Private Industry
- No Description Available.
- Polygraph Testing: Employee and Employer Rights
- No Description Available.
- Judicial Fact-Finding and Criminal Sentencing: Current Practice and Potential Change
- This report provides an overview of criminal sentencing law by briefly describing the use of relevant conduct under the Guidelines and tracing the Supreme Court case law that has informed the practice, before addressing judicial commentary and recently proposed legislation regarding the use of acquitted or uncharged conduct at sentencing.
- Gun Control Legislation in the 113th Congress
- This report looks at past gun control legislation and also how recent events (such as the shootings in Newtown, Connecticut, Aurora, Colorado, and Tucson, Arizona) have influenced current congressional discourse and legislation. The report also specifically examines certain contentious, gun related topics including universal background checks, gun trafficking, and military style firearms.
- Charlottesville Car Crash Attack: Possibility of Federal Criminal Prosecution
- This report discusses the announcement that the Charlottesville, Virginia car crash attack is being investigated as a federal civil rights case. It also outlines the sections of the federal law under which the attack could be classified.
- The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF): Budget and Operations for FY2011
- This report provides an overview of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) budget and operations. This report chronicles congressional action on the FY2011 Commerce, Justice, Science (CJS), and Related Agencies Appropriations bills, as well as any FY2010 supplemental appropriations bills, that provide funding for ATF.
- Gun Legislation in the 109th Congress
- Congress continues to debate the efficacy and constitutionality of federal regulation of firearms and ammunition. It is a contentious debate, with strong advocates for and against the further federal regulation of firearms. Gun control advocates argue that federal regulation of firearms curbs access by criminals, juveniles, and other "high-risk" individuals, among other things. Gun control opponents deny that federal policies keep firearms out of the hands of high-risk persons; rather, they argue, controls often create burdens for law-abiding citizens and infringe upon constitutional rights provided by the Second Amendment. This report describes the details of this ongoing debate, including several pieces of legislation related to the issue.
- Terrorist Financing: U.S. Agency Efforts and Inter-Agency Coordination
- No Description Available.
- Al Qaeda: Profile and Threat Assessment
- No Description Available.
- The Crime Victims Fund: Federal Support for Victims of Crime
- Report that provides background and funding information for Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) programs and the Crime Victims Fund (CVF). It describes the process through which CVF funds are allocated and explains how the CVF impacts the annual budget for Department of Justice (DOJ).
- Reauthorizing the Office of National Drug Control Policy: Issues for Consideration
- This report provides a discussion of the National Drug Control Strategy, the National Drug Control Budget, and Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) evaluation of the National Drug Control Strategy implementation. It then provides an analysis of selected legislative and oversight issues that Congress may consider when debating the reauthorization of ONDCP.
- Burma and Transnational Crime
- This report analyzes the primary actors driving transnational crime in Burma, the forms of transnational crime occurring, and current U.S. policy in combating these crimes.
- Missing and Exploited Children: Overview and Policy Concerns
- This report presents an overview of two national incidence studies prepared by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to determine annually the number of reported missing and recovered children in the nation. It also discusses the AMBER Alert System created to help recover reported missing children, legislation introduced in the 108th Congresses to address the missing children issue, and questions that remain regarding concerns about missing children.
- Missing and Exploited Children: Overview and Policy Concerns
- This report presents an overview of two national incidence studies prepared by Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to determine annually the number of reported missing and recovered children in the nation. It also discusses the AMBER Alert System created to help recover reported missing children, legislation introduced in the 108th Congresses to address the missing children issue, and questions that remain regarding concerns about missing children. S. 151, the Prosecutorial Remedies and Other Tools to End the Exploitation of Children Today (PROTECT) Act, which was signed into law (P.L. 108-21) by the President on April 30, 2003, contains provisions related to missing and exploited children. Exploitation of Children Today (PROTECT) Act, which was signed into law (P.L. 108-21) by the President on April 30, 2003, contains provisions related to missing and exploited children.
- Terrorism in South Asia
- No Description Available.
- Latin America: Terrorism Issues
- In the aftermath of the September 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, D.C., U.S. attention to terrorism in Latin America intensified, with an increase in bilateral and regional cooperation. Latin American nations strongly condemned the attacks. This report outlines the U.S.-Latin American relationship in regards to terrorism, including several pieces of international counterterrorism legislation, including the Inter-American Convention Against Terrorism and the Organization of American States.
- Material Support of Terrorists and Foreign Terrorist Organizations: Sunset Amendments
- No Description Available.
- Material Support of Terrorists and Foreign Terrorist Organizations: Expiring Amendments in Brief
- No Description Available.
- Extraterritorial Application of American Criminal Law
- Crime is ordinarily proscribed, tried and punished according to the laws on the place where it occurs. American criminal law applies beyond the geographical confines of the United States, however, under some limited circumstances. The federal exceptions to the general rule usually involve crimes like drug trafficking, terrorism, or crimes committed aboard a ship or airplane. State prosecution for overseas misconduct is limited almost exclusively to multijurisdictional crimes, i.e., crimes where some elements of the offense are committed within the state and others are committed abroad. The Constitution, Congress, and state law define the circumstances under which American criminal law may be used against crimes occurring, in whole or in part, outside the United States
- Terrorism in South Asia
- This report reviews the recent incidence of terrorism in South Asia, concentrating on Pakistan and India, but also including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. The existence of international terrorist groups and their supporters in South Asia is identified as a threat to both regional stability and to the attainment of central U.S. policy goals. Al Qaeda forces that fled from Afghanistan with their Taliban supporters remain active on Pakistani territory, and Al Qaeda is believed to have links with indigenous Pakistani terrorist groups that have conducted anti-western attacks and that support separatist militancy in Indian Kashmir. Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden and his lieutenant, Ayman al-Zawahiri, are widely believed to be in Pakistan.
- Terrorists and Suicide Attacks
- This report analyzes the increasing global threat of suicide attacks by terrorist organizations and assesses their relevance and threat toward the interests of the United States. It focuses on several issues, such as the historical background of suicide attacks, personal and organizational motivations of suicide attacks, suicide attacks in Iraq, women and suicide attacks, how to counter attacks, and the implications for U.S. Policy
- Trafficking in Persons and U.S. Foreign Policy Responses in the 114th Congress
- This report provides an overview of recent global trends and U.S. foreign policy responses to address human trafficking. The report focuses in particular on efforts conducted by the State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) and the President's Interagency Task Force (PITF) on human trafficking, as well as discussion of the 2016 TIP Report.
- The "Militarization" of Law Enforcement and the Department of Defense's "1033 Program"
- This report gives an overview of the history of Special Weapons and Tactics teams, which are estimated to be deployed 45,000 times each year in the U.S. The report also discusses the "1033 Program" which authorizes federal and state law enforcement agencies to receive excess materials from Department of Defense stocks for use in counter-drug or counter-terrorism activities.
- Can Body Worn Cameras Serve as a Deterrent to Police Misconduct?
- This report discusses various issues regarding body worn cameras (BWCs), including the potential merits, concerns, and financial costs of use. The report also briefly states a possible method for allotting federal funds to help law enforcement agencies purchase BWCs.
- Gun Control Legislation
- This report looks at past gun control legislation and also how recent events (such as the shooting in Tucson, Arizona on January 8, 2011 which notably wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords) have influenced current legislation. This report concludes with discussion of other salient and recurring gun control issues that have generated past congressional interest.
- Federal Cocaine Sentencing Disparity: Sentencing Guidelines, Jurisprudence, and Legislation
- This report discusses legislation and several court cases to examine the changing nature of Crack Cocaine penalties in comparison to powder cocaine. Until 2005, the Guidelines were binding on federal courts: the judge had discretion to sentence a defendant, but only within the narrow sentencing range that the Guidelines provided. In its 2005 opinion United States v. Booker, the Supreme Court declared that the Guidelines must be considered advisory rather than mandatory, in order to comply with the Constitution. Instead of being bound by the Guidelines, sentencing courts must treat the federal guidelines as just one of a number of sentencing factors (which include the need to avoid undue sentencing disparity).
- Gun Control Legislation
- This report provides basic firearms-related statistics, an overview of federal firearms law, and a summary of legislative action in the 111th Congress. The report concludes with salient issues that have generated significant congressional interest, including the 1994-2004 LCAFD ban.
- Interrogation of Detainees: Requirements of the Detainee Treatment Act
- This report discusses provisions of the Detainee Treatment Act concerning standards for the interrogation and treatment of detainees.
- Guantanamo Detention Center: Legislative Activity in the 111th Congress
- This report analyzes the relevant provisions of the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009, and selected legislative proposals that have been introduced in the 111th Congress.
- Supplemental Appropriations for FY2002: Combating Terrorism and Other Issues
- No Description Available.
- Obscenity and Indecency: Constitutional Principles and Federal Statutes
- No Description Available.
- Drug Control: International Policy and Approaches
- Over the past decade, worldwide production of illicit drugs has risen dramatically: opium and marijuana production has roughly doubled and coca production tripled. Street prices of cocaine and heroin have fallen significantly in the past 20 years, reflecting increased availability. Despite apparent national political resolve to deal with the drug problem, inherent contradictions regularly appear between U.S. anti-drug policy and other national policy goals and concerns. The mix of competing domestic and international pressures and priorities has produced an ongoing series of disputes within and between the legislative and executive branches concerning U.S. international drug policy. One contentious issue has been the Congressionally-mandated certification process, an instrument designed to induce specified drug-exporting countries to prioritize or pay more attention to the fight against narcotics businesses.
- Digital Surveillance: The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act
- The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA, P.L. 103- 414, 47 USC 1001-1010), enacted October 25, 1994, is intended to preserve the ability of law enforcement officials to conduct electronic surveillance effectively and efficiently despite the deployment of new digital technologies and wireless services that have altered the character of electronic surveillance. CALEA requires telecommunications carriers to modify their equipment, facilities, and services, wherever reasonably achievable, to ensure that they are able to comply with authorized electronic surveillance actions.
- NASA's Space Shuttle Columbia: Quick Facts and Issues for Congress
- No Description Available.
- The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF): Budget and Operations
- This report provides an overview of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' (ATF) budget and operations. The ATF is the lead federal law enforcement agency charged with administering and enforcing federal laws related to the manufacture, importation, and distribution of firearms and explosives.