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Social Security, Saving, and the Economy

Description: This report examines the determinants of household saving, how household saving may be affected by Social Security, and the potential effects of possible changes in Social Security.
Date: January 12, 2005
Creator: Cashell, Brian W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Sovereign Wealth Funds: Background and Policy Issues for Congress

Description: This report provides background on sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) -- investment funds owned and managed by national governments -- including countries operating SWFs and the size of the SWF market. It also discusses broad areas of concern to Members of Congress and the international financial community.
Date: January 15, 2009
Creator: Weiss, Martin A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Why is the Household Saving Rate So Low?

Description: This report begins by showing how much the household saving rate has declined in recent years. Next, it explains how household saving is measured, and provides some detail on how saving varies across the income distribution. Finally, it discusses factors that may account for the decline in household saving, as well as how much of a policy concern the decline in household saving may be.
Date: January 9, 2008
Creator: Cashell, Brian W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Loan Forgiveness for Public Service Employees Under the William D. Ford Direct Loan Program

Description: The College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 (CCRAA; P.L. 110-84) establishes a new loan forgiveness provision for borrowers of loans made under the William D. Ford Direct Loan (DL) program who are employed in public service jobs for 10 years during the repayment of their loans. This report provides a brief description of the DL program loan forgiveness provision for public service employees and identifies issues that may be addressed as it is implemented.
Date: January 28, 2008
Creator: Smole, David P.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance: Potential Legislative and Policy Issues for the 111th Congress

Description: This report discusses selected campaign finance policy issues that may receive attention during the 111th Congress such as the electronic filing of senate campaign finance reports, bundling, hybrid advertising, joint fundraising committees, 527 Organizations and more.
Date: January 29, 2009
Creator: McCarthy, James E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Selected International Depreciation Rates by Asset and Country

Description: The depreciation provisions in the U.S. tax system are of recurring interest to Congress. More than 100 bills were introduced in the 109th Congress that addressed some aspect of depreciation. Concerns about the U.S. depreciation system tend to begin with the criticism that updates to the system have not kept pace with technological advancements of the assets for which it is utilized to account. This report provides information on the depreciation systems of selected European Union countries (Fr… more
Date: January 30, 2007
Creator: Mast, Brent W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Enron and Stock Analyst Objectivity

Description: Stock analysts provide research on companies and make recommendations on their stocks. When analysts are employed by brokerage firms and provide information for the firms’ retail and institutional clients, they are called sell-side analysts. Analysts who work specifically for institutional investors like mutual and pension funds are known as buy-side analysts. Because of their widespread presence in the national media, sell-side analysts’ recommendations have become part of the public domain an… more
Date: January 29, 2003
Creator: Shorter, Gary
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policy

Description: This report discusses the passing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included tax cut and spending provisions totaling at a cost of $787 billion in an attempt to mitigate the economic fallout of the housing and financial crises on the general economy. The report examines issues surrounding fiscal stimulus such as timeliness, the magnitude of stimulus, long-term effects and previously adopted policies.
Date: January 16, 2009
Creator: Gravelle, Jane G.; Hungerford, Thomas L. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance: Legislative Developments and Policy Issues in the 110th Congress

Description: This report provides an overview of major legislative and policy developments related to campaign finance during the 110th Congress. The report discusses legislative and oversight hearings and floor action during the period. It also explores major policy issues that are relevant for Congress, but have largely occurred away from Capitol Hill. As of this writing, approximately 50 bills devoted primarily to campaign finance have been introduced in the 110th Congress, but none have become law. A ne… more
Date: January 14, 2008
Creator: Garrett, R. Sam
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policy

Description: This report discusses the passing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included tax cut and spending provisions totaling at a cost of $787 billion in an attempt to mitigate the economic fallout of the housing and financial crises on the general economy. The report examines issues surrounding fiscal stimulus such as timeliness, the magnitude of stimulus, long-term effects and previously adopted policies.
Date: January 23, 2009
Creator: Gravelle, Jane G.; Hungerford, Thomas L. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Interest Payments on the Federal Debt: A Primer

Description: This report provides a brief overview of the federal debt and net interest payments. Of the three broad categories of federal spending, the only category that cannot be reduced by legislative action is net interest payments. The report provides information about federal debt, interest payments on the federal dept, and determinants of net interest payments.
Date: January 8, 2009
Creator: Hungerford, Thomas L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Causes of the Financial Crisis

Description: This report sets out in tabular form a number of the factors that have been identified as causes of the financial crisis that began in 2007. The left column of Table 1 summarizes the causal role of each such factor. The next column presents a brief rejoinder to that argument. The right-hand column contains a reference for further reading. Where text is given in quotation marks, the reference in the right column is the source, unless otherwise specified.
Date: January 29, 2009
Creator: Jickling, Mark
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Reporting Requirements in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008

Description: This report describes the various reporting requirements in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (EESA) and is organized according to the entities required to prepare and submit the reports. It also provides some concluding observations regarding those requirements.
Date: January 13, 2009
Creator: Copeland, Curtis W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Market Intervention

Description: This report provides answers to some frequently asked questions concerning ongoing financial disruptions and the Troubled Asset Relief Program, enacted by Congress in the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.
Date: January 13, 2009
Creator: Murphy, Edward V. & Webel, Baird
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Financing: Highlights and Chronology of Current Federal Law

Description: This report summarizes major provisions of federal law and offers a chronology of key legislative and judicial actions which govern financial activity of federal election campaigns. The laws are based on two principal statutes: the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) of 1971, as amended in 1974, 1976, 1979, and 2002, and the Revenue Act of 1971.
Date: January 24, 2003
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Iraq's Debt Relief: Procedure and Potential Implications for International Debt Relief

Description: This report discusses the Iraqi debt problem in three parts: (1) an overview of the Iraq debt situation following the ouster of the Saddam regime, (2) subsequent debt relief negotiations and their resolution, and (3) possible implications for future international debt relief cases.
Date: January 26, 2009
Creator: Weiss, Martin A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Role of Public Works Infrastructure in Economic Stimulus

Description: Interest in using federal government spending to stimulate U.S. economic recovery has intensified recently in response to indicators showing significant deterioration of the economy. Some policymakers favor using traditional monetary and fiscal policies. Others, however, favor making accelerated investments in the nation's public infrastructure in order to create jobs while also meeting infrastructure needs. This report is an overview of policy issues associated with the approach of using infra… more
Date: January 6, 2009
Creator: Copeland, Claudia; Levine, Linda; Mallett, William J. & Carter, Nicole T.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance: An Overview

Description: Concerns over financing federal elections have become a seemingly perennial aspect of our political system, long centered on the enduring issues of high campaign costs and reliance on interest groups for needed campaign funds. Rising election costs had long fostered a sense in some quarters that spending was out of control, with too much time spent raising funds and elections "bought and sold." This report contains information on the evolution of the current system, campaign finance practices a… more
Date: January 26, 2007
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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K-12 Education: Special Forms of Flexibility in the Administration of Federal Aid Programs

Description: This report begins with a review of the general nature of federal K-12 education program requirements, including their sources, purposes, and the concerns expressed by some grantees about them. This is followed by a description of the current special flexibility authorities under which many of these requirements may be waived or otherwise made inapplicable, along with an analysis of issues specific to individual authorities. This section is divided between authorities initially adopted before t… more
Date: January 10, 2008
Creator: Riddle, Wayne C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: The Windfall Benefit Provision

Description: This report discusses the windfall elimination provision, which reduces the Social Security benefits of workers who also have pension benefits from employment not covered by Social Security. Its purpose is to remove an advantage these workers would otherwise receive because of Social Security's benefit formula that favors workers with smaller amounts of Social Security-covered career earnings. Opponents contend that the provision is basically inaccurate and often unfair. In both the 107th and 1… more
Date: January 9, 2004
Creator: Haltzel, Laura
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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China’s Holdings of U.S. Securities: Implications for the U.S. Economy

Description: This report examines the importance to the U.S. economy of China’s investment in U.S. securities, as well as U.S. concerns over the possibility that China might unload a large share of those holdings, the likelihood that this would occur, and the potential implications such action could have for the U.S. economy.
Date: January 9, 2008
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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