Congressional Research Service Reports - 60 Matching Results
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- Advanced Vehicle Technologies: Energy, Environment, and Development Issues
- This report provides an introduction to the research, development, and commercialization of alternative vehicle technologies, specifically electric vehicles, hybrid electric vehicles, and fuel cell vehicles. It provides a description of the technology, and discusses issues such as cost, maintenance and fueling infrastructure, and performance for each type of vehicle. The report also discusses current congressional action on issues affecting these vehicles, as well as actions by the Administration and state and local governments. It will be updated as events warrant.
- The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA): Overview and Current Legal Developments
- This report provides an overview of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and discusses current legal and legislative developments.
- Attorneys’ Fees Reimbursement Under the Independent Counsel Law
- This report addresses Attorneys’ Fees Reimbursement Under the Independent Counsel Law.
- C-17 Cargo Aircraft Program
- The C-17 Globemaster III is a long-range cargo/transport aircraft operated by the U.S. Air Force since 1993. Congress approved development of the aircraft in the late 1970s, when it was recognized that the Air Force did not have enough airlift capability. In 1981, the McDonnell Douglas C-17 emerged as winner of a competition with Boeing and Lockheed to develop a next-generation aircraft to replace C-130s and C-141s.
- Campaign Financing: Highlights and Chronology of Current Federal Law
- This report provides a summary of major provisions of federal law and a chronology of key legislative and judicial actions.
- Campaign Financing: Highlights and Chronology of Current Federal Law
- Current law governing financial activity of campaigns for federal office is based on two principal statutes: the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) of 1971, as amended in 1974, 1976, and 1979, and the Revenue Act of 1971. These laws were enacted to remedy widely perceived shortcomings of existing law, the Corrupt Practices Act of 1925, and in response to reports of campaign finance abuses over the years, culminating in the 1972-1974 Watergate scandal. This report provides a summary of major provisions of federal law and a chronology of key legislative and judicial actions.
- Can Tax Policy Improve Economic Competitiveness?
- This report mainly discusses whether Tax Policy Improve Economic Competitiveness or not.
- Central Asia's New States: Political Developments and Implications for U.S. Interests
- After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States recognized the independence of all the former Central Asian republics and established diplomatic relations with each by mid-March 1992. This report provides an overview of U.S. policy concerns after the Soviet collapse. The report presents the U.S. policy attention and aid to support conflict amelioration, humanitarian needs, economic development, transport (including energy pipelines) and communications, border controls, democracy, and the creation of civil societies in the South Caucasian and Central Asian states. The United States has some economic and business interests in Central Asia, particularly in oil and natural gas development in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.
- Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act: Overview of S. 1931 and H.R. 1658, 106th Congress
- This report is on the Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Act: Overview of S. 1931 and H.R. 1658, 106th Congress.
- Coastal Zone Management Reauthorization: An Overview
- Congress is considering legislation that would reauthorize the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. This overview summarizes the programs created by this act and its amendments, and outlines issues associated with reauthorization. These issues include reauthorizing funding, altering grant programs, changing the National Estuarine Research Reserve system, funding to implement nonpoint water pollution requirements, protecting private property rights, expanding program evaluation efforts, and examining effects of personal water craft on the coastal requirement. A reauthorization bill has been reported by the House Resources Committee (H.R. 2669, H. Rept. 106-485), and floor action is anticipated soon. In the Senate, no action has been taken.
- Comparison of the Bankruptcy Reform Act, H.R. 833, 106th Congress, Passed by the House and the Senate
- This report surveys the legislation’s legislative history. It provides a brief narrative and side-by-side comparison of selected provisions in the House and Senate bills, with an emphasis on consumer bankruptcy.
- Constitutional Aspects of Qui Tam Actions: Background and Analysis of Issues in Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens
- No Description Available.
- The Copyright Doctrine of Fair Use and the Internet: Caselaw
- This report examines the evolving copyright doctrine of fair use within the context of copyrighted works published or placed on the Internet. American courts have been examining the various property rights of copyright owners concurrently with the unauthorized use of these copyrighted materials by Web site operators, Internet consumers, access providers, and other interested parties. This report analyzes the early fair use copyright cases concerning Internet use, as well as the most recent judicial interpretations.
- Debt and Development in Poor Countries:Rethinking Policy Responses
- This report discusses how debts fits into the broader development picture including, defining the circumstances that lead to heavy indebtedness, drawing specific lessons from the Latin American and African cases, and evaluating the success and failure of earlier debt policy responses.
- Economic Sanctions and U.S. Agricultural Exports
- Various statutes and regulations authorize the President to restrict or prohibit trade with targeted countries for national security or foreign policy reasons. The exercise of these authorities has resulted in restrictions or prohibitions at times being placed on the export of U.S. agricultural commodities and products. The U.S. government currently restricts exports of agricultural products as part of across-the-board economic sanctions imposed on Cuba and Iraq. Exceptions are made for humanitarian reasons, allowing food to be sold or donated to these two countries.
- Education Savings Accounts for Elementary and Secondary Education
- No Description Available.
- Electricity Restructuring and the Constitutionality of Retail Reciprocity Requirements
- Retail reciprocity requirements have been included in the electricity restructuring legislation of at least four states. These requirements mandate generally that out-of-state utilities which operate in a state “closed” to retail competition cannot market power to retail consumers in the “open” state. Because state reciprocity requirements enacted without congressional authorization are probably unconstitutional under the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution, Congress would have to include a reciprocity provision in federal electricity restructuring legislation if it wants to support the view that such a provision will increase competition. This report reviews the treatment of state reciprocity requirements by the U.S. Supreme Court and discusses Congress’ power under the Commerce Clause.
- F-22 Aircraft Program
- This report discusses the background information, analysis and the recent developments in the F-22 Aircraft Program. The F-22 program raises questions about its cost and the need for this aircraft, the capabilities it would have, and the number of these planes needed to meet military requirements. The F-22 has had strong congressional support, although some have criticized the program on grounds of cost, requirements, and coordination with other tactical aircraft programs. Deletion of procurement funds in the FY2000 defense appropriation bill passed by the House made the future of the program a major issue for House and Senate conferees in 1999.
- Fair Conduct in Franchise Sales: H.R. 3308, 106th Congress
- No Description Available.
- The Federal Excise Tax on Gasoline and the Highway Trust Fund: A Short History
- Excise taxes have long been a part of our country's revenue history. In the field of gasoline taxation, the states led the way with Oregon enacting the first tax on motor fuels in 1919. By 1932, all states and the District of Columbia had followed suit with tax rates that ranged between two and seven cents per gallon. The federal government first imposed its excise tax on gasoline at a one cent per gallon rate in 1932. The gas tax was enacted to correct a federal budgetary imbalance.
- Forest Service Accountability in Administering Its Trust Funds
- The USDA Forest Service has numerous permanently appropriated trust funds and special funds that provide substantial funding independent of the annual appropriations process. Critics have alleged abuse of the funds and have sought greater congressional oversight, and the General Accounting Office has testified on the agency’s management of some of these accounts. While the Administration has offered few responses to the criticisms of these funds, it has, in its FY2001 budget request, proposed creating two new trust funds and combining several existing funds into a new fund with expanded purposes. This report provides an overview of the permanently appropriated Forest Service accounts and concerns over their use and proposed alternative structures that could provide greater public and congressional oversight and control over permanently appropriated funds.
- Forest Service FY2001 Budget Issues, Including Proposals for Land Sales and Trust Funds
- This report provides a table detailing the requested Forest Service (FS) budget for FY2001 and comparing it FY1999 appropriations.
- Forest Service Revenue-Sharing Payments: Legislative Issues
- The Forest Service (FS) returns 25% of the revenues from each national forest to the states for use on roads and schools in counties where the forests are located; the Bureau of Land Management shares 50% of its revenues with counties containing the Oregon & California grant lands. This report discusses the legislative concerns that have arisen because declining timber sales have reduced revenues.
- Fuel Ethanol: Background and Public Policy Issues
- In light of a changing regulatory environment, concern has arisen regarding the future prospects for ethanol as a motor fuel. Ethanol is produced from biomass (mainly corn) and is mixed with gasoline to produce cleaner-burning fuel called "gasohol" or "E10."
- Global Climate Change: The Energy Tax Incentives in the President’s FY2001 Budget
- No Description Available.
- Global Climate Change Treaty: The Kyoto Protocol
- Negotiations on the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) were completed December 11, 1997, committing the industrialized nations to specified, legally binding reductions in emissions of six "greenhouse gases." This report discusses the major provisions of the Kyoto Protocol.
- Imf and World Bank Activities in Russia and Asia: Some Conflicting Perspectives
- Examination of differing opinions on whether or not the IMF and World Bank economic programs in Russia and Asia were effective.
- Internships and Fellowships: Congressional, Federal, and Other Work Experience Opportunities
- This report provides information on internships and fellowships in the federal government, with an emphasis on opportunities in the legislative branch. It also contains a bibliography of additional sources of information, including Internet resources.
- Internships and Fellowships: Congressional, Federal, and Other Work Experience Opportunities
- No Description Available.
- Israel: Missile Defense Cooperation With the United States
- No Description Available.
- Labeling of Genetically Modified Foods
- Congressional interest in the labeling of genetically modified foods (GM foods) has been rising. So far, two bills have been introduced to mandate that all foods from genetically modified crops (GM crops) be labeled as such. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued its current GM food labeling policy in May 1992. At that time, the agency determined that it would regulate GM foods no differently than foods created by conventional means because FDA considered them substantially equivalent to traditional foods and decided that no special label would be needed. In the intervening period, extensive public debate surrounding the genetic modification of foods has led some consumers to call for labeling of such products. A label would permit customers to choose to avoid purchasing or consuming them. Others oppose labeling because to make such labels "truthful and not misleading" all commodities would need to be segregated and tested, and the label would not have room to impart information that could not be distributed in other ways. The federal government's role in regulating these foods is explained in CRS report RL30198, Food Biotechnology in the United States: Science, Regulation, and Issues. This report focuses specifically on views surrounding the labeling of GM foods. It will be updated periodically as new legislative proposals are introduced.
- Legal Issues Affecting the Right of State Employees to Bring Suit Under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and Other Federal Labor Laws
- No Description Available.
- Medical Research Funding: Summary of a CRS Seminar on Challenges and Opportunities of Proposed Large Increases for the National Institutes of Health
- This report summarizes the proceedings of a CRS seminar for congressional staff on appropriations for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), held September 23, 1999 against a backdrop of congressional deliberations over increases in National Institute of Health (NIH’s) budget.
- MEXICO’S COUNTER-NARCOTICS EFFORTS UNDER ZEDILLO, DECEMBER 1994 TO MARCH 2000
- No Description Available.
- Military Technicians: The Issue of Mandatory Retirement for Non-Dual-Status Technicians
- This report describes the mandatory retirement provisions for certain “non-dual-status” military technicians contained in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 (P.L. 106-65), discusses the stated rationale behind the policy, and quantifies the impact it will likely have on individual technicians.
- Morocco: Royal Succession and Other Developments
- No Description Available.
- NAFTA: Related Environmental Issues and Initiatives
- The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) includes several environment-related provisions, that while limited, were lauded for their inclusion in a trade agreement. However, further environmental (and labor) assurances were needed to secure passage of NAFTA, and ultimately, the negotiating parties agreed to a side accord that promotes trilateral cooperation on environmental matters and includes provisions to address a party's failure to enforce environmental laws
- Narcotics Certification of Drug Producing and Trafficking Nations: Questions and Answers
- No Description Available.
- Narcotics Certification of Drug Producing Trafficking Nations: Questions and Answers
- No Description Available.
- OPEC Oil Production - Facts and Figures
- In light of 1999's oil production cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and several other non-OPEC members, the characteristics of the world's major oil producers are an important consideration for policymakers. These countries vary in importance as direct suppliers to the U.S. Their ability to add to current world supply varies as well.
- The Pendulum Swings Back: Standing Doctrine After
- On January 12, 2000, the Supreme Court held in Friends of the Earth v. Laidlaw that plaintiffs had standing to pursue a Clean Water Act citizen suit, despite the fact that (1) the company-defendant had achieved compliance prior to the district court's decision, (2) plaintiffs sought only civil penalties payable to the U.S. Treasury, and (3) plaintiffs had demonstrated only reasonable concern, not physical injury to the environment. In so holding, the Court appeared to retrench substantially from its environmental standing decisions of the 1990s, which had all gone against plaintiffs. In the wake of Laidlaw, environmental citizen suits will be easier to bring. This report will not be updated.
- Pension Issues: Lump-Sum Distributions and Retirement Income Security
- No Description Available.
- Pinochet Extradition Case: Selected Legal Issues
- No Description Available.
- Precision Agriculture: A Primer
- No Description Available.
- President Clinton's South Asia Trip
- President Clinton's March visit to South Asia focused primarily on broadening and deepening ties with India. The trip -- which included stops in Bangladesh and Pakistan -- was complicated by the downward spiral in India-Pakistan relations in the past year and Pakistan's military coup. In the course of his visit, the President addressed a number of important U.S. policy issues, including economic reform, nuclear proliferation, South Asia regional stability, terrorism, and democratization. This report will not be updated. For further background, see CRS Issue Brief 93097, India-U.S. Relations; CRS Issue Brief 94041, Pakistan-US Relations; and CRS Report RS20489, Bangladesh: Background and U.S. Relations.
- Project Echelon: U.S. Electronic Surveillance Efforts
- No Description Available.
- Property Rights: Comparison of H.R. 2372 as Passed and S. 1028 as Introduced
- No Description Available.
- Property Rights: House Judiciary Committee Reports H.R. 2372
- On March 9, 2000, the House Committee on the Judiciary reported favorably H.R. 2372. The bill, titled "Private Property Rights Implementation Act of 2000," is aimed principally at lowering the threshold barriers of ripeness and abstention encountered when land owners file in federal court challenging local government actions as "takings." (1) Under the Fifth Amendment's Takings Clause (which applies to state and local, not only federal, actions), private property may not be "taken" for public use without just compensation.
- Recent Trends in the Federal Tax Burden
- No Description Available.
- The Rising U.S. Trade Deficit With Japan: Overview and Policy Options
- No Description Available.