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Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS): Current Legislative Issues
This report provides an overview and analysis of issues Congress might choose to consider when taking up legislation to reauthorize the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program.
"Robo-Signing" and Other Alleged Documentation Problems in Judicial and Nonjudicial Foreclosure Processes
Recent depositions involving major servicers, including GMAC Mortgage, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Wells Fargo, have raised concerns about "robo-signing" -- the practice of having a small number of individuals sign a large number of affidavits and other legal documents submitted to courts and other public authorities by mortgage companies to execute foreclosure. This report explores concerns related to these issues by explaining the mortgage market process, procedural problems that have surfaced during foreclosure proceedings, and other relevant information.
Nonimmigrant Overstays: Brief Synthesis of the Issue
This report discusses a fundamental problem of immigration control in which foreign nationals enter legally on a temporary basis and continue to stay after their visas expire.
CRS Issue Statement on Medicare Reform
This report discusses about medicare and its spending that has been growing much faster than the general economy. It further discusses about congress's consideration on change on medicare expenditure by reducing provider payment.
CRS Issue Statement on Intellectual Property Rights
This report contains intellectual property rights and different law such as: Patent Law, copyright law, and International IPR Protection.
CRS Issue Statement on Southeast Asia, Australasia, and the Pacific Islands
This report discusses significant policy challenges that congress faces in the region including assessing and responding to China's growing influence, promoting democracy and human rights, fighting terrorism and promoting trade.
Coal Mine Safety and Health
This report discusses actions taken by 111th Congress to reduce fatalities within the coal mining industry and reviews congressional mandates to accommodate for a safer working environment.
Outer Continental Shelf Moratoria on Oil and Gas Development
This report discusses moratoria measures for the outer continental shelf (OCS) which establish bans or restrictions on oil and gas exploration and development in federal ocean areas. It includes a background of offshore oil and gas development, the sources of U.S. moratorium policy, the background of ocean governance, U.S. moratoria in international areas, and related issues for congress.
Conservation Reserve Program: Status and Current Issues
This report discusses the Conservative Reserve Program (CRP), enacted in 1985, that provides payments to farmers to take highly erodible or environmentally sensitive cropland out of production for 10 years or more. It also discusses several other subprograms of CRP.
Clean Water Act: A Summary of the Law
This report discusses the financial assistance for constructing municipal sewage treatment plants and certain other types of water quality improvement projects. It also points out Titles II and VI ---Municipal Wastewater Treatment Construction.
Ocean Dumping Act: A Summary of the Law
The Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act has two basic aims: to regulate intentional ocean disposal of materials, and to authorize related research. Permit and enforcement provisions of the law are often referred to as the Ocean Dumping Act. The basic provisions of the act have remained virtually unchanged since 1972, when it was enacted to establish a comprehensive waste management system to regulate disposal or dumping of all materials into marine waters that are within U.S. jurisdiction, although a number of new authorities have been added. This report presents a summary of the law.
CRS Issue Statement on Disability Benefits
This report discusses about the Federal disability benefit programs that are primarily intended to provide a measure of income security to persons with disabilities by replacing some of the income lost due to their inability to work.
Animal Waste and Water Quality: EPA’s Response to the Waterkeeper Alliance Court Decision on Regulation of CAFOs
This report is categorized into three categories: (I) The 2003 Rule, (II) The waterkeeper Alliance Decision and EPA's Response and (III) Response to the 2008 Revised Rule.
Federal Employees' Retirement System: Benefits and Financing
Most civilian federal employees who were hired before 1984 are covered by the Civil Service Retirement System, and contribute 7.0% of their pay to a retirement fund. Federal employees hired in 1984 or later are covered by the Federal Employees' Retirement System and contribute 0.8% of their pay to a retirement fund. Both require participants to contribute toward the cost of their pensions through a payroll tax. The taxable wage base is $106,800 in 2010. This report discusses both retirement funds.
The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC): An Overview
The Earned Income Tax Credit began in 1975 as a temporary program to return a portion of the Social Security taxes paid by lower-income taxpayers, and was made permanent in 1978. In the 1990s, the program because a major component of federal efforts to reduce poverty, and is now the largest anti-poverty entitlement program. This report contains information on eligibility for the program, credit amount, participation, interaction with other tax provisions, issues, compliance, and more as related to the Earned Income Tax Credit.
Food Safety on the Farm: Federal Programs and Legislative Action
In recent years, major outbreaks of foodborne illnesses, product recalls, and reports about unsafe food imports have caused some to question the adequacy of the U.S. food safety system. Stakeholders appear to agree that an optimal system should encompass a comprehensive, preventive approach to food safety, focusing on those foods and points in the food system that pose the greatest public health risks, starting at the point of production - that is, on farms and ranches. This report discusses differing opinions on this topic, as well as related legislation.
Oil Spill Legislation in the 111th Congress
This report summarizes provisions of selected legislation - enacted and proposed - that address oil spill policy issues raised after the April 20, 2010, explosion and resulting oil spill at the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico. This report focuses primarily on oil spill policy matters that concern prevention, preparedness, response, and the liability and compensation framework.
North Korea's Second Nuclear Test: Implications of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1874
This report discusses North Korea's second nuclear test and the implications of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1874. The resolution puts in place a series of sanctions on North Korea's arms sales, luxury goods, and financial transactions related to its weapons programs, and calls upon states to inspect North Korean vessels suspected of carrying such shipments.
Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress
The diminishment of Arctic sea ice has led to increased human activities in the Arctic, and has heightened concerns about the region's future. Issues such as Arctic sovereignty claims; commercial shipping through the Arctic; Arctic oil, gas, and mineral exploration; endangered Arctic species; and increased military operations in the Arctic could cause the region in coming years to become an arena of international cooperation, competition, or conflict. This report provides an overview of Arctic-related issues for Congress, and refers readers to more in-depth CRS reports on specific Arctic-related issues.
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