Search Results

open access

"Holds" in the Senate

Description: This report discusses a wide range of proposals aimed at reforming holds (an informal practice among Senators to communicate policy views and scheduling preferences) to infuse more accountability, uniformity, and transparency in their use and to make it clear that holds are not a veto on the majority leader's prerogative of calling up measures or matters.
Date: May 22, 2014
Creator: Oleszek, Mark J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Description: This report provides information on congressional practices with respect to the duration of continuing resolutions, including the use of full-year measures, and focuses particularly on the period covering FY1998-FY2010.
Date: March 22, 2011
Creator: Tollestrup, Jessica
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

House Rules Committee Hearings on Special Rules

Description: This report briefly discusses the procedure in the House of Representatives for rules committee hearings on special rules.
Date: November 17, 2010
Creator: Lynch, Megan Suzanne
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

House Committee Hearings: Witness Testimony

Description: This report briefly discusses the witness testimony process in House of Representatives committee hearings.
Date: November 19, 2010
Creator: Davis, Christopher M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Congressional Liaison Offices of Selected Federal Agencies

Description: This list of about 150 congressional liaison offices is intended to help congressional offices in placing telephone calls and addressing correspondence to government agencies. In each case, the information was supplied by the agency itself and is current as of the date of publication. Entries are arranged alphabetically in four sections: legislative branch; judicial branch; executive branch; and agencies, boards, and commissions.
Date: October 26, 2010
Creator: Crane-Hirsch, Audrey Celeste
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Budget Reconciliation Legislation: Development and Consideration

Description: This report briefly discusses the budget reconciliation process, which is an optional two-step process Congress may use to assure compliance with the direct spending, revenue, and debt-limit levels set forth in budget resolutions.
Date: November 29, 2010
Creator: Heniff, Bill, Jr.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Presidential Appointee Positions Requiring Senate Confirmation and Committees Handling Nominations

Description: Report that identifies, by Senate committee, presidentially appointed positions requiring Senate confirmation based on referrals as of the date of passage of S. 679, which became P.L. 112-166 on August 10, 2012. It begins with a brief description of the referral process and identify, for each committee to which referrals have been made, the positions that fall within the committee's jurisdiction.
Date: November 15, 2012
Creator: Davis, Christopher M. & Mansfield, Jerry W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Description: This report provides information on congressional practices with respect to the duration of continuing resolutions, including the use of full-year measures, and focuses particularly on the period covering FY1998-FY2011.
Date: April 28, 2011
Creator: Tollestrup, Jessica
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Senate Rules Restricting the Content of Conference Reports

Description: This report discusses the rules in the Senate regarding what can be added to conference reports by committees after their creation.
Date: November 27, 2017
Creator: Rybicki, Elizabeth
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Proposals to Reform “Holds” in the Senate

Description: This report examines, over a more than three decade period, a wide range of proposals to reform holds. In general, the objective of these recommendations is not to abolish holds but to infuse more accountability, uniformity, and transparency in their use and to make it clear that holds are not a veto on the majority leader's prerogative of calling up measures or matters.
Date: December 20, 2007
Creator: Oleszek, Walter J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Regulatory Reform Legislation in the 112th Congress

Description: In the 112th Congress, a number of bills have been introduced that would, if enacted, change current requirements in the federal rulemaking process. This report describes each of those bills, notes whether similar legislation has been introduced or acted upon in the past, summarizes the comments of those supporting and opposing the proposed legislation, and provides other relevant information.
Date: May 25, 2011
Creator: Copeland, Curtis W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Congress’s Contempt Power: A Sketch

Description: This report outlines the source of the contempt power, reviews major developments on the case law, and analyzes the procedures associated with each of the three different types of contempt proceedings. The report also discusses the recent investigation by the House Judiciary committee that has resulted in votes for criminal contempt of Congress and the filing of a civil lawsuit to enforce congressional subpoenas.
Date: April 15, 2008
Creator: Tatelman, Todd B.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Proposals to Reform “Holds” in the Senate

Description: “Holds” are an informal senatorial custom unrecognized in Senate rules or precedents. They allow Senators to give notice to their respective party leader that certain measures or matters should not be brought up on the floor. This report examines, over a more than three-decade period, a wide range of proposals to reform holds.
Date: August 31, 2011
Creator: Oleszek, Walter J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

United Nations Reform: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: This report examines reform priorities from the perspective of several key actors, including Members of Congress, the Obama Administration, selected member states, the U.N. Secretary-General, and a cross-section of groups tasked with addressing U.N. reform. It also discusses congressional actions related to U.N. reform and mechanisms for implementing reform, as well as possible challenges facing U.S. policy makers as they consider existing and future U.N. reform efforts.
Date: January 13, 2014
Creator: Blanchfield, Luisa
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Conference Committee and Related Procedures: An Introduction

Description: This report is a brief summary of House and Senate procedures for reaching agreement on legislation. It discusses the provisions of House Rule XXII and Senate Rule XXVIII as well as other applicable rules, precedents, and practices. The report focuses on the most common and customary procedures. There are many exceptions, complications, and possibilities that are not addressed, and the House and Senate may modify or waive their procedures by unanimous consent or by other means.
Date: April 2, 2018
Creator: Rybicki, Elizabeth
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Guide to Committee Activity Reports: Purpose, Rules, and Contents

Description: This report provides a discussion of the types of information that may be included in the activity reports, variations across reports and time, and the filing process. A table provides a comparison of the committee activity reports and other congressional publications, including the types of information found in each as well as their timeframe for coverage and publication.
Date: February 15, 2018
Creator: Brudnick, Ida A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

"Holds" in the Senate

Description: This report discusses a wide range of proposals aimed at reforming holds (an informal practice among Senators to communicate policy views and scheduling preferences) to infuse more accountability, uniformity, and transparency in their use and to make it clear that holds are not a veto on the majority leader's prerogative of calling up measures or matters.
Date: March 19, 2015
Creator: Oleszek, Mark J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Speed of Presidential and Senate Actions on Supreme Court Nominations, 1900-2010

Description: This report provides information on the amount of time taken to act on all Supreme Court nominations occurring between 1900 and 2010. It focuses on the actual amounts of time that Presidents and the Senate have taken to act after learning about vacancies, selections, etc. (as opposed to the elapsed time between official points in the process).
Date: April 21, 2010
Creator: Garrett, R. Sam & Rutkus, Denis Steven
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Duration of Continuing Resolutions in Recent Years

Description: This report provides information on congressional practices with respect to the duration of continuing resolutions, including the use of full-year measures, and focuses particularly on the period covering FY1998-FY2010.
Date: May 13, 2010
Creator: Keith, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Congressional Oversight of Intelligence: Current Structure and Alternatives

Description: This report describes the current select committees on intelligence; characteristics and a model for a possible joint committee; recent actions by Congress; and obstacles affecting legislative oversight in the field.
Date: January 25, 2010
Creator: Kaiser, Frederick M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Federalism, State Sovereignty, and the Constitution: Basis and Limits of Congressional Power

Description: The report discusses state and federal legislative power generally, and focuses on a number of these "federalism" cases. Issues addressed include congressional power under the Commerce Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment; limits on congressional powers, such as the Tenth Amendment; and state sovereign immunity under the Eleventh Amendment.
Date: February 1, 2008
Creator: Thomas, Kenneth R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Role of Home State Senators in the Selection of Lower Federal Court Judges

Description: This report examines the role that home state Senators, historically and in the contemporary era, have played in the selection of nominees to U.S. district court and circuit court of appeals judgeships. It also identifies issues that have arisen in recent years over the role of home state Senators in the selection process for federal judges.
Date: February 11, 2013
Creator: Rutkus, Denis Steven
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act

Description: This report describes the changes that were made by the Foreign Intelligence Suveillance Act (FISA) Amendments Act within the context of the government's authority to conduct surveillance for foreign intelligence purposes.
Date: January 2, 2013
Creator: Liu, Edward C.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
Back to Top of Screen