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Financial Services and General Government (FSGG): FY2008 Appropriations

Description: This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Defense. For both defense authorization and appropriations, this report summarizes the status of the bills, their scope, major issues, funding levels, and related congressional activity.
Date: December 20, 2007
Creator: Hatch, Garrett L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security Survivors Benefits

Description: This report describes how a person becomes covered by Survivors Insurance. It outlines the types and amounts of benefits available to survivors, eligibility for those benefits, and the benefit application process. It provides statistics on survivor beneficiaries and a legislative history of Survivors Insurance, including legislative activity in the 110th Congress.
Date: January 8, 2008
Creator: Romig, Kathleen & Szymendera, Scott
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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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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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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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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Trade in Services: The Doha Development Agenda Negotiations and U.S Goals

Description: This report is designed to assist Congress to understand and monitor progress of the negotiations and the major issues that the negotiators are addressing. The report provides a brief background section on the significance of services to the U.S. economy. It then explains briefly the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and the structure and agenda of the services negotiations in the DDA round, including U.S. objectives in the negotiations. The report concludes with a status report on … more
Date: January 24, 2008
Creator: Cooper, William H.
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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The United States as a Net Debtor Nation: Overview of the International Investment Position

Description: This report outlines concerns about the US net international investment position because of the role foreign investors are playing in US capital markets and the potential for large outflows of income and services payments. Some observers also argue that the US reliance on foreign capital inflows leaves the economy vulnerable to financial crises.
Date: January 31, 2008
Creator: Jackson, James K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008 and Jumbo Mortgages

Description: This report discusses the H.R. 5140, the Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008, which would temporarily increase the maximum size of loans that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can purchase, and that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) can insure.
Date: February 1, 2008
Creator: Weiss, N. Eric
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security Administration: Administrative Budget Issues

Description: The Social Security Administration (SSA) administers the Social Security program (Old-Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance, or OASDI) and the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, and provides administrative support to Medicare and several other federal programs. Total SSA spending in FY2007 was about $624 billion, about 99% of which was mandatory spending on benefit payments. This report focuses on SSA’s spending for administrative expenses, which is discretionary and amounts to about… more
Date: February 13, 2008
Creator: Romig, Kathleen
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, including the likelihood that this would occur, and the potential implications such action could have for the U.S. economy. The report concludes that a large sell-off of Chinese Treasury securities holdings could negatively affect the U.S. economy, at least in the short-run. As a result, such a mo… more
Date: February 27, 2008
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
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, including the likelihood that this would occur, and the potential implications such action could have for the U.S. economy. The report concludes that a large sell-off of Chinese Treasury securities holdings could negatively affect the U.S. economy, at least in the short-run. As a result, such a mo… more
Date: February 27, 2008
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Tax Provisions of the Economic Stimulus Package

Description: This report describes the economic stimulus package, P.L. 110-185, which contained two major components: individual tax rebates costing an estimated $117 billion in FY2008 and FY2009, and depreciation provisions (bonus depreciation and small business expensing costing an estimated $46.3 billion. This report describes the stimulus package's major components and their likely impacts as an economic stimulus.
Date: March 27, 2008
Creator: Gravelle, Jane G.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Insurance Regulation: Major Interest Groups

Description: This report is intended to assist in understanding the issues inherent in creating a federal system of insurance regulation by providing some insight into the interests of organizations most involved in the issue.
Date: April 7, 2008
Creator: Webel, Baird
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Exon-Florio National Security Test for Foreign Investment

Description: This report covers the recent background of the Exon-Florio provision with special regards to issues faced in the 112th Congress. The Exon-Florio provision grants the President the authority to block proposed or pending foreign acquisitions of "persons engaged in interstate commerce in the United States" that threaten to impair the national security.
Date: April 8, 2008
Creator: Jackson, James K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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HUD Proposes Administrative Modifications to the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act

Description: This report focuses on borrower disclosure, particularly with respect to making all pertinent information about loan terms and settlement costs transparent, so that consumers can make well-informed financial decisions when choosing mortgage products.
Date: April 10, 2008
Creator: Getter, Darryl E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Monetary Policy and the Federal Reserve: Current Policy and Conditions

Description: Monetary policy can be defined as any policy relating to the supply of money. Since the agency concerned with the supply of money is the nation’s central bank, the Federal Reserve, monetary policy can also be defined in terms of the directives, policies, statements, and actions of the Federal Reserve, particularly those from its Board of Governors that have an effect on national spending. This report discusses current issues regarding monetary policy.
Date: April 30, 2008
Creator: Labonte, Marc & Makinen, Gail E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Single European Payments Area (SEPA): Implementation Delays and Implications for the United States

Description: This report presents a brief background on the efforts to create the Single European Payments Area (SEPA) by the European government and the banking industry. It assesses the current electronic payments systems from the wholesale (large value) level and the retail (small value) level of payments. The report then examines the attempts to develop the pan- European automated clearinghouse system (PEACH).
Date: May 2, 2008
Creator: Eubanks, Walter W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Dollar Crisis: Prospect and Implications

Description: This report describes the anatomy of dollar crisis, and possible reasons why a dollar crisis won't occur. The report discusses the macroeconomics effects of a dollar crisis, and the response of economic policy.
Date: May 6, 2008
Creator: Elwell, Craig K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. Taxation of Overseas Investment and Income: Background and Issues

Description: This report analyzes how the current U.S. tax system applies to foreign investment undertaken by U.S. firms abroad, and how that application was changed by recent legislation. It also assesses the impact of the tax system and legislation, and concludes by discussing a variety of issues in international taxation that Congress may face in 2008 and beyond. It begins with a brief examination of the data on international investment.
Date: May 21, 2008
Creator: Marples, Donald J.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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