Congressional Research Service Reports - 10 Matching Results

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Freedom of Speech and Press: Exceptions to the First Amendment

Description: The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that “Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press. . . .” This language restricts government both more and less than it would if it were applied literally. It restricts government more in that it applies not only to Congress, but to all branches of the federal government, and to all branches of state and local government. It restricts government less in that it provides no protection to some typ… more
Date: November 5, 2001
Creator: Cohen, Henry
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Flag Protection: A Brief History and Summary of Recent Supreme Court Decisions and Proposed Constitutional Amendment

Description: This report is divided into two parts. The first gives a brief history of the protection of the flag issue from the enactment of the Flag Protection Act in 1968 until the present consideration of an amendment to the Constitution in the 106th Congress. The second part briefly summarizes the two decisions of the United States Supreme Court, Texas v. Johnson and United States v. Eichmann, which struck down the state and federal flag protection statutes as applied in the context punishing expressiv… more
Date: January 22, 2001
Creator: Luckey, John R.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Flag Protection: A Brief History and Summary of Recent Supreme Court Decisions and Proposed Constitutional Amendment

Description: This report is divided into two parts. The first gives a brief history of the flag protection issue, from the enactment of the Flag Protection Act in 1968 through current consideration of a constitutional amendment. The second part briefly summarizes the two decisions of the United States Supreme Court, Texas v. Johnson and United States v. Eichman, that struck down the state and federal flag protection statutes as applied in the context punishing expressive conduct.
Date: July 18, 2001
Creator: Luckey, John R.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance: Constitutional and Legal Issues of Soft Money

Description: Soft money is a major issue in the campaign finance reform debate because these generally unregulated funds are perceived as resulting from a loophole in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). Generally, soft money is funds that are raised and spent according to applicable state laws, which FECA prohibits from being spent directly on federal elections, but that may have an indirect influence on federal elections. This Issue Brief discusses three major types of soft money: political party sof… more
Date: September 28, 2001
Creator: Whitaker, L. Paige
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Election Projections: First Amendment Issues

Description: Media projections may be based both on exit polls and on information acquired as to actual ballot counts. The First Amendment would generally preclude Congress from prohibiting the media from interviewing voters after they exit the polls. It apparently would also preclude Congress from prohibiting the media from reporting the results of those polls. Congress, could, however, ban voter solicitation within a certain distance from a polling place, and might be able to include exit polling within s… more
Date: January 23, 2001
Creator: Cohen, Henry
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance Reform: Constitutional Issues Raised by Disclosure Requirements

Description: Campaign finance reform legislation often contains provisions that would impose additional reporting and disclosure requirements under the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). For example, S. 27 (McCain/Feingold), would require disclosure of disbursements of expenditures over $10,000 for “electioneering communications,” which are defined to include broadcast ads that “refer” to federal office candidates, with identification of donors of $500 or more. S. 22 (Hagel/Landrieu) would increase and e… more
Date: March 20, 2001
Creator: Whitaker, L. Paige
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Statutory Interpretation: General Principles and Recent Trends

Description: The Supreme Court has expressed an interest "that Congress be able to legislate against a background of clear interpretive rules, so that it may know the effect of the language it adopts." This report identifies and describes some of the more important rules and conventions of interpretation that the Court applies. Because the Court has recently placed renewed emphasis on statutory text and somewhat reduced emphasis on legislative history and other interpretive sources "extrinsic" to the text, … more
Date: August 3, 2001
Creator: Costello, George
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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