Congressional Research Service Reports - 66 Matching Results

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Hedge Funds: Should They Be Regulated?

Description: In view of the growing impact of hedge funds on a variety of financial markets, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in October 2004 adopted a regulation that requires hedge funds to register as investment advisers, disclose basic information about their operations, and open their books for inspection. The regulation took effect in February 2006, but on June 23, 2006, a court challenge was upheld and the rule was vacated. S. 1402 and H.R. 2586 would reinstate the SEC's authority. H.R. 2… more
Date: July 2, 2007
Creator: Jickling, Mark
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Trade Promotion Authority (TPA): Issues, Options, and Prospects for Renewal

Description: This report presents background on the development of TPA, a summary of the major provisions under the recently expired authority, and a discussion of the issues that have arisen in the debate over TPA renewal. It also explores the policy options available to Congress and will be updated as the congressional debate unfolds.
Date: July 12, 2007
Creator: Hornbeck, J. F. & Cooper, William H.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
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 FY2006 was about $597 billion, 98% of which was mandatory spending on benefit payments. This report focuses on SSA’s spending for administrative expenses, which is discretionary and amounts to 2% of SSA’s… more
Date: June 13, 2007
Creator: Romig, Kathleen
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Analysis of the Proposed Tax Exclusion for Canceled Mortgage Debt Income

Description: Mortgage debt cancellation can occur when lenders restructure loans, reducing principal balances, or sell properties, either in advance, or as a result, of foreclosure proceedings. If a lender forgiver or cancels such debt, current tax law treats it as cancellation of debt (COD) income subject to tax. There are exceptions for taxpayers may exclude canceled mortgage debt income under existing law.
Date: November 5, 2007
Creator: Jackson, Pamela J.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Risk Management and Critical Infrastructure Protection: Assessing, Integrating, and Managing Threats, Vulnerabilities and Consequences

Description: This report is meant to support congressional oversight by discussing, in more detail, what this task entails and issues that need to be addressed. In particular, the report defines terms (e.g., threat, vulnerability, and risk), discusses how they fit together in a systematic analysis, describes processes and techniques that have been used to assess them, and discusses how the results of that analysis can inform resource allocation and policy.
Date: July 17, 2007
Creator: Moteff, John
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Housing Issues in the 110th Congress

Description: This report examines housing-related issues that have become prominent in the 110th Congress. Possibly the most visible issue is the prevalence of subprime loans and growing mortgage default and foreclosure rates. Congress has responded with numerous hearings and legislative proposals both to change the way in which the lending and home-buying industry is regulated and to assist borrowers who are facing default and foreclosure.
Date: November 1, 2007
Creator: Perl, Libby; McCarty, Maggie; Foote, Bruce E.; Boyd, Eugene; Getter, Darryl E.; Jackson, Pamela J. et al.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Student Loans, Student Aid, and FY2008 Budget Reconciliation

Description: This report reviews and briefly describes the major proposals contained in both the House-passed and Senate-passed versions of H.R. 2669 to achieve savings in mandatory spending through changes to federal student loan programs and to enhance student aid benefits or make other changes to existing federal student aid programs. It also reviews and describes the major changes enacted under P.L. 110-84 that are projected to achieve savings in mandatory spending and those that establish new or enhanc… more
Date: October 23, 2007
Creator: Stoll, Adam; Smole, David P. & Mercer, Charmaine
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Financial Services and General Government (FSGG): FY2008 Appropriations

Description: This report is a guide to a new appropriations bill that Congress is considering for the first time this year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Financial Services and General Government. It summarizes the status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related congressional activity.
Date: July 20, 2007
Creator: Hatch, Garrett L.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Student Loans, Student Aid, and FY2008 Budget Reconciliation

Description: This report reviews and briefly describes the major changes proposed in H.R. 2669 to federal student loan and other federal student aid programs that would achieve savings in mandatory spending or that would result in changes to existing federal student aid programs.
Date: July 6, 2007
Creator: Stoll, Adam; Smole, David P. & Mercer, Charmaine
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Selected International Depreciation Rates by Asset and Country

Description: The depreciation provisions in the U.S. tax system are of recurring interest to Congress. More than 100 bills were introduced in the 109th Congress that addressed some aspect of depreciation. Concerns about the U.S. depreciation system tend to begin with the criticism that updates to the system have not kept pace with technological advancements of the assets for which it is utilized to account. This report provides information on the depreciation systems of selected European Union countries (Fr… more
Date: January 30, 2007
Creator: Mast, Brent W.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Understanding Mortgage Foreclosure: Recent Events, the Process, and Costs

Description: This report provides a general analysis and overview of current foreclosure issues addressed in the bills cited above. It begins with a description of the behavior of aggregate foreclosure rates. The behaviors of foreclosure rates are placed in the context of activity in the housing and mortgage market to illustrate any relationships. The foreclosure process is then explained, first from the point of view of a traditional financial lending institution, and then from the viewpoint of securitizat… more
Date: November 5, 2007
Creator: Getter, Darryl E.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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China’s Currency: Economic Issues and Options for U.S. Trade Policy

Description: The continued rise in China’s trade surplus with the United States and the world, and complaints from U.S. manufacturing firms and workers over the competitive challenges posed by Chinese imports have led several Members to call for a more aggressive U.S. stance against certain Chinese trade policies they deem to be unfair. This report examines China's currency policy its implications.
Date: June 28, 2007
Creator: Morrison, Wayne M. & Labonte, Marc
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Accounting and Management Problems at Freddie Mac

Description: This report summarizes the extent of accounting and management problems at Freddie Mac. The report highlights the issues of selecting policies to report constant earnings, and undertaking certain transactions for the sake of creating a facade of reported earnings. Finally, the report discusses the consequences of these problems by stating that many of the Freddie Mac's executives have been replaced, fines were issued, and a lawsuit occurred.
Date: November 7, 2007
Creator: Jickling, Mark
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Largest Mergers and Acquisitions by Corporations, 2006

Description: This report provides a listing of the largest M&A transactions worldwide (value equivalent to $2 billion or more) that were proposed during 2006. The report includes the dates on which transactions were completed and shows M&A deals that were still pending as of December 31, 2006, or that were no successful. These data have been drawn from publicly available sources and have not been otherwise verified by the Congressional Research Service.
Date: March 8, 2007
Creator: Williamson, John
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Student Loans, Student Aid, and FY2008 Budget Reconciliation

Description: This report reviews and briefly describes the major proposals that would change the federal student loan programs to achieve savings in mandatory spending and the proposals that would enhance student aid benefits or result in changes to existing federal student aid programs.
Date: July 18, 2007
Creator: Stoll, Adam; Smole, David P. & Mercer, Charmaine
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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