Congressional Research Service Reports - 67 Matching Results
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- Nigeria's 2015 Elections and the Boko Haram Crisis
- This report provides an overview of recent 2011 Nigerian elections, development challenges, reform initiatives, social issues, security concerns, and international relations in Nigeria. It ends with some concerns for Congress, including U.S.-Nigerian trade issues, Nigerian counter-terrorism efforts, and U.S. assistance to Nigeria.
- Unaccompanied Children from Central America: Foreign Policy Considerations
- This report examines policy considerations for Congress in response to the recent influx of unaccompanied alien children (UAC) from Central American countries being apprehended at the U.S. border. The report also discusses current policy framework and the Obama Administration's diplomatic response.
- Political Transition in Tunisia
- This report discusses Tunisia's pro-democracy movement; concerns over potential instability in a previously secure, pro-Western area; and U.S.-Tunisian relations.
- The Palestinians: Background and U.S. Relations
- This report provides an overview of current issues in U.S.-Palestinian relations. It also contains an overview of Palestinian society and politics and descriptions of key Palestinian individuals and groups--chiefly the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the Palestinian Authority (PA), Fatah, Hamas, and the Palestinian refugee population.
- The Corporation for National and Community Service: Overview of Programs and Funding
- This report discusses the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), which is an independent federal agency that administers the programs authorized by two statutes.
- Defense Authorization and Appropriations Bills: FY1970-FY2015
- This report is a research aid which lists the Department of Defense authorization bills and appropriations bills for FY1970-FY2015. This report includes all the pertinent information on the passage of these bills through the legislative process: bill numbers, report numbers, dates reported and passed, recorded vote numbers and vote tallies, dates of passage of the conference reports with their numbers and votes, vetoes, substitutions, dates of final passage, and public law numbers.
- U.S.-Mexico Economic Relations: Trends, Issues, and Implications
- This report provides an overview of U.S.-Mexico economic relations, trade trends, the Mexican economy, NAFTA, and trade issues between the United States and Mexico.
- The Section 179 and Bonus Depreciation Expensing Allowances: Current Law and Issues for the 114th Congress
- This report examines the current status, legislative history, and main economic effects (including their efficacy as an economic stimulus tool) of the Section 179 and bonus depreciation allowances. It concludes with a discussion of the key policy issues facing the 114th Congress as it considers what to do with the allowances that expired at the end of 2014.
- Congressional Member Organizations: Their Purpose and Activities, History, and Formation
- This report examines the historical development and contemporary role of congressional Member organizations (CMOs) in the House and informal Member groups in both the House and the Senate. It discusses the differences between CMOs and informal Member groups, and the reasons Members form these groups with a step-by-step guide for House Members and staff who might be interested in forming a CMO. The report also presents the rise and fall of legislative service organizations (LSOs), the House's decision in 1995 to issue regulations for establishing CMOs and governing their behavior, and the subsequent regulation of CMOs in the House by the Committee on House Oversight/Committee on House Administration.
- The Voting Rights Act of 1965: Background and Overview
- This report provides background information on the historical circumstances that led to the adoption of the VRA, a summary of its major provisions, and a brief discussion of the U.S. Supreme Court decision and related legislation in the 113th and 114th Congresses. Two identical bills--H.R. 3899 and S. 1945--were introduced in the 113th Congress that would have amended the VRA to add a new coverage formula, among other provisions.
- The Attack Against the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea
- This report briefly discusses the March 5 knife attack on U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert.
- Nigeria's Boko Haram and the Islamic State
- This report discusses the Nigerian Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram, and their statement pledging loyalty to the leader of the Syria/Iraq-based Islamic State (IS/ISIL) organization and the implication for U.S. foreign policy and national security.
- The Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF): State Insolvency and Federal Loans to States
- This report summarizes how insolvent states may borrow funds from the federal account within the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF) to meet their unemployment compensation (UC) benefit obligations.
- Perspectives on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) "Torture Report" and Enhanced Interrogation Techniques: In Brief
- This report provides a summary of views expressed by public officials, academics, and commentators voiced in a variety of sources regarding perspectives on Enhanced Interrogation Techniques (EITs) and torture, on EITs and values, and on EITs and effectiveness. It also provides background information about EITs and the release of the report "Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) Study of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA's) Detention and Interrogation (D&I) Program (SSCI Study)" as well as supplementary reports and responses.
- Federal Employees' Retirement System: The Role of the Thrift Savings Plan
- This report discusses the two retirement systems available to federal employees. The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) was established in 1920 and covers only employees hired before 1984. The Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) was created to involve Social Security, a basic retirement annuity, and the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). The TSP is discussed and illustrated.
- Cuba: U.S. Restrictions on Travel and Remittances
- This report examines developments in U.S. policy restricting travel and remittances to Cuba, including significant changes that have occurred, current permissible travel and remittances, enforcement of the travel restrictions, and debate on lifting the travel restrictions.
- Assistance to Firefighters Program: Distribution of Fire Grant Funding
- This report discusses the firefighting activities that are traditionally the responsibility of states and local communities. It also talks about funding for firefighters, which is provided mostly by state and local governments. However, during the 106th Congress, many in the fire community asserted that local fire departments require and deserve greater support from the federal government.
- Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response: The SAFER Grant Program
- This report discusses the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Act, which authorizes grants to career, volunteer, and combination local fire departments for the purpose of increasing the number of firefighters to help communities meet industry-minimum standards and attain 24-hour staffing to provide adequate protection from fire and fire-related hazards.
- The Federal Networking and Information Technology Research and Development Program: Background, Funding, and Activities
- This report discusses the federal government's role in the country's information technology (IT) research and development (R&D) activities. The government's support of IT R&D began because it had an important interest in creating computers and software that would be capable of addressing the problems and issues the government needed to solve and study.
- The Peace Corps: Current Issues
- The report discusses the President's annual funding request for the Peace Corps, efforts to reauthorize the Peace Corps, and related issues. Current issues include the extent to which there is available funding for Peace Corps expansion, whether volunteers are able to function in a safe and secure environment, volunteer access to abortion, and other issues.
- Islamic State Financing and U.S. Policy Approaches
- This report discusses the U.S. policy approaches for countering the financial resources of the Islamic State, which has seized significant territory in Iraq and Syria and threatened to conduct attacks against the United States and its citizens.
- U.S. Foreign Aid to Israel
- This report provides an overview of U.S. foreign assistance to Israel. It includes a review of past aid programs, data on annual assistance, and an analysis of current issues.
- Critical Infrastructures: Background, Policy, and Implementation
- This report discusses in more detail the evolution of a national critical infrastructure policy and the institutional structures established to implement it. The report highlights two primary issues confronting Congress going forward, both in the context of cybersecurity: information sharing and regulation.
- Iran: U.S. Economic Sanctions and the Authority to Lift Restrictions
- This report identifies the legislative bases for sanctions imposed on Iran, and the nature of the authority to waive or lift those restrictions. It comprises two tables that present legislation and executive orders that are specific to Iran and its objectionable activities in the areas of terrorism, human rights, and weapons proliferation.
- Arab League Boycott of Israel
- This report briefly discusses the Arab League's boycott of Israeli companies and Israeli-made goods since Israel's founding in 1948, as well as U.S. efforts to end the boycott and prevent U.S. firms in participating in the boycott.
- Use of the Annual Appropriations Process to Block Implementation of the Affordable Care Act (FY2011-FY2016)
- Congress remains deeply divided over implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), the health reform law enacted in March 2010. Since the ACA's enactment, lawmakers opposed to specific provisions in the ACA or the entire law have repeatedly debated its implementation and considered bills to repeal, defund, delay, or otherwise amend the law. This report summarizes the ACA-related language added to annual appropriations legislation by congressional appropriators since the ACA was signed into law.
- State and Local "Sanctuary" Policies Limiting Participation in Immigration Enforcement
- This report discusses legal issues related to state and local measures that limit law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities. The report begins by providing a brief overview of the constitutional principles informing the relationship between federal immigration authorities and state and local jurisdictions, including the federal government's power to preempt state and local activities under the Supremacy Clause, and the Tenth Amendment's proscription against Congress directly "commandeering" the states to administer a federally enacted regulatory scheme.
- Display of the Confederate Flag at Federal Cemeteries
- This report discusses policies regarding the display of the Confederate Flag at national cemeteries. If a state observes a Confederate Memorial Day, NPS cemeteries in the state may permit a sponsoring group to decorate the graves of Confederate veterans with small Confederate flags. Additionally, according to the National Park Service (NPS) reference manual, such flags may also be displayed on the nationally observed Memorial Day, to accompany the U.S. flag on the graves of Confederate veterans.
- Cyprus: Reunification Proving Elusive
- This report provides a brief overview of the history of the negotiations between Greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders, a review of the negotiations since 2008, and a description of some of the issues involved in the talks.
- Types of Committee Hearings
- This report describes the four types of congressional committee hearings: legislative, oversight, investigative, and confirmation. Hearings may be held on Capitol Hill or elsewhere (e.g., a committee member's district or state, or a site related to the subject of the hearing). These latter hearings are often referred to as field hearings.
- Medicare Financial Status: In Brief
- This report provides an overview on Medicare, discussing its various components and sources of funding. The report also examines projections for spending within the program.
- House Committee Hearings: Witness Testimony
- This report briefly discusses the witness testimony process in House of Representatives committee hearings. Witnesses before House committees must generally file advance copies of their written testimony with the committee and then limit their oral testimony to brief summaries (Rule XI, clause 2(g)(5)). A question-and-answer period usually follows a witness's opening statement. Following hearings, committees usually publish the transcripts of witness testimony and questioning.
- Reestablishment of Diplomatic Relations with Cuba
- This report discusses the decision to reestablish diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba and to reopen embassies in their respective capitals (announced July 1, 2015). It briefly describes the U.S.'s new policy approach towards Cuba and the congressional response to the changes.
- Syrian Refugee Admissions to the United States
- This report briefly discusses issues regarding refugees fleeing from Syria. With some European countries pledging to accept increased numbers of Syrian and other asylum seekers in the face of a refugee crisis, attention is focused on the United States and its plans to admit Syrian and other refugees in FY2016 and beyond.
- Congressional Liaison Offices of Selected Federal Agencies
- This report is a list of about 200 congressional liaison offices, 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.
- Jordan: Background and U.S. Relations
- This report provides an overview of Jordanian politics and current issues in U.S.-Jordanian relations. It provides a brief discussion of Jordan's government and economy and of its cooperation with U.S. policy objectives in the Middle East, including the promotion of Arab-Israeli peace.
- Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and presents potential issues for Congress concerning the Navy's ship force-structure goals and shipbuilding plans. The planned size of the Navy, the rate of Navy ship procurement, and the prospective affordability of the Navy's shipbuilding plans have been matters of concern for the congressional defense committees for the past several years.
- Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2016
- This report begins with a discussion of the overall level of the President's FY2016 R&D request, followed by analyses of the R&D funding request from a variety of perspectives. The report concludes with discussion and analysis of the R&D budget requests of selected federal departments and agencies.
- Congressional Nominations to U.S. Service Academies: An Overview and Resources for Outreach and Management
- This report describes statutory requirements for allocating congressional nominations to service academies. It also identifies the qualifications that must be met by potential nominees, as established by statute and each academy. Finally, sample documents that could be used by congressional offices at various stages of the nomination selection process are included.
- Temporarily Filling Presidentially Appointed, Senate-Confirmed Positions
- This report examines several authorities by which a vacant presidentially appointed, Senate-confirmed position can be filled temporarily without going through the Senate confirmation process..
- Expedited Removal Authority for VA Senior Executives (38 U.S.C. § 713): Selected Legal Issues
- This report discusses selected legal issues relating to the authority for summary removal of individuals in senior executive positions at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
- Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues
- This report examines debates over what constitutes an unfunded federal mandate and the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995's (UMRA) implementation. It focuses on UMRA's requirements and procedures, and assesses UMRA's impact on federal mandates and arguments concerning UMRA's future, focusing on UMRA's definitions, exclusions, and exceptions that currently exempt many federal actions with potentially significant financial impacts on nonfederal entities.
- Navy Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the Aegis ballistic missile defense (BMD) program. Congress's decisions on the Aegis BMD program could significantly affect U.S. BMD capabilities and funding requirements, and the BMD-related industrial base.
- Irrigation in U.S. Agriculture: On-Farm Technologies and Best Management Practices
- This report is intended to provide an overview of on-farm irrigation and does not cover storage and conveyance prior to the farm or how irrigation adoption may alter other farm practices, such as the use of fertilizers and pesticides or impacts off-farm (e.g., groundwater and surface water quality concerns).
- Introduction to Financial Services: International Supervision
- This report discusses the financial crisis of 2007-2008 and subsequent global economic turmoil that underscored the interconnectedness of the global financial system as well as its weaknesses. In the wake of the crisis, leaders from the United States and other countries have pursued a wide range of reforms to the international financial regulatory system.
- Military Funeral Honors and Military Cemeteries: Frequently Asked Questions
- This report is written in response to frequently asked questions (FAQs) about military funeral honors and military cemeteries. It provides information to questions in three general areas: implementation of the funeral honors and eligibility criteria; components of the honor detail and the funeral ceremony; and specific questions on burial and honors at Arlington National Cemetery. It also cites legislation requiring the Department of Defense (DOD) to make military funeral honors available to every eligible veteran upon request.
- Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014 (H.R. 3230; P.L. 113-146)
- No Description Available.
- Legal Liability for Social Security Overpayments
- No Description Available.
- Legislative Branch Agency Appointments: History, Processes, and Recent Actions
- This report contains information on the legislative branch agency heads' appointment processes, length of tenures (if terms are set), reappointment or removal provisions (if any), salaries and benefits, and most recent appointments.
- Food Safety Issues for the 114th Congress
- This report discusses food safety legislation passed by Congress in December 2010 (FDA Food Safety Modernization Act [FSMA], P.L. 111-353).