Congressional Research Service Reports - 182 Matching Results
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- A History of Federal Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Taxes
- In this report, the history of the federal transfer taxes, has been divided into four parts: (1) the federal death and gift taxes utilized in the period 1789 to 1915; (2) the development of the modern estate and gift taxes from 1916 through 1975; (3) the creation and refinement of a unified estate and gift tax system, supplemented by a generation-skipping transfer tax; and (4) the phase out and repeal of the estate and generation-skipping taxes, with the gift tax being retained as a device to protect the integrity of the income tax.
- Spinning the Web: The History and Infrastructure of the Internet
- The Internet is an international, cooperative computer "network of networks" that links many types of users, such as governments, schools, libraries, corporations, hospitals, individuals, and others. No single organization owns, manages, or controls the Internet. However, the Internet is not free. The major costs of running the network are shared by its primary users: universities, national laboratories, high-tech corporations, and governments.
- The Unification of Germany: Background and Analysis of the Two-Plus-Four Talks
- No Description Available.
- German Unification
- This is a report on German Unification and the poliitical transformations in Germany.
- Desert Shield and Desert Storm Implications for Future U.S. Force Requirements
- This preliminary assessment summarizes U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps performances during recent war, then relates it to past experience and potential threats in ways that might help decisionmakers determine the most suitable characteristics of U.S. armed forces for the rest of this decade.
- Persian Gulf War: Defense-Policy Implications for Congress
- This report is on the Persian Gulf War: Defense-Policy Implications for Congress.
- The Stock Market's Response to Dramatic Historical Events
- The events of September 11, 2001, have caused speculation that the U.S. stock market may crash when trading resumes. History, however, suggests that there is no uniform pattern in which bad news is followed by a stock market plunge. This report presents data on the stock market response to four episodes: Pearl Harbor, the Kennedy assassination, the October 1987 stock market crash, and the Asian financial crisis of 1997. There is, of course, no guarantee that the market will behave now or in the future as it did then.
- Initial Federal Budget Response to the 1941 Attack on Pearl Harbor
- This report discusses initial federal budget response to attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, which occurred as the federal government was half way through FY1942.
- Military Service Records and Unit Histories: A Guide to Locating Sources
- This report is a guide to locating individual service records and military unit histories from the American Revolution to the present. This guide provides referral information for locating individual service records of discharged and deceased veterans. It includes information regarding locating and obtaining active service records. Also included are relevant addresses and websites of government agencies, historical associations, and a select bibliography. This report will be updated as needed.
- War Bonds in the Second World War: A Model for Hurricane Recovery Bonds?
- Severe damage and dislocations resulting from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have rekindled congressional interest in the concept of the sale of a Treasury security to finance recovery and relief operations. The question has been raised whether or not the issuance of war bonds during the Second World War serves as a good model for new “hurricane recovery bonds.” Two bills have been introduced that would permit the issuance of some form of hurricane relief bond: H.R. 3892 and H.R. 3935.
- Military and Civilian Satellites in Support of Allied Forces in the Persian Gulf War
- This Congressional Research Service Report for Congress explains the use of military and civilian space programs to advance satellites for the support of military action.
- Liberia: 1989-1997 Civil War, Post-War Developments, and U.S. Relations
- This report covers Liberia’s first civil conflict (1989-1997), post-war developments until roughly 2001, and the history of U.S.-Liberian relations and U.S. policy toward Liberia.
- The Alien Tort Statute: Legislative History and Executive Branch Views
- The report provides a historical overview of court decisions interpreting the Alien Tort Statute (ATS), also known as the Alien Tort Claims Act (ACTA). The report then provides an overview of the positions taken by the U.S. government in published opinions of the Attorney General and in court briefs related to ATS claims.
- Iran-Contra Affair: Biographical Profiles
- This report provides biographical information on individuals who have been associated in public reports with the controversy surrounding the secret U.S. arms sales to Iran and the channeling of profits to the rebels or Contras in Nicaragua. The information has been compiled from public sources.
- Farm Commodity Legislation: Chronology, 1933-2002
- This report discusses legislation regarding commodities and price supports. Since 1933, Congress has required the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to administer various price and income support programs for U.S. farmers. Some standing authority for these programs is provided by three permanent laws, from 1938, 1948, and 1949. However, Congress frequently alters the basic provisions of these laws. The omnibus law now guiding farm support (through 2007) is the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002.
- Oil Shale: History, Incentives, and Policy
- No Description Available.
- Periods of War
- No Description Available.
- South Africa: A Chronology
- No Description Available.
- Soviet Pipeline
- No Description Available.
- Soviet Policy Under Andropov
- No Description Available.
- Speech Material -- Fourth of July
- No Description Available.
- Iraq: International Attitudes to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Reconstruction
- Although there was widespread international disagreement in the period leading up to the U.S.-led war in Iraq, forty-nine countries demonstrated support for the coalition’s actions in Iraq by publicly agreeing to be included in the Bush Administration’s “coalition of the willing." This report tracks countries’ current political stances on the postwar situation, as well as major foreign monetary and military contributions to postwar Iraq.
- Emergency Funding for Agriculture: A Brief History of Supplemental Appropriations, FY1989-FY2006
- From FY1989 through FY2006, 33 appropriations, authorization, or farm disaster acts added approximately $55.4 billion in supplemental funding for U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) programs. The two most recent supplemental appropriations were provided in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf of Mexico and in preparation for a possible U.S. outbreak of avian influenza. Some FY1989, the vast majority of the total supplemental funding has been paid directly to farmers, primarily through two mechanisms: "market loss payments" and crop disaster payments. This report includes the total annual funding additions in the 33 acts providing economic and farm disaster assistance through USDA programs since FY1989.
- Commemorative Observances: A Chronological List
- Historically, national commemorative observances were recommended by Congress through the legislative process. This practice was discontinued by the House of Representatives in January 1995, although the Senate continues to issue sense of the Senate resolutions recommending the establishment of commemoratives. It has now become standard practice for special observances to be designated by a proclamation issued by the President. This report is a chronological list of these proclamations for 1997 and 1998, indicating the proclamation number and its Federal Register citation
- Declarations of War and Authorizations for the Use of Military Force: Historical Background and Legal Implications
- This report provides historical background on the enactment of declarations of war and authorizations for the use of force and analyzes their legal effects under international and domestic law. It also sets forth their texts in two appendices. Because the statutes that confer standby authority on the President and the executive branch potentially play such a large role in an armed conflict to which the United States is a party, the report includes an extensive listing and summary of the statutes that are triggered by a declaration of war, a declaration of national emergency, and/or the existence of a state of war. The report concludes with a summary of the Congressional procedures applicable to the enactment of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of force and to measures under the War Powers Resolution.
- The Cost of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Other Global War on Terror Operations Since 9/11
- This report details the total cost of counterterrorism operations in the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since the September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. This report also includes descriptions of relevant budgetary legislation.
- Federal Emergency Management and Homeland Security Organization: Historical Developments and Legislative Options
- This report provides background information about the establishment and evolution of federal emergency management and related homeland security organization since 1950. Post-Katrina assessments of current arrangements by Congress and the White House are also discussed. Finally, the report provides a brief summary of related legislation that had been introduced as of July 17, 2006.
- Federal Emergency Management and Homeland Security Organization: Historical Developments and Legislative Options
- This report provides background information about the establishment and evolution of federal emergency management and related homeland security organization since 1950. Post-Katrina assessments of current arrangements by Congress and the White House are also discussed. Finally, the report provides a brief summary of related legislation that had been introduced as of July 17, 2006.
- Military Service Records and Unit Histories: A Guide to Locating Sources
- This report is a guide to locating individual service records and military unit histories from the American Revolution to the present.
- Israel: Background and Relations with the United States
- This report explains the background of Israel and its relation to the United States. It reviews government and politics, foreign policy, the economy, and other current issues. Updated September 21, 2006
- Israel: Background and Relations with the United States
- This report explains the background of Israel and its relation to the United States. It reviews government and politics, foreign policy, the economy, and other current issues.
- Israel: Background and Relations with the United States
- This report explains the background of Israel and its relation to the United States. It reviews government and politics, foreign policy, the economy, and other current issues. Updated July 26, 2006
- Lebanon: The Israel-Hamas-Hezbollah Conflict
- This report analyzes the conflict between Israel and two U.S State Department-designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO's), the Lebanese Shiite Muslim group Hezbollah and the radical Palestinian Hamas organization.
- FEMA Reorganization Legislation in the 109th Congress
- In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Members of Congress and others raised questions about the scope and reach of federal emergency management policies, the procedures used to administer federal statutory authorities, the qualifications of personnel, and other issues. Most of the questions focused on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the agency primarily responsible for coordinating federal and non-federal disaster response activities. This report provides information on provisions of the Senate-approved amendment (S.Amdt. 4560) to the FY2007 appropriations bill, H.R. 5316, and H.R. 5351 that address concerns identified after Hurricane Katrina. To provide a context for information on the legislation, this report first summarizes findings and recommendations of the congressional and White House studies pertinent to the pending legislation reported from the House committees.
- Israeli-Arab Negotiations: Background, Conflict, and U.S. Policy
- A Congressional Research Service report for Congress detailing negotiations of an Israeli-Arab Nature. This report contains conferences, negotiation, and conflicts as well as significant agreements and documents. - Updated August 4, 2006
- Israeli-Arab Negotiations: Background, Conflict, and U.S. Policy
- A Congressional Research Service report for Congress detailing negotiations of an Israeli-Arab Nature. This report contains conferences, negotiation, and conflicts as well as significant agreements and documents.
- Israeli-Arab Negotiations: Background, Conflict, and U.S. Policy
- A Congressional Research Service report for Congress detailing negotiations of an Israeli-Arab Nature. This report contains conferences, negotiation, and conflicts as well as significant agreements and documents. -Updated July 25,2006
- Israeli-Arab Negotiations: Background, Conflict, and U.S. Policy
- A Congressional Research Service report for Congress detailing negotiations of an Israeli-Arab Nature. This report contains conferences, negotiation, and conflicts as well as significant agreements and documents. -Updated September 1, 2006
- Saudi Arabia: Current Issues and U.S. Relations
- No Description Available.
- Saudi Arabia: Current Issues and U.S. Relations
- No Description Available.
- The Cost of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Other Global War on Terror Operations Since 9/11
- This report details the total cost of counterterrorism operations in the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since the September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. This report also includes descriptions of relevant budgetary legislation.
- The Cost of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Other Global War on Terror Operations Since 9/11
- This report details the total cost of counterterrorism operations in the Global War on Terror (GWOT) since the September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States. This report also includes descriptions of relevant budgetary legislation.
- U.S. Strategic Nuclear Forces: Background, Developments, and Issues
- No Description Available.
- Military Service Records and Unit Histories: A Guide to Locating Sources
- This report is a guide to locating individual service records and military unit histories from the American Revolution to the present.
- The Former Soviet Union and U.S. Foreign Assistance in 1992: The Role of Congress
- This report discusses the key role Congress played in formulating an aid program for the former Soviet Union in 1992.
- The Group of Eight Summits: Evolution and Possible Reform
- The Group of Eight (G8) summit is a forum to informally discuss and create policies on major foreign policy issues among the heads of state of the United States, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom, Japan, and Russia. The 2006 summit will be hosted by Russia and is scheduled to take place in St. Petersburg on July 15-17, 2006. Russian participation in the G8 has prompted congressional concern particularly over the direction of its international governance. This report discusses the evolution of the G8 and possible reform as background for the meeting. This report will not be updated. For more information on Russia.
- The Strategic Defense Initiative: Issues for Phase 1 Deployment
- No Description Available.
- The Strategic Defense Initiative: Program Facts
- No Description Available.
- U.S. Occupation Assistance: Iraq, Germany, and Japan Compared
- No Description Available.
- The Former Soviet Union and U.S. Foreign Assistance in 1992: The Role of Congress
- This report discusses the key role Congress played in formulating an aid program for the former Soviet Union in 1992. Focusing on tensions in the political and legislative system, it delineates congressional achievements — chief of which was the Freedom Support Act. The legislation that was ultimately produced became the basis on which future debate would be conducted regarding how the United States could continue to influence events in the former Soviet Union and assist its transition to an open market economy and democratic institutions.