Congressional Research Service Reports - 804 Matching Results
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- Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Legislation in the 110th Congress
- This report reviews the status of energy efficiency and renewable energy legislation introduced during the 110th Congress. Action has focused on legislation to increase funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
- Renewable Energy Policy in the 2007 Farm Bill
- This report provides a summary of major legislative proposals for change in the farm bill energy title (Title IX) and compares current law with energy provisions from the recently approved House 2007 farm bill.
- Alaska Natural Gas Pipelines: Interaction of the Natural Gas and Steel Markets
- In 1976, Congress approved legislation to establish the regulatory framework for building a pipeline to bring natural gas from the Alaska North Slope to the lower 48 states. This report focuses on two major issues or uncertainties that may serve as economic constraints on a capital investment undertaking of this major scale.
- U.S. Trade Deficit and the Impact of Rising Oil Prices
- This report provides an estimate of the initial impact of the rising oil prices on the nation's merchandise trade deficit.
- Biofuels Incentives: A Summary of Federal Programs
- This report outlines federal programs that provide direct or indirect incentives for biofuels. For each program described, the report provides details including administering agency, authorizing statute(s), annual funding, and expiration date.
- Gasoline Prices: Issues for the 110th Congress
- This report discusses potential issues regarding gasoline prices for the 110th Congress. As prices continued to surge, the continuing crisis renewed attention on some issues that were dropped or compromised in the debate over P.L. 109-58, as well as to a number of initiatives to reduce the impact of high prices on consumers.
- The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program: How are State Allotments Determined?
- This report discusses the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which is a block grant program under which the federal government provides states annual grants to operate multi-component home energy assistance programs for needy households.
- Wave, Tidal, and In-Stream Energy Projects: Which Federal Agency Has the Lead?
- This report describes wave, tidal, and in-stream energy generation technologies -- also referred to as hydrokinetic or marine energy. It discusses the recent changes in law aimed to clarify the federal role in ocean wave and renewable energy.
- Energy Tax Policy: History and Current Issues
- This report provides historical context regarding energy tax policy and discusses what may lie ahead.
- Energy Policy: Conceptual Framework and Continuing Issues
- This report discusses major policy approaches, provides a conceptual framework for categorizing energy policy proposals, and briefly describes energy issues that remain current in the debate after the enactment of EPACT.
- Wave, Tidal, and In-Stream Energy Projects: Which Federal Agency Has the Lead?
- This report describes wave, tidal, and in-stream energy generation technologies -- also referred to as hydrokinetic or marine energy. It discusses the recent changes in law aimed to clarify the federal role in ocean wave and renewable energy.
- Issues Affecting Tidal, Wave, and In-Stream Generation Projects
- This report provides an overview of developments and considerations regarding wave, tidal, and in-stream energy generation technology. It summarizes federal involvement in the regulation of this new industry and highlights current issues in the field.
- The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): Program and Funding
- This report discusses Low-Income Home Energy Assistance program (LIHEAP) funds for FY2006 and FY2007. It also discusses current issues and legislation related to LIHEAP.
- Nuclear Energy Policy
- This report discusses the nuclear energy policy issues facing Congress that include the implementation of federal incentives for new commercial reactors, radioactive waste management policy, research and development priorities, power plant safety and regulation, nuclear weapons proliferation, and security against terrorist attacks.
- Renewable Energy: Tax Credit, Budget, and Electricity Production Issues
- This report provides background an analysis of renewably energy, its contribution to the national energy supply, role in the long-term energy supply, history, relevant provisions considered during the 109th Congress, relation to the Department of Energy (DOE) budget for FY2006, energy production, and relation to climate change. It also includes information about relevant legislation, Congressional hearings, reports, and documents, and other resources.
- Alternative Fuels and Advanced Technology Vehicles: Issues in Congress
- This report discusses the increasing attention being paid to alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles, the proponents of which point to their potential to improve urban air quality, decrease dependence on foreign oil, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The report also discusses the major barriers currently preventing widespread use of such technologies, and discusses these technologies in the particular contexts of the 2005 Gulf Coast hurricanes and the Energy Policy Act of 2005.
- Energy Tax Policy
- This report discusses the history, current posture, and outlook for federal energy tax policy. It also discusses recent energy tax proposals, focusing on the major energy tax provisions that were debated as part of omnibus energy legislation in the 108th Congress (e.g., H.R. 6), which may be reintroduced in the 109th Congress.
- Renewable Energy: Tax Credit, Budget, and Electricity Production Issues
- This report discusses budget issues regarding renewable energy programs. In the 108th Congress, debate over renewable energy programs has focused on tax credits, incentives, budget, and provisions of the omnibus energy policy bill H.R. 6.
- Gasoline Prices: New Legislation and Proposals
- This report discusses policy options for Congress regarding gas prices. The high price of gasoline was an important consideration during the debate on major energy legislation, which ended with the Energy Policy Act of 2005, H.R. 6 (P.L. 109-58). However, prices continued to surge, due to a large number of factors, such as the effects of Hurricane Katrina on Gulf Coast refineries, an increased world demand for crude oil, and inadequate U.S. refinery capacity.
- Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Background and Issues
- The report begins with background on the geography and history of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). It also discusses the most common legislative issues, such as energy development, and provides an extensive review of the resources of the 1002 area, including the current status, regulations, and potential effects of development of those resources.A glossary is included to define the key terms and acronyms.
- Energy Efficiency: Budget, Oil Conservation, and Electricity Conservation Issues
- This report discusses various budget issues regarding the Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency Program, which is conducted by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
- Government Activities to Protect the Electric Grid
- This report provides a description of initiatives within the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Departments of Energy, Homeland Security, and Defense to protect the physical electrical utility infrastructure from outages caused by a range of activities including system operator errors, weather-related damage, and terrorist attacks. While the electric utility industry has primary responsibility, federal and state government agencies also have been addressing physical security concerns.
- Biofuels Incentives: A Summary of Federal Programs
- No Description Available.
- Alternative Fuels and Advanced Technology Vehicles: Issues in Congress
- This report provides an overview of an omnibus energy legislation (H.R. 6), including revisions made and a history of the legislation.
- Energy Efficiency and Energy Conservation Legislation in the 107th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Appropriations for FY2005: Energy and Water Development
- This report is a guide to the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill, including the funding for civil works projects of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), most of the Department of Energy (DOE), and a number of independent agencies.
- Energy Efficiency: Budget, Oil Conservation, and Electricity Conservation Issues
- This report includes information related to energy efficiency, including history, various bills and budgets, and conservation. Climate change and energy security related to energy efficiency are also discussed in this report.
- Energy Policy: The Continuing Debate and Omnibus Energy Legislation (H.R. 6)
- This report includes background and analysis on the debate on energy policy, as well as Omnibus energy legislation. Electricity restructuring, nuclear energy, and renewable energy and fuels are among topics discussed in this report.
- Gasoline Prices: Causes of Increases and Congressional Response
- This report discusses the causes of increases in Gasoline Prices and also includes the Congressional response.
- S. 2557, “Oil and Gas Industry Antitrust Act of 2006”: Brief Legal Analysis
- This report analyzes ways to improve antitrust laws through S.557. These include, but are not limited to: mitigating regional shortages of oil petroleum and natural gas products, creating a federal task force to analyze information-sharing in the industry, and make U.S. antitrust laws applicable to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
- Energy Tax Policy
- No Description Available.
- Renewable Energy: Tax Credit, Budget, and Electricity Production Issues
- This report details information such as history and analyses of renewable energy tax credit, budget, and electricity production issues.
- Gasoline Prices: Legislation in the 110th Congress
- This report provides information related to the high prices of Gasoline and discusses Legislation in the 110th Congress.
- Developments in Oil Shale
- No Description Available.
- Energy: Selected Facts and Numbers
- No Description Available.
- Renewable Energy: Tax Credit, Budget, and Electricity Production Issues
- Renewable energy is derived from resources that are generally not depleted by human use, such as the sun, wind, and water movement. This report discusses various aspects of policy regarding renewable energy including tax credits and budget legislation.
- U.S. Trade Deficit and the Impact of Changing Oil Prices
- Petroleum prices rose sharply in the first half of 2008, at one time reaching more than $140 per barrel of crude oil. This report provides an estimate of the initial impact of the changing oil prices on the nation’s merchandise trade deficit.
- The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
- This report provides background on the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance program (LIHEAP), originally established in 1981 by Title XXVI of P.L. 97-35 and reauthorized several times. It is a block grant program under which the federal government gives states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories and commonwealths, and Indian tribal organizations (referred to as grantees) annual grants to operate multi-component home energy assistance programs for needy households.
- Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Perspective on the Top 20 Emitters and Developed Versus Developing Nations
- This report uses the data compiled by World Resources Institute (WRI) to examine a pivotal and long-running issue surrounding U.S. climate change policy: the appropriate roles of developed and developing countries in addressing climate change.
- Latin America: Energy Supply, Political Developments, and U.S. Policy Approaches
- This report examines Latin America’s current political environment and its apparent effect on energy production in the region. It also discusses efforts to help many Latin American and Caribbean countries dependent on energy imports, including Venezuela’s preferential oil programs, the Mexico-led Meso-American Energy Integration Program, and U.S.-Brazilian cooperation on biofuels. The report also examines policy approaches that have been proposed for increased hemispheric energy cooperation, congressional interest in the topic of hemispheric energy security, and related legislative initiatives.
- Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Markets in Transition: Implications for U.S. Supply and Price
- This report analyzes the potential for liquefied natural gas (LNG) to become a flexible, dependable, source of natural gas supply for the U.S. market, while also setting a cap on natural gas prices.
- Greenhouse Gas Emission Drivers: Population, Economic Development and Growth, and Energy Use
- The interactions of three variables underlie debates on the issue of climate change and what responses might be justified: the magnitude and rates of change of (1) population growth, (2) incomes, and (3) intensity of greenhouse gas emissions relative to economic activities. This report examines the interrelationships of the variables to explore their implications for policies that address climate change.
- Federal Agency Involvement in Reviewing Mergers and Acquisitions of Electric Utilities
- This report briefly examines federal statutes which set out the authority which various federal agencies may have in a proposed merger or acquisition of electric utilities.
- Agricultural Issues in the 110th Congress
- This report considers the issues the 110th Congress was confronted with in relation to agriculture and the issues inherited from the 109th Congress. The report also includes details about the upcoming farm bill and the usual problems that are examined with the creation of a new farm bill.
- Energy Policy: Setting the Stage for the Current Debate
- This report discusses the energy policy. Comprehensive energy legislation was introduced in the Senate by both parties by late March (S. 388, S. 389, S. 596, S. 597).
- Alternative Transportation Fuels and Vehicles: Energy, Environment, and Development Issues
- This report reviews several issues relating to alternative fuels and vehicles, mainly to combat dependence on petroleum imports and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The report discusses the advantages and drawbacks of various alternative fuels and vehicles, as well as related legislation.
- Nuclear Energy Policy
- This report discusses the nuclear energy policy issues facing Congress, which include the implementation of federal incentives for new commercial reactors, radioactive waste management policy, research and development priorities, power plant safety and regulation, and security against terrorist attacks.
- Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Legislation in the 110th Congress
- This report reviews the status of energy efficiency and renewable energy legislation introduced during the 110th Congress. Most action in the second session is focused on the FY2009 budget request, the Farm Bill (H.R. 2419), and three bills (H.R. 6049, H.R. 5984/H.R. 3221 [S. 2821], and S. 2886) that would extend or modify selected renewable energy and energy efficiency tax incentives.
- Energy Tax Incentives in the 108th Congress: A Comparison of the House and Senate Versions of H.R. 6 and the Senate Finance Committee Amendment
- This report discusses energy taxes incentives, which have long been an integral component of this nation’s energy policy. Efforts to significantly expand existing energy tax subsidies have been undertaken since the 106th Congress, but controversy over various non-tax energy policy provisions — corporate average fuel economy standards, the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge, etc. — have helped stall the legislation.
- The Use of Profit by the Five Major Oil Companies
- The five major integrated oil companies operating in the U.S. market have earned net incomes totaling $308 billion since 2004. This report analyzes the uses of accrued profits by the five major integrated oil companies from 2004 through 2006.