Congressional Research Service Reports - 2,030 Matching Results
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- NATO Enlargement: The Process and Allied Views
- No Description Available.
- Clearcutting in the National Forests: Background and Overview
- This report provides background and an overview on clearcutting use in the National Forests and effects.
- The OECD Shipbuilding Agreement and Legislation in the 105th Congress
- This report discusses the agreement on shipbuilding signed by the United States, the European Union, Japan, Korea, and Norway and was negotiated under the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
- Veterans Issues in the 105th Congress
- This report focuses on policies, programs, and benefits of interest to veterans. Included are discussions of issues before the 105th Congress, and the current status of major legislation.
- Prison Litigation Reform Act: An Overview
- No Description Available.
- Alien Eligibility for Public Assistance
- This report discusses the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, which affected alien eligibility for federal, state, and local government assistance programs, both imposing and broadening restrictions on a number of immigration benefits and programs.
- Immigration Fundamentals
- This report describes the fundamentals of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which was enacted in 1952 and significantly amended since, most recently by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.
- IRS Reform: Innocent Spouse Rule
- Married couples filing joint tax returns are liable individually and as a couple for all taxes due on the return with a limited exemption for innocent spouses. This report discusses joint and several liability, which has been the subject of much criticism and calls for reform or elimination.
- Fifth Amendment Privilege Against SelfIncrimination May Not Be Extended in Cases Where Only a Foreign Prosecution Is Possible
- Several courts in the various circuits have considered whether the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination applies to fear of incrimination in foreign countries, and they have come to divergent conclusions. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in United States v. Balsys, and on June 25, 1998, decided that a witness may not invoke the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination in which only a foreign prosecution is possible. This report provides background on United States v. Balsys and examines the court's opinion.
- Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) and Human Rights: Background and Issues for Congress
- The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 allows U.S. special operations forces (SOF) to train under the Joint Combined Exchange Training (JCET) program in foreign countries, and does not prohibit training in nations where human rights violations have been reported. Such training includes instructing host government military units in lethal and nonlethal skills. Controversy has erupted over JCET missions in countries whose militaries are suspected or known to have committed human rights abuses. This report describes relevant legislation, SOF, JCET, alleged human rights abuses, and recent congressional initiatives and discusses further options and issues.
- Television Satellite and Cable Retransmission of Broadcast Video Programming Under the Copyright Act’s Compulsory Licenses
- This report reviews the history and background of the cable and television satellite licenses of the Copyright Act, reviews the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1994, and notes recent developments, including: the 1997 satellite license rate adjustment; pending bills relating to the compulsory licenses; and the August 1997 report of the Copyright Office on these licenses.
- I.N.S. V. AGUIRRE-AGUIRRE: ASYLUM FOR POLITICAL OFFENDERS
- No Description Available.
- Older Americans Act: 106th Congress Legislation
- This report provides brief legislative background for Older Americans Act programs expired at the end of FY1995. The report discusses issues with re-authorization and 106th Congress proposals.
- Lobbying Regulations on Non-Profit Organizations
- This report is intended to provide a brief overview of the various potential restrictions upon or regulation of the lobbying activities of non-profit organizations.
- An Endangered Species Act Issue for Southeastern Florida: Johnson’s Seagrass
- No Description Available.
- Federal Restrictions on State or Local Government Officer or Employee Political Activities
- This report examines federal restrictions on state or local government officer or employee political activities which are regulated by the Hatch Act. In 1940, the law was amended to cover certain state (including territories or possessions) or local government officers or employees. All but three of the prohibitions on political activity by these individuals were removed in 1974. Enforcement provisions were added in 1978. Legislation is pending in the House of Representatives in the 105th Congress to repeal the provision prohibiting state or local government officers or employees from seeking elective office.
- Grants Work in a Congressional Office
- The discussion describes some basics about the grants process and some of the approaches and techniques used by congressional offices in dealing with this type of constitutional service
- Clean Water Issues in the 105th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Child Nutrition Issues in the 105th Congress
- This report covers proposed and enacted legislative initiatives to change child nutrition programs (including the WIC program) during 1997 and 1998.
- Taiwan’s National Development Conference: Proposed Policy Changes and Implications for the United States
- This report discusses Taiwan’s National Development and and policy changes important to Taiwan, the People’s Republic of China (PRC), and the United States.
- Banking and Finance: Legislative Initiatives in the 105th Congress, Second Session
- This report reviews major banking and finance issues that are receiving congressional attention in the 2nd session of the 105th Congress.
- Crime and Forfeiture: The Innocent Third Party
- Forfeiture has survived through time in American law, and since 1984, the use of forfeiture statutes to divest felons of their spoils has increased substantially. This report reviews the case law which raises the issue concerning many relative to whether some civil forfeiture proceedings constitute punishment which may violate the Eighth Amendment's excessive fines clause.
- Patent Reform: Overview and Comparison of S. 507 and H.R. 400
- H.R. 400 and S. 507 are similar but different omnibus patent reform proposals. Both bills generally transform the Patent and Trademark Office into a government corporation; require publication of patent applications 18 months after filing, subject to certain exceptions that differ in these bills; and extend the patent term for certain delays in patent issuance. S. 507 also contains provisions on patent reexamination reform. This report summarizes and compares the bills and reviews arguments for and against the proposals.
- Naturalization Trends, Issues, and Legislation
- No Description Available.
- Welfare Reform: A Comparison of H.R. 3500 an
- No Description Available.
- Federal Holidays: Evolution and Application
- This report discusses the history of each federal holiday and explains its rationale where a public record exists.
- Appropriations for FY1999: Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
- This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year.It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health, and Human Services, and Education. It summarizes the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, its major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity.
- Nicaragua's 1996 Elections and Results
- No Description Available.
- Appropriations for FY1998: Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education
- No Description Available.
- Nursing Home Evictions of Medicaid Patients Following Voluntary Withdrawal From Medicaid Program: Current Issues and Congressional Response
- No Description Available.
- NATO Expansion: Cost Issues
- No Description Available.
- PUBLIC ACCESS TO DATA FROM FEDERALLY FUNDED RESEARCH: OMB CIRCULAR A-110 AND ISSUES FOR CONGRESS
- No Description Available.
- V-Chip and TV Ratings: Helping Parents Supervise Their Children's Television Viewing
- No Description Available.
- Appropriations for FY1999: VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies
- This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Subcommittees on Veterans Affairs, Housing and Urban Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations. It summarizes the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related Congressional Research Service products.
- China’s Economy: Findings of a Research Trip
- This report is on China’s Economy: Findings of a Research Trip.
- Indonesia: U.S. Relations With the Indonesian Military
- This report describes the history and the issues involved in the longstanding differences between Congress and the executive branch over U.S. policy toward the Indonesian military (ABRI). The report describes two past episodes when these differences broke out: the period of Indonesian radicalism under President Sukarno in the early 1960s and the initial years of the Indonesian military occupation of East Timor in the late 1970s. It outlines the different views of the Indonesian military between its congressional critics and executive branch officials who have promoted close U.S. relations with it.
- Point & Click: Internet Searching Techniques
- This report discusses criteria to consider when judging the quality of an internet site and the best strategies for locating information on the World Wide Web. There are two ways to search the Internet. The first is to use subject guides (e.g., Yahoo, Galaxy, or WWW Virtual Library), which are compiled by human indexers. These present an organized hierarchy of categories so a searcher can “drill down” through their links. The second option is to use a search engine (e.g., Alta Vista, Hotbot, or InfoSeek), an automated software robot which indexes Web pages and retrieves information based on relevancy-ranked algorithms. This report describes how search engines index the World Wide Web, as well as various features common to most search engines. In addition, the report suggests searching tips for retrieving the most precise information. Finally, the report discusses Usenet news groups, email discussion lists, gophers, and miscellaneous Web resources.
- Defense Research: A Primer on the Department of Defense’s Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) Program
- This report describes the basic elements and issues of the Department of Defense's (DOD) Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDT&E) Program. It defines basic activities supported by the program, presents budget trends, discusses the management of program, and describes the infrastructure in which the program is implemented. This report is for staff new to the area of defense research and for senior staff interested in historical trends.
- TEMPORARY WORKERS AS MEMBERS OF THE CONTINGENT LABOR FORCE
- No Description Available.
- Campaign Financing
- Concerns over financing federal elections have become a seemingly perennial aspect of our political system. This report discusses the debate regarding campaign finance regulation.
- Business and Labor Spending in U.S. Elections
- Federal election law has long prohibited corporate and union spending in federal elections, but distinctions in statutes and judicial rulings have opened avenues by which these groups have been able to spend money in the electoral process. Business groups make particular use of political action committee (PAC) donations to candidates and soft money donations to parties. Unions made prominent use of issue advocacy in 1996, but labor’s political strength lies in exempt activity communications with members. This report explains these tools and their use in today’s elections.
- Impeachment Grounds: Part I: Pre-Constitutional Convention Materials
- This report is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes impeachable misconduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution quoted below. It includes excerpts from Blackstone, Wooddeson, and the impeachment clauses in pre-Constitutional Convention state constitutions.
- Air Quality and Transportation Enhancement Provisions in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991
- This report describes how the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program (CMAQ) and enhancement programs function, examines the policy issues surrounding them, and summarizes relevant provisions in major legislation to reauthorize ISTEA in the 105th Congress.
- Gasoline Excise Tax—Historical Revenues: Fact Sheet
- The federal government has levied a tax on gasoline since 1932. This report provides a table that examines this tax since its inception.
- Internet Tax Bills in the 105th Congress
- This report tracks the evolution and content of the Internet tax freedom bills. In general, the bills would impose a federal moratorium on the ability of state and local governments to impose taxes on certain aspects of the Internet and would establish a temporary federal commission to study selected issues and make policy recommendations.
- China: Pending Legislation in the 105th Congress
- The 105 Congress has been active on issues involving China. This report, which will be updated as developments occur, tracks pending human rights legislation, including bills concerning: prison conditions and prison labor exports; coercive abortion practices; China’s policies toward religion; and more general human rights issues.
- Constitution of the United States; Recent Writings: Bibliography-in-Brief
- This bibliography contains recent publications discussing the history, development, and application of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights.
- Education Savings Accounts for Elementary and Secondary Education
- No Description Available.
- THE PERSIAN GULF: ISSUES FOR U.S. POLICY, 1999
- No Description Available.
- NAFTA: Estimates of Job Effects and Industry Trade Trends After 5½ Years
- No Description Available.