Congressional Research Service Reports - 390 Matching Results

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Clean Water Act Issues in the 107th Congress: Key water quality issues that may face the 107th Congress include: actions to implement existing provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA), whether additional steps are necessary to achieve overall goals of the Act, and the appropriate federal role in guiding and paying for clean water activities. Legislative prospects for comprehensively amending the Act have for some time stalled over whether and exactly how to change the law. If clean water issues receive attention in the 107th Congress, consideration of specific issues will depend in part on the CWA policy agenda of the new Bush Administration and on priorities of the key committees that have major jurisdiction over the Act.
Iraq: Compliance, Sanctions, and U.S. Policy: No Description Available.
Selected Tax Law Changes Effective January 1, 2002: This report is a listing of the tax changes which were enacted during 2001 and effective at the beginning of 2002
Drug Certification Requirements and Congressional Modifications in 2001: This report provides a brief summary of the existing drug certification requirements for drug producing and drug-transit countries, background on the experience, criticisms, and reform efforts under these provisions; a summary of early congressional options and proposals advanced in 2001, with possible advantages and disadvantages; a summary of later initiatives with legislative activity; and (5) a tracking of legislative action on the major initiatives.
Safe Drinking Water Act: State Revolving Fund Program: No Description Available.
Health Insurance: Uninsured by State, 2000: An estimated 14% of the U.S. populations lacked health insurance coverage in 2000, down from 14.3% in 1999. When examined by state, estimates of the percent uninsured ranged from a low of 5.9% in Rhode Island to a high of 23.8% in New Mexico. Generally, states in the Midwest and New England have lower rates of uninsured, while states in the Southwestern portion of the nation have higher shares of their populations without coverage.
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Overview of Major Provisions: The Individuals with DisabilitiesEducation Act (IDEA) providesfundsto statesfor the education of children with disabilities. It contains detailed requirements for the receipt of these funds, including the core requirement of the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE). IDEA was comprehensively revised in 1997 by P.L. 105-17, but Congress has continued to grapple with issuesrelating to the Act. This report provides a brief overview of the Act with particular attention paid to issues of recent congressional concern, such as funding and the provision of FAPE for children with disabilities found to have brought a weapon to school.
Violence Against Women Act: History, Federal Funding, and Reauthorizing Legislation: No Description Available.
Federal Estate, Gift, and Generation-Skipping Taxes: A Description of Current Law: This report contains an explanation of the major provisions of the Federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer taxes. The discussion divides the Federal estate tax into three components: the gross estate, deductions from the gross estate, and computation of the tax, including allowable tax credits.
Extending the Internet Tax Moratorium and Related Issues: The Internet Tax Freedom Act, enacted in 1998, placed a 3-year moratorium on the ability of state and local governments 1) to impose new taxes on Internet access or 2) to impose multiple or discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. It grandfathered existing taxes on Internet access. The original moratorium expired on October 21, 2001. Numerous bills to extend the moratorium were introduced in the first session of the 107th Congress. The Congress approved H.R. 1552 (P.L. 107-75, enacted November 28, 2001) which extended the prior moratorium by 2 years, until November 1, 2003.
Campaign Finance Bills in the 107th Congress: Comparison of S. 27 (McCain-Feingold), H.R. 2356 (Shays-Meehan), H.R. 2630 (Ney-Wyn), and Current Law: S. 27 (McCain-Feingold), the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2001, was introduced January 22, 2001 in a form similar to prior versions of the last two Congresses. On April 2, after a two-week debate and adoption of 22 amendments, the Senate passed S. 27 by a vote of 59-41. That measure’s companion Shays-Meehan bill, the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 2001, was initially introduced as H.R. 380 in a form similar to House-passed versions of the prior two Congresses; on June 28, the bill was modified and offered as H.R. 2356. H.R. 2360 (Ney-Wynn), the Campaign Finance Reform and Grassroots Citizen Participation Act of 2001, was introduced and ordered reported favorably by the House Administration Committee on June 28. (Shays-Meehan was ordered reported unfavorably at the same time.) The two primary features of the bills are restrictions on party soft money and issue advocacy.
Internet Commerce and State Sales and Use Taxes: In theory, state sales and use taxes are based on the destination principle, which prescribes that taxes should be paid where the consumption takes place. States are concerned because they anticipate gradually losing more tax revenue as the growth of Internet commerce allows more residents to buy products from vendors located out-of-state and evade use taxes. The size of the revenue loss from Internet commerce and subsequent tax evasion is uncertain. Congress is involved in this issue because commerce conducted by parties in different states over the Internet falls under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. The degree of congressional involvement is an open question.
Internet Commerce and State Sales and Use Taxes: State governments rely on sales and use taxes for approximately one-third (32.3%) of their total tax revenue – or approximately $174 billion in FY2000. Local governments derived 16.4% of their tax revenue or $51.6 billion from local sales and use taxes in FY1999. Both state and local sales taxes are collected by vendors at the time of transaction and are levied at a percentage of a product’s retail price. Alternatively, use taxes are not collected by vendors if they do not have nexus (loosely defined as a physical presence) in the consumer’s state. Consumers are required to remit use taxes to their taxing jurisdiction. However, compliance with this requirement is quite low. Because of the low compliance, many observers suggest that the expansion of the internet as a means of transacting business across state lines, both from business to consumer (B to C) and from business to business (B to B), threatens to diminish the ability of state and local governments to collect sales and use taxes. Congress has a role in this issue because commerce between parties in different states conducted over the Internet falls under the Commerce Clause of the Constitution. Congress can either take an active or passive role in the “Internet tax” debate. This report intends to clarify important issues in the Internet tax debate.
District of Columbia Appropriations Act for FY2002: Comparison of General Provisions of P.L. 106-522 and House, Senate, and Conference Versions of H.R. 2944: On December 21, 2001, President Bush signed into law the District of Columbia Appropriations Act for FY 2002. The House on December 6, 2001, and the Senate on December 7, 2001 approved the conference report accompanying H.R. 2944, after resolving significant differences in the general provision of their respective versions of the act.
Coast Guard Legislation in the 107th Congress: In the 107th Congress, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2001, House-passed H.R. 1699, would authorize the agency’s programs for FY2002. The report contains numerous provisions on Coast Guard operations and activities. H.R. 2481, as reported, includes certain housing and maritime safety provisions; S. 1214, as reported, would establish a seaport security program. P.L. 107-20 (H.R. 2216), the FY2001 emergency supplemental appropriations bill, increased FY2001 Coast Guard funding by $92 million.
Railroad Retirement: Legislation in the 107th Congress: No Description Available.
Child Welfare: Reauthorization of the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program in the 107th Congress: This report discusses the reauthorization of the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Amendments of 2001. The new law maintains the FY2001 mandatory funding level, authorizes additional discretionary funding, and grants new program authority to provide mentoring services for children of prisoners. In addition, the enacted legislation allows states to use Promoting Safe and Stable Families funds for infant "safe haven" programs, provides for reallocation of unused program funds, clarifies language defining family support programs, and gives more explicit instructions to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regarding use of funds set aside for research, evaluation and technical assistance.
Child Welfare: The Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program: The report describes the authorization of funding for the Promoting Safe and Stable Families program (first created in 1993 under a different name) that has expired in the end of FY2001; thus, the 107th Congress acted to reauthorize this program and make some program changes (H.R. 2873, P.L. 107-133). P.L. 107-133 expands the definition of family preservation services under the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program to include infant safe haven programs; clarifies the meaning of family support to include services that “strengthen parental relationships and promote healthy marriages”; provides for reallocation of unused program funds; and states that, out of any discretionary funds appropriated for the Safe and Stable Families Program, 3.3% will be added to the existing $10 million setaside for Court Improvement Grants; 3.3% will be added to the existing $6 million reservation for evaluation, technical assistance, research and training; and 2% will be added to the existing set-aside for Indian tribes (1% of mandatory funds).
Clean Water Act: A Summary of the Law: This report presents a summary of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, or Clean Water Act, describing the essence of the statute without discussing its implementation.
K-12 Teacher Quality: Issues and Legislative Action: CRS Report for Congress entailing issues and legislative action in regards to K-12 teacher quality. Topics include, unionization, funding, tenure, etc..
The Boy Scouts Amendment to P.L. 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: Legal Background: This report addresses the Legal Background of the Boy Scouts Amendment to P.L. 107-110, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.
Campaign Finance: Constitutional and Legal Issues of Soft Money: Soft money is a major issue in the campaign finance reform debate because these generally unregulated funds are perceived as resulting from a loophole in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). Generally, soft money is funds that are raised and spent according to applicable state laws, which FECA prohibits from being spent directly on federal elections, but that may have an indirect influence on federal elections. This Issue Brief discusses three major types of soft money: political party soft money, corporate and labor union soft money, and soft money used for issue advocacy communications.
Suits Against Terrorist States: No Description Available.
Land and Water Conservation Fund: Current Status and Issues: This report provides the current status and issues of land and water conservation fund.
Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) Status for Russia and U.S.-Russian Economic Ties: No Description Available.
Pipeline Safety: Federal Program and Reauthorization Issues: No Description Available.
Rural Education: Legislative Initiatives: Congressional Research Service (CRS) report for Congress entailing legislative initiatives in regards to rural education . Topics include, new legislation, provisions under the new rural education achievement program under the reauthorized ESEA, implementation, etc..
Federal Securities Law: Insider Trading: This article talks about insider trading in securities and The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Insider Trading Sanctions Act of 1984
Selected Procedural Safeguards in Federal, Military, and International Courts: This report compares selected procedural safeguards employed in criminal trials in federal criminal court with parallel protective measures in military general courts-martial, military commissions as authorized under the Military Order of November 13, and, as a possible benchmark of international standards, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
Drug Control: International Policy and Options: Over the past decade, worldwide production of illicit drugs has risen dramatically: opium and marijuana production has roughly doubled and coca production tripled. Street prices of cocaine and heroin have fallen significantly in the past 20 years, reflecting increased availability. Despite apparent national political resolve to deal with the drug problem, inherent contradictions regularly appear between U.S. anti-drug policy and other national policy goals and concerns. The mix of competing domestic and international pressures and priorities has produced an ongoing series of disputes within and between the legislative and executive branches concerning U.S. international drug policy. One contentious issue has been the Congressionally-mandated certification process, an instrument designed to induce specified drug-exporting countries to prioritize or pay more attention to the fight against narcotics businesses.
Federal Taxation of Student Aid: An Overview: This report summarizes the current rules regarding federal taxation of financial aid for students enrolled in colleges, universities, and other postsecondary educational institutions.
The Federal Grand Jury: This report is a brief general description of the federal grand jury, with particular emphasis on its more controversial aspects—relationship of the prosecutor and the grand jury, the rights of grand jury witnesses, grand jury secrecy, and rights of targets of a grand jury investigation.
Instances of Use of United States Armed Forces Abroad, 1798-2001. February 2002: This report lists hundreds of instances in which the United States has used its armed forces abroad in situations of military conflict or potential conflict or for other than normal peacetime purposes.
Child Support Enforcement: New Reforms and Potential Issues: P.L. 104-193 (the 1996 welfare reform legislation) made major changes to the Child Support Enforcement (CSE) program. Some of the changes include requiring states to increase the percentage of fathers identified, establishing an integrated, automated network linking all states to information about the location and assets of parents, and requiring states to implement more enforcement techniques to obtain collections from debtor parents. Additional legislative changes were made in 1997, 1998, and 1999, but not in 2000. This report describes several aspects of the revised CSE program and discusses three issues that probably will be reexamined by the 107th Congress — CSE financing, parental access by noncustodial parents, and distribution of support payments.
Child Support Enforcement: New Reforms and Potential Issues: This report describes several aspects of the revised CSE program and discusses three issues that probably will be reexamined by the 107th Congress — CSE financing, parental access by noncustodial parents, and distribution of support payments.
Status of Trade Legislation in the 107th Congress: No Description Available.
Energy Policy Act of 2002: Summary of S.1766 as Introduced: The Energy Policy Act of 2002 (S. 1766) was introduced by Senate Majority Leader Daschle on December 5, 2001, and placed on the Senate Calendar for floor action. The bill is expected to be the primary vehicle for Senate debate on national energy policy. S. 1766 would further the trend of the past two decades towards competitive electric markets. Subtitle B of Title II of S. 1766 would repeal the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935 (PUHCA), which makes certain multi-state utility holding companies subject to regulation by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Title II, Subtitle C of the bill would prospectively repeal Section 210 of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (PURPA), which requires utilities to purchase electricity from certain small power producers and cogenerators of industrial heat and power.
The Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act: Reauthorization and Appropriations: Congressional Research Service (CRS) report entailing, reauthorization and appropriations of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act. Topics include, The Gun-Free Schools Act, appropriations and a funding history, national programs, etc..
India and Pakistan: Current U.S. Economic Sanctions: This report mainly discusses about the Current U.S. Economic Sanctions between India and Pakistan where United states imposes no economic sanctions against the governments of India and Pakistan. United stats prohibited aid to Pakistan when the country fell into areas in serving its debt.
Committee Types and Roles: This report contains information on the general structure of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate committee structure, types of committees, and subcommittees.
The Railway Labor Act: Dispute Resolution Procedures and Congressional Authority to Intervene: This report provides an overview of the dispute resolution procedures under the Railway Labor Act, including the President's authority to appoint an Emergency Board; and discusses Congress' authority to intervene in railway and airline strikes.
Health Insurance Coverage: Characteristics of the Insured and Uninsured Populations in 2000: Nearly one out of seven Americans were without health insurance for all of 2000. This was the second consecutive annual decrease in the percentage of uninsured people. The largest gain in health insurance coverage was in the employment-based coverage. This report examines the characteristics of both the insured and the uninsured populations in the United States.
Health Insurance Coverage: Characteristics of the Insured and Uninsured Populations in 2000. February 2002: This report examines characteristics of both the insured and the uninsured populations in the United States.
The Privacy Act: Emerging Issues and Related Legislation: No Description Available.
Iraq: Compliance, Sanctions, and U.S. Policy: No Description Available.
Exempting Food and Agriculture Products from U.S. Economic Sanctions: Status and Implementation: Falling agricultural exports and declining commodity prices led farm groups and agribusiness firms to urge the 106th Congress to pass legislation exempting foods and agricultural commodities from U.S. economic sanctions against certain countries. In completing action on the FY2001 agriculture appropriations bill, Congress codified the lifting of unilateral sanctions on commercial sales of food, agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical products to Iran, Libya, North Korea, and Sudan, and extended this policy to apply to Cuba (Title IX of H.R. 5426, as enacted by P.L. 106-387; Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000). Related provisions place financing and licensing conditions on sales to these countries. Those that apply to Cuba, though, are permanent and more restrictive than for the other countries. Other provisions give Congress the authority in the future to veto a President's proposal to impose a sanction on the sale of agricultural or medical products.
Resource Conservation Title: Comparison of Current Law with Farm Bills Passed by the House and Senate: No Description Available.
“Junk E-mail”: An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (“Spam”): This report discusses unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called “spam” or “junk e-mail.” Not only can it be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic.
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Appropriations Process: A Brief Explanation: This report examines The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) which is funded by fees collected from customers. However, appropriation measures limit USPTO use of all fees accumulated within a fiscal year. Critics of this approach argue that because agency operations are supported by payments for services, all fees are necessary to fund these services in the year they are provided.
Environmental Streamlining Provisions in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century: Status of Implementation: At the state and local level, many observers have expressed long-standing concerns over delays, duplication of effort, and additional costs frequently associated with the environmental review process for highway projects that must be completed under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA, P.L. 91-190). To address these concerns, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA21, P.L. 105-178), enacted in 1998, requires the Federal Highway Administration(FHWA) to streamline the environmental review process for highway projects.

Congressional Research Service Reports - 390 Matching Results

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