Congressional Research Service Reports - 284 Matching Results

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Immigration Reform Issues in the 111th Congress

Description: This report synthesizes the multi-tiered debate over immigration reform into key elements: legal immigration; legalization; immigration control; refugees, asylees, and humanitarian migrants; and alien rights, benefits, and responsibilities. It delineates the issues for the 111th Congress on permanent residence, temporary admissions, border security, worksite enforcement, employment eligibility verification, document fraud, criminal aliens, and the grounds for inadmissibility.
Date: October 29, 2010
Creator: Wasem, Ruth Ellen
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Biomass: Comparison of Definitions in Legislation Through the 111th Congress

Description: This report discusses the use of biomass as an energy feedstock, which is emerging as a potentially viable alternative to address U.S. energy security concerns, foreign oil dependence, rural economic development, and diminishing sources of conventional energy. Biomass (organic matter that can be converted into energy) may include food crops, crops for energy (e.g., switchgrass or prairie perennials), crop residues, wood waste and byproducts, and animal manure. This report discusses legislation … more
Date: October 28, 2010
Creator: Bracmort, Kelsi & Gorte, Ross W.
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Federal Government's Role in Electric Transmission Facility Siting

Description: This report looks at the history of transmission siting and the reason behind the movement toward an increased federal role in siting decisions, explains the new federal role in transmission siting pursuant to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, and discusses legal issues related to this and any potential future expansions of the federal role.
Date: October 28, 2010
Creator: Vann, Adam
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Water Infrastructure Projects Designated in EPA Appropriations: Trends and Policy Implications

Description: This report discusses appropriations for Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) water infrastructure programs, focusing on congressional special project designations in the account that funds these programs. While some Members of Congress, interest groups, and Administration officials are critical of these types of congressional actions, there is little indication that the practice will cease. Information on the programmatic history of EPA involvement in assisting wastewater treatment and drinki… more
Date: October 28, 2010
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Unauthorized Alien Students: Issues and "DREAM Act" Legislation

Description: Supporters of comprehensive immigration reform have urged the President and Congress to pursue reform legislation. While legislative action on comprehensive reform does not appear likely during the remainder of the 111th Congress, there may be an effort to enact a measure, commonly referred to as the "DREAM Act," to enable certain unauthorized alien students to legalize their status. This report discusses the DREAM act and related issues.
Date: October 27, 2010
Creator: Bruno, Andorra
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance

Description: This report has two sections. The first provides an overview of the current U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) disaster assistance programs: federal crop insurance, NAP payments, emergency disaster loans, the new Supplemental Revenue Assistance Payments Program (SURE), and four other smaller disaster programs authorized in the 2008 farm bill. The second section reviews the recent history of emergency supplemental farm disaster assistance.
Date: October 25, 2010
Creator: Shields, Dennis A. & Chite, Ralph M.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Endangered Species Act (ESA) in the 111th Congress: Conflicting Values and Difficult Choices

Description: The Endangered Species Act has been one of the more contentious environmental laws. This may stem from its strict substantive provisions, which can affect the use of both federal and nonfederal lands and resources. This report discusses oversight issues and legislation introduced in the 11th Congress to address Endangered Species Act implementation and management of endangered and threatened species.
Date: October 22, 2010
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. Lynne; Sheikh, Pervaze A.; Meltz, Robert & Alexander, Kristina
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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False Patent Marking: Litigation and Legislation

Description: This report will describe and analyze the Federal Circuit's 2009 decision that requires a per-article penalty for false marking, as well as two subsequent Federal Circuit decisions in 2010 that answer several questions that have arisen during the recent false patent marking litigation. It also identifies and discusses legislation in the 111th Congress that would amend § 292 in order to retroactively end qui tam false marking suits and with the intent of reducing the number of false marking suit… more
Date: October 20, 2010
Creator: Yeh, Brian T.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Piracy: A Legal Definition

Description: Pirate attacks in the waters off the Horn of Africa, including those on U.S.-flagged vessels, have brought continued U.S. and international attention to the long-standing problem of piracy in the region. A recent development in one of the piracy trials in Norfolk, VA, has highlighted a potential limitation in the definition of piracy under the United States Code. This report first examines the historical development of the offense of piracy, as defined by Congress and codified in the United Sta… more
Date: October 19, 2010
Creator: Mason, R. Chuck
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Intermediate-Level Blends of Ethanol in Gasoline, and the Ethanol "Blend Wall"

Description: This report discusses the growing interest in the potential for ethanol to displace petroleum as a transportation fuel, as well as related issues, including current Clean Air Act (CAA) limitation on ethanol content in gasoline; the requests of ethanol producers for an increase of this limitation; and the effects the limitation has upon vehicle and engine warranties and the infrastructures of the automobile and fuel industries.
Date: October 18, 2010
Creator: Yacobucci, Brent D.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: The diminishment of Arctic sea ice has led to increased human activities in the Arctic, and has heightened concerns about the region's future. Issues such as Arctic sovereignty claims; commercial shipping through the Arctic; Arctic oil, gas, and mineral exploration; endangered Arctic species; and increased military operations in the Arctic could cause the region in coming years to become an arena of international cooperation, competition, or conflict. This report provides an overview of Arctic-… more
Date: October 15, 2010
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Oil Spill Legislation in the 111th Congress

Description: This report summarizes provisions of selected legislation - enacted and proposed - that address oil spill policy issues raised after the April 20, 2010, explosion and resulting oil spill at the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico. This report focuses primarily on oil spill policy matters that concern prevention, preparedness, response, and the liability and compensation framework.
Date: October 15, 2010
Creator: Ramseur, Jonathan L.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture-Based Biofuels: Overview and Emerging Issues

Description: This report reviews the evolution of the U.S. biofuels sector and the role that federal policy has played in shaping its development. In addition, it highlights emerging issues that are critical to the biofuels sector and of relevance to Congress.
Date: October 14, 2010
Creator: Schnepf, Randy
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Armed Career Criminal Act (18 U.S.C. 924(e)): An Overview

Description: This report briefly explores the Armed Career Criminal Act (ACCA), 18 U.S.C. 924(e), which requires imposition of a minimum 15-year term of imprisonment for recidivists convicted of unlawful possession of a firearm under 18 U.S.C. 922(g). Section 924(e) applies only to those defendants who have three prior state or federal convictions for violent felonies or serious drug offenses. The report includes descriptions of constitutional challenges to the application of section 924(e), which have been… more
Date: October 13, 2010
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Pesticide Use and Water Quality: Are the Laws Complementary or in Conflict?

Description: This report provides background on the conflict over interpretation and implementation of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and the Clean Water Act. A brief discussion of the two laws is followed by a review of the major litigation of interest. EPA's efforts to clarify its policy in this area and the November 2006 rule and the 2009 federal court ruling are discussed, as well as possible options for EPA and Congress to further address the FIFRA-CWA issues. In June, … more
Date: October 13, 2010
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization: Issues and Legislation in the 111th Congress

Description: A comprehensive congressional review of the primary laws governing child nutrition and WIC program was scheduled for 2009. Congress did not meet the September 30, 2009, deadline for comprehensive reauthorization. This report contains recent developments, background, major issues, enacted legislation, and related information having to do with child nutrition and WIC reauthorization
Date: October 12, 2010
Creator: Richardson, Joe
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Drug Courts: Background, Effectiveness, and Policy Issues for Congress

Description: This report includes an overview of state drug courts and the related federal grant program. The report then discusses some of the related issues that may be of interest to congress if it considers reauthorizing the drug court grant program or other related legislation.
Date: October 12, 2010
Creator: Franco, Celinda
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: The diminishment of Arctic sea ice has led to increased human activities in the Arctic, and has heightened concerns about the region's future. Issues such as Arctic sovereignty claims; commercial shipping through the Arctic; Arctic oil, gas, and mineral exploration; endangered Arctic species; and increased military operations in the Arctic could cause the region in coming years to become an arena of international cooperation, competition, or conflict. This report provides an overview of Arctic-… more
Date: October 8, 2010
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Environmental Laws: Summaries of Major Statutes Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency

Description: This report summarizes several federal statutes providing legal authority for the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) programs and activities. These include: the Clean Air Act (CAA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), the Ocean Dumping Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Federal Insectic… more
Date: October 8, 2010
Creator: Bearden, David M.; Copeland, Claudia; Luther, Linda; McCarthy, James E.; Schierow, Linda-Jo & Tiemann, Mary
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Broadband Loan and Grant Programs in the USDA’s Rural Utilities Service

Description: Given the large potential impact broadband access may have on the economic development of rural America, concern has been raised over a "digital divide" between rural and urban or suburban areas with respect to broadband deployment. While there are many examples of rural communities with state of the art telecommunications facilities, recent surveys and studies have indicated that, in general, rural areas tend to lag behind urban and suburban areas in broadband deployment. This report provides … more
Date: October 7, 2010
Creator: Kruger, Lennard G.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Iran Sanctions

Description: There appears to be a growing international consensus to adopt progressively strict economic sanctions against Iran to try to compel it to compromise on its further nuclear development. The U.S. view - increasingly shared by major allies-is that sanctions should target Iran's energy sector, which provides about 80% of government revenues, and try to isolate Iran from the international financial system. U.S. efforts to curb international energy investment in Iran's energy sector began in 1996 wi… more
Date: October 7, 2010
Creator: Katzman, Kenneth
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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