Congressional Research Service Reports - 225 Matching Results
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- The Endangered Species Act and Claims of Property Rights "Takings": A Summary of the Court Decisions
- This report first outlines the ESA provisions most relevant to the act’s impacts on private property, and then surveys the major ESA-relevant principles of Fifth Amendment takings law. The report then proceeds to its core topic: the court decisions adjudicating whether government measures based on the ESA effect a taking of property under the Fifth Amendment. The cases address four kinds of ESA measures: (1) restrictions on land uses that might adversely affect species listed as endangered or threatened; (2) reductions in water delivery to preserve lake levels or instream flows needed by listed fish; (3) restrictions on the defensive measures a property owner may take to protect his/her property from listed animals; and (4) restrictions on commercial dealings in members of listed species.
- Energy and Mineral Development on Federal Land
- No Description Available.
- Executive Order for Review of National Monuments
- This report discusses President Trump's April 16, 2017 executive order requiring the Department of the Interior to review presidentially established national monuments since 1996 that exceed 100,000 acres or where action was taken "without adequate public outreach and coordination". It includes tables of the national monuments effected and numbers of acres protected as a national monument by each President since 1996.
- Executive Order for Review of National Monuments: Background and Data
- This report discusses the review process of national monuments established or expanded since 1996 that exceed 100,000 acres that was mandated by President Trump's executive order on April 26, 2017, and its results. The final report from the Interior Department was submitted to the President on August 24, 2017, and made individual recommendations for 10 of the 27 monuments that were reviewed.
- Federal Grazing Regulations: Public Lands Council v. Babbitt
- No Description Available.
- Federal Grazing Regulations: Public Lands Council v. Babbitt
- This report discusses new regulations on livestock grazing on lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management became effective August 21, 1995. Many aspects of the new regulations were challenged in Public Lands Council v. Babbitt. A federal district court upheld many of the regulations, but struck down four of them and enjoined their implementation. At the appellate level, only the new regulation allowing conservation use to the exclusion of livestock grazing for the full term of a permit was held invalid. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the case and argument has been set for March 1, 2000.
- Federal Land and Resource Management: A Primer
- Four federal agencies administer most of the U.S. government's land. The National Park Service administers the Park System for recreation use and preservation. The Fish and Wildlife Service manages wildlife refuges primarily for protecting and improving fish and wildlife habitats. The Bureau of Land Management manages the public lands for sustained yields of multiple uses - grazing, recreation, timber, and fish and wildlife. The Forest Service similarly manages the national forests. Most forests and public lands are also available for mineral exploration and development. Three special land systems are also administered by these agencies: the Wilderness System, for preserving pristine areas; the Trail System, for non-motorized recreation; and the Wild and Scenic Rivers System, for river recreation. Congress has also established many special designations for certain lands. This report summarizes the permitted and prohibited uses of lands managed by these four agencies, as well as of the many special designations. It will be updated at the beginning of the 107th Congress. For more detailed information see CRS Report 98-991, Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resource Management.
- Federal Land Management Agencies: Appropriations and Revenues
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resource Management
- This report provides an overview of how federal lands and resources are managed, the agencies that manage the lands, the authorities under which these lands are managed, and some of the issues associated with federal land management.
- Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management
- This report provides an overview of how federal lands and resources are managed, the agencies that manage the lands,the authorities under which these lands are managed, and some of the issues associated with federal land management.
- Federal Land Management Agencies: Background on Land and Resources Management
- This report provides an overview of how federal lands and resources are managed, the agencies that manage the lands, the authorities under which these lands are managed, and some of the issues associated with federal land management. The report is divided into nine sections.
- Federal Land Management Agencies’ Permanently Appropriated Accounts
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Management: Appeals and Litigation
- The Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Land Management in the Department of the Interior each currently have a system of administrative appeals for moat agency land management decisions. Critics assert that administrative and judicial appeals are stopping or unacceptably slowing the decision-making processes and the use of federal lands and resources; that many appeals are "frivolous" and brought for the purpose of frustrating rather than improving land management actions, and that appeals greatly increase the costs of management
- Federal Land Ownership: Acquisition and Disposal Authorities
- This report describes the primary authorities of the following agencies for acquiring and disposing of federal land. These four federal agencies--the National Park Service (NPS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM), all in the Department of the Interior (DOI), and the U.S. Forest Service (FS) in the Department of Agriculture--administer about 95% of those lands.
- Federal Land Ownership: Constitutional Authority and the History of Acquisition, Disposal, and Retention
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Ownership: Constitutional Authority; the History of Acquisition, Disposal, and Retention; and Current Acquisition and Disposal Authorities
- Federal land ownership and management are of perennial interest to Congress. This report describes the constitutional authority for federal land ownership. It provides the history of federal land acquisition and disposal, and describes the federal land management agency jurisdictions, based on congressional authorities to reserve or withdraw lands from disposal. The report then describes several efforts to force additional federal land disposal, including recent legislative activity. It concludes with describes the various current land acquisition and disposal authorities of the four major federal land management agencies. The report will be updated to reflect major legislative activity or changes in acquisition or disposal authorities.
- Federal Land Ownership: Current Acquisition and Disposal Authorities
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Ownership: Current Acquisition and Disposal Authorities
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data
- No Description Available.
- Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data
- This report provides data and an overview of the land owned by federal government, which is roughly 640 million acres, about 28% of the 2.27 billion acres of land in the United States.
- Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data
- Numerous issues affecting federal land management are before Congress. They include the extent of federal ownership, and whether to decrease, maintain, or increase the amount of federal holdings; the condition of currently owned federal infrastructure and lands, and the priority of their maintenance versus new acquisitions; the optimal balance between land use and protection, and whether federal lands should be managed primarily to produce national or local benefits; and border control on federal lands along the southwest border.
- Federal Lands and Natural Resources: Overview and Selected Issues for the 113th Congress
- This report introduces some of the broad themes and issues Congress considers when addressing federal land policy and resource management. Federal land policy includes questions about the extent and location of the federal estate.
- Federal Lands and Natural Resources: Overview and Selected Issues for the 114th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands and Related Resources: Overview and Selected Issues for the 115th Congress
- This report provides a brief overview of federal land management and its challenges along with legislation in the 115th Congress which related to federal land management.
- Federal Lands, “Disclaimers of Interest,” and R.S. 2477
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS): Issues for the 110th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS): Issues for the 110th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS): Issues for the 111th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS): Issues for the lllth Congress
- This report discusses actions that Congress is considering, which could affect the various uses and management of federal lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service, such as: legislation, administrative or regulatory proposals, and litigation and judicial decisions. Issue areas include onshore energy resources, administration of hardrock mining, wildfire protection, management of wild horses and burros, designation of the National Landscape Conservation System, wilderness designation, management of national forest roadless areas, and Forest Service implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS): Issues in the 111th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service: Issues for the 110th Congress
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Provisions of Economic Stimulus Legislation (P.L. 111-5)
- This report discusses the major federal lands provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (P.L. 111-5, H.R. 1). It focuses on provisions in the law related to four federal agencies: the Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service. These provisions relate to construction, resource management, and wildland fire management.
- Federal Lands, R.S. 2477, and “Disclaimers of Interest”
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act
- No Description Available.
- Federal Lands Recreation Enhancement Act: Overview and Issues
- No Description Available.
- Federal Management and Protection of Paleontological (Fossil) Resources Located on Federal Lands: Current Status and Legal Issues
- No Description Available.
- Federal Real Property: Inventory and Disposal Initiatives
- This report provides background and discusses the inventory and disposal of public lands and other Federal property. For many years the Federal Government has operated under a statutory policy of retaining public domain lands and has disposed of the proceeds from the sale of surplus property other than by the reduction of the national debt. Under the present system, the Government disposes of some types of land when it is determined to be surplus to Government needs, or, in the case of public lands, when it is determined that the national interest would best be served by the sale or exchange of particular tracts of land.
- Federal Recreational Fees: Demonstration Program
- The Recreational Fee Demonstration Program, that allows certain federal agencies to charge fees for access to or use of recreation sites, was authorized in 1996 as a 3-year program. The authorization has been extended through FY1999 with revenues generated from the program available for expenditure through FY2002. Traditionally, Congress has set recreation fees and designated fee collection areas, creating little incentive for the federal land managers to be involved in more than routine fee collection. The demonstration program has allowed the agencies to make these decisions. The program has allowed the agencies to test options for a permanent program. The agencies and others assert that permanent legislation should consider: 1) the number and types of fees; 2) equity; 3) implementation; 4) collaboration; and 5) appropriations. This report will be updated to reflect changes in legislation that affect the demonstration program.
- Federal Sales of Natural Resources: Pricing and Allocating Mechanisms
- This report describes the systems used by the federal government to price its resources and to determine who gets access to those resources. For some (e.g., timber and leasable minerals), markets are used to set prices, but administrative systems used for some resources may result in prices substantially lower than market values.
- Federal Timber Harvests: Implications for U.S. Timber Supply
- The importance of federal timber has been debated at length over many years. The federal government owns about 20% of U.S. timberlands, concentrated in the west, and about 30% of U.S. timber inventory (and 44% of the softwood inventory). Declines in federal harvests in recent years, and legislation to end federal harvests, have led to concerns about the impacts on forest health and on the economy. The national impacts appear to be relatively modest, but local and regional effects could be substantial.
- Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
- This report discusses controversial issues regarding the creation of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah. Issues include the President's use of the Antiquities Act of 1906 to create the Monument; the Monument's general effect on land uses; the implications for development of minerals and school trust lands; and the bearing on the designation of wilderness.
- Grazing Fees: An Overview
- This report briefly discusses charging fees for grazing private livestock on federal lands, which is a long-standing but contentious practice. Generally, livestock producers who use federal lands want to keep fees low, while conservation groups and others believe fees should be raised to approximate "fair market value."
- Grazing Fees: An Overview and Current Issues
- This report briefly discusses charging fees for grazing private livestock on federal lands, which is a long-standing but contentious practice. Generally, livestock producers who use federal lands want to keep fees low, while conservation groups and others believe fees should be raised to approximate "fair market value."
- Grazing Fees and Rangeland Management
- The Bureau of Land Management (BLM, Department of the Interior) and the Forest Service (Department of Agriculture) manage approximately 70% of the 650 million acres of land owned by the federal government and many of these lands are classified as rangeland. Both agencies have well-established programs permitting private livestock grazing. The Administration issued new, controversial BLM rangeland management rules effective in August 1995. Supporters contended that the Administration's new rules were a step forward in sound resource management, but some believed they did not go far enough to protect rangelands and riparian areas. Many in the ranching community opposed the new rules, believing that they would ultimately reduce private livestock activity on federal lands, and increase operating costs. This report examines the debate over federal grazing management.
- Historic Preservation: Background and Funding
- This report summarizes the federal role in historic preservation. It provides descriptions of and funding information for some of the major preservation programs, including the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF), the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the National Register for Historic Places. Some Members of Congress have given historic preservation programs close scrutiny and have recommended that historic preservation activities be supported increasingly by the private sector.
- Historic Preservation: Background and Funding
- This report summarizes the federal role in historic preservation. It provides descriptions of and funding information for some of the major preservation programs, including the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF), the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the National Register for Historic Places. Some Members of Congress have given historic preservation programs close scrutiny and have recommended that historic preservation activities be supported increasingly by the private sector.
- Historic Preservation: Background and Funding
- This report summarizes the federal role in historic preservation. It provides descriptions of and funding information for some of the major preservation programs, including the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF), the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and the National Register for Historic Places.