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Africa Command: U.S. Strategic Interests and the Role of the U.S. Military in Africa: This report provides a broad overview of U.S. strategic interests in Africa and the role of U.S. military efforts on the continent as they pertain to the creation of AFRICOM. Although the command is still in the early stages of its development, a discussion of AFRICOM’s mission, its coordination with other government agencies, and its basing and manpower requirements is included.
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2008 Appropriations: This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Subcommittees on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies. It summarizes the status of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related congressional activity, and is updated as events warrant. The report lists the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.
Air Quality: Multi-Pollutant Legislation in the 110th Congress: This report discusses air pollutants (petroleum, natural gas, and coal), which account for about two-thirds of U.S. electricity generation. These gases include several pollutants that directly pose risks to human health and welfare. The report also discusses the utilities that are subject to an array of environmental regulations.
Conservation and the 2007 Farm Bill: This report introduces some of the issues that are influencing the development of a conservation title. It then reviews major provisions passed by both chambers, followed by some of the alternative conservation proposals that were offered. An appendix compares current law with the conservation provisions, as passed by both chambers, in more detail.
Sugar Policy and the 2007 Farm Bill: This report discusses the sugar policy which is designed to guarantee the price received by sugar crop growers and processors and to operate at “no cost” to the U.S. Treasury.
Energy Policy Reform and Revitalization Act of 2007, Title VII of H.R. 3221: Summary and Discussion of Oil and Gas Provisions: This report discusses the energy development reform and energy production from public lands.
Managing Electronic Waste: An Analysis of State E-Waste Legislation: This report discusses the e-waste management law that has been enacted by 14 states. The report provides an overview of enacted state legislation. it also discusses issues leading to state action, and common provisions of state e-waste laws.
Climate Change: The EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Enters Kyoto Compliance: This report discusses the development in global warming as a global issue. Topics include issues that have arisen regarding the ETS and considerations for cap-and-trade.
U.S. Food and Agricultural Imports: Safeguards and Selected Issues: The report provides background information in the increase of food and agricultural imports and federal oversight responsibilities. It discusses international trade considerations, import refusals by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), administration, and legislative proposals.
Smart Grid Provisions in H.R. 6, 110th Congress: This report provides an overview of Smart Grid, a distribution system that allows for flow of information from a customer's meter in two directions. It discusses both regulatory and technological barriers that have limited the implementation of Smart Grid technology.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (THUD): FY2008 Appropriations: This report discusses the current legislative status of the appropriations bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity.
Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2008: This report discusses the U.S. research and development (R&D) enterprise, and its support for federal R&D activities.
Filling Advice and Consent Positions at the Outset of a New Administration: In its 2004 report, the 9/11 Commission identified what it perceived were shortcomings in the appointment process during presidential transitions. This report examines the advice and consent appointment process during such transitional periods, including the selection and vetting of PAS positions, temporary staffing and differences in the length of the appointment process for cabinet members compared to sub-cabinet members.
Clean Air Issues in the 111th Congress: This report provides a brief overview on the issue of climate change as well as other Clean Air Act issues of interest to the 111th Congress.
The Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA): This report provides background on genetic information, legal implications regarding the use of this information, and relevant laws. It also discusses the statutory provisions of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA).
Animal Drug User Fee Programs: This report discusses aspects of the Animal Drug User Fee Act of 2003 (ADUFA I), including funding and program performance; the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) ADUFA II and Animal Generic Drug User Fee Act of 2008 (AGDUFA) proposals; congressional activity; and other relevant issues.
The National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility: Issues for Congress: This report outlines current progress towards establishment of the National Bio- and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), presents current and projected funding levels and timelines, and describes policy issues of potential interest to Congress, such as agency coordination, possession of viruses, construction timelines, disposition of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC), and community safety concerns.
Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court: This report provides an overview of the Combatant Status Review Tribunal (CSRT) procedures, summarizes court cases related to the detentions and the use of military commissions, and summarizes the Detainee Treatment Act (DTA), as amended by the Military Commissions Act of 2006, analyzing its effects on detainee-related litigation in federal court. The report summarizes pending legislation and provides an analysis of relevant constitutional issues that may have some bearing on Congress's options with respect to the Guantanamo detainees.
Natural Gas Markets: Overview and Policy Issues: This report examines current conditions and trends in the U.S. natural gas markets. Key market elements examined include prices, consumption, production, imports, and infrastructure. Expectations about the future, as reflected in recent official forecasts, are also incorporated here. Furthermore, the report reviews key factors likely to affect market outcomes. These factors include weather, the economy, oil prices, and infrastructure development.
Afghanistan: Politics, Elections, and Government Performance: This report discusses the current political state of Afghanistan, as well as the Afghan government. This report also discusses Afghanistan's relationship with the United States, particularly U.S. efforts to urge President Hamid Karzai to address corruption within the Afghan government.
China's Holdings of U.S. Securities: Implications for the U.S. Economy: This report examines the importance to the U.S. economy of China's investment in U.S. securities, as well as U.S. concerns over the possibility that China might unload a large share of those holdings, the likelihood that this would occur, and the potential implications such action could have for the U.S. economy. The report concludes that a large sell-off of Chinese Treasury securities holdings could negatively affect the U.S. economy, at least in the short-run. As a result, such a move could diminish U.S. demand for Chinese products and thus could lower China's economic growth as well.
AIDS Funding for Federal Government Programs: FY1981-FY2009: This report provides an overview of Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spending on HIV/AIDS (human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immune deficiency syndrome) as well as budget numbers for other federal government programs targeting HIV/AIDS.
Regulation of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Sequestration Pipelines: Jurisdictional Issues: This report reviews the history of pipeline regulation, including the limited history of interstate carbon dioxide (CO2) pipeline regulation, and examines the regulatory missions of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Surface Transportation Board (STB), and other agencies. The report discusses possible responses to perceived jurisdictional uncertainties under existing law as well as potential legislative steps intended to address any potential regulatory "gap" in interstate CO2 pipeline jurisdiction.
Trends in U.S. Global AIDS Spending: FY2000-FY2008: This report describes how HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria are interlinked and exacerbate efforts to control each disease, but primarily addresses funding issues related to U.S. global HIV/AIDS initiatives. It provides background information on the key U.S. agencies that implement global HIV/AIDS programs, analyzes U.S. spending on HIV/AIDS by U.S. agency and department, and presents some issues Congress might consider, particularly as debate on the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) reauthorization ensues.
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act: A Sketch of Selected Issues: This report briefly outlines three issues relating to electronic surveillance under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and touches upon some of the perspectives reflected in the ongoing debate. These issues include the inherent and often dynamic tension between national security and civil liberties, particularly rights of privacy and free speech; the need for the intelligence community to be able to efficiently and effectively collect foreign intelligence information from the communications of foreign persons located outside the United States in a changing, fast-paced, and technologically sophisticated international environment or from United States persons abroad, and the differing approaches suggested to meet this need; and limitations of liability for those electronic communication service providers who furnish aid to the federal government in its foreign intelligence collection. Two constitutional provisions, in particular, are implicated in this debate — the Fourth and First Amendments. This report briefly examines these issues and sets them in context.
United Nations System Efforts to Address Violence Against Women: This report provides an overview of recent U.N. efforts to address violence against women (VAW) and highlights key U.N. interagency efforts. It also discusses selected U.N. funds, programs, and agencies that address international violence against women. It does not assess the extent to which VAW is directly addressed or is part of a larger initiative or program.
The Role of Offsets in a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Cap-and-Trade Program: Potential Benefits and Concerns: This report discusses offsets in relation to a greenhouse gas emissions cap-and-trade program. The first section of this report provides an overview of offsets by discussing different types of offset projects and describing how the offsets would likely be used in an emission reduction program. The next section discusses the supply of offsets that might be available in an emission trading program. The subsequent sections examine the potential offset benefits and the potential concerns associated with offsets. The final section offers considerations for Congress.
Proposed Funding for Education in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009: This report provides a brief overview of the key provisions related to education programs that are or would be administered by the U.S. Department of Education (ED) that were included in the act under Title IX (Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education) and Title XII (State Fiscal Stabilization Fund). It also provides estimates of state grants for programs for which these estimates are relevant and for which data needed to produce the estimates are available.
Strategic Arms Control After START: Issues and Options: This report provides background information about the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and reviews the discussions about a possible successor. It also presents a range of alternatives that the United States and Russia might consider if they choose to follow START with a new framework for the arms control process.
Advanced Nuclear Power and Fuel Cycle Technologies: Outlook and Policy Options: This report starts out with an overview of nuclear technology and then discusses the Department of Energy DOE advanced nuclear programs, global nuclear energy partnership, and different industry studies.
American War and Military Operations Casualties: Lists and Statistics: This report is written in response to numerous requests for war casualty statistics and lists of war dead. It provides tables, compiled by sources at the Department of Defense, indicating the number of casualties among American military personnel serving in principal wars and combat actions. For the more recent conflicts, starting with the Korean War, more detailed information on types of casualties, and when available, demographics have been included. This report also cites sources of published lists of military personnel killed in principal wars and combat actions.
Veterans Medical Care: FY2009 Appropriations: This report provides a brief background on the veterans' health care system, followed by a discussion of the FY2009 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) budget request, and House and Senate Appropriation Committee action. The report concludes with a discussion of major VHA budget issues.
Iraqi Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons: A Deepening Humanitarian Crisis?: This report provides an analysis of the current crisis, including the conditions for those displaced in Iraq and the refugee situations in Syria, Jordan, and elsewhere. It also provides information on the U.S. and international response and examines refugee resettlement options in the United States. Aspects of this crisis that may be of particular interest to the 110th Congress include a focus on an immediate response (providing humanitarian relief funding), examining resettlement policies, and developing a strategy to manage the displaced, particularly within Iraq.
Iran: U.S. Concerns and Policy Responses: This report discusses the reasons that Iran is considered a threat to U.S. security, including Iran's nuclear program, involvement with terrorist organizations, and involvement with neighboring countries' local governments. The report also discusses ways which the U.S. hopes to modify Iran's behavior with sanctions, and the effectiveness of these sanctions.
Leave Benefits in the United States: This report begins by reviewing federal statutes that pertain directly or indirectly to employer provision of leave benefits for any purpose, including the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act. It then examines the incidence of different types of paid leave that U.S. employers voluntarily provide as part of an employee's total compensation (wages and benefits). The report closes with results from a federal government survey of the average direct cost to businesses of different types of leave.
Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies: FY2009 Appropriations: This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies. It summarizes the status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related congressional activity, and is updated as events warrant.
Youth Transitioning From Foster Care: Background, Federal Programs, and Issues for Congress: This report begins with a discussion of the characteristics of older foster youth in care and the types of outcomes experienced by youth who have recently emancipated. The report then provides an overview of the federal foster care system, including the Chafee Foster Care Independence program, and provisions in federal foster care law that are intended to help prepare youth for adulthood. The report goes on to discuss other federal support -- through other programs -- for youth aging out of care in the areas of education, health care, employment, and housing. The report seeks to understand how states vary in their approaches to serving older youth in care and those who are recently emancipated. The report also intends to demonstrate that, despite negative outcomes for the group on average, many former foster youth are engaged in decisions about the services they receive and display resiliency. The report concludes with a discussion of issues that Congress may wish to consider, as well as pending legislation relevant to each of the issues.
Proposed Colombia Free Trade Agreement: Labor Issues: This report examines three labor issues and arguments related to the pending U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement (CFTA): violence against trade unionists; impunity (accountability for or punishment of the perpetrators); and worker rights protections for Colombians. This report addresses this issue at length, including the arguments for and against the agreement, as well as general U.S.-Colombia economic relations.
Trade Remedies: A Primer: This report explains, first, U.S. antidumping and countervailing duty statutes and investigations. Second, it describes safeguard statutes and investigative procedures. Third, it briefly presents trade-remedy related legislation in the 110th Congress. Finally, the appendix provides a brief chart outlining U.S. trade remedy statutes, major actors, and the effects of these laws.
U.S. Trade and Investment Relationship with Sub-Saharan Africa: The African Growth and Opportunity Act and Beyond: This report presents perspectives on African economic trends and provides an overview of U.S. trade and investment flows with sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). It discusses the provisions of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the changes that have occurred since its enactment. It concludes with a brief discussion of issues of congressional interest.
Quarantine and Isolation: Selected Legal Issues Relating to Employment: This report examines the employment-at-will doctrine, possible application of the public policy exception in the case of a potential influenza pandemic, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and possible application of the nondiscrimination mandates of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Economic Stimulus: Issues and Policy: This report discusses the passing of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which included tax cut and spending provisions totaling at a cost of $787 billion in an attempt to mitigate the economic fallout of the housing and financial crises on the general economy. The report examines issues surrounding fiscal stimulus such as timeliness, the magnitude of stimulus, long-term effects and previously adopted policies.
Alternative Fuels and Advanced Technology Vehicles: Issues in Congress: This report provides an overview of current issues surrounding alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles.
Iraqi Civilian Deaths Estimates: This report presents various governmental and nongovernmental estimates of Iraqi civilian dead and wounded. The Department of Defense (DOD) regularly updates total U.S. military death and wounded statistics from Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). However, no Iraqi or U.S. government office regularly releases publicly available statistics on Iraqi civilian deaths or civilians who have been wounded. Statistics on Iraqi civilian dead and wounded are sometimes available through alternative sources, such as nonprofit organizations, or through statements made by officials to the press. Because these estimates are based on varying time periods and have been created using differing methodologies, readers should exercise caution when using these statistics and should look on them as guideposts rather than as statements of fact.
Foreign Direct Investment: Current Issues: This report presents an overview of current issues related to foreign direct investment in the economy and the development of U.S. policy toward inward and outward direct investment. This report also assesses the role of foreign direct investment in the economy and the costs and benefits of direct investment.
Implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for Disaster Response, Recovery, and Mitigation Projects: This report discusses the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) as it applies to projects for which federal funding to recover from or prepare for a disaster has been requested by local, tribal, or state grant applicants. Specifically, the report provides an overview of the NEPA process as it applies to such projects, identifies the types of projects (categorized by federal funding source) likely to require environmental review, and delineates the types of projects for which no or minimal environmental review is required (i.e., those for which statutory or regulatory exemptions apply) and those likely to require more in-depth review.
Proliferation Control Regimes: Background and Status: This report provides background and current status information on multilateral regimes established to restrict trade in nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and missile technologies, and to monitor their civil applications. Congress may consider the efficacy of these regimes in considering the potential renewal of the Export Administration Act, as well as other proliferation-specific legislation in the 110th Congress.
Marine Protected Areas: An Overview: This report identifies a number of issues related to establishing marine protected areas (MPAs) in the United States. It begins by defining the concept and administrative actions taken to provide spatial protection in marine areas. It then considers some of the key issues and potential benefits and costs of designating additional MPAs. It concludes by summarizing current congressional interest in the topic and legislation proposed during the 110th Congress.
Amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) Set to Expire February 28, 2010: The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) provides a statutory framework by which government agencies may, when gathering foreign intelligence investigation, obtain authorization to conduct electronic surveillance or physical searches, utilize pen registers and trap and trace devices, or access specified business records and other tangible things. This report discusses three sunsetting amendments of FISA which include the "Lone Wolf" provision, "roving" wiretaps, and access to business records.
Gasoline Prices: Causes of Increases and Congressional Response: This report, after analyzing factors that have contributed to high gasoline prices, describes the major legislative initiatives and discusses the issues involved.

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