Congressional Research Service Reports - 151 Matching Results

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Religious Persecution Abroad: Congressional Concerns and Actions

Description: The 105 Congress has sought to raise the priority of combating religious persecution worldwide among U.S. foreign policy objectives. The difficulty has been in agreeing on legislation that would effectively deal with religious persecution without adversely affecting other important U.S. interests. On May 14, 1998, the House passed H.R. 2431 (the Freedom from Religious Persecution Act of 1998) establishing in the State Department a Director of the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring who i… more
Date: June 25, 1998
Creator: Bite, Vita
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Economic Sanctions to Achieve U.S. Foreign Policy Goals: Discussion and Guide to Current Law

Description: This report provides background on the range of actions that might be termed foreign policy sanctions and the events that might necessitate their use. Criteria are offered that legislators might consider to judge when sanctions might be appropriate, approaches that might be effective, aspects of the use of sanctions that are sometimes overlooked or not considered fully. The report provides an uncomplicated "map" of where sanctions policies and options currently lay in U. S. law.
Date: October 20, 1997
Creator: Rennack, Dianne E. & Shuey, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Desert Shield and Desert Storm Implications for Future U.S. Force Requirements

Description: This preliminary assessment summarizes U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps performances during recent war, then relates it to past experience and potential threats in ways that might help decisionmakers determine the most suitable characteristics of U.S. armed forces for the rest of this decade.
Date: April 19, 1991
Creator: Collins, John M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Economic Sanctions to Achieve U.S. Foreign Policy Goals: Discussion and Guide to Current Law

Description: This report provides background on foreign policy sanctions and the events that might necessitate their use, criteria to consider when determining if sanctions are appropriate, approaches that might be effective, and aspects of the use of sanctions that are sometimes overlooked or not considered fully. The report also provides an uncomplicated map of where sanctions policies and options currently may be found in U.S. law.
Date: June 5, 1998
Creator: Rennack, Dianne E. & Shuey, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Foreign Policy Roles of the President and Congress

Description: he United States Constitution divides foreign policy powers between the President and the Congress so that both share in the making of foreign policy. The executive and legislative branches each play important roles that are different but that often overlap. Both branches have continuing opportunities to initiate and change foreign policy, and the interaction between them continues indefinitely throughout the life of a policy. This report reviews and illustrates 12 basic ways that the United St… more
Date: June 1, 1999
Creator: Grimmett, Richard F.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bosnia Stabilization Force (SFOR) and U.S. Policy

Description: In December 1995, a NATO-led implementation force (IFOR) was deployed to Bosnia to enforce the military aspects of the Bosnian peace agreement. After fierce debate, the House and Senate passed separate resolutions in December 1995 expressing support for the U.S. troops in Bosnia, although not necessarily for the mission itself. Legislative efforts to bar funds for the deployment of U.S. troops to Bosnia were narrowly rejected. In the 105th Congress, similar efforts to bar a U.S. deployment afte… more
Date: January 29, 1998
Creator: Bowman, Steven R.; Kim, Julie & Woehrel, Steven
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Congress' Early Organization Meetings

Description: The purposes of these meetings are both educational and organizational. Educational sessions range from legislative procedures and staff hiring to current issues. Organizational sessions elect class officers, party leaders, and chamber officers; name committee representatives and other party officials; and select committee chairmen and often committee members. Such actions are officially ratified at the start of the new Congress.
Date: July 30, 1996
Creator: Schneider, Judy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bills and Resolutions: Examples of How Each Kind is Used

Description: This report provides background information regarding the bill and joint resolution, which must be passed by both houses in identical form, then presented to the President for his approval or disapproval.
Date: January 27, 1999
Creator: Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bills, Resolutions, Nominations, and Treaties: Origins, Deadlines, Requirements, and Uses

Description: In addition to bill and/or joint resolution this report presents two other acts of congress; 1) nominations and 2) treaties. It also discusses the characteristics and uses of six different kind of business before Congress, such as designation, origin, deadline for action, requirements for approval, and use.
Date: January 22, 1999
Creator: Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Engrossment, Enrollment, and Presentation of Legislation

Description: Engrossment, enrollment, and presentation of legislation are technical components of the legislative process. They attest to the accuracy of bill texts, confirm passage by the House and Senate, and confirm delivery of the bills to the President for his review.
Date: March 2, 1999
Creator: Rundquist, Paul S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Census 2000: The Sampling Debate

Description: This report summarizes legal actions of the efforts of the Bureau of Census to include two sample surveys into the 2000 census. This has resulted in a mix reaction from Congress.
Date: April 27, 1998
Creator: Williams, Jennifer D.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Solid Waste Issues in the 105th Congress

Description: The 105th Congress adjourned without passing any legislation affecting solid waste management. Changes to the Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) cleanup program and bills to exempt from hazardous waste management requirements certain wastes generated by remediation of old waste sites had been considered possible until late in the second session. The House passed changes to the LUST program (H.R. 688) on April 23, 1997. A comparable Senate bill (S. 555) was ordered reported, amended, Septem… more
Date: December 23, 1998
Creator: McCarthy, James E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Committee System in the U.S. Congress

Description: Due to the high volume and complexity of its work, Congress divides its tasks among approximately 44 committees with 154 subcommittees. The House and Senate each has its own committee systems, which are similar. Within chamber guidelines, however, each committee adopts its own rules; thus, there is considerable variation among panels.
Date: May 10, 1995
Creator: Hardy-Vincent, Carol
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Investigative Oversight: An Introduction to the Law, Practice and Procedure of Congressional Inquiry

Description: This report will provide an overview of some of the more common legal, procedural and practical issues, questions, and problems that committees have faced in the course of an investigation. Following a summary of the case law developing the scope and limitations of the power of inquiry, the essential tools of investigative oversight--subpoenas, staff interviews and depositions, grants of immunity, and the contempt power -- are described. Next, some of the special problems of investigating the e… more
Date: April 7, 1995
Creator: Rosenberg, Morton
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Environmental Protection Issues: From the 104th to the 105th Congress

Description: The continued interest in regulatory reform measures in the final moments of the 104th Congress suggests that the 105th Congress will consider them again. At the same time the fact that the 104th Congress enacted flexibility provisions in drinking water and food safety/pesticides legislation could be an indicator that the 105th Congress may pursue reforms in individual reauthorization legislation rather than in broad regulatory reform bills.
Date: January 7, 1997
Creator: Lee, Martin R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Grants Work in a Congressional Office

Description: Members of Congress often get requests from constituents for information and help in obtaining funds for projects. Many state and local governments, nonprofit social service and community action organizations, private research groups, small businesses, and individuals approach congressional offices to find out about funding, both from the federal government and from the private sector. The success rate in obtaining federal assistance is not high, given the competition for federal funds. A grant… more
Date: January 24, 1997
Creator: Gerli, Merete
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Congressional Oversight

Description: Congressional oversight of policy implementation and administration, which has occurred throughout the U.S. government experience under the Constitution, takes a variety of forms and utilizes various techniques. These range from specialized investigations by select committees to annual appropriations hearings, and from informal communications between Members or congressional staff and executive personnel to the use of extra congressional mechanisms, such as offices of inspector general and stud… more
Date: October 10, 1997
Creator: Kaiser, Frederick M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Secret Sessions of Congress: A Brief Historical Overview

Description: “Secret” or “closed door” sessions of the House of Representatives and Senate are held periodically to discuss business, including impeachment deliberations, deemed to require confidentiality and secrecy. Authority for the two chambers to hold these sessions is implied by Article I, section 5, of the Constitution. Both the House and the Senate have supplemented this clause through rules and precedents.
Date: April 6, 1999
Creator: Amer, Mildred L.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Amendments Between the Houses

Description: This report briefly summarizes the process of amendments between the House of Representatives and the Senate, which occurs if the House and Senate approve differing versions of a measure. An exchange of amendments between the houses resolves these differences.
Date: February 19, 1999
Creator: Saturno, James V.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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