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Abortion: Legislative Response

Description: The primary focus of this issue brief is legislative action in the 108th Congress with respect to abortion. However, discussion of those legislative proposals necessarily involves a brief discussion of the leading U.S. Supreme Court decisions concerning a woman’s right to choose whether to terminate her pregnancy. For a more detailed discussion of the relevant case law, see CRS Report 95-724, Abortion Law Development: A Brief Overview.
Date: July 29, 2003
Creator: Lewis, Karen J.; Shimabukuro, Jon O. & Ely, Dana
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Access to Broadband Networks

Description: The purpose of this report is to provide a more concrete discussion of access to wireline broadband networks. To that end, this report provides a discussion of what broadband networks look like; how both consumers and independent applications providers gain access to these networks; and the parameters available to network providers (such as their choices about network architecture, overall bandwidth capacity, bandwidth reserved for their own use, traffic prioritization, the terms and rates for … more
Date: June 29, 2006
Creator: Goldfarb, Charles B.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Access to Broadband Networks: The Net Neutrality Debate

Description: This report discusses the current debate over "net neutrality." While there is no single accepted definition of "net neutrality," most agree that any such definition should include the general principles that owners of the networks that compose and provide access to the Internet should not control how consumers lawfully use that network, and they should not be able to discriminate against content provider access to that network.
Date: October 29, 2009
Creator: Gilroy, Angele A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The ADA Amendments Act: P.L. 110-325

Description: This report summarizes the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Moreover, the report specifically considers the purpose of the ADA, threshold issues, and other court decisions. The report highlights that many Supreme Court decisions and lower court decisions have interpreted the definition of disabled strictly.
Date: September 29, 2008
Creator: Jones, Nancy Lee
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Administration of Federal Student Loan Programs: Background and Provisions

Description: This report discusses the history and current status of federal student loan programs. Specifically, the report focuses on the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) and the William D. Ford Direct Loan (DL). Moreover, the report highlights differences in the two programs such as that the FFEL is financed by private lenders, while the DL is financed by the federal government.
Date: June 29, 2005
Creator: Stoll, Adam
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Administration of the Federal Family Education Loan and William D. Ford Direct Loan Programs: Background and Provisions

Description: This report discusses the history and current status of federal student loan programs. Specifically, the report focuses on the Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) and the William D. Ford Direct Loan (DL). Moreover, the report highlights differences in the two programs such as that the FFEL is financed by private lenders, while the DL is financed by the federal government.
Date: September 29, 2006
Creator: Stoll, Adam
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E): Background, Status, and Selected Issues for Congress

Description: This report discusses the establishment of the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) within the Department of Energy (DOE) as part of the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-69), which was authorized by Congress in August 2007. Modeled on the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), ARPA-E would support transformational energy technology research projects with the goal of enhancing the nation's economic and energy security.
Date: April 29, 2009
Creator: Stine, Deborah D.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Afghanistan: Post-War Governance, Security, and U.S. Policy

Description: This report discusses the Afghanistan's political transition, which was completed with the convening of a parliament in December 2005, but since then insurgent threats to Afghanistan's government have escalated to the point that some experts are questioning the future of U.S. stabilization efforts.
Date: September 29, 2008
Creator: Katzman, Kenneth
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Africa: Scaling Up the Response To the HIV/AIDS Pandemic

Description: This report summarizes the AIDS pandemic in Africa and how to respond to the issue. Moreover, the report considers the necessary amount of donations, and how much has currently been donated. The report also covers the multiple dimensions to solving the issue by labeling them as prevention, care, and treatment.
Date: May 29, 2002
Creator: Copson, Raymond W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Africa: U.S. Foreign Assistance Issues

Description: This report discusses the issue of U.S. economic assistance to sub-Saharan Africa, highlighting the importance of continued assistance in light of U.S. national security and also various U.S.-led efforts to promote reform amongst African citizens themselves. U.S. assistance finds its way to Africa through a variety of channels, including the USAID-administered DA program, food aid programs, and indirect aid provided through international financial institutions and the United Nations.
Date: March 29, 2002
Creator: Copson, Raymond W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The African Development Bank Group

Description: This report discusses the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, which is a regional development bank (RDB) "dedicated to combating poverty and improving the lives of people of the continent." It comprises three lending facilities: the market rate facility, the AfDB; a concessional lending facility, the African Development Fund; and a trust fund established by Nigeria to lend to low-income African countries. The Bank has 53 African members, as well as 24 non-regional members, including the Unit… more
Date: January 29, 2008
Creator: Weiss, Martin A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Afro-Latinos in Latin America and Considerations for U.S. Policy

Description: This report reviews and analyzes the situation, concerns, and activities of Afro-descendants in the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking nations of Latin America. It then discusses current U.S. foreign aid programs, as well as multilateral initiatives, that have directly or indirectly assisted Afro-Latinos. The report concludes with a discussion of potential policy options that have been proposed should the United States elect to provide further support for Afro-Latinos.
Date: September 29, 2005
Creator: Ribando, Clare
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Aging Infrastructure: Dam Safety

Description: To help inform discussions on the federal role in dam safety, this report provides background information on the nation’s dam safety activities and funding mechanisms.
Date: September 29, 2005
Creator: Powers, Kyna
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Biotechnology: Overview and Selected Issues

Description: This report considers the issues surrounding genetically engineered (GE) crops or GMO's (genetically modified organisms). Moreover, the report debates the consequences of GE crops on the environment, food safety, and labeling. The report also debates the merits of regulation on the market the crops have entered.
Date: September 29, 2004
Creator: Johnson, Barbara A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance

Description: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers several permanently authorized programs to help farmers recover financially from a natural disaster, including federal crop insurance, the noninsured assistance program (NAP), and emergency disaster loans. The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (otherwise known as the 2008 farm bill) includes authorization and funding for crop disaster programs, livestock assistance programs, and a tree assistance program. The new programs are designed to… more
Date: June 29, 2009
Creator: Chite, Ralph M. & Shields, Dennis A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance

Description: This report discusses the ongoing major USDA disaster programs designed to help crop producers recover from the financial effects of natural disasters — federal crop insurance, noninsured assistance program (NAP) payments, and emergency disaster loans.
Date: May 29, 2007
Creator: Chite, Ralph M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Disaster Assistance

Description: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers several permanently authorized programs to help farmers recover financially from a natural disaster, including federal crop insurance, the non-insured assistance program and emergency disaster loans. In recent years, Congress frequently has made supplemental financial assistance available to farmers and ranchers on an ad-hoc basis, most notably in the form of direct crop disaster payments and emergency livestock assistance. Congress provided an e… more
Date: August 29, 2005
Creator: Chite, Ralph M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Export and Food Aid Programs

Description: This report discusses projected agricultural imports and exports for FY2002, as well as legislation that deals with federal programs in support of agricultural exports and federal aid dedicated to farms and agricultural reform.
Date: October 29, 2004
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agricultural Trade in the 106th Congress: A Review of Issues

Description: The 106th Congress considered a number of trade policy developments against a backdrop of weak foreign demand and large world supplies of agricultural commodities. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that the value of U.S. agricultural exports fell between FY1996 (a record year) and FY1999 by almost $11 billion, to $49.2 billion. Agricultural exports did climb back to $50.9 billion in FY2000, and are now projected at $53 billion in FY2001. However, the pace of recovery concerned many agr… more
Date: December 29, 2000
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.; Hanrahan, Charles E. & Jurenas, Remy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture in the Next Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations

Description: This report discusses the objective of agricultural negotiations in the World Trade Organizations (WTO) in 2001 to create trade reform. The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture (URAA) established a new set of rules for the conduct of agricultural trade that the report also considers.
Date: December 29, 2000
Creator: Hanrahan, Charles E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture: Previewing a Farm Bill

Description: Most provisions of the current “farm bill,” the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act (FSRIA) of 2002 (P.L. 107-171), do not expire until 2007. Nonetheless, various policy developments have brought farm bill programs into play during the 109th Congress. For example, the FY2006 budget resolution (H.Con.Res. 95) directs the House and Senate Agriculture Committees to find five-year savings of $3 billion from programs under their jurisdiction. Hearings on a 2007 farm bill itself could begin later … more
Date: August 29, 2005
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Agriculture: Prospective Issues for the 107th Congress

Description: Persistent low farm prices and 3 years of multi-billion dollar ad hoc additions to federal spending for farmers are expected to put pressure on the 107th Congress for an early review of federal farm policy. Farm policy is governed by a variety of laws, many of which are incorporated into an omnibus, multi-year farm bill. Most of the provisions of the current farm bill, the Federal Agricultural Improvement and Reform (FAIR) Act of 1996, expire after the 2002 crop year. Key issues are the respons… more
Date: January 29, 2001
Creator: Jones, Jean Yavis
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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AIDS in Africa

Description: Sub-Saharan Africa has been far more severely affected by AIDS than any other part of the world. The United Nations reports that 25.3 million adults and children are infected with the HIV virus in the region, which has about 10% of the world's population but more than 70% of the worldwide total of infected people. This report discusses this issue in detail, including the cause of the African AIDS epidemic, the social and economic consequences, response and treatment, and U.S. policy.
Date: October 29, 2001
Creator: Copson, Raymond W.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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