Congressional Research Service Reports - 57 Matching Results

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Campaign Finance Reform: A Legal Analysis of Issue and Express Advocacy

Description: Issue advocacy communications have become increasingly popular in recent federal election cycles. These advertisements are often interpreted to favor or disfavor certain candidates, while also serving to inform the public about a policy issue. However, unlike communications that expressly advocate the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate, the Supreme Court has determined that issue ads are constitutionally protected First Amendment speech that cannot be regulated in any manner. … more
Date: March 12, 2001
Creator: Whitaker, L. Paige
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Financing

Description: This is one report in the series of reports that discuss the campaign finance practices and related issues. Concerns over financing federal elections have become a seemingly perennial aspect of our political system, centered on the enduring issues of high campaign costs and reliance on interest groups for needed campaign funds. The report talks about the today’s paramount issues such as perceived loopholes in current law and the longstanding issues: overall costs, funding sources, and competi… more
Date: January 12, 2000
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance Debate in the 106th Congress: Comparison of Measures Under House Consideration

Description: On September 14, the House passed H.R. 417 on a vote of 252-177, as amended by three perfecting amendments: Bereuter/Wicker #6; Faleomavaega #1; and Sweeney #21. This report features two tables. Table 1 summarizes and compares the ten perfecting amendments, current law, and the Shays-Meehan proposal. Table 2 summarizes and compares current law, the Shays-Meehan bill, and the three substitute amendments.
Date: January 12, 2000
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Campaign Finance Bills in the 106th Congress: Comparison of Shays-Meehan, as passed, with McCain-Feingold, as considered

Description: On September 14, 1999, the House passed the Shays-Meehan bill--H.R. 417, the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 1999, as amended, by a vote of 252-177. Senate sponsors of the companion measure, S. 26 (McCain-Feingold), revised their proposal and, on September 16, introduced S. 1593, containing just four sections of H.R. 417 and S. 26. The Senate debated S. 1593 from October 13-20, culminating in unsuccessful cloture votes October 19 on two amendments: Daschle amendment 2298, substituting… more
Date: January 12, 2000
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Employer Stock in Retirement Plans: Investment Risk and Retirement Security

Description: This CRS Report begins by describing the shift from traditional defined benefit pensions to defined contribution plans – like the 401(k) – that has occurred over the last 20 to 25 years. It then summarizes recent research findings on the extent to which employees’ retirement savings are invested in employer stock. The third section of the report outlines the provisions of federal law that define an employer’s duty to manage its retirement plan in the best interest of the plan’s participants. Th… more
Date: July 12, 2002
Creator: Purcell, Patrick J.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Bankruptcy Reform in the 108th Congress

Description: On March 19, 2003, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 975, the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2003. H.R. 975, as introduced, was substantially similar to the legislation (H.R. 333) approved by both the House and the Senate during the 107th Congress, but omitted the Schumer Amendment which would have prevented the discharge of liability for willful violation of protective orders and violent protests against providers of “lawful services,” including reproductive … more
Date: May 12, 2003
Creator: Welborn, Angie A.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Exchange-Rate System: Return to Bretton Woods?

Description: This report focuses on the exchange-rate system set up at Bretton Woods, its breakdown in the 1970s, the current system of managed floating and, finally, proposals to return part or all the way to a more fixed-rate system.
Date: January 12, 1995
Creator: Reifman, Alfred
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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African Development Bank and Fund

Description: The African Development Bank Group, including the Bank itself (AfDB) and its "soft-loan" affiliate, the African Development Fund (AfDF), is a development finance institution based in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. The Bank has 53 African members, as well as 24 non-regional members, including the United States. In the mid-1990s, the Bank faced management problems and difficulties arising from non-performing loans, but reforms launched in 1995 by a new Bank president, Omar Kabbaj, brought new pledges of… more
Date: May 12, 2000
Creator: Copson, Raymond W.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: The Relationship of Taxes and Benefits for Past, Present, and Future Retirees

Description: In recent years considerable public attention has focused on Social Security's treatment of younger versus older workers. Analysts sometimes have addressed this issue by examining the value Social Security provides each generation of workers in relation to the Social Security taxes they pay. These are referred to as "moneys worth" analyses.
Date: May 12, 1998
Creator: Kollmann, Geoffrey
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Railroad Safety Program and Reauthorization Issues

Description: The Federal Railroad Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation is the primary federal agency that promotes and regulates railroad safety. To implement its safety responsibilities, the Federal Railroad Administration uses numerous strategies including the Safety Assurance and Compliance Program, field inspections; and to help improve its regulations, the administration uses the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee. This report contains information on the Federal Railroad Administrati… more
Date: March 12, 2003
Creator: Rothberg, Paul F. & Williamson, John
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Investing Social Security Funds in the Stock Market: Some Economic Considerations

Description: For the time being, Social Security receipts are more than enough to fund current benefits. But beginning in 2017, under current law, benefits are projected to exceed Social Security receipts. At that point, if not before, either benefit will have to be cut, taxes will have to be raised, or the shortfall will have to be made up either by tapping non-Social Security revenues, which would reduce the unified federal budget surplus or by an increase in federal borrowing.
Date: April 12, 2005
Creator: Cashell, Brian W.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Reserve Membership and Monetary Control

Description: This report discusses the current state of monetary policy. Questions about the continued capability of the Federal Reserve System (FRS) to exercise effective monetary control were raised in connection with several developments over recent years that diminished, in relative terms, the deposit component of the stock of money over which the FRS maintained reserve requirement controls. The Monetary Control Act, Title 1 of P.L. 96-221 was designed to ensure that the FRS as ability to conduct moneta… more
Date: January 12, 1981
Creator: White, Roger
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Regulation of Energy Derivatives

Description: After the collapse of Enron Corp. in late 2001, that company's activities came under intense scrutiny. Much of its business consisted of trading financial contracts whose value was derived from changes in energy prices. Enron's derivatives trading was largely "over-the-counter" (OTC) and unregulated: little information about transactions was available. This incident has sparked interest in reform of energy derivatives regulation. This report summarizes energy derivatives regulation and proposed… more
Date: May 12, 2008
Creator: Jickling, Mark
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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International Monetary Fund: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: This report evaluates the purpose, membership, financing, and focus of the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) activities. It also discusses the role of Congress in shaping U.S. policy at the IMF and concludes by addressing key issues, both legislative and oversight-related, that Congress may wish to consider, including: the role of the IMF as a lender of last resort; the adequacy of IMF resources; and the effectiveness of IMF surveillance.
Date: June 12, 2012
Creator: Weiss, Martin A.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Reduce, Refinance, and Rent? The Economic Incentives, Risks, and Ramifications of Housing Market Policy Options

Description: This report discusses the background of financial panic in September 2008, precipitated by the housing bubble of 2006. In particular, the report looks at options that the 112th Congress has regarding the housing market: (1) reducing mortgage principal for borrowers who owe more than their homes are worth, (2) refinancing mortgages for borrowers shut out of traditional financing methods, and (3) renting out foreclosed homes.
Date: June 12, 2012
Creator: Hoskins, Sean M.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Regulation of Debit Interchange Fees

Description: This report provides a description of the debit payments process and network pricing, as well as an overview of the effects of the Durbin Amendement implemented by the Federal Reserve which includes a cap on the interchange fee for large issuers. In particular, the Durbin Amendment is discussed in light of comments by Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke.
Date: July 12, 2011
Creator: Getter, Darryl E.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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IMF Reforms: Issues for Congress

Description: Report that provides information about the reforms made by the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in December 2010, Congress's role in the reform process, and how the reforms could affect U.S. interests at the IMF.
Date: December 12, 2012
Creator: Nelson, Rebecca M. & Weiss, Martin A.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Changing the Federal Reserve's Mandate: An Economic Analysis

Description: This report discusses a number of implementation issues surrounding an inflation target. These include what rate of inflation to target, what inflation measure to use, whether to set a point target or range, and what penalties to impose if a target is missed.
Date: August 12, 2013
Creator: Labonte, Marc
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Global Climate Change Initiative (GCCI): Budget Authority and Request, FY2010-FY2014

Description: This report discusses the financial assistance for global climate change initiatives in developing countries. The Global Climate Change Initiative (GCCI) -- one of the three main pillars to the 2010 directive -- aims to integrate climate change considerations into relevant foreign assistance, from FY2008 enacted funding request for FY2010 through the FY2014.
Date: September 12, 2013
Creator: Lattanzio, Richard K.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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