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Agricultural Trade Issues in the 106th Congress
Agricultural interests have been following trade policy developments against a backdrop of weak foreign demand and large world supplies of agricultural products. 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. USDA forecasts agricultural exports at $50.5 billion in FY2000 and $51.5 billion in FY2001. However, the projected agricultural trade surpluses for those years, of $11.5 billion and $12 billion, would be less than half the FY1996 surplus of $27.2 billion. Many agricultural groups and their supporters in Congress believe that the sector's future prosperity depends upon such U.S. trade policies as: 1) encouraging China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), with its binding rules and responsibilities; 2) exempting agriculture from U.S. unilateral economic sanctions; 3) fully using export and food aid programs; and 4) aggressively battling foreign-imposed barriers to the movement of U.S. farm products. A few U.S. farm groups are wary of such approaches.
Sugar Policy Issues
No Description Available.
Soil and Water Conservation Issues
No Description Available.
Dairy Policy Issues
Several dairy issues that were debated during the 108th Congress are expected to continue as issues of interest in the 109th Congress. Separate bills were introduced in the 108th Congress to extend authority for both the Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) Program and the dairy forward pricing pilot program, and to address dairy producer concerns about the importation of milk protein concentrates.
Air Quality: EPA's Proposed New Ozone and Particulate Matter Standards
This report discusses the contentious issue of enforcing stringent national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone and particulate matter (PM), the opponents of which decry as harmful to the economy. The report discusses actions undertaken by the EPA, President Clinton's support of the NAAQSs, and the criticisms of opponents.
Global Climate Change
This report briefly reviews the status of climate science, international negotiations, and congressional activity focused specifically on climate change.
Global Climate Change: Market-Based Strategies to Reduce Greenhouse Gases
This report discusses global climate change and the possibility that human activities are releasing gases, including carbon dioxide (CO2), at rates that could affect global climate change.
Global Climate Change: The Kyoto Protocol
This report discusses the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that was completed December 11, 1997, committing the industrialized nations to specified, legally binding reductions in emissions of six “greenhouse gases.”
Pacific Salmon and Anadromous Trout: Management Under the Endangered Species Act
Along the Pacific Coast, 26 distinct population segments of Pacific salmon and anadromous (sea-run) trout are listed as either endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). A variety of human activities have combined to greatly reduce or eliminate historic fish habitat, degrade remaining habitat, and otherwise harm anadromous fish populations. In addition, natural phenomena stress fish populations and contribute to their variable abundance
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Legislative Issues
This report discusses the ongoing debate about whether or not to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) for energy development. The report discusses arguments for and against such development and focuses especially on related pieces of legislation that directly affects the future of the ANWR.
Mad Cow Disease: Agricultural Issues for Congress
This report discuses lumber imports from Canada and provides a concise historical account of the dispute, summarizes the subsidy and injury evidence, and discusses the current issues and events.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: Full Funding of State Formula
This report discusses Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), which assists participating states to serve school-age children with disabilities. The state funding formula, which provides a foundation amount based on states’ FY1999 grants and allocates remaining amounts based on states’ shares of school-age children and of school-age poor children, authorizes a maximum allotment per disabled child served of 40% of the national average per pupil expenditure (APPE). Annual appropriations have never been sufficient to provide each state its maximum allotment; in FY2002, states will receive approximately 16.5% of the national APPE per disabled child served. Some advocates for the program have called upon the Congress to fully fund the formula. An estimated $18.2 billion would be required to provide states the maximum allotment allowed per disabled child served in FY2002, about 2.4 times more than the appropriation of $7.5 billion for FY2002.
Basic Federal Budgeting Terminology
In its most elemental form, the federal budget is a comprehensive accounting of the government’s spending, revenues, and borrowing. This fact sheet provides a brief overview of the basic terminology and concepts used in the federal budget process.
The Environmental Protection Agency's FY2004 Budget
For FY2004, the President’s budget requested $7.6 billion in budget authority for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), $448 million (or 6%) less than the $8.1 billion current funding level. The House approved $8.0 billion in H.R. 2861 (H.Rept. 108-235) on July 25. Senate action is anticipated in September. The request consisted of $3.1 billion for EPA operating expenses, $3.1 billion for assisting state and local governments, and $1.4 billion for cleaning up Superfund toxic waste sites. Wastewater infrastructure needs and the future of Superfund are prominent topics.
Item Veto and Expanded Impoundment Proposals
In recent years conflicting budget priorities and divided political control have accentuated the institutional tensions between the executive and legislative branches inherent in the federal budget process. President Clinton, like his two predecessors, called for an item veto, or possibly expanded impoundment authority, to provide him with greater control over federal spending. This report provides a brief history of impoundment and discusses the debate surrounding the line item veto.
Budget FY2000: A Chronology with Internet Access
This report provides a select chronology of congressional and presidential actions and documents related to major budget events in calendar year 1999, covering the FY2000 budget. While the paper copy provides numerous Internet addresses, congressional offices can also use the Internet version of this report to access active links to appropriations and budget legislation, budget and economic data tables, pie charts, glossaries, selected testimony, publications, the President’s budget documents, and CRS products.
Budget FY2001: A Chronology with Internet Access
This is a select chronology of, and a finding guide for information on, congressional and presidential actions and documents related to major budget events in calendar year 2000, covering the FY2001 budget. Brief information is provided for the President’s budget, congressional budget resolutions, appropriations measures (regular, continuing, supplementals, and rescissions), budget reconciliation, House and Senate votes, line-item vetoes, publications, testimony, charts, and tables.
Appropriations for FY2001: District of Columbia
Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriations (regular, supplemental, and continuing) bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliation bills. This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on the District of Columbia Appropriations.
21st Century Community Learning Centers in P.L. 107-110: Background and Funding
Most Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) programs, including the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (21st CCLC) program, expired at the end of FY2000.1 Included in the No Child Left Behind Act is the reauthorization of the 21st CCLC, with, a new location (Title IV, Part B, 21st Century Schools), and several substantive changes. On December 13 and 18, 2001, respectively, the House and Senate adopted the conference version of H.R. 1, The No Child Left Behind Act. The President signed H.R. 1 into law (P.L. 107-110) on January 8, 2002. This report summarizes the major provisions of the reauthorized 21st CCLC program. The reauthorized program is structured as a formula grant program to states, in response to concerns that a program as large as the 21st CCLC could no longer be equitably administered as a competitive grant program. In addition, the reauthorized program formally endorses a focus for the 21st CCLC on after-school hours activities for children and youth.
The Role of the President in Budget Development
The Budget and Accounting Act of 1921 established the executive budget process, which requires the President to prepare and submit a comprehensive federal budget to Congress each year for the fiscal year that begins on October 1. The President sets out his national priorities and proposes policy initiatives in the federal budget submitted to Congress soon after Congress convenes in January. The President's budget submission provides him the opportunity to influence the agenda for the upcoming budget and policy debate in Congress.
Federal Grants to State and Local Governments: Overview and Characteristics
Each fiscal year, Congress appropriates funds for grants to state and local governments to further national goals and assist state and local government operations. Examples of goals include attaining minimum national standards and improving program effectiveness. The federal government provides grants for numerous substantive purposes, such as crime prevention, community development, and transportation. In FY2001, grants to state and local governments totaled $317 billion. Grants can be classified by the substantive purposes they address. This report, however, reviews the fundamental characteristics by which they can also be classified. Examples of grant characteristics include range of eligible activities, objectives, award process, and administrative requirements.
Small Business Innovation Research Program
In 1982, the Small Business Innovation Development Act (P.L. 97-219) established small business innovation research (SBIR) programs within the major federal research and development (R&D) agencies. The intent of the effort was to increase government funding of small, high technology companies for the performance of R&D with commercial potential. Each federal department with an R&D budget of $100 million or more is required to set aside part of this amount to finance the SBIR activity. From its inception in FY1983 through FY1998, approximately $8.6 billion in awards have been made for 50,468 projects. The original program has been extended several times and is now scheduled to sunset October 1, 2000. H.R. 2392, as reported from the House Committee on Small Business and discharged from the House Committee on Science, would reauthorize the SBIR activity through September 30, 2007.
Industrial Competitiveness and Technological Advancement: Debate Over Government Policy
This report discusses the ongoing congressional interest in the pace of U.S. technological advancement due to its influence on U.S. economic growth, productivity, and international competitiveness. Because technology can contribute to economic growth and productivity increases, congressional interest has focused on how to augment private-sector technological development. Legislative activity over the past decade has created a policy for technology development, albeit an ad hoc one. Because of the lack of consensus on the scope and direction of a national policy, Congress has taken an incremental approach aimed at creating new mechanisms to facilitate technological advancement in particular areas and making changes and improvements as necessary.
Electronic Commerce: An Introduction
Electronic commercial transactions over the Internet, or “e-commerce,” have grown so fast over the last five years that many experts continue to underestimate its growth and development. Whether retail business-to-customer or business-to-business transactions, e-commerce shows no signs of slowing down. In turn, policymakers both in the United States and abroad are likely to face increasingly complex issues of security, privacy, taxation, infrastructure development and other issues in 2000 and beyond. This report will be updated periodically.
Juvenile Justice Legislation: Overview and the Legislative Debate
No Description Available.
SCHIP Financing Issues for the 108th Congress
No Description Available.
Freedom of Speech and Press: Exceptions to the First Amendment
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that “Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press. . . .” This language restricts government both more and less than it would if it were applied literally. It restricts government more in that it applies not only to Congress, but to all branches of the federal government, and to all branches of state and local government. It restricts government less in that it provides no protection to some types of speech and only limited protection to others. This report provides an overview of the major exceptions to the First Amendment – of the ways that the Supreme Court has interpreted the guarantee of freedom of speech and press to provide no protection or only limited protection for some types of speech.
Privacy Protection: Mandating New Arrangements to Implement and Assess Federal Privacy Policy and Practice
No Description Available.
Flag Protection: A Brief History and Summary of Recent Supreme Court Decisions and Proposed Constitutional Amendment
This report is divided into two parts. The first gives a brief history of the flag protection issue, from the enactment of the Flag Protection Act in 1968 through current consideration of a constitutional amendment. The second part briefly summarizes the two decisions of the United States Supreme Court, Texas v. Johnson and United States v. Eichman, that struck down the state and federal flag protection statutes as applied in the context punishing expressive conduct.
Agriculture and Fast Track Trade Legislation
The 107th Congress is expected to consider new "fast track" (or, Presidential trade promotion) authority, which could enable the Administration to submit trade agreements negotiated with foreign countries to Congress for consideration under expedited procedures. Many agricultural and food industry interests are among the export-oriented enterprises that support fast track authority, arguing that foreign trading partners will not seriously negotiate with an Administration that lacks it. However, some agricultural groups argue that fast track ultimately will lead to new agreements that deliver more benefits to foreign than to U.S. producers, at least in some commodity sectors.
House Rules Governing Committee Markup Procedures
This report provides general guidance to committees for conducting meetings to mark up legislation.
Instructing House Conferees
This report describes the process of reaching the final agreement between house and senate over the final version of a bill that the two houses have passes in different forms.
Bills and Resolutions: Examples of How Each Kind is Used
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.
Parliamentary Reference Sources: House of Representatives
This report provides an overview of the three types of parliamentary reference materials and their availability. The types are as follows: official sources such as "House Rules and Manual", publications from offices of the House and of the committees, and documents from leadership organizations and the House party. The report also provides an overview of parliamentary procedures.
Parliamentary Reference Sources: Senate
This report discusses the types of Senates parliamentary reference materials and provides information on the Senate's parliamentary procedures. The three types of Senate parliamentary reference materials are official sources such as the "Senate Manual", publications from offices of the Senate and of the committees, and the rules of the party conference.
Appropriations for FY2003: Legislative Branch
Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriations (regular, supplemental, and continuing) bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliation bills. This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It summarizes the current legislative status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related legislative activity.
Appropriations for FY2003: Legislative Branch
Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriations (regular, supplemental, and continuing) bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliation bills. This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Legislative Branch Appropriations.
Appropriations for FY2004: Legislative Branch
Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriations (regular, supplemental, and continuing) bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliation bills. This Report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Legislative Branch Appropriations.
Committee Funding for the House and Senate, 108th Congress
The Senate adopted ad hoc procedures in approving committee operating budgets. With the Senate divided 51-48-1 at the beginning of the 108th Congress, Senate Democrats argued for a proportional allocation of committee staff between the parties. On January 15, after a week-long delay in the appointment of Senate committees, a unanimous consent agreement was reached providing for the proportional allocation of staff and office space between the parties on each committee, with a separate provision for each committee chair to control up to 10% of the committee budget to employ administrative staff serving both parties.
Committee of the Whole: An Introduction
The House of Representatives uses this parliamentary device to take procedural advantage of a somewhat different set of rules governing proceedings in the Committee than those governing proceedings in the House. The purpose is to expedite legislative consideration. This report briefly reviews the history of the Committee of the Whole, describes the current procedure associated with it, and identifies its procedural advantages.
The First Day of a New Congress: A Guide to Proceedings on the Senate Floor
This report provides a guide to proceedings on the senate floor related to the first day of a new congress.
Iraq: A Compilation of Legislation Enacted and Resolutions Adopted by Congress, 1990-2003
No Description Available.
Legislative Procedure in Congress: Basic Sources for Congressional Staff
No Description Available.
USA PATRIOT Act Sunset: A Sketch
No Description Available.
Identity Theft and the Fair Credit Reporting Act: An Analysis of
This report provides information about An Analysis of on Identity Theft and the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This report will provide a brief summary of the fair credit reporting act provisions in question, as well as an analysis of the recent supreme court decisions.
Gun Control Legislation in the 107th Congress
This report discusses the information related to gun control legislation. The contents include Gun-related statistics, federal regulation of firearms, legislative action in the 107th Congress
Gun Control Legislation in the 108th Congress
This report discusses the information related to gun control legislation. The contents include Gun-related statistics, federal regulation of firearms, possible issues in the 108th Congress
Water Quality: Implementing the Clean Water Act
No Description Available.
Water Quality: Implementing the Clean Water Act
No Description Available.
Terrorism and the Military's Role in Domestic Crisis Management: Background and Issues for Congress
No Description Available.
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