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The Higher Education Act: Reauthorization Status and Issues

Description: This report provides the following: an overview of postsecondary education (institutions and students), an overview of the Higher Education Act (HEA) with a focus on its most significant programs and provisions, and a discussion of major issues likely to be of interest to the Congress during the HEA reauthorization process.
Date: November 15, 2002
Creator: Stedman, James B.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Item Veto and Expanded Impoundment Proposals

Description: 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.
Date: August 15, 2002
Creator: McMurtry, Virginia A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Federal Aid to Libraries: The Library Services and Technology Act

Description: This report discusses the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), which consolidated and replaced the former Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) and other federal library assistance legislation. LSTA grants to the states are allocated to state library administrative agencies (SLAAs), and may be used for two basic purposes: developing and improving electronic or other linkages and networks connecting providers and consumers of library services and resources; and/or targeting library… more
Date: May 15, 2003
Creator: McCallion, Gail
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Farm Commodity Policy: Programs and Issues for Congress

Description: This report discusses farm commodity programs, which represent the heart of U.S. farm policy. The 2002 farm bill (P.L. 107-171) establishes farm income support and commodity price support programs for the 2002-2007 crop years. The 109th Congress is facing several issues regarding farm commodity programs, including budget reconciliation that could reopen the farm bill, payment limits (S. 385), dairy program extension (H.R. 1260, S. 273, S. 307), international trade, and planting flexibility (S.… more
Date: March 15, 2005
Creator: Monke, Jim
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Iraq: Recent Developments in Reconstruction Assistance

Description: Following years of authoritarian rule and economic sanctions, the United States and the international community agreed in the spring of 2003 that efforts should be made to rehabilitate economic infrastructure and introduce representative government to post-war Iraq, among other objectives. More recently, the Bush Administration has asserted a “victory” strategy composed of eight objectives, five of which are to: transition Iraq to security self-reliance, help Iraqis form a national compact for … more
Date: June 15, 2006
Creator: Tarnoff, Curt
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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FY2009 Spring Supplemental Appropriations for Overseas Contingency Operations

Description: This report discusses the White House's request for supplemental appropriations that include funding for defense, foreign affairs, and domestic fire fighting. The report details the different programs and areas that the appropriations would fund, including operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, preparedness and emergency management measures relating to the swine flu outbreak, border security between the United States and Mexico, benchmark assessment in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and other general d… more
Date: June 15, 2009
Creator: Daggett, Stephen; Epstein, Susan B.; Tarnoff, Curt; Margesson, Rhoda; Nakamura, Kennon H.; Kronstadt, K. Alan et al.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Navy LPD-17 Amphibious Ship Procurement: Background, Issues, and Options for Congress

Description: The Navy's FY2011-FY2015 shipbuilding plan calls for procuring an 11th and final San Antonio (LPD-17) class amphibious ship in FY2012. This report discusses the procurement cost estimates of this ship, as well as related issues for Congress.
Date: October 15, 2010
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Small Business Administration HUBZone Program

Description: The Small Business Administration (SBA) administers several programs to support small businesses, including the Historically Underutilized Business Zone Empowerment Contracting (HUBZone) program. The HUBZone program is a small business federal contracting assistance program "whose primary objective is job creation and increasing capital investment in distressed communities." This report examines the arguments presented both for and against targeting assistance to geographic areas with specified… more
Date: October 15, 2010
Creator: Dilger, Robert Jay
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Mandatory Spending Since 1962

Description: Mandatory spending includes federal government spending on entitlement programs as well as other budget outlays controlled by laws other than appropriation acts. Entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare make up the bulk of mandatory spending. This report looks at mandatory spending and how it has grown over time relative to total federal spending and the size of the U.S. economy. It also analyzes future mandatory spending levels and how they are projected to impact the federal … more
Date: September 15, 2010
Creator: Austin, D. A. & Levit, Mindy R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Veterans Affairs: A Preliminary Analysis of the FY2012 Appropriations Request

Description: This report provides a preliminary analysis of the President's budget request for FY2012 for the programs administered by the VA. This report is not an exhaustive discussion of VA's budget request for FY2012. A full CRS report on FY2012 VA budget and appropriations issues is planned after initial congressional consideration of appropriations legislation.
Date: March 15, 2011
Creator: Scott, Christine & Panangala, Sidath Viranga
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response: The SAFER Grant Program

Description: The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Act (the "SAFER Act") was enacted by the 108th Congress as part of the FY2004 National Defense Authorization Act. This report describes the SAFER Act in brief, discusses possible budgetary modifications to the SAFER Act that are being considered due to the recent economic downturn, and explores related issues for the 112th Congress as they consider reauthorization.
Date: September 15, 2011
Creator: Kruger, Lennard G.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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U.S. National Science Foundation: An Overview

Description: The National Science Foundation (NSF) was created by the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended (P.L.81-507). The NSF has the broad mission of supporting science and engineering in general and funding basic research across many disciplines. The agency provides support for investigator-initiated, merit-reviewed, competitively selected awards, state-of-the-art tools, and instrumentation and facilities. The majority of the research supported by the NSF is conducted at U.S. colleges … more
Date: March 15, 2012
Creator: Matthews, Christine M.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Legislative Branch Staffing, 1954-2007

Description: This report provides data and analysis concerning legislative branch staffing levels since 1954. Legislative branch staff include congressional staff, who work in the House or Senate, and legislative agency staff, who work in a legislative branch agency. At present, there is no legislation pending before Congress to change existing staff arrangements in Congress or legislative branch agencies. As policies and issues before Congress continue to proliferate in volume and complexity, new proposal… more
Date: October 15, 2008
Creator: Petersen, R. Eric
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Reducing the Budget Deficit: Policy Issues

Description: This report discusses why the federal government's fiscal path is unsustainable and provides an overview of proposals of selected groups that have published detailed recommendations on how to return the federal budget to a sustainable course.
Date: February 15, 2012
Creator: Labonte, Marc
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense: FY2012 Budget Request, Authorization and Appropriations

Description: This report discusses legislative action that applied the Budget Control Act (BCA)-mandated spending reduction to FY2012 defense funding legislation was taken by the Senate Appropriations Committee on September 7, 2011, when it adopted discretionary spending ceilings for each of its 12 subcommittees that required the Defense Subcommittee to cut $25.9 billion from the President's request for programs funded by the DOD Appropriations bill. On September 15, the Senate Appropriations Committee repo… more
Date: June 15, 2011
Creator: Towell, Pat
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Defense: FY2012 Budget Request, Authorization and Appropriations

Description: This report discusses legislative action that applied the Budget Control Act (BCA)-mandated spending reduction to FY2012 defense funding legislation was taken by the Senate Appropriations Committee on September 7, 2011, when it adopted discretionary spending ceilings for each of its 12 subcommittees that required the Defense Subcommittee to cut $25.9 billion from the President's request for programs funded by the DOD Appropriations bill. On September 15, the Senate Appropriations Committee repo… more
Date: June 15, 2011
Creator: Towell, Pat
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Navy Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) Program: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the Aegis ballistic missile defense (BMD) program, which is carried out by the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the Navy, and gives Navy Aegis cruisers and destroyers a capability for conducting BMD operations Issues for Congress concerning the Aegis BMD program include demands for BMD capable Aegis ships, demands for Aegis ships in general, the U.S. economic impact of shifting four Aegis ships to Rota, Spain, U.S. vs. Europ… more
Date: June 15, 2012
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Navy Nuclear Aircraft Carrier (CVN) Homeporting at Mayport: Background and Issues for Congress

Description: This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the Navy's proposal to homeport a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier (CVN) at Mayport, Florida. Transferring a CVN from Norfolk, Virginia, to Mayport would also shift the local economic activity associated with homeporting a CVN, which some sources estimate as being worth hundreds of millions of dollars per year.
Date: April 15, 2011
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Government Shutdown: Operations of the Department of Defense During a Lapse in Appropriations

Description: This report provides an overview of guidelines that have governed planning for Department of Defense (DOD) operations over the last 30 years in the event of a funding lapse. It also discusses the implications of the guidelines for a possible impending shutdown and briefly reviews what is known about current DOD planning for a shutdown.
Date: October 15, 2013
Creator: Belasco, Amy & Towell, Pat
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Debt Limit: History and Recent Increases

Description: This report discusses how the total debt of the federal government can increase, an historical overview of debt limits, and how the current economic slowdown has led to higher deficits and thereby a series of debt limit increases, as well as legislation related to these increases.
Date: October 15, 2013
Creator: Austin, D. Andrew & Levit, Mindy R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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