Congressional Research Service Reports - 18 Matching Results
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- Screening and Securing Air Cargo: Background and Issues for Congress
- The October 2010 discovery of two explosive devices being prepared for loading on U.S.-bound all-cargo aircraft overseas has heightened concerns over the potential use of air cargo shipments to bomb passenger and all-cargo aircraft. This incident renewed congressional interest in air cargo security. This report discusses a number of policy issues that may arise regarding air cargo security.
- Navy Virginia (SSN-774) Class Attack Submarine Procurement: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and oversight issues for Congress on the Virginia class nuclear-powered attack submarine (SSN) program. The two Virginia-class boats requested for procurement in FY2013 are the final two in a group of eight covered by a multiyear procurement (MYP) arrangement for the period FY2009-FY2013. Issues for Congress include whether or not to approve the MYP arrangement request, whether to restore procurement of a second Virginia-class boat in FY2014, and the Virginia-class procurement rate in general.
- Cars, Trucks, and Climate: EPA Regulation of Greenhouse Gases from Mobile Sources
- As Congress and the Administration considered new legislation to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that contribute to climate change over the last year and a half (a process that has now stalled), the Environmental Protection Agency simultaneously began to exercise its existing authority under the Clean Air Act to set standards for GHG emissions. The Administration has made clear that its preference would be for Congress to address the climate issue through new legislation. Nevertheless, it is moving forward on several fronts to define how the Clean Air Act will be used and to promulgate regulations. This report covers the steps that the Administration is taking on this topic.
- Federal Public Transportation Program: In Brief
- This report provides an introduction to the Federal Public Transportation Program (FPTP). Includes a brief background of public transportation as well as FPTP's funding, expenses, and structure.
- U.S. Travel and Tourism: Industry Trends and Policy Issues for Congress
- This report discusses the travel and tourism industry, which is an amalgam of business activities including transportation, lodging, entertainment, meals, and retail trade.
- Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and presents potential issues for Congress concerning the Navy's ship force-structure goals and shipbuilding plans. The planned size of the Navy, the rate of Navy ship procurement, and the prospective affordability of the Navy's shipbuilding plans have been matters of concern for the congressional defense committees for the past several years. Decisions that Congress makes on Navy shipbuilding programs can substantially affect Navy capabilities and funding requirements, and the U.S. shipbuilding industrial base.
- Rail Safety Efforts Miss Leading Cause of Fatalities
- This report briefly discusses the debate over the reauthorization of the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008 (RSIA08; P.L. 110-432). Congress is focusing on steps to prevent train derailments and collisions. Such incidents often receive extensive publicity and cause harm to bystanders, such as the residents of Mount Carbon, West Virginia, who were forced to evacuate after a train carrying crude oil derailed and burned on February 16, 2015.
- Coast Guard Cutter Procurement: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Coast Guard's programs for procuring 8 National Security Cutters (NSCs), 25 Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs), and 58 Fast Response Cutters (FRCs). The NSC, OPC, and FRC programs have a combined estimated acquisition cost of about $21.1 billion, and the Coast Guard's proposed FY2016 budget requests a total of $449.9 million in acquisition funding for the three programs.
- Coast Guard Polar Icebreaker Modernization: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the sustaining and modernization of the Coast Guard's polar icebreaker fleet, which performs a variety of missions supporting U.S. interests in polar regions.
- Coast Guard Polar Icebreaker Modernization: Background and Issues for Congress
- This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the sustainment and modernization of the Coast Guard's polar icebreaker fleet. Coast Guard polar icebreakers perform a variety of missions supporting U.S. interests in polar regions. The operational U.S. polar icebreaking fleet currently consists of one heavy polar icebreaker, Polar Star, and one medium polar icebreaker, Healy.
- Emergency Relief for Disaster-Damaged Roads and Transit Systems: In Brief
- This report describes Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) assistance for the repair and reconstruction of highways and bridges damaged by disasters (such as Hurricane Sandy in 2012) or catastrophic failures (such as the collapse of the Skagit River Bridge in Washington State in 2013).
- Aviation and the European Union’s Emission Trading Scheme
- Beginning January 1, 2012, most carbon dioxide emissions from commercial flights to, from, and within the European Union are covered by the EU Emission Trading Scheme. This report details why there is a need to address aviation emissions, how the EU's emissions trading scheme works, estimated impacts on U.S. airlines, and related materials.
- Surface Transportation Reauthorization Legislation in the 112th Congress: Major Provisions Pending in the Senate
- No Description Available.
- Surface Transportation Funding and Infrastructure Challenges
- This report discusses funding and infrastructure challenges regarding the the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21), the Federal-Aid Highway Program, and the Federal Public Transportation Program following MAP-21's extension through May 31, 2015.
- Revitalizing Coastal Shipping for Domestic Commerce
- This report examines recent trends in waterborne freight movement within the United States and offers policy options that might strengthen the competitive position of coastal and Great Lakes shipping in the face of robust demand for freight transportation.
- Transport Agencies Withdraw Proposed Sleep Apnea Rules
- This report discusses the withdrawing of a proposed rule by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) that would have required long-haul truck drivers and railroad engineers to be screened for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The risks of OSA, current regulations and safety requirements, and recent accidents involving drivers with OSA are also discussed.
- Public Private Partnerships (P3s) in Transportation
- This report discusses the benefits and limitations of public-private partnerships (P3s) that involve long-term private financing, the experience with these types of P3s in the United States, and current federal policy. The report outlines a number of issues and policy options that Congress might consider: project evaluation and transparency, asset recycling, incentive grants, infrastructure banks, tax credits for equity and debt, Interstate highway tolling, and changes to an existing federal loan program.
- Trespassing: The Leading Cause of Rail-Related Fatalities
- This report discusses trespassing on railroad property and tracks and how it is the leading cause of train accident fatalities. Statistics on rail related fatalities and prevention strategies are discussed.