Congressional Research Service Reports - 58 Matching Results
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- Awards of Attorney's Fees to Small Businesses and Labor Organizations that Prevail Against the NLRB or OSHA: H.R. 1987, 106th Congress
- H.R. 1987, 106th Congress, the Fair Access to Indemnity and Reimbursement (FAIR) Act, which was reported by the Committee on Education and the Workforce on October 14, 1999, would make it easier for small businesses and labor organizations that prevail against the NLRB or OSHA, in administrative or court proceedings, to recover their attorneys' fees from the government. It would do so by requiring fees to be awarded automatically in cases to which it applied, instead of only when the government's position was not substantially justified.
- Iraq-Kuwait: United Nations Security Council Resolutions Tests and Votes – 1991
- No Description Available.
- Appropriations Supplemental for FY1999: Emergency Funding in P.L. 105-277 for Agriculture, Embassy Security, Y2K Problems, Defense, and Other Issues
- This report describes emergency supplemental initiatives for the year 1999. The initiatives include: agriculture, embassy security and counter-terrorism, year 2000 computer conversion, U.S. troops in Bosnia, defense readiness, and other topics.
- WIC Food Package: History of the Sugar Cap
- This report provides a historic review of the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) food package and the controversy over the sugar cap on cereals allowed in the program.
- Individual Transferable Quotas in Fishery Management
- This report discusses individual transferable quota (ITQ), which is an allocated privilege of landing a specified portion of the total annual fish catch in the form of quota shares.
- Speechwriting in Perspective: A Brief Guide to Effective and Persuasive Communication
- “Rhetoric,” wrote Aristotle, “is the power of determining in a particular case what are the available means of persuasion.” This report reviews some effective means for the rhetoric of persuasive communication in speeches written by congressional staff for Senators and Representatives.
- Arts and Humanities: Funding and Reauthorization in the 105th Congress
- This report summarizes the funding and re-authorization in the 105th congress on arts and humanities.
- Russia and the IMF : Coming to Terms
- No Description Available.
- South Korea's Economic Reforms And U.S. Interests
- No Description Available.
- The Americans with Disabilities Act and Rights to Community Care: Olmstead v. L.C.
- This report addresses the issue of whether the public treatment for the plaintiff mentally disadbled persons in community placement when such treatment could be provided in a state mental institute.
- Superfund Cleanup Standards Reconsidered
- No Description Available.
- Debt-Limit Legislation in the Congressional Budget Process
- This report provides information about the Debt-Limit Legislation in the Congressional Budget Process. The gross federal debt consists of the debt held by the public plus the debt held by government accounts.
- The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program: A Fact Sheet
- No Description Available.
- Messages, Petitions, Communications, and Memorials to Congress
- No Description Available.
- Religious Persecution Abroad: Congressional Concerns and Actions
- No Description Available.
- The Religious Freedom Restoration Act: Its Rise, Fall, and Current Status
- No Description Available.
- The Proposed Witness Protection and Interstate Relocation Act of 1997: H.R. 2181
- No Description Available.
- Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, Title II of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, P.L. 105-220
- This report is concerned with the federal adult education and literacy programs authorized by the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA). The report covers funding and spending in the program and how it is budgeted. The report also discusses the consequences of the AEFLA repealing the Adult Education Act (AEA) but continuing some of the programs that were under it.
- How to Find Information in a Library
- No Description Available.
- The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act Amendments Act of 1994, S. 2230 (103rd Cong., 2nd Sess.): A Brief Analysis
- This report provides an analysis of S. 2230, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act Amendments of 1994 introduced June 23, 1994, to amend the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. It includes sections on stated purposes, enhanced powers of the National Indian Gaming Commission, proposed tribal-state compacting process, modifications of current law with respect to class II gaming, modification of current law with respect to class III gaming, and miscellaneous amendments.
- The Brady Handgun Control Act: Constitutional Issues
- The Brady Handgun Control Act established a five-day waiting period for handgun purchases, during which local law enforcement can make reasonable efforts to conduct background checks in available records and block and sales to convicted felons and other disqualified persons. This report reviews the background of federal gun control legislation, analyzes the conflict in the courts over the constitutionality under the Tenth Amendment of the duties placed on local law enforcement, and considers the implications of the decisions for Brady Act enforcement.
- Iraq-Kuwait: United Nations Security Council Resolutions Test and Votes -- 1991
- This report lists the 12 adopted United Nations Security Council resolutions relating to the Iraq-Kuwait situation through October 1991. The texts of these resolutions, along with the votes by members of the Council, are included in this report.
- Navy DDG-51 Destroyer Procurement Rate: Issues and Options for Congress
- No Description Available.
- Chinese Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control Policies: Implications and Options for the United States
- since the mid-1950s, China has made strong efforts within its limited economic and technical capabilities to develop a modest nuclear force and related delivery systems in order to: help deter superpower or regional aggression and intimidation;
- Superfund Cleanup Standards Reconsidered
- The reauthorization of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), commonly known as Superfund, has focused on two major areas of reform: liability, and cleanup standards/remedy selection.
- Population and Development: the 1994 Cairo Conference
- No Description Available.
- Alternative Sources of Wood for Japan
- Japan is one of the world's largest wood importers, with two-thirds of its imports as logs (unprocessed timber). Southeast Asia has been the largest log supplier, but supplies (and exports to Japan) have been declining. The United States has become a more important supplier, but concerns about declining domestic timber supplies have led to proposals to prohibit or to tax log exports. Opponents suggest that Japan would simply turn to other sources to replace U.S. logs. One question in this debate is where the alternative sources of logs or wood products might be.
- Individual Transferable Quotas in Fishery Management
- An individual transferable quota (ITQ) is an allocated privilege of landing a specified portion of the total annual fish catch in the form of quota shares. This differs from the traditional open-access approach to commercial fisheries. ITQs divide the total annual catch quota into smaller individual portions. ITQs are generally transferable, which means fishing vessel owners can sell their ITQ certificates or buy others' certificates or, in some cases, lease their quota shares depending on how much (or whether) they want to participate in the fishery. ITQs are not considered property, but a privilege to catch a share of the total allowable catch of fish or shellfish in a given year. The initial allocation criteria for ITQs are controversial decisions established by Regional Fishery Management Councils, usually based on the historical catch of vessels, to benefit current active fishing vessel owners.
- International Financial Institutions and Environment: Multilateral Development Banks and the Global Environment Facility
- The World Bank and other multilateral development banks (MDB) have come under increasing pressure to assess the environmental impacts of bank-sponsored projects. The U.S. Congress has required that U.S. participation be based on policies that encourage the banks to raise the priority of environmental protection in their operations and to address environmental impacts; however, major issues continue to revolve around the effectiveness of all the MDBs in promoting environmentally sustainable development. Additionally, increasing concern over global environmental problems led to the creation in 1990 of a new multilateral fund -- the Global Environment Facility (GEF) -- to fund environmental projects of global concern that were generally not being funded by the MDBs. The pilot phase of the GEF ended in December 1993, and participants are currently in the process of determining how, or if, it should function as a permanent entity.
- How to Find Information in a Library
- For constituents who want to learn more about the topics that interest them, the Congressional Research Service has prepared this guide to locate information in libraries. It includes sources of background information (encyclopedias, almanacs, business directories, statistics, and biographical directories), current information from newspapers and magazines, organizations, foundations, government, politics, legislation, and books and periodicals. It lists a number of Internet search engines. This report will be updated from time to time.
- Japan-U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress in the 1990s
- No Description Available.
- Commercial Relations with the Soviet Union: Prospects for a Common United States Japanese Policy
- Discussions in Japan from January 27-February 1, 1991 provided a basis for assessing the prospects for expanding commercial relations with the Soviet Union, perhaps as part of a Soviet/Japanese Summit to convene on April 16. These discussions included key Japanese industrialists, bankers, government officials and academics who influence policy. There was also a meeting of the Soviet-Japanese Business Cooperation Committee during the same period. The conditions from the Japanese perspective for favorable developments would appear to be four:
- World Bank Lending to China
- Lending to China from the multilateral development banks (MDBs) increased four-fold between 1985 and 1994, from $1.1 billion to $4.3 billion. China is now the MDBs' largest single borrower country. There is considerable debate today, however, whether the MDBs should continue lending to China. In particular, there is sharp debate whether the World Bank should continue making concessional loans to China.
- Arts and Humanities: Funding and Reauthorization in the 105th Congress
- One of the primary vehicles for federal support of the arts and humanities is the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities, composed of the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. This report describes the issues and options raised in the 105th Congress with regard to both authorization and appropriations for support of the arts and humanities.
- Disaster Mitigation Bills in the 106th Congress: H.R. 707, S. 1691 Compared
- The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act authorizes the President to declare that an emergency or major disaster exists that overwhelms state and local resources. Legislation before the 106th Congress (H.R. 707 and S. 1691) would, among other matters, amend the Act to: (1) fund hazard mitigation projects designed to reduce future disaster losses; (2) add conditions to assistance; and (3) consolidate provisions governing the distribution of aid to disaster victims. This report compares provisions of the two bills, and will be updated as legislative action occurs.
- Allied Burdensharing in Transition: Status and Implications for the United States
- This report describes recent changes in U.S. burdensharing relationships with NATO, Japan and South Korea and, in the process, identifies some implications for U.S. foreign policy.
- Committee Funding Resolutions and Processes, 106th Congress
- This report describes the procedures under which committee funding resolutions are considered in the two chambers. A table at the end of the report shows funds approved for the 105th Congress, and the funds requested, recommended, and approved for the 106th Congress for each House committee. The Senate agreed to temporary funding extensions for its committees pending a decision to shift to a fiscal year-based funding process.
- Messages, Petitions, Communications, and Memorials to Congress
- No Description Available.
- The Congressional Budget Process Timetable
- The Congressional Budget Act (CBA) of 1974 (P.L. 93-344), as amended, establishes the congressional budget process, which coordinates the legislative activities on the budget resolution, appropriations bills, reconciliation legislation, revenue measures, and other budgetary legislation. Section 300 of this act provides a timetable (see Table 1) so that Congress may complete its work on the budget by the start of the fiscal year on October 1.
- Speechwriting in Perspective: A Brief Guide to Effective and Persuasive Communication
- “Rhetoric,” wrote Aristotle, “is the power of determining in a particular case what are the available means of persuasion.” This report reviews some effective means for the rhetoric of persuasive communication in speeches written by congressional staff for Senators and Representatives.
- Religious Persecution Abroad: Congressional Concerns and Actions
- The 105 Congress has sought to raise the priority of combating religious persecution worldwide among U.S. foreign policy objectives. The difficulty has been in agreeing on legislation that would effectively deal with religious persecution without adversely affecting other important U.S. interests. On May 14, 1998, the House passed H.R. 2431 (the Freedom from Religious Persecution Act of 1998) establishing in the State Department a Director of the Office of Religious Persecution Monitoring who is to issue an annual report assessing religious persecution abroad. The legislation places sanctions on countries and groups that carry out or permit such activities. The Senate may soon consider S. 1868 establishing an office in the Department of State to monitor religious persecution headed by an Ambassador at Large and requiring the President to take some action from a broad list of options against countries found engaging in or tolerating religious persecution.
- The Religious Freedom Restoration Act: Its Rise, Fall, and Current Status
- This report briefly summarizes Employment Division, Oregon Department of Human Resources v. Smith, the legislative history of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), the Supreme Court's decision in City of Boerne, Texas v. Flores, and RFRA's current legal status, and notes the introduction of the Religious Liberty Protection Act (RLPA).
- Legal Analysis of the 10% Disadvantaged Small Business Set-Aside Provisions of H.R. 2400, the "Building Efficient Surface Transportation and Equity Act of 1997"
- This report discusses the vote on H.R. 2400, the "Building Efficient Surface Transportation and Equity Act of 1997"(BESTEA), an omnibus bill to fund surface transportation into the next century.
- Discretionary Spending Limits
- Discretionary spending limits are statutory caps on the level of budget authority and outlays determined through the annual appropriations process. They were initially established by the Budget Enforcement Act (BEA) of 1990 (Title XIII of P.L. 101-508) as part of an agreement between Congress and President George Bush to reduce the deficit. Twice since, they were extended to enforce agreements between Congress and President Bill Clinton, most recently to achieve a surplus.
- The Sequestration Process
- Sequestration is the cancellation of budgetary resources for the purpose of enforcing statutory budget limits and pay-as-you-go (PAYGO) requirements. This process is triggered automatically when these statutory limits or PAYGO rules have been violated as a result of legislative actions.
- Timetable for Sequestration Actions
- Sequestration--the automatic across-the-board cancellation of budgetary resources for the purpose of enforcing budgetary goals--was first established by the 1985 Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act (Title II of P.L. 99-177). Section 254 of this act, as amended, provides a timetable for sequestration actions.
- H.R. 853, The Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act: Summary of Provisions
- This report discusses the Comprehensive Budget Process Reform Act of 1999, was introduced by Representative Jim Nussle on February 25, 1999, and referred to the Committee on the Budget.
- Budget Resolution Enforcement
- The annual budget resolution sets forth Congress's budget plan for a period of at least five fiscal years. It includes total levels of spending, revenues, and the debt limit for each of the fiscal years covered.
- Budget Reconciliation Legislation: Development and Consideration
- Budget reconciliation is an optional two-step process Congress may use to assure compliance with the direct spending, revenue, and debt-limit levels set forth in budget resolutions.
- Baselines and Scorekeeping in the Federal Budget Process
- Baselines and scorekeeping are an integral part of the federal budget process, providing Congress and the President with a framework for making and enforcing budgetary decisions. A baseline serves as a benchmark for federal budget decisions. While the Office of Management and Budget (0MB) and the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) create different baselines, their baselines project federal spending, revenue, and budget surplus or deficit amounts that would occur if existing budget policies were left unchanged. Scorekeeping is the process by which the budgetary impact of proposed and enacted budget policies is measured; it assists Congress and the President in making and enforcing budgetary decisions