Congressional Research Service Reports - 29 Matching Results

Search Results

Results: 1 - 24 next
open access

Brief Summaries of Federal Animal Protection Statutes

Description: This report contains summaries of federal animal protection statutes, listed alphabetically. It does not include treaties, although it does include statutes enacted to implement treaties. It includes statutes concerning animals that are not entirely, or not at all, animal protection statutes. For example, it includes a statute authorizing the eradication of predators, because one of the statute's purposes is to protect domestic and "game" animals; and it includes statutes to conserve fish, alth… more
Date: December 18, 2008
Creator: Cohen, Henry
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Wild Horse and Burro Issues

Description: This report discusses the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, which sought to protect wild horses and burros on federal lands and placed them under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Forest Service (FS). Management of wild horses and burros has long been controversial. Current issues include the priority to be given wild horses and burros in land use decisions, removal of animals from the range, adoption and sales programs, slaughter of animals, holding… more
Date: December 9, 2005
Creator: Vincent, Carol H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Humane Treatment of Farm Animals: Overview and Selected Issues

Description: Animal protection activists in the United States are seeking modifications (or even curtailment) of many practices long considered acceptable and necessary to animal agriculture. Examples include rearing large numbers of livestock and poultry in close confinement; performing surgery such as tail-docking or beak trimming; housing layer hens in cages; and isolating veal calves in crates.
Date: December 6, 1995
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

BSE ("Mad Cow Disease"): A Brief Overview

Description: The appearance of BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy or “mad cow disease”) in North America has raised public health concerns and disrupted trade for cattle and beef producers. A major issue for Congress has been how to rebuild foreign confidence in the safety of U.S. beef and regain lost markets like Japan. Among other issues are whether additional measures are needed to further protect the public and cattle herd, and concerns over the relative costs and benefits of such measures for consum… more
Date: December 8, 2005
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Endangered Species: Difficult Choices

Description: This report discusses various measures being considered by Congress that propose to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). Major issues in recent years have focused on whether to incorporate further protection for property owners and reduce regulatory impacts, whether to increase the protection afforded listed species, or whether to modify various aspects of the ESA, such as the role of science in decision-making.
Date: December 9, 2003
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. L. & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Hog Prices: Questions and Answers

Description: This report discusses price changes in the pork industry. In late 1998, the lowest hog prices in decades created a crisis in the pork industry and prompted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and Congress to take a series of actions to assist producers, including direct cash payments, and the purchase of extra pork products to reduce market supplies. The industry sought additional aid as low prices persisted into 1999.
Date: December 15, 1999
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Endangered Species: Difficult Choices

Description: This report discusses issues debated in the 107th Congress while is considering various proposals to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). Major issues in recent years have included changing the role of science in decision-making, changing the role of critical habitat, reducing conflicts with Department of Defense activities, incorporating further protection for property owners, and increasing protection of listed species, among others. In addition, many have advocated including signi… more
Date: December 6, 2002
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. Lynne & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Endangered Species: Difficult Choices

Description: This report discusses issues debated in the 107th Congress while is considering various proposals to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). Major issues in recent years have included changing the role of science in decision-making, changing the role of critical habitat, reducing conflicts with Department of Defense activities, incorporating further protection for property owners, and increasing protection of listed species, among others. In addition, many have advocated including signi… more
Date: December 18, 2002
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. Lynne & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Endangered Species: Difficult Choices

Description: This report discusses issues debated in the 107th Congress while is considering various proposals to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). Major issues in recent years have included changing the role of science in decision-making, changing the role of critical habitat, reducing conflicts with Department of Defense activities, incorporating further protection for property owners, and increasing protection of listed species, among others. In addition, many have advocated including signi… more
Date: December 8, 2003
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. Lynne & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Livestock Price Reporting: Background

Description: This report summarizes how the Livestock Mandatory Price Reporting (LMPR) law expired on September 30, 2005. And after considering all the approaches they took in the past, the house agreed to the bill to extend LMPR for Five more years while Senate agreed to one-year extension. Updated December 14, 2005.
Date: December 14, 2005
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Norwegian Commercial Whaling: Issues for Congress

Description: On May 16, 1996, 23 Members of Congress sent a letter to President Clinton expressing their concern over Norway's announcement that it intended to permit its whalers to kill as many as 425 minke whales that year. The co-signers urged the President "to take decisive action to prevent Norway from resuming its illicit whale harvesting," including the possible use of economic sanctions. For its 1997 hunt, Norway has increased its quota to 580 animals.
Date: December 31, 1996
Creator: Ek, Carl
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Fishery, Aquaculture, and Marine Mammal Legislation in the 108th Congress

Description: This report discusses policy and legislation regarding fish and marine mammals. These animals are important resources in open ocean and nearshore coastal areas. Commercial and sport fishing are jointly managed by the federal government and individual states. Many laws and regulations guide the management of these resources by federal agencies.
Date: December 16, 2004
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Air Quality Issues and Animal Agriculture: A Primer

Description: This report reviews the types of air emissions from livestock and poultry operations and their human health and environmental impacts. It then discusses provisions of several federal laws concerned with environmental impacts, beginning with the Clean Water Act, because protecting water resources has been the primary regulatory focus regarding livestock and animal operations.
Date: December 22, 2014
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

ANWR Development: Economic Impacts

Description: This report briefly discusses Congressional considerations on whether to continue to protect the ecosystem on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) or to open it to oil and gas development.
Date: December 3, 2001
Creator: Gelb, Bernard A.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Federal Food Safety System: A Primer

Description: This report discusses concerns about food safety, the resources required to ensure food safety, and whether federal food safety laws themselves, first enacted in the early 1900s, have kept pace with the significant changes that have occurred in the food production, processing, and marketing sectors since then.
Date: December 16, 2016
Creator: Johnson, Renée
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Listing of a Species: Legal Definition and Biological Realities

Description: The 103d Congress will debate the reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) 2 which expired on October 1, 1992. The Act has recently generated controversy, even though it passed in 1973 with virtually no opposition. Much of the debate concerns specific actions that would jeopardize particular species or populations. However, the controversy has been fueled by the discrepancies between two sets of legal definitions and the subtle biological realities that they approximate
Date: December 15, 1992
Creator: Corn, M. Lynne
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: The Next Chapter

Description: 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.
Date: December 17, 2001
Creator: Corn, M. Lynne; Gelb, Bernard A. & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Federal Food Safety System: A Primer

Description: The combined efforts of the food industry and the regulatory agencies often are credited with making the U.S. food supply among the safest in the world. Nonetheless, many food-related health issues persist. At issue is whether the current U.S. regulatory system has the resources and structural organization to protect consumers from these dangers. Also at issue is whether the federal food safety laws themselves, first enacted in the early 1900s, have kept pace with the significant changes that h… more
Date: December 15, 2010
Creator: Johnson, Renée
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Seafood Safety: Background and Issues

Description: Although seafood consumption can contribute to a healthy diet, some fish and shellfish can cause foodborne illnesses or contain environmental contaminants. This report discusses whether current food safety programs are sufficiently protecting consumers, and if not, what changes should be considered.
Date: December 2, 2010
Creator: Upton, Harold F.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR): Controversies for the 109th Congress

Description: This report discusses the ongoing debate about whether or not to approve energy development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR). Current law forbids energy leasing in the Refuge. This report addresses several legislative options on the issue, as well as policymakers' arguments for and against development, especially in the wake of increasing terrorism since 2000-2001.
Date: December 16, 2005
Creator: Corn, M. Lynne; Gelb, Bernard A. & Baldwin, Pamela
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
Back to Top of Screen