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Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues

Description: This report examines debates regarding what constitutes an "unfunded federal mandate" and the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995's (UMRA) implementation. It focuses on UMRA's requirement that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issue written cost estimate statements for federal mandates in legislation, its procedures for raising points of order in the House and Senate concerning unfunded federal mandates in legislation, and its requirement that federal agencies prepare written cost estimate… more
Date: August 29, 2013
Creator: Dilger, Robert Jay & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues

Description: This report examines debates regarding what constitutes an "unfunded federal mandate" and the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995's (UMRA) implementation. It focuses on UMRA's requirement that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issue written cost estimate statements for federal mandates in legislation, its procedures for raising points of order in the House and Senate concerning unfunded federal mandates in legislation, and its requirement that federal agencies prepare written cost estimate… more
Date: December 12, 2013
Creator: Dilger, Robert Jay & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Trade Promotion Authority (TPA): Frequently Asked Questions

Description: This report provides background information Trade Promotion Authority (TPA), and discusses U.S. trade negotiating objectives, procedures for congressional-executive notification and consultation, and expedited legislative procedures.
Date: April 21, 2014
Creator: Cooper, William H.; Fergusson, Ian F. & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Supreme Court Nominations: Senate Floor Procedure and Practice, 1789-2011

Description: This report examines the ways in which the Senate has handled the 160 Supreme Court nominations the President has sent to the Senate. As the purpose of this report is to examine the forms taken by Senate proceedings on these 160 nominations, it treats each nomination as a separate case. It is not couched in terms of the smaller number of different individuals nominated or the ultimate outcome the confirmation process may have had for each individual.
Date: March 11, 2011
Creator: Beth, Richard S. & Palmer, Betsy
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues

Description: This report examines debates regarding what constitutes an "unfunded federal mandate" and the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995's (UMRA) implementation, requirements, and costs. It also assesses UMRA's impact on federal mandates and arguments concerning UMRA's future.
Date: June 12, 2014
Creator: Dilger, Robert Jay & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Lame Duck Sessions of Congress, 1935-2010 (74th-111th Congresses)

Description: This report discusses how lame duck sessions occur, and the background of the lame duck sessions between 1940 and 2010. A “lame duck” session of Congress occurs whenever one Congress meets after its successor is elected, but before the term of the current Congress ends.
Date: August 30, 2011
Creator: Beth, Richard S. & Tollestrup, Jessica
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Obtaining a Record Vote on the House Floor

Description: The House of Representatives uses two kinds of votes in which the names and positions of individual Members are recorded: (1) the recorded vote, used chiefly in Committee of the Whole, though also in order in the House, and (2) the yea and nay vote, in order only in the House proper. Both kinds together are referred to as record votes or, more informally, as “roll call votes,” and both are normally taken by electronic device. This report illustrates forms commonly used for obtaining each kind o… more
Date: December 8, 2006
Creator: Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Bills, Resolutions, Nominations, and Treaties: Origins, Deadlines, Requirements, and Uses

Description: In each chamber of Congress, four forms of legislative measure be introduced and acted on: bills, joint resolutions, concurrent resolutions, and resolutions of one house. This report contains information on and a table of all forms of business on which Congress acts .
Date: August 4, 2003
Creator: Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues

Description: This report examines debates over what constitutes an unfunded federal mandate and the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act's (UMRA's) implementation. It also discusses particular mandates and procedures associated with UMRA, and assesses UMRA's impact on federal mandates and arguments concerning UMRA's future, focusing on UMRA's definitions, exclusions, and exceptions that currently exempt many federal actions with potentially significant financial impacts on nonfederal entities.
Date: October 27, 2016
Creator: Dilger, Robert J. & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Evolution of the Meaning of "Waters of the United States" in the Clean Water Act

Description: This report outlines how the Bipartisan Congressional Trade Priorities and Accountability Act of 2015 (BCTPAA) regulates the eligibility of covered trade agreements for expedited consideration, describes the operation of the statutory expedited procedures for considering implementing bills, and discusses how Congress may use the procedural mechanisms established by the act, as well as other pertinent rules of each chamber, to retain a substantial measure of control over legislation to implement… more
Date: August 12, 2016
Creator: Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act: History, Impact, and Issues

Description: This report examines debates over what constitutes an unfunded federal mandate and the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act's (UMRA's) implementation. It also discusses particular mandates and procedures associated with UMRA, and assesses UMRA's impact on federal mandates and arguments concerning UMRA's future, focusing on UMRA's definitions, exclusions, and exceptions that currently exempt many federal actions with potentially significant financial impacts on nonfederal entities.
Date: September 8, 2016
Creator: Dilger, Robert J. & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Procedures for Congressional Action in Relation to a Nuclear Agreement with Iran: In Brief

Description: This report provides, in brief, analysis of the congressional procedural provisions laid out in the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 (P.L. 114-17). The act establishes a period for Congress to review any comprehensive agreement, during which certain presidential actions to provide relief from sanctions on Iran are barred.
Date: September 11, 2015
Creator: Heitshusen, Valerie & Beth, Richard S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Speakers of the House: Elections

Description: This report provides data on elections of the Speaker in each Congress since 1913, when the House first reached its present size of 435 Members. During that period (63rd through 114th Congresses), a Speaker was elected five times with the votes of less than a majority of the full membership.
Date: January 7, 2015
Creator: Beth, Richard S. & Heitshusen, Valerie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Sessions, Adjournments, and Recesses of Congress

Description: This report first describes how pertinent rules and practices regulate the daily sessions of Congress and their adjournments and recesses, including discussion of the "legislative day." It then develops a corresponding discussion for the annual sessions of Congress, which addresses, among other things, the use of "pro forma sessions." The report clarifies certain situations in which terms may simultaneously apply in different ways in relation to the daily session and to the annual session. Fina… more
Date: February 27, 2013
Creator: Beth, Richard S. & Tollestrup, Jessica
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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