A report by the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) that focuses on high-technology development initiatives in several regions of the United States.

A report on the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act, passed in 1975, is the primary Federal law governing this transportation. Largely unchanged in the past dozen years, the Act will be scrutinized carefully by Congress in the near future as it comes due for reauthorization.

An assessment by the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) that analyzes "the potential for conserving energy in homes in terms of energy and costs" and "reviews existing and promising technologies, and a broad set of issues affecting why these technologies are or are not used, how their level of use and effectiveness can be improved, and related Federal programs and policies" (p. iii).

OTA prepared this report with the assistance of a panel of advisors and reviewers selected for their expertise and diverse points of view on the issues covered by the assessment. These authorities were drawn from academia, industry, and professional societies, as well as Federal, State, and local agencies. They included members of the scientific, law enforcement, forensic, and legal communities. OTA gratefully acknowledges the contribution of each of these individuals; as with all OTA reports, responsibility for the content is OTA’s alone.