The Lacey Act: Protecting the Environment by Restricting Trade (open access)

The Lacey Act: Protecting the Environment by Restricting Trade

This report looks at the history and applications of the Lacey Act. As it stands now the Act, via a 2008 amendment, allows the U.S. to enforce the laws of other countries as well. One currently proposed legislation would limit application of the law to specific wood products, while another would eliminate any reference to violations of foreign laws and end criminal prosecutions for violating the act.
Date: April 12, 2012
Creator: Alexander, Kristina
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Authorization, Operation, and Drawdown Policy (open access)

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Authorization, Operation, and Drawdown Policy

This report looks at the history, purpose, and current status of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Date: April 25, 2012
Creator: Andrews, Anthony & Pirog, Robert
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Authorization, Operation, and Drawdown Policy (open access)

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve: Authorization, Operation, and Drawdown Policy

This report looks at the history, purpose, and current status of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Date: April 2, 2012
Creator: Andrews, Anthony & Pirog, Robert
System: The UNT Digital Library
European Union Enlargement (open access)

European Union Enlargement

The European Union (EU) has long viewed the enlargement process as an extraordinary opportunity to promote political stability and economic prosperity in Europe. U.S. Administrations and many Members of Congress have long backed EU enlargement, believing that it serves U.S. interests by advancing democracy and economic prosperity throughout the European continent. Some U.S. officials are concerned that "enlargement fatigue" as well as the EU's ongoing financial crisis could hinder EU expansion. The status of EU enlargement and its implications for both the EU itself and U.S.-EU relations may be of interest to the second session of the 112th Congress.
Date: April 4, 2012
Creator: Archick, Kristin
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union: Questions and Answers (open access)

The European Union: Questions and Answers

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union (EU), an economic and political partnership between 27 sovereign member states. The report describes the formation of the EU, the three main institutions of the EU, and the EU's relationship with the United States.
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Archick, Kristin
System: The UNT Digital Library
Western Sahara (open access)

Western Sahara

This report discusses how Morocco and the independence-seeking Popular Front for the Liberation of Saqiat al Hamra and Rio de Oro (Polisario) have been vying for control of the Western Sahara, a former Spanish territory, since the 1970s. The report discusses recent settlement attempts, as well as how the Western Sahara issue has affected Algerian-Moroccan bilaterial relations, Moroccan relations with the African Union, and regional cooperation on economic and security issues. The report also discusses the United States' involvement in and stance on the issue.
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Arieff, Alexis
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Lord's Resistance Army: The U.S. Response (open access)

The Lord's Resistance Army: The U.S. Response

A history of the Lord's Resistance Army, which is led by Joseph Kony, and the U.S.A. policies regarding it.
Date: April 11, 2012
Creator: Arieff, Alexis & Ploch, Lauren
System: The UNT Digital Library
Trade Law: An Introduction to Selected International Agreements and U.S. Laws (open access)

Trade Law: An Introduction to Selected International Agreements and U.S. Laws

This report is an introductory overview of the legal framework governing trade-related measures. The agreements and laws selected for discussion are those most commonly implicated by U.S. trade interests, but there are U.S. trade laws and obligations beyond those reviewed in this report.
Date: April 3, 2012
Creator: Barbour, Emily C.
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. Energy: Overview and Key Statistics (open access)

U.S. Energy: Overview and Key Statistics

Energy supplies and prices are major economic factors in the United States, and energy markets are volatile and unpredictable. Thus, energy policy has been a recurring issue for Congress since the first major crisis in the 1970s. As an aid in policy making, this report presents a current and historical view of the supply and consumption of various forms of energy.
Date: April 11, 2012
Creator: Behrens, Carl E. & Glover, Carol
System: The UNT Digital Library
Subsidy Cost of Federal Credit: Cost to the Government or Fair Value Cost? (open access)

Subsidy Cost of Federal Credit: Cost to the Government or Fair Value Cost?

Since the mid-1980s, budget experts have debated whether the best method of measuring the subsidy cost of federal credit (direct loans and loan guarantees) is the cost to the government or the fair value cost. This report presents a chronology of this still unresolved debate, which dates from the mid-1980s.
Date: April 25, 2012
Creator: Bickley, James M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Reexamination of Agency Reporting Requirements: Annual Process Under the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 (GPRAMA) (open access)

Reexamination of Agency Reporting Requirements: Annual Process Under the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 (GPRAMA)

On January 4, 2011, the GPRA Modernization Act of 2010 (GPRAMA) became law. The acronym "GPRA" in the act's short title refers to the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA 1993), a law that GPRAMA substantially modified. Some of GPRAMA's provisions require agencies to produce plans and reports for a variety of audiences that focus on goal-setting and performance measurement. Other provisions, by contrast, establish an annual process to reexamine the usefulness of certain reporting requirements. The report concludes by looking potential issues for Congress in two categories.
Date: April 18, 2012
Creator: Brass, Clinton T.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Religion and the Workplace: Legal Analysis of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as It Applies to Religion and Religious Organizations (open access)

Religion and the Workplace: Legal Analysis of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as It Applies to Religion and Religious Organizations

This report reviews the scope of Title VII's prohibition on religious discrimination, its exemptions for religious organizations, and its requirements for accommodations. It also analyzes the exemptions available to religious organizations for the non-discrimination requirements. Finally, it addresses protections based on Title VII's religious exemption that have been included in the proposed Employment Non-Discrimination Act.
Date: April 3, 2012
Creator: Brougher, Cynthia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Ballast Water Management to Combat Invasive Species (open access)

Ballast Water Management to Combat Invasive Species

This report is on Ballast Water Management to Combat Invasive Species.
Date: April 10, 2012
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Effects of Radiation from Fukushima Dai-ichi on the U.S. Marine Environment (open access)

Effects of Radiation from Fukushima Dai-ichi on the U.S. Marine Environment

The massive Tohoku earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011, caused extensive damage in northeastern Japan, including damage to the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power installation, which resulted in the release of radiation. Concerns arose about the potential effects of this released radiation on the U.S. marine environment and resources.
Date: April 2, 2012
Creator: Buck, Eugene H. & Upton, Harold F.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Endangered Species Act (ESA) in the 112th Congress: Conflicting Values and Difficult Choices (open access)

The Endangered Species Act (ESA) in the 112th Congress: Conflicting Values and Difficult Choices

None
Date: April 4, 2012
Creator: Buck, Eugene H.; Corn, M. Lynne; Alexander, Kristina; Sheikh, Pervaze A. & Meltz, Robert
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": Issues for Congress (open access)

The Repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell": Issues for Congress

On December 22, 2010, President Obama signed into law legislation calling for the repeal of the existing law barring open homosexuality in the military by prescribing a series of steps that must take place before repeal occurs. One step was fulfilled on July 22, 2011, when the President signed the certification of the process ending the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which was repealed on September 20, 2011. This report considers issues that Congress may wish to consider as the repeal process proceeds.
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Burrelli, David F.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Women in Combat: Issues for Congress (open access)

Women in Combat: Issues for Congress

This report looks at the history of women in US military roles and combat since the 1990's. It also discusses critic's views of exclusionary policy as a civil rights issue.
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Burrelli, David F.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permits Program: Issues and Regulatory Developments (open access)

The Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permits Program: Issues and Regulatory Developments

This report contains the issues and regulatory developments in the army corps engineers' nationwide permits program.
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Water Infrastructure Financing: History of EPA Appropriations (open access)

Water Infrastructure Financing: History of EPA Appropriations

None
Date: April 5, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation (open access)

Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation

This report discusses water quality legislation. A number of Clean Water Act issues have been the subject of congressional oversight and legislation, including the environmental and economic impacts of Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts, federal promulgation of water quality standards in Florida, regulation of surface coal mining activities in Appalachia, and other CWA regulatory actions. Congressional interest in several of these issues has been reflected in debate over policy provisions of legislation providing FY2012 appropriations for EPA (P.L. 112-74).
Date: April 9, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Legislative Options for Financing Water Infrastructure (open access)

Legislative Options for Financing Water Infrastructure

This report addresses several options being considered by Congress to address the financing needs of local communities for wastewater and drinking water infrastructure projects and to decrease or close the gap between available funds and projected needs. Six options that are reflected in current or recent legislative proposals, including budgetary implications, are discussed.
Date: April 3, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia; Mallett, William J. & Maguire, Steven
System: The UNT Digital Library
An Overview of Tax Provisions Expiring in 2012 (open access)

An Overview of Tax Provisions Expiring in 2012

A number of tax provisions either expired in 2011 or are scheduled to expire at the end of this 2012. As Congress decides whether to extend these provisions, it may consider the estimated revenue losses associated with their extension as well as other factors when evaluating tax policy. In the 112th Congress, Members have yet to consider legislation that would extend all of the provisions discussed in this report, although legislation to extend certain provisions has been considered.
Date: April 17, 2012
Creator: Crandall-Hollick, Margot L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
FY2013 Defense Budget Request: Overview and Context (open access)

FY2013 Defense Budget Request: Overview and Context

This report analyzes President Obama's FY2013 defense budget request and the long-term deficit reduction issues relevant to congressional discussion of that request. Congressional action on the FY2013 defense budget will be analyzed in a separate report.
Date: April 20, 2012
Creator: Daggett, Stephen & Towell, Pat
System: The UNT Digital Library
Medicare Primer (open access)

Medicare Primer

This report provides an overview of Medicare, the nation's federal insurance program, which pays for covered health care services of qualified beneficiaries.
Date: April 24, 2012
Creator: Davis, Patricia A.; Binder, Cliff; Hahn, Jim; Morgan, Paulette C.; Mulvey, Janemarie; Talaga, Scott R. et al.
System: The UNT Digital Library