The primary focus of this issue brief is legislative action with respect to abortion. However, discussion of those legislative proposals necessarily involves a brief discussion of the leading U.S. Supreme Court decisions concerning a woman’s right to choose whether to terminate her pregnancy. For a more detailed discussion of the relevant case law, see CRS Report 95-724, Abortion Law Development: A Brief Overview.

This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year.

This report addresses the controversies of the 108th in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

This report contains a table that lists the number of retired Members of Congress and the average amount of congressional pension they receive in retirement.

Enhanced Video Surveillance (EVS) with Speckle Imaging is a high-resolution imaging system that substantially improves resolution and contrast in images acquired over long distances. This technology will increase image resolution up to an order of magnitude or greater for video surveillance systems. The system's hardware components are all commercially available and consist of a telescope or large-aperture lens assembly, a high-performance digital camera, and a personal computer. The system's software, developed at LLNL, extends standard speckle-image-processing methods (used in the astronomical community) to solve the atmospheric blurring problem associated with imaging over medium to long distances (hundreds of meters to tens of kilometers) through horizontal or slant-path turbulence. This novel imaging technology will not only enhance national security but also will benefit law enforcement, security contractors, and any private or public entity that uses video surveillance to protect their assets.

This report reviews recent developments in harbor maintenance legislation and the current status of harbor maintenance funding. The report also describes alternative funding proposals that have been considered. The last examines the impact these and other funding alternatives may have on the geography of U.S. maritime commerce.

The main objective of this work is to obtain a simplified asymptotic representation of the reflection of seismic signal from a fluid-saturated porous medium in the low-frequency domain. In the first part, we derive the equations of low-frequency harmonic waves in a fluid-saturated elastic porous medium from the basic concepts of filtration theory. We demonstrate that the obtained equations can be related to the poroelasticity model of Frenkel-Gassmann-Biot, and to pressure diffusion model routinely used in well test analysis as well. We thus try to put the poroelastic and filtration theories on the same ground. We study the reflection of a low-frequency signal from a plane interface between elastic and elastic fluid-saturated porous media. We obtain an asymptotic scaling of the frequency-dependent component of the reflection coefficient with respect to a dimensionless parameter depending on the frequency of the signal and the reservoir fluid mobility. We also investigate the impact of the relaxation time and tortuosity on this scaling.

Specific Aims--The goal of this project was to gain an understanding of how actin filament organization and dynamics are controlled in flowering plants. Specifically, we proposed to identify unique proteins with novel functions by investigating biochemical strategies for the isolation and characterization of actin-binding proteins (ABPs). In particular, our hunt was designed to identify capping proteins and nucleation factors. The specific aims included: (1) to use F-actin affinity chromatography (FAAC) as a general strategy to isolate pollen ABPs (2) to produce polyclonal antisera and perform subcellular localization in pollen tubes (3) to isolate cDNA clones for the most promising ABPs (4) to further purify and characterize ABP interactions with actin in vitro. Summary of Progress By employing affinity chromatography on F-actin or DNase I columns, we have identified at least two novel ABPs from pollen, PrABP80 (gelsolin-like) and ZmABP30, We have also cloned and expressed recombinant protein, as well as generated polyclonal antisera, for 6 interesting ABPs from Arabidopsis (fimbrin AtFIM1, capping protein a/b (AtCP), adenylyl cyclase-associated protein (AtCAP), AtCapG & AtVLN1). We performed quantitative analyses of the biochemical properties for two of these previously uncharacterized ABPs (fimbrin and capping protein). Our studies provide the first evidence for fimbrin activity …

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "Medicare pays for assistant-atsurgery services under both the hospital inpatient prospective payment system and the physician fee schedule. Payments under the physician fee schedule are limited to a few health professions. In 2001, Congress directed GAO to report on the potential impact on the Medicare program of allowing physician fee schedule payments to Certified Registered Nurse First Assistants for assistant-at-surgery services. This report examines: (1) who serves as an assistant-atsurgery, (2) whether health professionals who perform the role must meet a uniform set of professional requirements, and (3) whether Medicare's payment policies for assistants-at-surgery are consistent with the goals of the program and, if not, whether there are alternatives that would help attain those goals. GAO analyzed information provided by physician and other health professional associations and Medicare payment data."

This report presents a review of the activities performed by the five teams involved in the MUSE-4 experimental program. More details are provided on the contribution by ANL during the year 9/02 to 9/03. The ANL activity consisted both in direct participation in the experimental measurements and in the physics analysis of the experimental data, mainly for the reactivity level, adjoint flux and fission rate distributions and the analysis of dynamic measurements for reactivity determination techniques in subcritical systems. The results provided to complete the Benchmark organized by the OECD and the CEA on the experiment MUSE-4 are also presented. Deterministic calculations have been performed via the ERANOS code system in connection with JEF2.2, ENDF/B-V and ENDF/B-VI data files.

Composite CeTZP/A1{sub 2}O{sub 3} (CeZTA) foams were developed and tested to determine their suitability as particulate filters in hot gaseous conditions generated by coal combustion in electric power plants. Exposure to these extreme corrosive conditions did not cause significant degradation in strength. Superior properties of these foams suggests they could be used for a variety of applications in environment, energy and chemical fields.

This report discusses the FY2004 appropriations provisions that condition federal funding for Everglades restoration on compliance with water quality standards, provides a side-by-side analysis of pending appropriations legislation, and provides background and a timeline of efforts to address Everglades phosphorus pollution (from Summary).

This report deals with the validation of an ADS dynamic behavior through the TRADE program. We first describe the motivations behind the TRADE project. This includes the types of ADS experiments to be performed and their necessity, beam trips issues, representativity of the experiment, and steps to be taken in the validation procedure. Then we perform the characterization of the TRADE core using deterministic methods. The general core description is given. A number of results related to the core criticality and modeling with different geometries are presented. Finally we report the experimental results of the recent critical measurements including the control rod calibration, determination of the critical configurations and fluxes in the core.

A play portfolio is being constructed for the Permian Basin in west Texas and southeast New Mexico, the largest onshore petroleum-producing basin in the United States. Approximately 1,300 reservoirs in the Permian Basin have been identified as having cumulative production greater than 1 MMbbl (1.59 x 10{sup 5} m{sup 3}) of oil through 2000. Of these significant-sized reservoirs, approximately 1,000 are in Texas and 300 in New Mexico. There are 32 geologic plays that have been defined for Permian Basin oil reservoirs, and each of the 1,300 major reservoirs was assigned to a play. The reservoirs were mapped and compiled in a Geographic Information System (GIS) by play. The final reservoir shapefile for each play contains the geographic location of each reservoir. Associated reservoir information within the linked data tables includes RRC reservoir number and district (Texas only), official field and reservoir name, year reservoir was discovered, depth to top of the reservoir, production in 2000, and cumulative production through 2000. Some tables also list subplays. Play boundaries were drawn for each play; the boundaries include areas where fields in that play occur but are smaller than 1 MMbbl (1.59 x 10{sup 5} m{sup 3}) of cumulative production. Oil production …

Few people add siding or change their windows just to reduce their energy bills. But whatever your reasons for retrofitting your home, this will be an important opportunity to improve your home's energy efficiency. Not only will this reduce your utility bills, it will also improve your comfort level and improve our environment. Retrofitting your house is a big deal, and you shouldn't underestimate the effort that will be required to plan the job properly. The energy conservation rewards can be great, but there are also pitfalls that you'll want to avoid. That's what this Best Practices Guide is all about. We can't cover all the issues in these few pages, but we'll tell you some things you need to know if you're changing your siding or windows, and tell you where to learn more about other changes you may want to make to your house. What exactly is a ''best practice''? To put this guide together, we've tested products, talked to contractors and manufacturers, and reviewed the results from a large number of house retrofits. Of course, ''best'' will vary according to the situation. That's why you must start with a careful examination of your house and its existing …

Financing for social security -- Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance -- and the Hospital Insurance part of Medicare is provided primarily by taxes levied on wages and net self-employment income. Financing for the Supplementary Medical Insurance portion of Medicare is provided by premiums from enrollees and payments from the government. This report describes these taxes and premiums.

None

This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year.

Gas scrubbers for air-pollution control of volatile organic compounds (VOC) cover a wide range of technologies. In this review, we have attempted to evaluate the single-pass scrubber destruction and removal efficiencies (DREs) for a range of gas-scrubber technologies. We have focused primarily on typical industrial DREs for the various technologies, typical problems, and any DRE-related experiential information available. The very limited literature citations found suggest significant differences between actual versus design performance in some technologies. The potentially significant role of maintenance in maintaining DREs was also investigated for those technologies. An in-depth portrayal of the entire gas scrubbing industry is elusive. Available literature sources suggest significant differences between actual versus design performance in some technologies. Lack of scrubber system maintenance can contribute to even larger variances. ''Typical'' industrial single-pass performance of commonly used VOC gas scrubbers generally ranged from {approx}80 to 99%. Imperfect solid and/or liquid particulates capture (possibly as low as 95% despite design for 99+% capture efficiency) can also lead to VOC releases. Changing the VOC composition in the gas stream without modifying scrubber equipment or operating conditions could also lead to significant deterioration in attainable destruction and removal efficiencies.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "The security of U.S. commercial aviation is a long-standing concern, and substantial efforts have been undertaken to strengthen it. One of these efforts is the development of a new Computer-Assisted Passenger Prescreening System (CAPPS II) to identify passengers requiring additional security attention. The development of CAPPS II has raised a number of issues, including whether individuals may be inappropriately targeted for additional screening, and whether data accessed by the system may compromise passengers' privacy. GAO was asked to determine (1) the development status and plans for CAPPS II; (2) the status of CAPPS II in addressing key developmental, operational, and public acceptance issues; and (3) other challenges that could impede the successful implementation of the system."

The Analytical Development Section (ADS) of the Savannah River Technology Center (SRTC) has been requested to perform beryllium (Be) analysis on digested Air Filter Paper and GHOSTWIPE (Trade Mark) samples by Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry (ICP-ES). One of the important figures of merit for this analysis is the detection limit (LOD), the smallest concentration of an element that can be detected with a defined certainty. To meet the site Industrial Hygiene (IH) requirements, an instrument LOD of 0.03 mg per Air Filter Paper (1 hr sample) and 0.2 mg per GHOSTWIPE (Trade Mark) must be demonstrated. Another important analytical parameter is the effect on the Be quantization from potential spectral interfering matrix elements. Any existing spectral overlaps could give false positives or increase the measured Be concentrations in these matrices. The purpose of this study was to document the Analytical Development Sections' s contained ICP-ES performance in these two areas. In addition, other Quality Control recommendations will be discussed.

A letter report issued by the General Accounting Office with an abstract that begins "As we face the challenges of the 21st century, the federal government must strive to build high-performing organizations. Nothing less than a fundamental transformation in the people, processes, technology, and environment used by federal agencies to address public goals will be necessary to address public needs. In high-performing organizations, management controls, processes, practices, and systems are adopted that are consistent with prevailing best practices and contribute to concrete organizational results. Ultimately, however, the federal government needs to change its culture to become more results-oriented, client- and customer-focused, and collaborative in nature. On November 6, 2003, GAO hosted a forum to discuss what it means for a federal agency to be high-performing in an environment where results and outcomes are increasingly accomplished through partnerships that cut across different levels of government and different sectors of the economy. The forum included discussions of the metrics, means, and mechanisms that a federal agency should use to optimize its influence and contribution to nationally important results and outcomes. The forum included representatives of the public, not-for-profit, and for-profit sectors as well as academia who are knowledgeable of what it takes …

This study was focused on meeting the following objectives concerning the process of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) biodegradation, with the goal of optimizing this process in situ: 1. Assess whether intrinsic bioattenuation of MTBE is feasible under aerobic conditions across several contaminated sites. 2. Determine the effect of co-contaminants, specifically water-soluble gasoline components (most notably benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes [BTEX]) on MTBE biodegradation. 3. Determine whether microbial and/or chemical factors contribute to different MTBE degradative activities. 4. Isolate and characterize MTBE-degrading microorganisms from sediments in which MTBE biodegradation was observed.

Extreme conditions of density and temperature of interest to DNT are similar to conditions of low-altitude atmospheres of neutron stars. Consequently, HED experimental capabilities being developed at LLNL (NIF, petawatt lasers) will open the door to laboratory studies of neutron star atmospheres. This capability will seed a new era in the study of extreme physics generated by strongly radiation dominated flows and laser-plasma interactions for the laboratory study of distant astrophysical phenomena. Indeed as has been noted by the recent Davidsen report on Frontiers of HEDPP (p. 85) ''Accretion disks and atmospheres of neutron stars likely fall in the radiation-dominated regimes, where the radiation pressure dominates the particle pressure. Unique dynamics can ensue in such a radiation dominated plasma, especially in the presence of turbulent flows and magnetic fields. With the next generation of HED facilities such as ZR, NIF, coupled with ultra-intense laser ''heater beams'', it may become possible to create radiation-dominated plasma conditions in the laboratory relevant to neutron star (and black hole) accretion dynamics''. With the recent advent of the Rossi XTE time-resolved x-ray satellite, we have entered a new era in our ability to probe the physics and dynamics of neutron stars and black holes on …