The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): An Overview (open access)

The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): An Overview

This report discusses the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA), as amended, is intended to help employees balance work and family life. The act provides eligible employees with two types of job-protected leave: regular leave and military family leave. In turn, military family leave consists of qualifying exigency leave and military caregiver leave.
Date: August 5, 2013
Creator: Mayer, Gerald
System: The UNT Digital Library
Inland Waterways: Recent Proposals and Issues for Congress (open access)

Inland Waterways: Recent Proposals and Issues for Congress

This report discusses the major issues for Congress which include whether to increase inland waterway funding in the future (and by what amount); the appropriate type of revenue stream (e.g., fuel taxes or lockage fees) for the user-required portion of these projects; division of the cost-share responsibilities between the federal government and commercial users (e.g., 50/50 or some other division); and whether to initiate process-based recommendations that some argue will improve the delivery and efficiency of Corps-led IWTF projects.
Date: August 5, 2013
Creator: Stern, Charles V.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Membership of the 113th Congress: A Profile (open access)

Membership of the 113th Congress: A Profile

This report presents a profile of the membership of the 113th Congress (2013-2014). Statistical information is included on selected characteristics of Members, including data on party affiliation, average age, occupation, education, length of congressional service, religious affiliation, gender, ethnicity, foreign births, and military service.
Date: August 5, 2013
Creator: Manning, Jennifer E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations (open access)

European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations

This report provides a brief overview of the EU's accession process and Turkey's path to EU membership. The U.S. Congress has had a long-standing interest in Turkey as a NATO ally and partner in regional foreign policy and energy security issues. Although some Members of Congress have expressed continued support for Turkey's membership in the EU, congressional interest and enthusiasm seems to have diminished recently.
Date: August 5, 2013
Creator: Morelli, Vincent L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Radio and Television Broadcasting to Cuba: Background and Current Issues (open access)

Radio and Television Broadcasting to Cuba: Background and Current Issues

This report provides a legislative history and funding levels for Cuba Broadcasting. It discusses specific concerns some lawmakers have had with Radio and TV Marti over the years, and presents the Panel's recommendations and the USIA Director's response and determinations, as required by the FYI994 appropriations act.
Date: August 5, 1994
Creator: Epstein, Susan B. & Sullivan, Mark P.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Offshore Oil and Gas Development: Legal Framework (open access)

Offshore Oil and Gas Development: Legal Framework

This report explains the nature of U.S. authority over offshore areas pursuant to international and domestic law. It also describes the laws, at both the state and federal levels, governing the development of offshore oil and gas and the litigation that has flowed from development under these legal regimes. Also included is an outline of the changes to the authorities regulating offshore development wrought by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and subsequent legislation and executive action as well as a discussion of recent executive action and legislative proposals to encourage further offshore exploration and production.
Date: August 5, 2008
Creator: Vann, Adam
System: The UNT Digital Library
Coast Guard Polar Icebreaker Modernization: Background, Issues, and Options for Congress (open access)

Coast Guard Polar Icebreaker Modernization: Background, Issues, and Options for Congress

This report provides background information and issues for Congress on the modernization of the Coast Guard's polar icebreaker fleet, which performs a variety of missions supporting U.S. interests in polar regions.
Date: August 5, 2011
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
System: The UNT Digital Library
Foreign Outsourcing: Economic Implications and Policy Responses (open access)

Foreign Outsourcing: Economic Implications and Policy Responses

None
Date: August 5, 2004
Creator: Elwell, Craig K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act (open access)

Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act

None
Date: August 5, 1997
Creator: Bea, Keith
System: The UNT Digital Library
Administrative Law Judges: An Overview (open access)

Administrative Law Judges: An Overview

This report summarizes what an administrative law judge (ALJ) is, what they do, and their responsibilities as one. Moreover, the report explains that ALJ's have both a rulemaking and judicial role in work done by executive agencies. Finally, the report emphasizes the differences between ALJs and non-ALJs that also conduct judicial activities in federal agencies.
Date: August 5, 2008
Creator: Burrows, Vanessa K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Legal Services Corporation: Background and Funding (open access)

Legal Services Corporation: Background and Funding

None
Date: August 5, 2009
Creator: unknown
System: The UNT Digital Library
Fish and Wildlife Service: FY2015 Appropriations and Policy (open access)

Fish and Wildlife Service: FY2015 Appropriations and Policy

This report contains the appropriations and policy during the Fiscal Year 2015 on fish and wildlife service.
Date: August 5, 2014
Creator: Corn, M. Lynne
System: The UNT Digital Library
Senate Policy Committees (open access)

Senate Policy Committees

The two policy committees are different in structure and operation, a contrast that appears to be rooted in different leadership styles within the two party organizations. Republican leadership has traditionally been shared among Senators other than the party floor leader; customarily, the Democratic leadership positions of party floor leader, chair of the Democratic Policy Committee, and chair of the Democratic Conference have been posts held by the same person. This report covers the history of the two Senate policy committees and explains their structure, operation, and functions.
Date: August 5, 2003
Creator: Campbell, Colton C.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Social Security: The Trust Funds (open access)

Social Security: The Trust Funds

None
Date: August 5, 2015
Creator: unknown
System: The UNT Digital Library
Congressional Salaries and Allowances (open access)

Congressional Salaries and Allowances

This report provides basic information on congressional salaries and allowances. First, the report briefly summarizes the current salary of Members of Congress, limits on their outside earned income and honoraria, and applicable health insurance and retirement benefits. Second, it provides information on allowances available to Representatives and Senators to support them in their official and representational duties as Members. Third, it provides the salaries and allowances available to the Speaker of the House and the Vice President, as President of the Senate, and lists the salaries of congressional officers and officials and committee staff.
Date: August 5, 2004
Creator: Dwyer, Paul E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Social Security Notch Issue: A Summary (open access)

Social Security Notch Issue: A Summary

This report discusses recent attempts at legislative action regarding changes to the computation of benefits under Social Security Amendments of 1977 (P.L. 95-216), which directly affected retirees born in the 5- to 15-year period after 1916. These persons fall in the "notch" between previous Social Security legislation and those affected by the amendments.
Date: August 5, 2003
Creator: Kollmann, Geoffrey
System: The UNT Digital Library
Al Qaeda's Syria Affiliate Declares Independence (open access)

Al Qaeda's Syria Affiliate Declares Independence

This report briefly discusses the implications of a recent announcement from Al Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, Jabhat al Nusra, stating that it was reconstituting itself as an independent group.
Date: August 5, 2016
Creator: Humud, Carla E. & Blanchard, Christopher M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Trafficking in Persons and U.S. Foreign Policy Responses in the 114th Congress (open access)

Trafficking in Persons and U.S. Foreign Policy Responses in the 114th Congress

This report provides an overview of recent global trends and U.S. foreign policy responses to address human trafficking. The report focuses in particular on efforts conducted by the State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (J/TIP) and the President's Interagency Task Force (PITF) on human trafficking, as well as discussion of the 2016 TIP Report.
Date: August 5, 2016
Creator: Rosen, Liana W.
System: The UNT Digital Library
How Much Slack Remains in the Labor Market? (open access)

How Much Slack Remains in the Labor Market?

The amount of "slack" in the labor market--jobless or underemployed workers--has consequences for the appropriate stance of monetary policy, the future path of the budget deficit, and counter-cyclical spending on programs such as unemployment insurance. This report briefly examines this concept in the context of the current economy.
Date: August 5, 2016
Creator: Labonte, Marc & Stupak, Jeffrey M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Emergency Communications Legislation: Implications for the 110th Congress (open access)

Emergency Communications Legislation: Implications for the 110th Congress

This report discusses the legislation addressing communications among first responders focused first on interoperability -- the capability of different systems to connect -- with provisions in the Homeland Security Act (P.L. 107-296).
Date: August 5, 2008
Creator: Moore, Linda K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The U.S. Secret Service: An Examination and Analysis of Its Evolving Missions (open access)

The U.S. Secret Service: An Examination and Analysis of Its Evolving Missions

This report frames potential policy questions concerning the U.S. Secret Service's (USSS's) mission and organization through an examination of the USSS history and its statutory authorities, mission, and present activities within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Date: August 5, 2009
Creator: Reese, Shawn
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW): Congressional Issues (open access)

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW): Congressional Issues

This report provides an overview of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and describes its background, objectives, and structure, including the role of the Convention's monitoring body, the CEDAW Committee. It examines U.S. policy and issues in the U.S. ratification debate, including the Convention's possible impact on U.S. sovereignty, its effectiveness in combating discrimination, and its role as an instrument of U.S. foreign policy.
Date: August 5, 2008
Creator: Blanchfield, Luisa
System: The UNT Digital Library
China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities--Background and Issues for Congress (open access)

China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities--Background and Issues for Congress

This report focuses on the potential implications of China's naval modernization for future required U.S. Navy capabilities. The report particularly discusses how potential United States responses to China's military modernization effort -- including its naval modernization effort -- have emerged as a key issue in U.S. defense planning.
Date: August 5, 2014
Creator: O'Rourke, Ronald
System: The UNT Digital Library
Juvenile Victims of Domestic Sex Trafficking: Juvenile Justice Issues (open access)

Juvenile Victims of Domestic Sex Trafficking: Juvenile Justice Issues

This report examines juvenile victims of sex trafficking and their intersection with states' juvenile justice systems throughout the United States. It outlines the federal conceptualization of minors involved in commercial sexual activities and discusses factors that may contribute to the treatment of sex trafficking victims as perpetrators. It also outlines various criminal justice policy options and approaches to victim-centered policing.
Date: August 5, 2014
Creator: Finklea, Kristin M.
System: The UNT Digital Library