This report discusses the Deepwater program, which is a 20- to 25-year acquisition effort to replace or modernize 93 aging Coast Guard ships and 207 aging Coast Guard aircraft. The program’s estimated total acquisition cost is $19 billion to $24 billion. On March 25, 2005 the Coast Guard submitted to Congress a revised implementation plan for the program that alters the planned capabilities and numbers of Deepwater assets and the schedule for acquiring or modernizing them. Some Members of Congress have criticized the revised implementation plan. The Coast Guard’s proposed FY2006 budget requests $966 million for the program.

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This report provides a summary of U.S. penal policy at the federal level. The report then discusses legislation that created the current federal sentencing structure, the different types of sentencing guidelines, and analyses of departures from the guidelines under the federal system and of possible policy options the 109th Congress may wish to consider if it chooses to address this issue.

This report includes a detailed recitation of factual information and of the Guideline and statutory provisions which the officer believes relevant and applicable.

This report provides a table of casualties that was compiled by the Department of Defense (DOD), as tallied from DOD press releases. Table 1 provides statistics on fatalities during Operation Iraqi Freedom, which began on March 19, 2003, and is ongoing, as well as on the number of fatalities since May 1, 2003.

This report indicate possible attempts to curtail the use of filibusters in the Senate, perhaps in the 109th Congress. Some have suggested that proponents of this idea may invoke something called the "nuclear" or "constitutional" option in Senate floor procedure to try to end a filibuster without the need for 60 votes .

The Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE) supports projects to encourage innovative reform and expand education opportunities to underrepresented groups. This report describes the historical context leading to the establishment of the Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education, provisions governing the program, and the variety of projects funded by FIPSE.

United States and Canada's hog industry, noting how live Canadian hogs do not affect the U.S hog business.

This report provides a general overview of hazmat transportation security and focuses on the federal role. The report first summarizes an array of key governmental activities that might be encompassed in a layered system of security enhancements. The report then summarizes some concerns associated with the federal effort in promoting hazmat transportation security, specifically commenting on the adequacy of some DHS and DOT efforts, as well as routing, pre-notification, and research concerns. Finally, the report presents ten options that might be considered to further strengthen hazmat transportation security.

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This report discusses how the 108th Congress considered, but ultimately did not reauthorize the federal adult education and literacy programs. Furthermore, the report covers what was passed specifically by the 108th Congress. The report largely examines the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA) and its funding.

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When business or investment property is exchanged for property of a “like kind,” (often referred to as a 1031 exchange) no gain or loss is recognized on the exchange, and therefore, no tax is paid at the time of the exchange on any appreciation in the value of the property . This report discusses the like-kind exclusion, which is sometimes combined with the exclusion of tax on the gain from the sale of a principal residence. In effect, this combination can allow taxpayers to avoid paying tax on the gain from the sale of their investment property.

This report provides an overview of aspects of ESEA Title I-A that were substantially amended by the NCLBA.

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This report summarizes recently proposed and enacted legislation to promote the use of EHRs and the development of the NHII. It begins with a brief discussion of some of the benefits of broadening the application of information technology (IT) in health care, as well as the significant financial, technical, and legal barriers to the adoption of health IT. The report concludes with a set of tables summarizinf health IT legislation in the 108th and 109th Congresses.

American agricultural employers have long utilized foreign workers on a temporary basis, regarding them as an important labor resource. At the same time, the relatively low wages and adverse working conditions of such workers have caused them to be viewed as a threat to domestic American workers. Some have argued that foreign guest workers compete unfairly with U.S. workers — both in terms of compensation that they are willing to accept and by making it somewhat more difficult for domestic workers to organize and to bargain with management. To mitigate any “adverse effect”for the domestic workforce, a system of wage floors was developed that applies, variously, both to alien and citizen workers: i.e., the adverse effect wage rate (AEWR). This report deals with one element of immigration (i.e., namely the H-2A workers). It introduces the adverse effect wage rate, it examines the concerns out of which it grew, and it explains at least some of the problems that have been encountered in giving it effect.

This report describes the broad framework of U.S. assistance programs and policies in the former Soviet Union and then focuses on the foreign operations FREEDOM Support Act (FSA) account which, encompassing all U.S. objectives in the region, has often been the means by which Congress has expressed its views and sought to influence policy.

This report provides background information and analysis of the U.S.-EU economic relationship.

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This report provides an overview of an omnibus energy legislation (H.R. 6), including revisions made and a history of the legislation.

This report provides an overview and context of the FY2005 supplemental appropriations for Iraq and Afghanistan, tsunami relief, and other activities.