A report for the Texas Stonewall Democratic Caucus from their account with ActBlue. The report lists contribution summary of committee's contributions and fundraisers.

In 2006, we proposed to NASA a detailed concept study of ADEPT (the Advanced Dark Energy Physics Telescope), a potential space mission to reliably measure the time-evolution of dark energy by conducting the largest effective volume survey of the universe ever done. A peer-review panel of scientific, management, and technical experts reported back the highest possible 'excellent' rating for ADEPT. We have since made substantial advances in the scientific and technical maturity of the mission design. With this Department of Energy (DOE) award we were granted supplemental funding to support specific extended research items that were not included in the NASA proposal, many of which were intended to broadly advance future dark energy research, as laid out by the Dark Energy Task Force (DETF). The proposed work had three targets: (1) the adaptation of large-format infrared arrays to a 2 micron cut-off; (2) analytical research to improve the understanding of the dark energy figure-of- merit; and (3) extended studies of baryon acoustic oscillation systematic uncertainties. Since the actual award was only for {approx}10% of the proposed amount item (1) was dropped and item (2) work was severely restricted, consistent with the referee reviews of the proposal, although there was considerable …

This report provides the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the public with information on the level of radioactive and non-radioactive pollutants (if any) that are added to the environment as a result of Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory's (PPPL) operations. The results of the 2004 environmental surveillance and monitoring program for PPPL's are presented and discussed. The report also summarizes environmental initiatives, assessments, and programs that were undertaken in 2004.

This report looks at the regulations surrounding the polar bear, which has been protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) since 1972. The report discusses the protections, prohibitions, and special rules for polar bears as well as exceptions to the rules, habitat issues, recovery plans, and other issues regarding polar bear protections.

This report provides an overview of Egyptian politics and current issues in U.S.-Egyptian relations. It briefly provides a political history of modern Egypt, an overview of its political institutions, and a discussion of the prospects for democratization in Egypt.

This report describes the installation, testing and acceptance of the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant procured laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (LA-ICP-AES) system for remotely analyzing high-level waste samples in a hot cell environment. The 2005-003; ATS MP 1027, Management Plan for Waste Treatment Plant Project Work Performed by Analytical Technical Services. The APD group at the 222-S laboratory demonstrated acceptable turnaround time (TAT) and provide sufficient data to assess sensitivity, accuracy, and precision of the LA-ICP-AES method.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Prescription drug abuse is a growing public health problem. In particular, methadone-associated overdose deaths--those in which methadone may have caused or contributed to the death--have risen sharply. Before the late 1990s, methadone was used mainly to treat opioid addiction but has since been increasingly prescribed to manage pain. Taken too often, in too high a dose, or with other drugs or alcohol, methadone can cause serious side effects and death. Methadone-associated overdose deaths can occur under several different scenarios, including improper dosing levels by practitioners, misuse by patients who may combine methadone with other drugs, or abuse--using the drug for nontherapeutic purposes. This report examines the regulation of methadone, factors that have contributed to the increase in methadone-associated overdose deaths, and steps taken to prevent methadone-associated overdose deaths. GAO reviewed documents, laws and regulations, data, and research from relevant state and federal agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). GAO also interviewed federal officials, officials in five selected states, officials from professional associations and advocacy groups, and experts in pain management, addiction treatment, and forensic sciences."

None

This report discusses the current political and economic conditions in the country of Panama, which has made notable political and economic progress since the 1989 U.S. military intervention that ousted the regime of General Manuel Noriega from power. The United States has close relations with Panama, stemming in large part from the extensive linkages developed when the canal was under U.S. control. This report describes the U.S.-Panama relationship at length, including trade relations.

None

Silicon carbide (SiC) materials are prime candidates for high temperature heat exchangers for next generation nuclear reactors due to their refractory nature and high thermal conductivity at elevated temperatures. This research has focused on demonstrating the potential of liquid silicon infiltration (LSI) for making SiC to achieve this goal. The major advantage of this method over other ceramic processing techniques is the enhanced capability of making high dense, high purity SiC materials in complex net shapes. For successful formation of net shape SiC using LSI techniques, the carbon preform reactivity and pore structure must be controlled to allow the complete infiltration of the porous carbon structure which allows complete conversion of the carbon to SiC. We have established a procedure for achieving desirable carbon properties by using carbon precursors consisting of two readily available high purity organic materials, crystalline cellulose and phenolic resin. Phenolic resin yields a glassy carbon with low chemical reactivity and porosity while the cellulose carbon is highly reactive and porous. By adjusting the ratio of these two materials in the precursor mixtures, the properties of the carbons produced can be controlled. We have identified the most favorable carbon precursor composition to be a cellulose resin mass …

None

Various theories and numerical simulations support the conjecture that the ubiquitous problem of anomalous electron transport in tokamaks may arise from a short-scale turbulence driven by the electron temperature gradient. To check whether this turbulence is present in plasmas of the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), measurements of turbulent fluctuations were performed with coherent scattering of electromagnetic waves. Results from plasmas heated by high harmonic fast waves (HHFW) show the existence of density fluctuations in the range of wave numbers k⊥ρe=0.1-0.4, corresponding to a turbulence scale length of the order of the collisionless skin depth. Experimental observations and agreement with numerical results from the linear gyro-kinetic GS2 code indicate that the observed turbulence is driven by the electron temperature gradient. These turbulent fluctuations were not observed at the location of an internal transport barrier driven by a negative magnetic shear.

This report provides brief summaries and background information for four types of tax-advantaged accounts for healthcare; it compares them with respect to eligibility, contribution limits, use of funds, and other characteristics for tax year 2009. It also includes a discussion of various healthcare-related issues including equity and options for reform.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has been unable to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in antidumping (AD) and countervailing (CV) duties. The Department of Commerce imposes these duties to remedy injurious unfair foreign trade practices (unfairly low prices or subsidies). The noncollection of AD/CV duties means that the U.S. government has not fully remedied the unfair trade practices and bears a substantial loss of revenue. GAO was asked to examine the (1) nature and extent of uncollected AD/CV duties, (2) factors contributing to uncollected AD/CV duties and steps taken to address these factors, and (3) options for aiding duty collections. To analyze these issues, GAO reviewed CBP data for fiscal years 2001 through 2007, agency documents and reports, and interviewed government officials and private sector representatives"

The Fortran 90 RIAPMTQ/IMPACT code package is a pair of linked beam-dynamics simulation codes that have been developed for end-to-end computer simulations of multiple-charge-state heavy-ion linacs for future exotic-beam facilities. These codes have multiple charge-state capability, and include space-charge forces. The simulations can extend from the low-energy beam-transport line after an ECR ion source to the end of the linac. The work has been performed by a collaboration including LANL, LBNL, ANL, and MSU. The code RIAPMTQ simulates the linac front-end beam dynamics including the LEBT, RFQ, and MEBT. The code IMPACT simulates the beam dynamics of the main superconducting linac. The codes have been benchmarked for rms beam properties against previously existing codes at ANL and MSU. The codes allow high-statistics runs on parallel supercomputing platforms, particularly at NERSC at LBNL, for studies of beam losses. The codes also run on desktop PC computers for low-statistics work. The code package is described in more detail in a recent publication [1] in the Proceedings of PAC07 (2007 US Particle Accelerator Conference). In this report we describe the main activities for the FY07 beam-loss studies project using this code package.

None

Over the past several decades, Congress, by statute, has established a wide array of commissions, boards, and advisory bodies to provide it with assistance in meeting various legislative, investigative, and administrative responsibilities. This report contains a compilation of commissions and boards that demonstrates the range of alternative membership appointment structures.

None

This report discusses the Davis-Bacon Act (DBA), which established a prevailing wage requirement for persons working under government contracts, and the Clean Water Act (CWA), which includes a related requirement for the construction of wastewater treatment plants. In particular, it considers the impact on state revolving loan funds (SRF), in which states contribute part of the needed funds for projects and would need to account for the prevailing wage requirement.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In 2007, the Department of Defense (DOD) paid contractors $158.3 billion for a range of services, including contract specialists. To better understand the use of contractors in this role, GAO initiated a case study, under the authority of the Comptroller General, at the Army Contracting Agency's (ACA) Contracting Center of Excellence (CCE). GAO determined (1) the extent to which and why CCE relies on contractor contract specialists, (2) how risks of contractor use are mitigated, (3) how the cost of the contractors compares to that for CCE's government employees, and (4) whether the contract vehicles were appropriate. GAO reviewed a random sample of contract files to understand the contractors' duties and responsibilities, compared compensation costs, and reviewed documents from the General Services Administration (GSA), under whose contracts CCE ordered the contract specialists."

This report traces the legislative history of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA;P.L. 107-16) and its extensions, shows their time line, and provides general overview of their implications and revenue effects. The report focuses on the measures that extend or curtail the key tax relief provisions of EGTRRA and the follow-up legislation, rather than modify the respective parts of the tax code in some new way.

This report is written from the perspective of labor policy and details the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR), related to farm labor, under which a guest worker must be paid state or federal minimum wage.

Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI) located in Albuquerque New Mexico is a community college that serves American Indians and Alaska Natives. SIPI’s student body represents over 100 Native American Tribes. SIPI completed a renewable energy feasibility study program and established renewable energy hardware on the SIPI campus, which supplements and creates an educational resource to teach renewable energy courses. The SIPI campus is located, and has as student origins, areas, in which power is an issue in remote reservations. The following hardware was installed and integrated into the campus facilities: small wind turbine, large photovoltaic array that is grid-connected, two photovoltaic arrays, one thin film type, and one polycrystalline type, one dual-axis active tracker and one passive tracker, a hot air system for heating a small building, a portable hybrid photovoltaic system for remote power, and a hot water system to preheat water used in the SIPI Child Care facility. Educational curriculum has been developed for two renewable energy courses one being the study of energy production and use, and especially the roles renewable energy forms like solar, wind, geothermal, hydro, and biomass plays, and the second course being a more advanced in-depth study of renewable energy system design, maintenance, …