This report lists the dates of 1998 primary elections and, where applicable, runoff primary dates for the states and the District of Columbia.

This report lists 234 instances in which the United States has used its armed forces abroad in situations of conflict or potential conflict or for other than normal peacetime purposes. It brings up to date a 1989 list that was compiled in part from various older lists and is intended primarily to provide a rough sketch survey of past U.S. military ventures abroad. A detailed description and analysis are not undertaken here.

The United States and Japan are closely tied economically. Japan ranks second only to Canada as the largest U.S. export market. Japan is the leading market for American agricultural exports, such as corn and meat; for U.S. crude materials such as wood; and for U.S.-produced aircraft. Japan is also the second largest supplier of U.S. imports. These include cars, consumer electronics, telecommunications equipment, and computers. The United States ranks as Japan's number one export market and import supplier.

In the 105th Congress, legislation to reauthorize the Clean Water Act was not been introduced, and no major House or Senate committee activity occurred. EPA and states' water quality inventories have identified wet weather flows (including agricultural runoff, urban storm water, and sewer overflows) as the largest remaining threat to water quality. EPA's clean water programs are now focusing to a large extent on solving wet weather pollution problems. These issues may be addressed legislatively, as well. At issue is whether and how to detail wet weather programs in the Act versus allowing flexibility that recognizes the site-specific nature of intermittent wet weather pollution.

Section 401 of the Clean Water Act requires that an applicant for a federal license or permit provide a certification that any discharges from the facility will comply with the Act, including water quality standard requirements. Disputes have arisen over the states' exercise of authority under Section 401. Until recently, much of the debate over the Section 401 certification issue has been between states and hydropower interests. A 1994 Supreme Court decision which upheld the states' authority in this area dismayed development and hydroelectric power interest groups. The dispute between states and industry groups was a legislative issue in the 104th Congress through an amendment to a House-passed Clean Water Act re-authorization bill; the Senate did not act on that bill.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, or 99Superftind"), when it was enacted in 1980, gave the federal government the lead role in cleaning up the nation's worst hazardous waste sites. It did not envision that states would assume responsibility to run the program, unlike most other environmental laws. Since 1980, states have come to play an increasingly important role in waste site cleanup and now, through cooperative arrangements, have assumed lead responsibility for about 10% of federal Superfund sites (those on the National Priorities List, or NPL).

This report is on The issue for 18 mahogany species is whether any qualifies for regulation under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). (1) Pessimists on this issue say "yes," while optimists see the abundance of species in parts of their range and therefore say "no." Both camps question the accuracy of data supplied by the other side. Both agree that the presence of mahogany trees may provide local governments with an incentive to retain rain forests, especially since mahogany cultivation has not been particularly successful.

Mexican wolves were extirpated from the United States by the 1940s as part of the Predatory Animal and Rodent Control program (PARC); wild wolves are believed to exist in secluded areas in Mexico. Listed on the endangered species list in 1967, Mexican wolves exist in the United States only in captivity. The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) is currently developing plans to reintroduce the wolves into their historic habitat. The plans are controversial, and the species' conservation may be debated during reauthorization of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriations (regular, supplemental, and continuing) bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliation bills. This report is a guide to one of the 13 regular appropriations bills that Congress passes each year. It is designed to supplement the information provided by the House and Senate Defense Appropriations Subcommittees.

This report is an update on Burundi.

The Administration requested $78.242 billion for research and development (R&D) in FY2000, 1.3% below the FY1999 estimated level of $79.267 billion. As with past proposals, the Administration requested an increase for civilian R&D, 3% to $39.761 billion, while overall defense R&D would decline 5.3% to $38.481 billion.

This report is a sampling of the available material on the question of what constitutes impeachable conduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution.

None

None

This report is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes impeachable misconduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution. It includes excerpts from material prepared in connection with the impeachment inquiries involving Justice Douglas and President Nixon.

This is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes impeachable misconduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution quoted below. It includes quotations from treatises and law reviews on the question.

None

None

This report is a collection of selected background materials pertinent to the issue of what constitutes impeachable misconduct for purposes of Article II, section 4 of the United States Constitution quoted below. It includes excerpts from Blackstone, Wooddeson, and the impeachment clauses in pre-Constitutional Convention state constitutions.

This report focuses on selected aspects of the general obstruction of justice provisions found in 18 U.S.C. 1503, 1505, and 1512. It is essentially a replica, without footnotes or citations, of CRS Report 98-832, Obstruction of Justice Under Federal Law: A Review of Some of the Elements.

This report tracks trends in and legislation considered by the 105th Congress in regard to China.

This report provides a brief overview of U.S. and China relations beginning October 1997.

On Oct. 7, 1992, Hong Kong's new Governor Christopher Patten's unveiled proposals to expand the voting franchise in Hong Kong and broaden the scope of democratic institutions. Patten's proposals reflected a growing desire on the part of the colonial government and the people of Hong Kong that, in the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, Hong Kong should erect safeguards against capricious Chinese government action after 1997. The proposals were seen by the British authorities as consistent with the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration -- the agreement governing Hong Kong's transfer to Chinese rule, but Beijing disagreed.

Appropriations are one part of a complex federal budget process that includes budget resolutions, appropriation bills, rescissions, and budget reconciliations bills. This report is over the LEgislative branch appropriations for the fiscal year 1999.