A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages about 33,100 wild horses and burros on 199 Herd Management Areas (HMA) in 10 western states. Under the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, as amended, BLM is to protect wild horses and burros, set appropriate management levels (AML), maintain current inventory counts, and remove excess animals to prevent overpopulation and rangeland damage. Over the years, various stakeholders have raised issues about BLM's management of the animals on and off the range. GAO examined (1) BLM's progress in setting and meeting AML; (2) BLM's management of animals off the range through adoptions, sales, and holding facilities; (3) BLM's controls to help ensure the humane treatment of animals; and (4) what challenges, if any, BLM faces in managing for the long-term sustainability of the program. GAO surveyed and analyzed documents from 26 of the 44 BLM offices that manage wild horses and burros."

In July of 2002, a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) was undertaken between Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and Caterpillar, Inc. (Caterpillar Technical Center) to develop and commercialize new cast stainless steels invented and initially tested on a prior CRADA. This CRADA is a direct follow-on project to CRADA ORNL-99-0533 for diesel engine exhaust component and gas turbine engine structural component applications. The goal of this new CRADA was to develop and commercialize the newly discovered cast stainless steels (primarily CF8C-Plus) with improved performance and reliability, as lower-cost upgrade alternatives to more costly cast Ni-based superalloys.

Simulations of the Defense Waste Processing Facility (DWPF) Chemical Processing Cell (CPC) vessels were performed as part of the ongoing investigation into catalytic hydrogen generation. Rhodium, ruthenium, and mercury have been identified as the principal elemental factors affecting the peak hydrogen generation rate in the DWPF Sludge Receipt and Adjustment Tank (SRAT) for a given acid addition. The primary goal of this study is to identify any significant interactions between the three factors. Noble metal concentrations were similar to recent sludge batches. Rh ranged from 0.0026-0.013% and Ru ranged from 0.010-0.050% in the dried sludge solids, while initial Hg ranged from 0.5-2.5 wt%. An experimental matrix was developed to ensure that the existence of statistically significant two-way interactions could be determined without confounding of the main effects with the two-way interaction effects. The nominal matrix design consisted of twelve SRAT cycles. Testing included: a three factor (Rh, Ru, and Hg) study at two levels per factor (eight runs), two duplicate midpoint runs, and two additional replicate runs to assess reproducibility away from the midpoint. Midpoint testing can identify potential quadratic effects from the three factors. A single sludge simulant was used for all tests. Acid addition was kept effectively constant …

Evaluating spatial and temporal trends in contaminant residues in Puget Sound fish and macroinvertebrates are the objectives of the Puget Sound Ambient Monitoring Program (PSAMP). In a cooperative effort between the ENVironmental inVESTment group (ENVVEST) and Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife, additional biota samples were collected during the 2007 PSAMP biota survey and analyzed for chemical residues and stable isotopes of carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N). Approximately three specimens of each species collected from Sinclair Inlet, Georgia Basin, and reference locations in Puget Sound were selected for whole body chemical analysis. The muscle tissue of specimens selected for chemical analyses were also analyzed for δ13C and δ15N to provide information on relative trophic level and food sources. This data report summarizes the chemical residues for the 2007 PSAMP fish and macro-invertebrate samples. In addition, six Spiny Dogfish (Squalus acanthias) samples were necropsied to evaluate chemical residue of various parts of the fish (digestive tract, liver, embryo, muscle tissue), as well as, a weight proportional whole body composite (WBWC). Whole organisms were homogenized and analyzed for silver, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, lead, zinc, mercury, 19 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners, PCB homologues, percent moisture, percent lipids, δ13C, and δ15N.

This report examines only cases considered by the House of Representatives involving the question of whether a Member-elect was duly elected, that is. questions regarding elections and returns, not questions regarding qualifications.

Asthe budget has moved from a position of large deficitsto large surpluses, then back to deficit again, a debate has emerged about the desirability of retiring the national debt. Although the national debt would not be retired under current baseline forecasts, it remains an important element of the budget surplus debate. By the end of the baseline window, the national debt is forecast to reach its lowest level in the post-war period as a percentage of GDP despite the dramatic deterioration in the surplus forecastsince 2001. This report will explore the economic issues surrounding budget surpluses and debt retirement

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This report discusses the legislative activity in the 110th Congress related to the alternative minimum tax (AMT), which was originally enacted to ensure that all taxpayers, especially high-income taxpayers, pay at least a minimum amount of federal taxes.

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This report provides an overview of the medicaid and outpatient hospital services.

This reports describes the U.S. Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program and discusses the effect of adding Vietnam as a "developing country" to this program.

This report provides background information on DDG-1000 (Zumwalt) program. The report discusses Navy's proposed FY2010 budget requests $1,084.2 million to complete the cost of a third Zumwalt (DDG-1000) class destroyer that was authorized but only partially funded in FY2009.

This report is a guide to one of the regular appropriations bills that Congress considers each year. It summarizes the status of the bill, its scope, major issues, funding levels, and related congressional activity, and is updated as events warrant. The report lists the key CRS staff relevant to the issues covered and related CRS products.

This report provides an overview of the bill Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 (H.R. 6893). The report discusses many of the changes included in the new law.

This report addresses relevant policy questions in current U.S.-China relations, discusses trends and key legislation in the current Congress and provides a chronology of developments and high-level exchanges.

This report discusses the United States' relationship with India as it relates to nuclear arsenals and nuclear nonproliferation policies. The report includes background information on India's nuclear history and nuclear weapons-specific U.S. legislation.

This report provides background information and oversight issues for Congress on the Coast Guard's Deepwater acquisition programs for replacing and modernizing the service's aging fleet of deepwater-capable ships and aircraft.

Archaeological survey results of proposed expansion of solid waste landfill site in Terry County, Texas.