This report describes statutory requirements for allocating congressional nominations to service academies. It also identifies the qualifications that must be met by potential nominees, as established by statute and each academy. Finally, sample documents that could be used by congressional offices at various stages of the nomination selection process are included. These documents provide basic information and can be customized to fit the specific needs of individual office policies.

This report discuses the Turkish referendum results regarding creating a presidential system through the abolishment of the position of prime minister and a strengthening of the power of the presidency. Possible irregularities, reactions of other countries to the results, and possible effects of the changes on Turkish government and President Erdogan's power are also discussed.

This report discusses whether the U.S. airstrike on a Syrian airbase in retaliation for Syria's use of chemical weapons was legal under international laws as outlined in the U.N. Charter.

This report discusses the French presidential election of 2017 and includes brief descriptions of the main candidates and current poll leaders, major campaign issues, and possible implications of the results of the French election for American-French relations and for their role in Europe and the EU. This report was written before the election which was won by Emmanuel Macron.

This report discusses the Presidential Permit review processes for cross-border energy infrastructure as implemented by these agencies: The Department of State for pipelines and similar facilities that transport liquids such as petroleum, petroleum products, and other hazardous liquids; The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for natural gas pipelines and associated facilities; and The Department of Energy (DOE) for electricity transmission lines and associated facilities. This report compares practices among these three agencies with respect to how they define a proposed project's scope (which dictates the array of associated impacts they will review), conduct environmental reviews, and make final decisions on permit applications. It also includes a discussion of recent efforts by Congress to change those permitting processes.

This report describes a new gene editing technology, known as CRISPR-Cas9, with the potential to revolutionize genetic engineering and the biotechnology industry. The report then provides information on the potential economic benefits of the technology and identifies some issues for congressional consideration, including the regulation of current and future products, national security concerns, and ethical and societal issues surrounding the use of the technology.

This report discusses FirstNet's announcement of a partnership with AT&T to build a dedicated wireless broadband network for use by public safety agencies which will allow first responders during an emergency to share information with other public safety departments and have a dedicated internet connection for emergency communication.

This report identifies 17 constitutional points of order that have been raised and received a Senate vote since 1989. Eleven of these cases were disposed of negatively.

This report discusses the confirmation of Judge Neil Gorsuch as a Supreme Court Justice and the effects he may have on current and upcoming cases as the ninth member of the Supreme Court.

This report provides an overview of the government assistance available to individuals and households following a flood and provides links to more comprehensive guidance on both flood insurance and disaster assistance.

This report uses a question and answer format to highlight key aspects of the military compensation system and to address topics of recurring congressional interest, including the following: compensation elements and rates, statutory formulas for increasing compensation elements, historical increases in basic pay, comparability with civilian pay, and additional compensation for those serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.

This report explains what the Senate's "executive calendar" is and how it is laid out. The "executive calendar" includes all treaties and confirmations that the Senate is planning to consider.

This report discusses methods of temporarily filling presidentially appointed positions which require the advice and consent of the Senate through the use of special hiring rules for vacancies under the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998, recess appointments, consultants, or interim appointments of personnel who were the next level down from the vacant position.

This report discusses the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) requirements for state created plans that are used instead of the general federal requirements. A state plan from California that exceeds the federal requirements and a proposed state plan from Arizona that does not meet federal requirements are discussed as examples of different types of state plans.

This report introduces the main steps through which a bill (or other item of business) may travel in the legislative process--from introduction to committee and floor consideration to possible presidential consideration. However, the process by which a bill can become law is rarely predictable and can vary significantly from bill to bill. In fact, for many bills, the process will not follow the sequence of congressional stages that are often understood to make up the legislative process.This report presents a look at each of the common stages through which a bill may move, but complications and variations abound in practice.

This report provides a brief history of the Congressional Arts Caucus and the Congressional Art Competition which is an art competition for high school students. It also provides a history of sponsorship and support for the caucus and the annual competition. The report includes copies of the original correspondence establishing the competition, a sample competition announcement, sample guidelines and required forms for the competition, and a chronological list of congressional co-chairs.

This report provides roll call vote data on Keystone XL Pipeline legislation identified by CRS using CQ.com's Roll Call Vote Report database as well as the Congress.gov legislative database. Roll call votes listed in the tables are broken down by chamber, Congress, and type of legislation--substantive votes (i.e., votes on amendments or passage of bills) versus procedural votes (e.g., votes to recommit the bill to a committee or to provide for the consideration of a bill). Votes are also listed in chronological order for each Congress. This report is current through the end of the 114th Congress and will be updated as events warrant.

This report discusses the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act which is planning to provide subsidized loans and credit assistance to water infrastructure projects through the EPA.

This report discusses the Federal Workers Compensation Act (FECA) which governs disability and death benefits for federal employees who are injured, become ill, or are killed on the job. Key policy issues facing the program, including the disproportionate share of claims and program costs attributed to postal workers, the payment of FECA benefits after retirement age, the overall level of FECA disability benefits as compared with those offered by the states, the administration of the FECA program, and the costs associated with prescriptions for compounded medications are also discussed. A legislative history of the FECA program is provided in Appendix B.

This report provides a brief history of U.S. climate change regulation, reviews the different types of regulation and legal actions that have been pursued in the national debate over greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, examines selected legal issues and next steps in related litigation, and addresses what these legal and regulatory developments mean for Congress. President Trump's Executive Order of March 28, 2017 requiring agencies to reconsider their policies related to climate change is also discussed.

This report describes what the cloture process is and how it is used. Cloture is a method used by the Senate to end a debate without rejecting the bill or amendment.

This report first provides a general overview of the current Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) credit. The report then summarizes the key legislative changes to the credit and provides analysis of some of the congressional intentions behind these changes. An overview of the current structure of the EITC can be found in Appendix A at the end of this report.

This report discusses a case which was brought by Army Captain Nathan Smith against President Barack Obama in 2016, arguing that President Obama had no authority to be conducting the campaign against the Islamic State because no Congressional approval had been given. The case was dismissed in Nov. 2016 but he has appealed the dismissal of the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals.

This report describes the House of Representatives' seating arrangement on the dais located in their chambers at the Capitol. It outlines each tier with the location of specialized positions.