This report discusses the causes of funding gaps and shutdowns of the federal government, processes that are associated with shutdowns, and how agency operations may be affected by shutdowns. The report concludes with a discussion of potential issues for Congress.

This report aims to provide information on the history of democracy promotion as a foreign assistance objective, the role of the primary U.S. agencies administering such programs, and funding details and trends, as well as issues of potential relevance to Congress.

This report discusses the annual Energy and Water Development appropriations bill that funds civil works projects of the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation, the Department of Energy (DOE), and several independent agencies.

This report discusses President Trump's executive order (E.O.) on U.S. offshore energy strategy including a brief overview of previous policies and the scope of the E.O.

This report discusses the provisions in federal law are intended to support manufacturing in the United States. On April 18, 2017, President Trump issued an executive order directing federal agencies to ensure that federal grants and procurement maximize the use of manufactured goods produced in the United States, although it defined "produced in the United States" only for iron and steel products.

This report analyzes Iran's 2009 presidential election, particularly the campaigns of reformist candidate Mir Hussein Musavi and incumbent President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It also describes the Obama Administration's reaction to the election results and briefly discusses the current relationship between the U.S. and Iran, as well as U.S. concerns regarding Iran, such as Iran's efforts at building a nuclear weapons program.

This report outlines an array of homeland security issues that may come before the 115th Congress. After a brief discussion of the definitions of homeland security, the homeland security budget, and the role of homeland security actors in the intelligence community, the report divides the specific issues into five broad categories: Counterterrorism and Security Management; Border Security and Trade; Disaster Preparedness, Response, and Recovery; Cybersecurity; and DHS Management Issues. Each of those areas contains a survey of topics briefly analyzed by Congressional Research Service experts. The information included only scratches the surface of most of these selected issues. More detailed information on these topics and others can be obtained by consulting the CRS reports referenced herein, or by contacting the relevant CRS expert.

This report examines the current status of the manufacturing sector in the U.S., which is a subject of ongoing interest in Congress. After rebounding from the 2007-09 recession, U.S. manufacturing output has grown little since the second half of 2014 while employment in the U.S. sector has been flat. These trends defy expectations that forces such as higher labor costs, heightened concern about the risk of disruptions to complex supply chains, and the development of inexpensive domestic supplies of natural gas.

This report provides information and analysis on the 2006 Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA) to provide background for current negotiations over softwood lumber.

This report discuses the United States Fire Administration (USFA) and their funding for fiscal year 2017 in comparison with recent years. The Administration's FY2017 budget proposed $42.3 million for USFA, a 3.8% decrease from the FY2016 level.

This report contains three tables that, together, provide an overview of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) provisions, as amended by the five manager's amendments and the amendment referenced in H.Res. 254. Table 1 includes provisions that apply to the private health insurance market, Table 2 includes provisions that affect the Medicaid program, and Table 3 includes provisions related to public health and taxes. Each table contains a column identifying whether the AHCA provision is related to an ACA provision (e.g., whether the AHCA provision repeals an ACA-related provision). In addition to the three tables, the report includes more detailed summaries of each AHCA provision and two graphics showing the effective dates of AHCA provisions. Figure 1 covers AHCA provisions related to the private health insurance market, public health, and taxes. Figure 2 covers AHCA provisions related to the Medicaid program. A table identifying key CRS policy staff appears at the end of the report.

This report discusses the softwood lumber (conifer wood) disputes between the U.S. and Canada. There have been five major disputes since the 1980s with the fifth dispute (Lumber V) having started in 2016 after the expiration of a 2006 softwood lumber agreement. The report provides background information on the dispute, summarizes the key issues leading to the tensions between the United States and Canada over softwood lumber, and examines current developments in Lumber V.

This report discusses legislation (H.R. 1311, S. 517) regarding providing a waiver for ethanol-fuel blends containing greater than 10% ethanol (E15) from the Clean Air Act's (CAA) strict requirements on volatility of gasoline. This requirement currently prevents E15 gas from being sold during the summer. Major points of the legislation, various types of waivers and current rules under the CAA for gasoline and possible options for Congress are discussed.

This report is the first two reports in a series discussing the Federal Communication Commission's proposal to reclassify broadband Internet access services and modify or eliminate "net neutrality" regulations. Various legal aspects of the debate and classification of telecommunications are discussed.

This report discusses President Trump's April 2017 memorandums ordering the Commerce Department to prioritize investigation of the effects of steel and aluminium imports on U.S. national security. The report outlines the process such an investigation would take and possible outcomes if the Commerce Department determines that imports are threatening national security.

This report discuses the development, procurement, and funding of the Army's new Multi-Purpose Vehicles (AMPV) intended to replace Vietnam War-era M-113 personnel carriers. The FY2018 budget request for the AMPV requests $647.4 million for the production of 107 vehicles. A potential issue for Congress is whether the Administration's proposal to increase the size of the Army will translate into a requirement for additional AMPVs.

This report provides an overview of paid family leave in the United States, summarizes state level family leave insurance programs, notes paid family leave policies in other advanced economy countries, and notes recent federal proposals to increase access to paid family leave.

This report discusses U.S. relations with Israel and recent developments. Israeli-Palestinian issues and conflict are a major focus of the report.

This report discuses the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) for reducing carbon dioxide emissions from electric power plants. The first section of this report provides an overview of the RGGI cap-and-trade program and the participating RGGI states. The subsequent sections discuss selected issues raised by RGGI that may be of interest to Congress. The final section provides some final observations that may be instructive to policymakers.

This report discusses the funding process of House committees. The report is organized in three sections. The first provides an overview of the committee funding process in the House and analyzes funding levels since 1996. The second reviews House floor and committee action on committee funding in the 115th Congress. The final section summarizes the rules and regulations that structure the use of committee funds, and analyzes actual committee funding spending patterns during six previous years.

This report discusses the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) newly published new standards regulating exposure to crystalline silica in the workplace. Under the new standards, the Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for crystalline silica will be reduced to 50 µg/m3 (micrograms per cubic meter of air). Employers will be required to monitor crystalline silica exposure if workplace levels may exceed 25 µg/m3 for at least 30 days in a year and provide medical monitoring to employees in those workplaces. In the case of construction workers, medical monitoring is required only if the new standards require workers to wear respirators for at least 30 days in a year.

This report outlines the 2017 fiscal year appropriations for the five Department of Justice (DOJ) grant programs which assist communities with various criminal justice related issues. Congress provided a total of $2.320 billion for DOJ's five grant accounts, an amount that is 6.7% less than the FY2016 appropriation and 1.8% less than the Administration's request. Funding for three of the five grant accounts decreased for FY2017, the exceptions being Violence Against Women Programs (+$2 million) and the Community Oriented Policing Services (+$10 million). However, the increase in funding for the Community Oriented Policing Services account is largely attributable to Congress moving funding for the Regional Information Sharing System from the Research, Evaluation, and Statistics account to the Community Oriented Policing Services account.

This report summarizes developments in the offshore oil leasing 2017-2022 program and considers selected congressional issues and actions related to the program. President Trump issued an executive order on April 28, 2017, directing the Secretary of the Interior to review and consider revising the 2017-2022 program. The 115th Congress could influence the five-year program by enacting legislation to alter the program, as well as by conducting oversight.

This report provides background information and data that may be useful for policymakers evaluating the recent debates regarding health services to disadvantaged populations at Planned Parenthood Health Centers (PPAHCs) and whether the same services could be offered at other health centers. Although a number of other facility types could potentially provide similar services as PPAHCs, this report focuses on federally qualified health centers (FQHCs)--a term used interchangeably with health centers or community health centers--because these facilities have been the focus of recent policy discussions, including the American Health Care Act of 2017 (H.R. 1628, AHCA) in the 115th Congress. This report provides information on three central dimensions of health care. For one health facility to begin to provide services to patients that had previously been seen at a different facility, one could argue that the receiving facility should provide similar services, serve a similar population, and be located in a similar geographic area.This report provides national-level data on these three dimensions.