Women in the United States Congress: 1917-2004 (open access)

Women in the United States Congress: 1917-2004

This report identifies the names, committee assignments, dates of service, and (for Representatives) districts of the 220 women Members of Congress.
Date: July 1, 2004
Creator: Amer, Mildred L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): State Grant Formulas (open access)

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): State Grant Formulas

CRS Report for Congress entailing information about state grant formulas regarding the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA). Topics include, characteristics of state formula grants, IDEA State Grant Formulas, funding, etc..
Date: July 1, 2002
Creator: Apling, Richard N.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Selected Changes that Would be Made to the Law by S. 1248, 108th Congress (open access)

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA): Selected Changes that Would be Made to the Law by S. 1248, 108th Congress

None
Date: July 1, 2003
Creator: Apling, Richard N. & Jones, Nancy Lee
System: The UNT Digital Library
Food Safety Provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill (open access)

Food Safety Provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill

The report discusses the food safety provision in the 2008 Farm Bill. Food safety re-emerged as an issue in the 110th Congress following a series of widely publicized incidents — including adulterated Chinese seafood and pet food ingredient imports, findings of bacteria-tainted spinach, meat, and poultry produced domestically, and several large food recalls.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Food Safety Provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill (open access)

Food Safety Provisions of the 2008 Farm Bill

Food safety re-emerged as an issue in the 110th Congress following a series of widely publicized incidents -- including adulterated Chinese seafood and pet food ingredient imports, findings of bacteria-tainted spinach, meat, and poultry produced domestically, and several large food recalls. In 2008, Congress approved a new omnibus farm law that includes, among other provisions, several changes affecting U.S. food safety programs. This report outlines said provisions and explores the issue of food safety and related legislation in detail.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Animal Agriculture: 2008 Farm Bill Issues (open access)

Animal Agriculture: 2008 Farm Bill Issues

This report discusses a number of animal-related provisions related to the 2008 farm bill. It includes background and specific provisions from the bill for each of the issues and options analyzed in the report: market competition and packer concentration, livestock mandatory price reporting, meat and poultry safety, country-of-origin labeling, animal identification for health protection, animal welfare, feed prices, disaster assistance, and environmental issues. The report also provides a summary comparison of previous farm bills with the 2008 provisions for selected issues.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S. & Johnson, Renée
System: The UNT Digital Library
Gasoline Prices: Policies and Proposals (open access)

Gasoline Prices: Policies and Proposals

This report details the information related to gasoline prices and discusses on policies and proposals.
Date: July 1, 2005
Creator: Behrens, Carl E. & Glover, Carol
System: The UNT Digital Library
Military Medical Care Services: Questions and Answers (open access)

Military Medical Care Services: Questions and Answers

None
Date: July 1, 2003
Creator: Best, Richard A., Jr.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Genetically Engineered Fish and Seafood (open access)

Genetically Engineered Fish and Seafood

Genetic engineering techniques allow the manipulation of inherited traits to modify organisms. Genetically modified (GM) fish and seafood products are currently under development and may offer potential benefits such as increasing aquaculture productivity and addressing human health concerns. However, some critics of this rapidly evolving field are concerned that current technological and regulatory safeguards are inadequate to protect the environment and ensure public acceptance of these products. This report discusses various regulatory and environmental concerns regarding GM fish and seafood, then discusses the possible benefits and disadvantages of their use.
Date: July 1, 2005
Creator: Borgatti, Rachel & Buck, Eugene H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
California Water Law and Related Legal Authority Affecting the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (open access)

California Water Law and Related Legal Authority Affecting the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta

This report provides a summary of California's dual system of water rights, which includes riparian and prior appropriation doctrines, and regulation of those rights by the state. In particular, the report discusses considerations used in the process of regulating water usage, including the public trust doctrine, the rule of beneficial use, and the no injury rule. The report discusses the California water projects, the projects' rights, and access to water by other users.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Brougher, Cynthia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Welfare Reform: An Issue Overview (open access)

Welfare Reform: An Issue Overview

On June 30, the scheduled expiration of TANF, a bill was presented to the President to extend TANF, supplemental TANF grants, mandatory child care, abstinence education, and transitional medical assistance (TMA) for another quarter, through September 30, 2003. The Welfare Reform Extension Act (H.R. 2350), which passed the House on June 11, was held at the Senate desk until June 27, when it was passed by unanimous consent. It was uncertain when the Senate Finance Committee would mark up a comprehensive reauthorization measure, for which staffers are preparing. Pending are four bills H.R. 4, the House Republican leadership bill, passed by the House February 13, S. 5, the Senate Republican leadership bill, and two Democratic alternatives, S. 367, and S. 448. H.R. 4 is almost identical to the bill passed by the House last year (H.R. 4737). Both H.R. 4 and S. 5 set the work week for most TANF recipients at 40 hours and require that states eventually engage 70% of recipients in a work activity. S. 5 would allow states to privatize determination of food stamp eligibility
Date: July 1, 2003
Creator: Burke, Vee
System: The UNT Digital Library
Campaign Financing (open access)

Campaign Financing

This is one report in the series of reports that discuss the campaign finance practices and related issues. Concerns over financing federal elections have become a seemingly perennial aspect of our political system, centered on the enduring issues of high campaign costs and reliance on interest groups for needed campaign funds. The report talks about the today’s paramount issues such as perceived loopholes in current law and the longstanding issues: overall costs, funding sources, and competition.
Date: July 1, 2003
Creator: Cantor, Joseph E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Medical Malpractice Liability Reform: Legal Issues and Fifty-State Survey of Caps on Punitive Damages and Noneconomic Damages (open access)
Cruise Ship Pollution: Background, Laws and Regulations, and Key Issues (open access)

Cruise Ship Pollution: Background, Laws and Regulations, and Key Issues

This report describes the several types of waste streams that cruise ships may discharge and emit. It identifies the complex body of international and domestic laws that address pollution from cruise ships. It then describes federal and state legislative activity concerning cruise ships in Alaskan waters and activities in a few other states, as well as current industry initiatives to manage cruise ship pollution.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Cruise Ship Pollution: Background, Laws and Regulations, and Key Issues (open access)

Cruise Ship Pollution: Background, Laws and Regulations, and Key Issues

This report describes the several types of waste streams that cruise ships may discharge and emit. It identifies the complex body of international and domestic laws that address pollution from cruise ships. It then describes federal and state legislative activity concerning cruise ships in Alaskan waters and activities in a few other states, as well as current industry initiatives to manage cruise ship pollution.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Water Quality: Implementing the Clean Water Act (open access)

Water Quality: Implementing the Clean Water Act

None
Date: July 1, 2003
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Congressional Member Organizations: Their Purpose and Activities, History, and Formation (open access)

Congressional Member Organizations: Their Purpose and Activities, History, and Formation

There are 645 informal (Congressional) Member organizations listed in the Congressional Yellow Book or registered with the Committee on House Administration. Of these 645 informal organizations, 256 are registered with the Committee on House Administration as a congressional Member organization (CMO). This report examines the purpose and activities of CMOs and the reasons Members form them. It also identifies and describes seven CMO types, and it provides an overview of the historical development of informal Member organizations since the first Congress. It concludes with a step-by-step guide for House Members and staff who might be interested in forming a CMO.
Date: July 1, 2009
Creator: Dilger, Robert Jay
System: The UNT Digital Library
Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices (open access)

Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices

Early in its tenure, the George W. Bush Administration seemed to abandon the long-standing U.S. policy of "strategic ambiguity" on Taiwan in favor of "strategic clarity" that placed more emphasis on Taiwan's interests and less on PRC (People's Republic of China) concerns. Among other things, President Bush publicly stated in 2001 that the United States would do "whatever it take" to help Taiwan's defense. Since then, U.S.-Taiwan relations have undergone important changes, sparked in part by the increasing complexity and unpredictability of Taiwan's democratic political environment. In response to Taiwan's political developments, the Bush Administration appears to have dialed back its earlier public enthusiasm for supporting Taiwan initiatives.
Date: July 1, 2006
Creator: Dumbaugh, Kerry
System: The UNT Digital Library
Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices (open access)

Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices

None
Date: July 1, 2002
Creator: Dumbaugh, Kerry
System: The UNT Digital Library
Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices (open access)

Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices

None
Date: July 1, 2006
Creator: Dumbaugh, Kerry
System: The UNT Digital Library
Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices (open access)

Taiwan: Recent Developments and U.S. Policy Choices

None
Date: July 1, 2006
Creator: Dumbaugh, Kerry
System: The UNT Digital Library
State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs: FY2009 Appropriations (open access)

State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs: FY2009 Appropriations

This report analyzes the FY2009 request and recent-year funding trends; it tracks major foreign policy issues Congress may consider and highlights congressional action throughout the appropriations process.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Epstein, Susan B. & Nakamura, Kennon H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Welfare Reauthorization: Overview of the Issues (open access)

Welfare Reauthorization: Overview of the Issues

In 2003, 12.3 million children lived in families with incomes below the poverty line (a 17.2% child poverty rate). Research has shown that poverty can have negative consequences on a child’s development. Children depend upon their parents for support, and most of the recent policy attention has focused on initiatives to move poor parents (mostly single mothers) from welfare to work and on reducing welfare dependency.
Date: July 1, 2005
Creator: Falk, Gene; Gish, Melinda & Solomon-Fears, Carmen
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Army's Future Combat System (FCS): Background and Issues for Congress (open access)

The Army's Future Combat System (FCS): Background and Issues for Congress

This report describes the Future Combat System (FCS) program, which was to be the Army's major research, development, and acquisition program consisting of 14 manned and unmanned systems linked by an extensive communications and information network. This report describes the proposed restructuring of the FCS program, which includes modernizing outdated equipment and re-evaluating vehicle design strategy. This report will be superseded by a report on the Army's BCT (Brigade Combat Team) Modernization Strategy when sufficient details are available.
Date: July 1, 2008
Creator: Feickert, Andrew
System: The UNT Digital Library