This is a directory of telephone numbers and addresses that congressional offices may use to obtain publications from the Executive Office of the President, the executive departments, and the independent agencies and commissions of the federal government. Electronic sources are included for locating copies of government publications on the Internet. The information for each agency was provided by the agency itself.

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The Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949 created new procurement procedures for federal civilian agencies and established the General Services Administration as a central procurement agent.1 Since that time, this enabling law has evolved through amendments to provide GSA with an integrated system of administrative procedures to carry out its federal procurement and supply activities.

This report examines various aspects of the national debt and explains what would happen if the debt were eliminated. The national debt currently held by the public stands at $3.4 trillion, or about 35% of gross domestic product (GDP).

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

This issue brief discusses the Airport Improvement Program and its complement, the Passenger Facility Charge (PFC). After a brief history of federal support for airport construction and improvement, the report describes AIP funding, its source of revenues, funding distribution, the types of projects the program funds,AIP and PFC policy issues, and the allowable use of AIP funds for airport security purposes.

This report addresses the cyber-vulnerability of critical infrastructure industries which regularly use industrial control systems. Industrial control systems may be vulnerable to infiltration by different routes, including wireless transmission, direct access to control system computers, exploitation of dial-up modems used for maintenance, or through the Internet. This report will specifically discuss the potential for access to industrial control systems through the Internet.

This report summarizes the provisions affecting charitable contribution deductions of individuals, and then analyzes the incentive such a deduction would create for increased charitable giving beginning with the original proposal for a relatively low cap and then considering other approaches including the current one. It does not attempt to estimate other types of societal impacts. The non-itemizer’s charitable deduction was the single most important tax provision in the original version of H.R. 7. In S. 1924, S. 476, and the current version of H.R. 7, the nonitemizer provision was temporary and had a higher cap (and a floor). The provision affecting rollovers from IRAs, which can also function as a deduction for nonitemizers, is also discussed briefly.

The Federal Railroad Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation is the primary federal agency that promotes and regulates railroad safety. To implement its safety responsibilities, the Federal Railroad Administration uses numerous strategies including the Safety Assurance and Compliance Program, field inspections; and to help improve its regulations, the administration uses the Railroad Safety Advisory Committee. This report contains information on the Federal Railroad Administration's Safety Program, railroad safety statistics, key reauthorization issues, and related information.

This report discusses the issue of expanding intellectual property protections for geographical indications for wines, spirits, and agricultural products is being debated in the World Trade Organization (WTO).

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P.L. 104-193 (the 1996 welfare reform law) made major changes to the Child Support Enforcement (CSE) program. Some of the changes include requiring states to increase the percentage of fathers identified, establishing an integrated, automated network linking all states to information about the location and assets of parents, and requiring states to implement more enforcement techniques to obtain collections from debtor parents. Additional legislative changes were made in 1997, 1998, and 1999, but not in 2000, 2001, 2002, or 2003. This report describes several aspects of the revised CSE program and discusses three issues of concern to the 108th Congress — CSE financing, parental access by noncustodial parents, and distribution of child support payments.

Because of the continuing threat of terrorism, concerns have been raised about the potential for terrorist events to occur close to or during the voting process for the November 2004 elections. For instance, the question has been raised as to whether a sufficiently calamitous event could result in the postponement of the election, and what mechanisms are in place to deal with such an event. This report focuses on who has the constitutional authority to postpone elections, to whom such power could be delegated, and what legal limitations exist to such a postponement.

This report provides a history of the creation and evolution of the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Also known as the House Ethics Committee and the Committee on Standards, it was first established as a select committee in 1966. It became a standing committee in 1967. Since that time, it has undergone two major reorganizations, first in 1989, and again in 1997.

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This report discusses the legislative requirement for the offices of the U.S. government to be located in the District of Columbia (DC), dating to 1790. The report provides an overview of the relevant provisions (codified at 4 U.S.C. 71 and 72) and agencies that have exemptions.

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This report includes quantitative analysis based on regulatory filings by pension plans for 2001 and 2002 to provide an assessment of the number of plans that might be affected by certain elements of the Administration proposal. It also summarizes the reaction to the Administration proposal by business and labor. The report also includes an illustration of the effect on a hypothetical plan sponsor’s plan contribution and funded ratio of the credit balance approach used in current law versus the Administration proposal. This report focuses on single-employer plans.

On July 21, 2005, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a $34.8 billion FY2006 budget for HUD. Like the House version, the Senate bill rejects the President’s Strengthening America’s Communities Initiative (SACI). It increases funding above both the President’s request and the House version for HOPE VI, Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)-related programs (including Section 108 loan guarantees), Native American Housing Block Grants, and Rural Housing and Economic Development.

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