Bill introduced by the Texas Senate relating to the duration of judgment liens in favor of the state.

Bill introduced by the Texas Senate relating to enforcement of certain vehicle weight and safety requirements by a noncommissioned employee of the Department of Public Safety of the State of Texas.

Bill introduced by the Texas Senate relating to the responsibility of an employer in relation to a person who drives a commercial motor vehicle; providing a criminal penalty.

Bill introduced by the Texas Senate relating to the ability of public school employees to communicate with members of a school district board of trustees.

Bill introduced by the Texas House of Representatives relating to the authority of the Department of Information Resources to accept gifts and grants.

Bill introduced by the Texas House of Representatives relating to the membership of the governing board of the Department of Information Resources.

Concurrent resolution introduced by the Texas Senate and House of Representatives proclaiming April 15 through 22, 2007, Days of Remembrance in memory of the victims of the Holocaust.

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "This testimony discusses some of the systemic conditions in Iraq that contribute to the fraud, waste, or abuse of U.S.-provided funds. Since 2003, DOD has reported total costs of about $257.5 billion for military operations in Iraq; these have increased from about $38.8 billion in fiscal year 2003 to about $83.4 billion in fiscal year 2006. The largest increase has been in operation and maintenance expenses, including items such as support for housing, food, and services; the repair of equipment; and transportation of people, supplies and equipment. Many of the operation and maintenance expenses are for services. Other U.S. government agencies had reported obligations of $29 billion for Iraqi reconstruction and stabilization, as of October 2006. These funds have been used for, among other things, infrastructure repair of the electricity, oil, water, and health sectors; training and equipping of the Iraqi security forces; and administrative expenses. Specifically, the testimony focuses on (1) security, (2) management and reporting of the program to train and equip Iraqi security forces, (3) contracting and contract management activities, and (4) Iraqi capacity and commitment to manage and fund reconstruction and security efforts."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program provides services such as vocational counseling and job training to assist veterans with service-connected disabilities obtain and maintain suitable employment and achieve maximum independence in daily living. In fiscal year 2006, the VR&E program obligated about $702 million and served about 89,000 veterans. The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), which administers the VR&E program, provides some services to veterans through two types of contracts--national contracts and local contracts. In fiscal year 2003, VA adopted the National Acquisition Strategy (NAS) to award contracts at the national level to ensure that veterans have access to the same quality and types of VR&E services across regional offices. These national contracts, once awarded, are implemented by VA's regional offices. Services available under these national contracts include initial evaluations, case management, and employment placement assistance. In fiscal year 2006, VR&E spent about $15 million through national contracts. There are 165 national contracts currently active in fiscal year 2007. Regional offices also can negotiate and implement local contracts for services that are not provided through national contracts such as tutoring and computer skills …

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The Constitution of the United States makes no specific allowance for any one of the co-equal branches to have access to information held by the others and contains no provision expressly establishing a procedure for, or a right of, public access to government information. Nonetheless, Congress has legislated various public access laws. These include two records access statutes — the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act — and two meetings access statutes — the Federal Advisory Committee Act and the Government in the Sunshine Act. This report provides background on the issue of government transparency and examines relevant litigation.

This report discusses the proposed listing of polar bears as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA; 16 U.S.C. §§1531 et seq.), which highlights the intersection of two significant issues currently before Congress — climate change and species protection.

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This report provides a summary and analysis of legislative proposals that would provide voting representation in Congress to residents of the District of Columbia.

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This report provides information about the tax treatment of both the earned income of members of the Armed Forces serving in combat zones and the earned income of U.S. citizens working overseas. A brief discussion of the possible expansion of income tax exclusion to government civilian employees in a combat zone and an analysis of the relevant policy issues is also included.

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This report is in China’s Anti-Satellite Weapon Test.

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This report mainly focuses on China-U.S. Trade Issues. China-U.S. ties have expanded substantially over the past several years. China overtook Japan to become the third-largest U.S.Export market and overtook Canada to become the Largest source of U.S imports.

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