Department of Veterans Affairs FY2017 Appropriations (open access)

Department of Veterans Affairs FY2017 Appropriations

This report provides an overview of Veterans Affairs (VA) appropriations. The VA provides a range of benefits and services to veterans and eligible dependents who meet certain criteria as authorized by law.
Date: May 23, 2017
Creator: Panangala, Sidath Viranga
System: The UNT Digital Library
Science and Technology Issues in the 115th Congress (open access)

Science and Technology Issues in the 115th Congress

This report briefly outlines an array of science and technology (S&T) policy issues that may come before the 115th Congress. Given the rapid pace of S&T advancement and its importance in many diverse public policy issues, S&T-related issues not discussed in this report may come before the 115th Congress. The selected issues are grouped into 9 categories: Overarching S&T Policy Issues, Agriculture, Biomedical Research and Development, Defense, Energy, Environment and Natural Resources, Homeland Security, Information Technology, Physical and Material Sciences, and Space. Each of these categories includes concise analysis of multiple policy issues. The material presented in this report should be viewed as illustrative rather than comprehensive. Each section identifies CRS reports, when available, and the appropriate CRS experts to contact for further information and analysis.
Date: May 23, 2017
Creator: Gottron, Frank
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S.-South Korea Relations (open access)

U.S.-South Korea Relations

This report contains two main parts: a section describing recent events and a longer background section on key elements of the U.S.-South Korea relationship. It also provides a list of CRS products on South Korea and North Korea. The report identifies South Korean individuals by using their last name first.
Date: May 23, 2017
Creator: Manyin, Mark E.; Chanlett-Avery, Emma; Nikitin, Mary Beth D.; Williams, Brock R. & Corrado, Jonathan R.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The United States Withdraws from the TPP (open access)

The United States Withdraws from the TPP

This report discusses discusses the withdrawal of the United States as a signatory from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement as directed by President Trump.
Date: May 23, 2017
Creator: Williams, Brock R. & Fergusson, Ian F.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's Five-Year Program for Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing: History and Proposed Program for 2017-2022 (open access)

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's Five-Year Program for Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing: History and Proposed Program for 2017-2022

The first two sections of this report discuss the history and legal framework for Bureau of Ocean Energy Management's (BOEM) five-year offshore oil and gas leasing programs. Subsequent sections outline BOEM's development process, briefly summarize previous years' programs, and analyze the proposal for 2017-2022. The final section of the report discusses the role of Congress, with a focus on congressional oversight and legislation related to the 2017-2022 program.
Date: May 23, 2016
Creator: Comay, Laura B.; Humphries, Marc & Vann, Adam
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (S. 524): Comparison of Senate- and House-Passed Versions (open access)

The Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (S. 524): Comparison of Senate- and House-Passed Versions

This report discusses selected differences and similarities between the Senate- and House-passed versions of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 (CARA; S. 524), which aims to address the problem of opioid addiction in the United States. The two versions of the bill differ substantially. The scope of the differences may be illustrated by their structures: The Senate bill has 28 sections organized in 8 titles, whereas the House bill has 69 sections organized in 18 titles.
Date: May 23, 2016
Creator: Bagalman, Erin & Sacco, Lisa N.
System: The UNT Digital Library
FHFA's Administrative Reform of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Housing Finance System (open access)

FHFA's Administrative Reform of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Housing Finance System

This report discusses housing finance reform and structural changes enacted by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), particularly in relation to government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs). It includes sections on GSEs and conservatorship; FHFA reforms broken down into information about risk-sharing transactions, a common securitization platform, and single security; and Congressional action on GSE reform.
Date: May 23, 2016
Creator: Hoskins, Sean M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Honduras: Background and U.S. Relations (open access)

Honduras: Background and U.S. Relations

This report discusses various domestic issues in Honduras, including current political, economic and security conditions. It also examines the implications for U.S. policy.
Date: May 23, 2016
Creator: Meyer, Peter J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
United States Lifts Remaining Restrictions on Arms Sales to Vietnam (open access)

United States Lifts Remaining Restrictions on Arms Sales to Vietnam

This report discusses the recent removal of remaining U.S. restrictions on sales of lethal weapons and related services to Vietnam. During the Vietnam War (1955-1975), the United States imposed a complete embargo on arms sales to North Vietnam, and then expanded it to cover the entire country after Communist forces defeated U.S-backed South Vietnamese government in 1975. In 2007, the Bush Administration eased the ban by allowing non-lethal defense items and defense services to be exported on a case-by-case basis.
Date: May 23, 2016
Creator: Manyin, Mark E. & Kerr, Paul K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Defense Acquisition Reform: Background, Analysis, and Issues for Congress (open access)

Defense Acquisition Reform: Background, Analysis, and Issues for Congress

This report provides background on defense-related acquisitions, recent efforts to improve acquisition processes, and related issues for Congress regarding improvements to the workforce and specific reform efforts.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Schwartz, Moshe
System: The UNT Digital Library
Defense Acquisitions: How DOD Acquires Weapon Systems and Recent Efforts to Reform the Process (open access)

Defense Acquisitions: How DOD Acquires Weapon Systems and Recent Efforts to Reform the Process

This report outlines the Department of Defense's (DOD) defense acquisition structure, discusses recent major reports addressing defense acquisition, and considers recent DOD efforts to improve the acquisition of weapon systems. It also includes a description of recent congressional efforts to reform the DOD's acquisition process.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Schwartz, Moshe
System: The UNT Digital Library
Energy and Water Development: FY2015 Appropriations (open access)

Energy and Water Development: FY2015 Appropriations

This report discusses the Energy and Water Development appropriations bill that provides funding for civil works projects of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), for the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), the Department of Energy (DOE), and several independent agencies.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Behrens, Carl E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Internet Domain Names: Background and Policy Issues (open access)

Internet Domain Names: Background and Policy Issues

This report discusses the Domain Name System (DNS), which is the distributed set of databases that contain address numbers mapped to corresponding domain names, making it possible to send and receive messages and to access information on the Internet. The report includes background on the DNS and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) that manages the services, as well as related issues for the 113th Congress.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Kruger, Lennard G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Internet Governance and the Domain Name System: Issues for Congress (open access)

Internet Governance and the Domain Name System: Issues for Congress

This report provides a definition regarding Internet governance and how the Internet is currently governed. The report discusses the role of United States government and future model of Internet governance.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Kruger, Lennard G.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Malaysia: Background and U.S. Relations (open access)

Malaysia: Background and U.S. Relations

This report analyzes U.S.-Malaysia relations and the economy, domestic politics, and diplomacy of Malaysia. It also provides background on current events and policy debates, as Congress has expressed interest in a variety of issues in U.S.-Malaysia relations, especially regarding trade, security cooperation, and human rights.
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: Rinehart, Ian E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Appropriations Process: A Brief Explanation (open access)

U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Appropriations Process: A Brief Explanation

None
Date: May 23, 2014
Creator: unknown
System: The UNT Digital Library
Afghanistan: Politics, Elections, and Government Performance (open access)

Afghanistan: Politics, Elections, and Government Performance

This report discusses the current political state of Afghanistan, as well as the Afghan government. This report also discusses Afghanistan's relationship with the United States, particularly U.S. efforts to urge President Hamid Karzai to address corruption within the Afghan government.
Date: May 23, 2013
Creator: Katzman, Kenneth
System: The UNT Digital Library
Bangladesh Apparel Factory Collapse: Background in Brief (open access)

Bangladesh Apparel Factory Collapse: Background in Brief

This report provides an overview of the recent tragedy in Bangladesh and the Bangladesh economic environment and culture. It also notes the responses to the tragedy, to date, from Congress, the Administration, the ILO, the Bangladesh government, and the private sector. Finally, it raises some possible issues for Congress.
Date: May 23, 2013
Creator: Bolle, Mary Jane
System: The UNT Digital Library
Compounded Drugs (open access)

Compounded Drugs

This report provides background information on compounded drugs (CDs) and nontraditional compounding pharmacies relevant to policy discussions. This includes an overview of the 2012 fungal meningitis outbreak; recent recalls of compounded drugs; definitions of traditional compounding and nontraditional compounding; information on the CDs produced and by whom; information on the demand for nontraditional compounding, including the role of shortages of sterile injectable drugs, hospital outsourcing, and patient and provider demand; and information on adverse events involving compounded drugs.
Date: May 23, 2013
Creator: Glassgold, Judith M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2014 (open access)

Federal Research and Development Funding: FY2014

This report provides government-wide, multi-agency, and individual agency analyses of the President's FY2014 request as it relates to R&D and related activities.
Date: May 23, 2013
Creator: Sargent, John F., Jr.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Wildfire Damages to Homes and Resources: Understanding Causes and Reducing Losses (open access)

Wildfire Damages to Homes and Resources: Understanding Causes and Reducing Losses

This report focuses on options for protecting structures and for protecting wildlands and natural resources from wildfires. It begins with a brief overview of the nature of wildfires, followed by a discussion of protecting structures. Then, it discusses wildfire damages to wildlands and natural resources, fuel treatment options and their benefits and limitations, and public involvement in federal decisions.
Date: May 23, 2013
Creator: Bracmort, Kelsi
System: The UNT Digital Library
Cybercrime: Conceptual Issues for Congress and U.S. Law Enforcement (open access)

Cybercrime: Conceptual Issues for Congress and U.S. Law Enforcement

None
Date: May 23, 2012
Creator: Finklea, Kristin M. & Theohary, Catherine A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Cybercrime: Conceptual Issues for Congress and U.S. Law Enforcement (open access)

Cybercrime: Conceptual Issues for Congress and U.S. Law Enforcement

This report gives an overview of cybercrime, which can include crimes such as identity theft, payment card fraud, and intellectual property theft. The report discusses where the criminal acts exist (in both the real and digital worlds), motivations for cybercrimes, and who is committing them, as well as government definitions, strategies, and methods of tracking cybercrime.
Date: May 23, 2012
Creator: Finklea, Kristin M. & Theohary, Catherine A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The First Responder Network and Next- Generation Communications for Public Safety: Issues for Congress (open access)

The First Responder Network and Next- Generation Communications for Public Safety: Issues for Congress

Background of provisions in the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 for planning, building, and managing a new, nationwide, broadband network for public safety communications.
Date: May 23, 2012
Creator: Moore, Linda K.
System: The UNT Digital Library