Cuba: Issues for the 112th Congress (open access)

Cuba: Issues for the 112th Congress

This report discusses the current political conditions of Cuba, as well as its relationship with the United States. In particular, the report focuses on U.S. policy regarding Cuba, including various economic sanctions, human rights issues, and foreign aid appropriations.
Date: January 28, 2011
Creator: Sullivan, Mark P.
System: The UNT Digital Library
House Committee Funding Requests and Authorizations, 104th-112th Congresses (open access)

House Committee Funding Requests and Authorizations, 104th-112th Congresses

This report provides committee funding requests and authorizations as adopted pursuant to primary expense authorizations for House committees in the 104th-112th Congresses.
Date: March 24, 2011
Creator: Petersen, R. Eric; Garrett, R. Sam & Hemlin, Erin
System: The UNT Digital Library
Overview of Immigration Issues in the 112th Congress (open access)

Overview of Immigration Issues in the 112th Congress

This report synthesizes immigration issues as a multi-tiered debate. It breaks down the U.S. immigration law and policy into key elements: border control and visa security; legal immigration; documentation and verification; interior immigration enforcement; integration, status, and benefits; and refugees and other humanitarian populations. This report also delineates the debate in the 112th Congress for a range of issues, including border security, criminal aliens, and worksite enforcement.
Date: March 21, 2011
Creator: Wasem, Ruth Ellen
System: The UNT Digital Library
Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress (open access)

Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has statutory authority to regulate chemical facilities for security purposes. The 112th Congress extended this authority through March 18, 2011. Debate continues in Congress over whether to let this extension expire or continue funding the authority. This report provides a brief overview of the existing statutory authority and the regulation implementing this authority. It describes several policy issues raised in previous debates regarding chemical facility security and identifies policy options for congressional consideration. Finally, legislation in the 112th Congress is discussed.
Date: March 8, 2011
Creator: Shea, Dana A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Syria: Issues for the 112th Congress and Background on U.S. Sanctions (open access)

Syria: Issues for the 112th Congress and Background on U.S. Sanctions

This report analyzes bilateral issues between the United States and Syria. Unrest in Syria and the Asad government's violent response are adding new complexity to the troubled U.S.-Syrian relationship. The Obama Administration's policy of limited engagement with Syria to address areas of long-standing concern has been met with criticism from some, including some Members of Congress. Critics believe that the Administration should apply further pressure to the Syrian government and consider implementing harsher economic sanctions against it. The use of violence against Syrian protestors has been accompanied by calls for new U.S. sanctions but also some expression of concern by experts that political unrest in Syria could evolve into a broader civil conflict that in turn could destabilize Syria's neighbors.
Date: April 28, 2011
Creator: Sharp, Jeremy M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Executive Branch Reorganization Initiatives During the 112th Congress: A Brief Overview (open access)

Executive Branch Reorganization Initiatives During the 112th Congress: A Brief Overview

This report describes the ways that executive branch reorganization can occur as a result of Administration and congressional actions, and describes recent initiatives in the context of that typology. The report concludes with some observations regarding federal reorganization efforts.
Date: May 26, 2011
Creator: Hogue, Henry B.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Expedited Rescission Bills in the 111th and 112th Congresses: Comparisons and Issues (open access)

Expedited Rescission Bills in the 111th and 112th Congresses: Comparisons and Issues

Expedited rescission bills focus on procedural changes in Congress and typically contain a detailed schedule to ensure immediate introduction of a measure to approve the President's rescission request, prompt reporting by committee or automatic discharge, special limits on floor amendments and debate, and so on. Under expedited rescission, congressional approval is still necessary to rescind the funding, but the fast-track procedures may help to encourage an up-or down vote on the President's proposal.
Date: May 3, 2011
Creator: McMurtry, Virginia A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Membership of the 112th Congress: A Profile (open access)

Membership of the 112th Congress: A Profile

This report presents a profile of the membership of the 112th Congress (2011-2012). Statistical information is included on selected characteristics of Members, including data on party affiliation, average age, occupation, education, length of congressional service, religious affiliation, gender, ethnicity, foreign births, and military service.
Date: April 11, 2011
Creator: Manning, Jennifer E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Community Development Block Grants: Funding Issues in the 112th Congress and Recent Funding History (open access)

Community Development Block Grants: Funding Issues in the 112th Congress and Recent Funding History

This report discusses funding Issues in the 112th Congress and Recent Funding History The Administration's FY2012 budget proposes to: (1) increase funding for CDBG formula grants by 10.5% from $3.303 billion appropriated in FY2010 to $3.691 billion; (2) eliminate funding for the Neighborhood Initiative and Economic Development Initiative programs; (3) eliminate funding for Section 107 activities; (4) transfer its Sustainable Communities Initiative to a new stand alone account; and (5) convert Section 108 loan guarantees to a fee-based program.
Date: May 4, 2011
Creator: Boyd, Eugene
System: The UNT Digital Library
Energy Tax Policy: Issues in the 112th Congress (open access)

Energy Tax Policy: Issues in the 112th Congress

The economic rationale for interventions in energy markets helps inform the debate surrounding energy tax policy. This report begins by providing background on the economic rationale for energy market interventions, highlighting various market failures. After identifying possible market failures in the production and consumption of energy, possible interventions are discussed. The report concludes with an analysis of energy tax policy as it stands at the start of the 112th Congress.
Date: April 14, 2011
Creator: Sherlock, Molly F. & Crandall-Hollick, Margot L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress (open access)

Chemical Facility Security: Issues and Options for the 112th Congress

This report provides a brief overview of the existing statutory authority and the regulation implementing this authority. It describes several policy issues raised in previous debates regarding chemical facility security and identifies policy options for congressional consideration. Finally, legislation in the 112th Congress is discussed.
Date: January 13, 2012
Creator: Shea, Dana A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S.-EU Trade and Economic Relations: Key Policy Issues for the 112th Congress (open access)

U.S.-EU Trade and Economic Relations: Key Policy Issues for the 112th Congress

U.S. and European private stakeholders, concerned about slow growth, job creation, and increased competition from emerging economies, have urged Brussels and Washington to strengthen transatlantic trade and economic ties by reducing or eliminating remaining trade barriers and by cooperating more closely in addressing global economic challenges. A select group of these issues are examined in this report.
Date: December 22, 2011
Creator: Ahearn, Raymond J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Energy Tax Policy: Issues in the 112th Congress (open access)

Energy Tax Policy: Issues in the 112th Congress

The economic rationale for interventions in energy markets helps inform the debate surrounding energy tax policy. This report begins by providing background on the economic rationale for energy market interventions, highlighting various market failures. After identifying possible market failures in the production and consumption of energy, possible interventions are discussed. The report concludes with an analysis of energy tax policy as it stands at the start of the 112th Congress.
Date: April 14, 2011
Creator: Sherlock, Molly F. & Crandall-Hollick, Margot L.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation (open access)

Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation

Much progress has been made in achieving the ambitious goals that Congress established more than 35 years ago in the Clean Water Act (CWA) to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters. However, long-standing problems persist, and new problems have emerged. Water quality problems are diverse, ranging from pollution runoff from farms and ranches, city streets, and other diffuse or "nonpoint" sources, to toxic substances discharged from factories and sewage treatment plants.
Date: November 7, 2011
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library
Economic Development Administration: Reauthorization and Funding Issues in the 112th Congress (open access)

Economic Development Administration: Reauthorization and Funding Issues in the 112th Congress

The 112th Congress may consider legislation to reauthorize and amend the Public Works and Economic Development Act (PWEDA), whose statutory authority expired on September 30, 2008. As part of those deliberations, Congress may consider a number of changes in the structure of Economic Development Administration (EDA) assistance programs.
Date: March 1, 2012
Creator: Boyd, Eugene
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Project BioShield Act: Issues for the 112th Congress (open access)

The Project BioShield Act: Issues for the 112th Congress

This report discusses the Project BioShield Act (P.L. 108-276), In 2004, passed by Congress to encourage the private sector to develop medical countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) terrorism agents and to provide a novel mechanism for federal acquisition of those newly developed countermeasures. This law provides three main authorities: (1) relaxing regulatory requirements for some CBRN terrorism-related spending, including hiring personnel and awarding research grants; (2) guaranteeing a federal market for new CBRN medical countermeasures; and (3) permitting emergency use of unapproved countermeasures.
Date: March 13, 2012
Creator: Gottron, Frank
System: The UNT Digital Library
Federal Contracting and Subcontracting with Small Businesses: Issues in the 112th Congress (open access)

Federal Contracting and Subcontracting with Small Businesses: Issues in the 112th Congress

Congress has generally broad authority to impose requirements upon the federal procurement process, or the process whereby agencies obtain goods and services from the private sector. One of the many ways in which Congress has exercised this authority is by enacting measures intended to promote contracting and subcontracting with "small businesses" by federal agencies. This report describes and analyzes measures that Members of the 112th Congress have enacted or proposed in response to particular issues pertaining to small business contracting and subcontracting.
Date: March 7, 2012
Creator: Manuel, Kate M. & Lunder, Erika K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR): A Primer for the 112th Congress (open access)

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR): A Primer for the 112th Congress

In the ongoing energy debate in Congress, one issue has been whether to approve energy development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR or Refuge) in northeastern Alaska or whether to continue to prohibit development to protect the area's biological, recreational, and subsistence values. ANWR is rich in fauna, flora, and oil and natural gas potential. Its development has been debated for more than 50 years, but sharp increases in energy prices from late 2000 to early 2001, in 2004-2008, and in 2011 from a variety of causes (e.g., terrorist attacks, oil spills, and energy infrastructure damage from hurricanes), have repeatedly intensified the debate. This primer provides background for analyzing the various claims through an examination of its history, and an analysis of its geological, biological, human, and economic resources.
Date: June 15, 2011
Creator: Corn, M. Lynne; Ratner, Michael & Alexander, Kristina
System: The UNT Digital Library
Online Copyright Infringement and Counterfeiting: Legislation in the 112th Congress (open access)

Online Copyright Infringement and Counterfeiting: Legislation in the 112th Congress

The global nature of the Internet offers expanded commercial opportunities for intellectual property (IP) rights holders but also increases the potential for copyright and trademark infringement. This report discusses the following recent draconian legislation in regard to this topic: the Preventing Real Online Threats to Economic Creativity and Theft of Intellectual Property Act (PROTECT IP Act); the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA); and the Online Protection and Enforcement of Digital Trade Act (OPEN Act).
Date: January 10, 2012
Creator: Yeh, Brian T.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Project BioShield Act: Issues for the 112th Congress (open access)

The Project BioShield Act: Issues for the 112th Congress

This report discusses the Project BioShield Act (P.L. 108-276), In 2004, passed by Congress to encourage the private sector to develop medical countermeasures against chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) terrorism agents and to provide a novel mechanism for federal acquisition of those newly developed countermeasures. This law provides three main authorities: (1) relaxing regulatory requirements for some CBRN terrorism-related spending, including hiring personnel and awarding research grants; (2) guaranteeing a federal market for new CBRN medical countermeasures; and (3) permitting emergency use of unapproved countermeasures.
Date: February 8, 2012
Creator: Gottron, Frank
System: The UNT Digital Library
Senate Committee Rules in the 112th Congress: A Comparison of Key Provisions (open access)

Senate Committee Rules in the 112th Congress: A Comparison of Key Provisions

This report reviews the requirements contained in Senate rules pertaining to committees; it then explores how each Senate committee addresses 11 specific issues: meeting day, hearing and meeting notice requirements, scheduling of witnesses, hearing quorum, business quorum, amendment filing requirements, proxy voting, polling, nominations, investigations, and subpoenas. In addition, the report looks at the unique provisions some committees have included in their rules in the miscellaneous category.
Date: February 17, 2012
Creator: Palmer, Betsy
System: The UNT Digital Library
Nominations to U.S. Circuit and District Courts by President Obama During the 111th and 112th Congresses (open access)

Nominations to U.S. Circuit and District Courts by President Obama During the 111th and 112th Congresses

Recent Senate debates in the 112th Congress over judicial nominations have focused on issues such as the relative degree of success of President Barack Obama's nominees in gaining Senate confirmation (compared with other recent Presidents) as well as the effect of delayed judicial appointments on judicial vacancy levels. The following report addresses these issues, and others, by providing a statistical overview of President Obama's nominees to U.S. circuit court of appeals and U.S. district court judgeships, current through May 31, 2012.
Date: June 1, 2012
Creator: McMillion, Barry J.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Tax Reform: An Overview of Proposals in the 112th Congress (open access)

Tax Reform: An Overview of Proposals in the 112th Congress

This report gives an overview of tax reform issues. The President and leading members of Congress have stated that fundamental tax reform is a major policy objective for the 112th Congress. Some Members have said that fundamental tax reform is needed in order to raise a large amount of additional revenue, which is necessary to reduce high forecast budget deficits and the sharply rising national debt. Congressional interest has been expressed in both a major overhaul of the U.S. tax system and the feasibility of levying a consumption tax.
Date: May 31, 2012
Creator: Bickley, James M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation (open access)

Water Quality Issues in the 112th Congress: Oversight and Implementation

This report discusses water quality legislation. A number of Clean Water Act issues have been the subject of congressional oversight and legislation, including the environmental and economic impacts of Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts, federal promulgation of water quality standards in Florida, regulation of surface coal mining activities in Appalachia, and other CWA regulatory actions. Congressional interest in several of these issues has been reflected in debate over policy provisions of legislation providing FY2012 appropriations for EPA (P.L. 112-74).
Date: April 9, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
System: The UNT Digital Library