This report (1) briefly reviews the current U.S. corporate tax system; (2) discusses economic factors that may be considered in the corporate tax reform debate; and (3) presents corporate tax reform policy options, including a brief discussion of current corporate tax reform proposals.

This report provides an overview of key aspects of the 18 selected federal statutes applicable to individuals in certain private-sector industries. It focuses on the protections provided to employees who believe they have been subject to retaliation, rather than on how or where alleged misconduct should be disclosed. In addition, the report also includes an overview of the Whistleblower Protection Act. While state law may also provide whistleblower protections for employees, this report focuses only on the aforementioned federal statutory provisions.

This report provides a brief discussion of the post-employment restrictions, often called "revolving door" laws, that are applicable to members, officers, and employees of Congress after they leave congressional service or employment.

This report provides an overview of Egyptian politics and current issues in U.S.-Egyptian relations. It briefly provides a political history of modern Egypt, an overview of its political institutions, and a discussion of the prospects for democratization in Egypt. U.S.-Egyptian relations are complex and multi-faceted, and this report addresses the following current topics: the Arab-Israeli peace process, Iraq, terrorism, democratization and reform, human rights, trade, and military cooperation.

This report discusses government support given to Ally Financial, formerly known as General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC), which provides auto financing, insurance, online banking, and mortgage and commercial financing. This report looks at how or even it GMAC will be able to pay back the government for Trouble Asset Relief Program (TARP) funding.

This report describes the history of temporary federal extensions to unemployment benefits from 1980 to the present. It has five sections which discuss: [1] background information on unemployment compensation (UC) benefits, [2] a definition of a recession and the process of declaring a recession, [3] a summary of the legislative history of federal extensions of unemployment benefits, [4] figures examining the statistics of recessions, and [5] previous methods for financing temporary recession programs.

This report analyzes U.S. and international sanctions against Iran and provides examples of companies and countries that conduct business with Iran, based on a wide range of open-source reporting.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "While the number of community banks and credit unions has declined in recent years, they have remained important lenders to small businesses and other local customers. From 1985 through 2010, the number of banks under $10 billion in assets and credit unions declined by over 50 percent to 7,551 and 7,339, respectively. The decline resulted largely from consolidations, which were facilitated by changes in federal law that made it easier for banks and credit unions to expand geographically. Another factor that may have contributed to consolidations is economies of scale, which refer to how an institution's size is related to its costs. Although the existence of economies of scale in banking has been subject to debate, some recent research suggests that banks can save costs by expanding. Despite the decline in their number, community banks and credit unions have maintained their relationship-banking model, relying on their relationships with customers and local knowledge to make loans. Such institutions can use their relationship-based information to make loans to small businesses and other borrowers that larger banks may not make because of their general reliance on more automated processes. …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins ""

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "For fiscal years 2010 and 2011, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) allocated funds from the Prevention and Public Health Fund (PPHF) for 43 activities in five agencies. These activities—which include HHS programs and initiatives—were administered by HHS’s Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Office of the Secretary (OS). Most of the $500 million available for fiscal year 2010 was allocated for activities administered by HRSA, and most of the $750 million available for fiscal year 2011 was allocated for activities administered by CDC (see fig.). HHS agencies funded individual projects with PPHF funds through grants, contracts, and interagency agreements."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "GAO's analysis of Madoff account data shows that more than three-fourths of the firm's customers were individuals and families (individuals). The remaining accounts were held by institutions, such as pension funds and charities. A higher proportion of accounts held by an individual (60 percent) were "net winners" based on their net equity position--meaning they had withdrawn more from their accounts than they had deposited--compared to accounts held by institutions (50 percent). Correspondingly, 40 percent of institutional accounts were "net losers" that had deposited more into their accounts than they had withdrawn, compared to 29 percent of individuals' accounts that were net losers. However, individual and institutional accounts had similar deposit and withdrawal activity from 1981 through 2008, including increased withdrawals immediately before the firm's failure in December 2008."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "As GAO’s past work has shown, and other studies and specialists have confirmed, there are a number of key energy-water nexus issues that Congress and federal agencies need to consider when developing and implementing national policies for energy and water resources. Specifically:"

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is responsible for governmentwide federal spectrum management, but GAO reported in 2011 that NTIA’s efforts in this area had been limited. In 2003, the President directed NTIA to develop plans identifying federal and nonfederal spectrum needs, and in 2008, NTIA issued the federal plan. GAO found it did not identify governmentwide spectrum needs and did not contain key elements and conform to best practices for strategic planning. Furthermore, NTIA’s primary spectrum management operations do not focus on governmentwide needs. Instead, NTIA depends on agency self-evaluation of spectrum needs and focuses on mitigating interference among spectrum users, with limited emphasis on overall spectrum management. Additionally, NTIA’s data management system is antiquated and lacks internal controls to ensure the accuracy of agency-reported data, making it unclear if reliable data inform decisions about federal spectrum use. NTIA is developing a new data management system, but implementation is years away."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The design of the United Nations (UN) World Food Program's (WFP) internal controls related to delivery and monitoring of food assistance generally reflects principles for internal controls and enterprise risk management developed by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO). WFP has developed an internal control framework that has, like the COSO internal control framework, five components: internal environment, risk management, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring. However, the design of some of WFP's controls has weaknesses that could expose WFP to risks such as waste, fraud, and abuse. For example, WFP's Executive Board oversight is limited, and it does not fully utilize the WFP Audit Committee to assist in overseeing the effectiveness of WFP's risk management and internal control processes. Also, WFP has designed risk management policies but has not developed detailed guidance to instruct staff in addressing risks, especially at the country level where WFP is most vulnerable. Additionally, as recommended by COSO, WFP has established control activities that address risks to its objectives--for example, policies and procedures designed to help ensure tracking of food assistance from delivery at the …

Testimony issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the White House have acted to strengthen biosurveillance consistent with prior GAO recommendations made from December 2009 through October 2011.In August 2012, DHS issued a strategic plan for its National Biosurveillance Integration Center (NBIC) that officials say was written in coordination with federal partners and designed to respond to GAO’s December 2009 findings that NBIC did not have key resources to carry out its mission, in part due to collaboration issues it faced. In July 2012, the White House released the National Strategy for Biosurveillance, which describes guiding principles, core functions, and enablers for strengthening biosurveillance. In June 2010, GAO recommended a national biosurveillance strategy to provide a unifying framework for building and maintaining a national biosurveillance capability. In October 2011, GAO also recommended the strategy account for the need to leverage resources and respond to challenges while partnering with nonfederal entities. The July 2012 strategy partially responds to the issues GAO called for such a strategy to address, but does not fully address them, as discussed below. A strategic implementation plan is to be published within 120 days of strategy …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "About 9 million of Medicare's over 48 million beneficiaries are also eligible for Medicaid because they meet income and other criteria. These dual-eligible beneficiaries have greater health care challenges than other Medicare beneficiaries, increasing their need for care coordination across the two programs. In addition to meeting all the requirements of other MA plans, D-SNPs are required by CMS to provide specialized services targeted to the needs of dual-eligible beneficiaries as well as integrate benefits or coordinate care with Medicaid services. GAO was asked to examine D-SNPs' specialized services to dual-eligible beneficiaries. GAO (1) analyzed the characteristics of dual-eligible beneficiaries in D-SNPs and other MA plans, (2) reviewed differences in specialized services between D-SNPs and other MA plans, and (3) reviewed how D-SNPs work with state Medicaid agencies to enhance benefit integration and care coordination. GAO analyzed CMS enrollment, plan benefit package, projected revenue, and beneficiary health status data; reviewed 15 D-SNP models of care and 2012 contracts with states; and interviewed representatives from 15 D-SNPs and Medicaid agency officials in 5 states."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The U.S. tactical wheeled vehicle (TWV) industrial base includes seven manufacturers that utilize common suppliers of major subsystems, such as engines and armor. Four of these manufacturers reported that their reliance on sales to the Department of Defense (DOD) varies, in part, as they also produce commercial vehicles or parts. Collectively, the seven manufacturers supplied DOD with over 158,000 TWVs to meet wartime needs from fiscal years 2007 through 2011. DOD, however, plans to return to pre-war purchasing levels, buying about 8,000 TWVs over the next several years, in part, due to fewer requirements."

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "In summary, according to FMS officials, FMS considers both TOP and the cross-servicing program to be fully mature in that all key elements of the programs have been implemented. As such, FMS's current and future efforts will focus on enhancements that will (1) for TOP, facilitate its ability to increase federal nontax debt collections through additional offsets and (2) for the cross-servicing program, enable it to collect such debt more efficiently and effectively. Further, FMS is considering a number of initiatives intended to improve centralized collection of delinquent federal nontax debt. These initiatives primarily involve increasing the amount of debt subject to collection by FMS, bolstering FMS's set of debt collection tools, and enhancing FMS's internal operations and interactions with referring federal agencies. Several of FMS's initiatives, which are in the early stages of development, could, if approved and effectively implemented, address long-standing concerns about FMS's centralized debt collection program."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The 16 new beyond-perimeter flights that were authorized in 2012 for Reagan National Airport are likely to have a limited effect on the airports in the Washington, D.C., area. Reagan National has sufficient runway capacity to accommodate the new beyond-perimeter flights and, with some improvements to baggage handling and security screening facilities, will have sufficient terminal capacity. Reagan National is routinely operating below 67 hourly takeoffs and landings ("slots")--the maximum number authorized in any one hour--mostly because general aviation or other unscheduled aircraft operations decreased substantially after new security restrictions were imposed following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. GAO's analysis found that the new beyond-perimeter flights could add a maximum of about 5 percent of 2011 passenger levels at Reagan National, and if all of that increase came from passengers moving from Dulles International or Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall, these airports could experience a maximum decline of 4.1 percent of 2011 passenger levels. As a result, because Reagan National and Dulles generally do not share what are largely fixed costs, passengers shifting from Dulles to the new beyond-perimeter flights at Reagan National would, in the …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Changes to the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) for Firms program mandated by the Trade and Globalization Adjustment Assistance Act led to program improvements and increased participation, but participation declined when the legislative changes lapsed and the program faced funding uncertainty. The changes resulted in reduced time to certify firms, new performance reporting, and increased participation. For example, officials told GAO that creating a director position and other full-time positions for the program reduced time to certify firms. In fulfilling new reporting requirements, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) collected information on performance measures and issued three annual reports. Also, EDA certified 26 services firms not previously eligible, as well as 32 additional firms based on more flexible certification requirements to demonstrate trade impacts. Although EDA increased the number of certified petitions and approved business recovery plans from fiscal years 2008 through 2010, the lapse in the legislative changes from February to October 2011 and uncertainty about program funding contributed to a decline in certified petitions and approved plans in fiscal year 2011."

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Little is known about the characteristics of private sector multiple employer plans (MEP), especially information regarding the employers that participate in them. Although no participating employer information is currently collected in the Form 5500, the primary source for pension information reported to the government, some plan-level information on MEPs is available. GAO’s analysis of 2009 plan-level data shows that the bulk of MEP participants and assets resided in the largest 25 private-sector MEPs. Three major sponsor types emerged among the top 25 plans: large corporations, associations, and professional employer organizations (PEO), which are firms that provide payroll and other human resources services to clients. These sponsor types differ in various ways, but notably, associations and PEO sponsors GAO interviewed tended to have a large number of employers participating in their plans. Little is also known about a fourth category of sponsor type called “open” MEPs, a type of MEP in which employers in the plan share no common relationship or affiliation with the other employers in the plan. This sponsor type appears to have come about in response to 2002 IRS guidance that allowed certain PEOs …

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Unemployment compensation (UC) benefits have been fully subject to the federal income tax since the passage of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 (P.L. 99-514). Individuals who receive UC benefits during a year may elect to have the federal (and in some cases state) income tax withheld from their benefits. This report provides an overview of the taxation of UC benefits and legislation related to taxing UC benefits.