Texas Register, Volume 37, Number 36, Pages 7009-7236, September 7, 2012 (open access)

Texas Register, Volume 37, Number 36, Pages 7009-7236, September 7, 2012

A weekly publication, the Texas Register serves as the journal of state agency rulemaking for Texas. Information published in the Texas Register includes proposed, adopted, withdrawn and emergency rule actions, notices of state agency review of agency rules, governor's appointments, attorney general opinions, and miscellaneous documents such as requests for proposals. After adoption, these rulemaking actions are codified into the Texas Administrative Code.
Date: September 7, 2012
Creator: Texas. Secretary of State.
Object Type: Journal/Magazine/Newsletter
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0964 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0964

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Confidentiality of alcoholic beverage reports submitted to the Comptroller under section 151.462 of the Tax Code.
Date: September 12, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0965 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0965

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Transfer of a tax lien pursuant to section 32.06 of the Tax Code, and the items that may be secured by the transferred lien.
Date: September 12, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0966 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0966

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Authority to operate a golf cart under section 551.403 of the Transportation Code.
Date: September 12, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0967 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0967

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Whether an individual may be prosecuted for an alleged assaultive offense that occurred in 1998 when the person was thirteen years of age, and in which the victim died in 2011.
Date: September 14, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0968 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0968

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Authority of the City of San Antonio, Bexar County, and VIA Metropolitan Transit Authority to use the proceeds of a sales and use tax for a streetcar project in light of certain representations that were made preceding and election to create an advanced transportation district (RQ-1048-GA)
Date: September 17, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0969 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0969

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Authority of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to promulgate a rule that would permit a veteran who is entitled to two kinds of federal education benefits to be eligible to apply for benefits under section 54.341, Education Code, based upon the federal program to which the veteran opts to apply rather than on the federal program which he or she is entitled to use (RQ-1053-GA)
Date: September 24, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0970 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0970

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Whether a state agency's demand for restitution based upon an unadjudicated claim for breach of a grant contract constitutes a "debt" to the state for purposes of section 403.055, Government Code (RQ-1054-GA)
Date: September 24, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0971 (open access)

Texas Attorney General Opinion: GA-0971

Document issued by the Office of the Attorney General of Texas in Austin, Texas, providing an interpretation of Texas law. It provides the opinion of the Texas Attorney General, Greg Abbott, regarding a legal question submitted for clarification: Authority of a county bail bond board with regard to attorneys who execute bail bonds: Clarification of Attorney General Opinion No. GA-0197 (2004) (RQ-1058-GA)
Date: September 24, 2012
Creator: Texas. Attorney-General's Office.
Object Type: Text
System: The Portal to Texas History
Air Quality: EPA's 2012 Proposed Changes to the Particulate Matter (PM) Standard (open access)

Air Quality: EPA's 2012 Proposed Changes to the Particulate Matter (PM) Standard

This report summarizes the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) June 2012 proposed changes to the particulate matter (PM) National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS) and includes comparisons with previous (1997) and current (2006) promulgated and proposed standards. Key actions leading up to the June 2012 proposal, and potential issues and concerns associated with the proposal to strengthen the PM2.5 annual standard, are also highlighted.
Date: September 5, 2012
Creator: Esworthy, Robert
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
The War Powers Resolution: After Thirty-Eight Years (open access)

The War Powers Resolution: After Thirty-Eight Years

This report discusses and assesses the War Powers Resolution and its application since enactment in 1973, providing detailed background on various cases in which it was used, as well as cases in which issues of its applicability were raised. It will be revised biannually.
Date: September 24, 2012
Creator: Grimmett, Richard F.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Drones in Domestic Surveillance Operations: Fourth Amendment Implications and Legislative Responses (open access)

Drones in Domestic Surveillance Operations: Fourth Amendment Implications and Legislative Responses

This report first explores the potential uses of drones in the domestic sphere by federal, state, and local governments. It then surveys current Fourth Amendment jurisprudence, including cases surrounding privacy in the home, privacy in public spaces, location tracking, manned aerial surveillance, and those involving the national border. Next, it considers how existing jurisprudence may inform current and proposed drone uses. It then describes the various legislative measures introduced in the 112th Congress to address the legal and policy issues surrounding drones and, finally, briefly identifies several alternative approaches that may constrain the potential scope of drone surveillance.
Date: September 6, 2012
Creator: Thompson, Richard M., II
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act (open access)

Reauthorization of the FISA Amendments Act

This report describes the changes that were made by the FISA Amendments Act within the context of the government's authority to conduct surveillance for foreign intelligence purposes.
Date: September 12, 2012
Creator: Liu, Edward C.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Corporate Income Tax System: Overview and Options for Reform (open access)

The Corporate Income Tax System: Overview and Options for Reform

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.
Date: September 13, 2012
Creator: Keightley, Mark P. & Sherlock, Molly F.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Whistleblower Protections Under Federal Law: An Overview (open access)

Whistleblower Protections Under Federal Law: An Overview

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.
Date: September 13, 2012
Creator: Shimabukuro, Jon O. & Whitaker, L. Paige
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Post-Employment, "Revolving Door," Laws for Federal Personnel (open access)

Post-Employment, "Revolving Door," Laws for Federal Personnel

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.
Date: September 13, 2012
Creator: Maskell, Jack
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Taxes and the Economy: An Economic Analysis of the Top Tax Rates Since 1945 (open access)

Taxes and the Economy: An Economic Analysis of the Top Tax Rates Since 1945

This report attempts to clarify whether or not there is an association between the tax rates of the highest income taxpayers and economic growth. Data is analyzed to illustrate the association between the tax rates of the highest income taxpayers and measures of economic growth.
Date: September 14, 2012
Creator: Hungerford, Thomas L.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Prospects for Democracy in Hong Kong: Results of the 2012 Elections (open access)

Prospects for Democracy in Hong Kong: Results of the 2012 Elections

This report looks at the state of Hong Kong politics after the 2012 elections. It covers three key reasons why Congress may consider appropriating funds to foster the development of civil society and democratic practices in Hong Kong: [1] it is U.S. policy to support democracy in Hong Kong, [2] the conduct of the 2012 elections may be indicators of support for democratic reforms, and [3] there is a possibility that democracy in Hong Kong could lead to democratic reforms in Mainland China.
Date: September 14, 2012
Creator: Martin, Michael F.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Airport Body Scanners: The Role of Advanced Imaging Technology in Airline Passenger Screening (open access)

Airport Body Scanners: The Role of Advanced Imaging Technology in Airline Passenger Screening

This report looks at privacy and health issues, as well as effectiveness, of advanced imaging technology (AIT) scanners at airports deployed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
Date: September 20, 2012
Creator: Elias, Bart
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Clean Water Act and Pollutant Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) (open access)

Clean Water Act and Pollutant Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs)

This report discusses the total maximum daily load (TMDL) program which regulates pollutants to ensure that water quality standards can be attained; section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act requires states to identify waters that are impaired by pollution, even after application of pollution controls. The report focuses on new challenges facing the TMDL program, including more complex TMDLs, larger scale impairments, and nonpoint sources.
Date: September 21, 2012
Creator: Copeland, Claudia
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
DHS Headquarters Consolidation Project: Issues for Congress (open access)

DHS Headquarters Consolidation Project: Issues for Congress

This report outlines the policy considerations to be evaluated in deciding whether to continue funding the consolidated Department of Homeland Security (DHS) headquarters, and to explore some of the benefits and consequences of several possible ways forward.
Date: September 21, 2012
Creator: Painter, William L.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. Public Diplomacy: Legislative Proposals to Amend Prohibitions on Disseminating Materials to Domestic Audiences (open access)

U.S. Public Diplomacy: Legislative Proposals to Amend Prohibitions on Disseminating Materials to Domestic Audiences

This report looks at amendments to the Smith-Mundt Act, proposed by the 112th Congress that would restate provisions to exclude any ban on domestic dissemination of international information materials prepared for foreign public available to a domestic audience. The original legislation was also amended in 1972, and a 1985 provision, popularly known as the Zorinsky Amendment, prohibited domestic dissemination of international information materials and products.
Date: September 21, 2012
Creator: Weed, Matthew C.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 (Post-9/11 GI Bill): Primer and Issues (open access)

The Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 (Post-9/11 GI Bill): Primer and Issues

This report provides a description of the eligibility requirements, benefit availability, benefit payments, participation, and obligations of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. The report also describes a few issues that may be addressed by Congress.
Date: September 21, 2012
Creator: Dortch, Cassandria
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library
Energy Policy: Election Year Issues and Legislative Proposals (open access)

Energy Policy: Election Year Issues and Legislative Proposals

This report looks at how controversies stemming from various importance given to different aspects of United States energy policy affect the legislation on energy policy, particularly during election years.
Date: September 24, 2012
Creator: Behrens, Carl E.
Object Type: Report
System: The UNT Digital Library