On December 22, 2010, President Obama signed P.L. 111-321 into law. It called for the repeal of the existing law (Title 10, United States Code, §654) barring open homosexuality in the military by prescribing a series of steps that must take place before repeal occurs. One step was fulfilled on July 22, 2011, when the President signed the certification of the process ending the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which was repealed on September 20, 2011. However, in repealing the law and the so-called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, a number of issues have been raised, but were not addressed by P.L. 111-321. This report considers issues that Congress may wish to consider regarding matters arising as a result of the repeal of §654.

Within the Illinois Basin, most of the oilfields are mature and have been extensively waterflooded with water cuts that range up to 99% in many of the larger fields. In order to maximize production of significant remaining mobile oil from these fields, new recovery techniques need to be researched and applied. The purpose of this project was to conduct reservoir characterization studies supporting Alkaline-Surfactant-Polymer Floods in two distinct sandstone reservoirs in Lawrence Field, Lawrence County, Illinois. A project using alkaline-surfactantpolymer (ASP) has been established in the century old Lawrence Field in southeastern Illinois where original oil in place (OOIP) is estimated at over a billion barrels and 400 million barrels have been recovered leaving more than 600 million barrels as an EOR target. Radial core flood analysis using core from the field demonstrated recoveries greater than 20% of OOIP. While the lab results are likely optimistic to actual field performance, the ASP tests indicate that substantial reserves could be recovered even if the field results are 5 to 10% of OOIP. Reservoir characterization is a key factor in the success of any EOR application. Reservoirs within the Illinois Basin are frequently characterized as being highly compartmentalized resulting in multiple flow …

Presents a new algorithm for identifying dark matter halos, substructure, and tidal features.

This report discusses the current political and economic conditions in Russia, focusing on the impact of Vladimir Putin's leadership and the leadership of his successor/protégé, Dmitriy Medvedev, both of which have steered Russia away from democratization. The report also discusses the state of the economy since the Soviet collapse in 1999, how the recent global economic downturn has affected Russia, the state of Russia's military, and the current relationship between Russia and the United States.

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Leakage testing of a representative sample of the safety-significant isolation valves for Double Valve Isolation (DVI) in an environment that simulates the abrasive characteristics of the Hanford Tank Farms Waste Transfer System during waste feed delivery to the Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP) is to be conducted. The testing will consist of periodic leak performed on the DVI valves after prescribed numbers of valve cycles (open and close) in a simulated environment representative of the abrasive properties of the waste and the Waste Transfer System. The valve operations include exposure to cycling conditions that include gravity drain and flush operation following slurry transfer. The simulant test will establish the performance characteristics and verify compliance with the Documented Safety Analysis. Proper simulant development is essential to ensure that the critical process streams characteristics are represented, National Research Council report “Advice on the Department of Energy's Cleanup Technology Roadmap: Gaps and Bridges”

This study’s objective is to examine interrelated technical and economic avenues for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid to incorporate up to and over 20% wind generation by 2030. Our specific interests are to look at the factors that will affect the implementation of both high level of wind power penetration (> 20% generation) and installation of large scale storage.

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.

Report on nonfinancial data of the Texas State Office of Risk Management for fiscal year 2012, including information about fees, spaces, progress on the HUB (historically underutilized business) plan, environmentally sensitive purchases, and indirect costs.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Outpatient medical appointment wait times reported by the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), are unreliable. Wait times for outpatient medical appointments--referred to as medical appointments--are calculated as the number of days elapsed from the desired date, which is defined as the date on which the patient or health care provider wants the patient to be seen. The reliability of reported wait time performance measures is dependent on the consistency with which schedulers record the desired date in the scheduling system in accordance with VHA's scheduling policy. However, VHA's scheduling policy and training documents for recording desired date are unclear and do not ensure consistent use of the desired date. Some schedulers at Veterans Affairs medical centers (VAMC) that GAO visited did not record the desired date correctly. For example, three schedulers changed the desired date based on appointment availability; this would have resulted in a reported wait time that was shorter than the patient actually experienced. VHA officials acknowledged limitations of measuring wait times based on desired date, and described additional information used to monitor veterans' access to medical appointments, …

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A number of factors—both external and internal to the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA)—have contributed to the increase in processing timeframes and subsequent growth in the backlog of veterans’ disability compensation claims. As the population of new veterans has swelled in recent years, the annual number of claims received by VBA has gone up. Compared to the past, these claims have a higher number of disabling conditions, and some of these conditions, such as traumatic brain injuries, make their assessment complex. Moreover, due to new regulations that have established eligibility for benefits for new diseases associated with Agent Orange exposure, VBA adjudicated 260,000 previously denied and new claims. Beyond these external factors, issues with the design and implementation of the compensation program have contributed to timeliness challenges. For example, the law requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to assist veterans in obtaining records that support their claim. However, VBA officials said that lengthy timeframes in obtaining military records—particularly for members of the National Guard and Reserve—and Social Security Administration (SSA) medical records impact VA’s duty to assist, possibly delaying a decision on a veteran’s disability claim. …

The Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF) will use colemanite bearing concrete neutron absorber panels credited with attenuating neutron flux in the criticality design analyses and shielding operators from radiation. The Savannah River National Laboratory is tasked with measuring the total density, partial hydrogen density, and partial boron density of the colemanite concrete. Sample PBC-44.2 was received on 9/20/2012 and analyzed. The average total density measured by the ASTM method C 642 was 2.03 g/cm{sup 3}, within the lower bound of 1.88 g/cm3. The average partial hydrogen density was 6.64E-02 g/cm{sup 3} as measured using method ASTM E 1311 and met the lower bound of 6.04E-02 g/cm{sup 3}. The average measured partial boron density was 1.70E-01 g/cm{sup 3} which met the lower bound of 1.65E-01 g/cm{sup 3} measured by the ASTM C 1301 method.

The Mixed Oxide Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF) will use colemanite bearing concrete neutron absorber panels credited with attenuating neutron flux in the criticality design analyses and shielding operators from radiation. The Savannah River National Laboratory is tasked with measuring the total density, partial hydrogen density, and partial boron density of the colemanite concrete. Samples poured 8/29/12 were received on 9/20/2012 and analyzed. The average total density of each of the samples measured by the ASTM method C 642 was within the lower bound of 1.88 g/cm{sup 3}. The average partial hydrogen density of samples 8.6.1, 8.7.1, and 8.5.3 as measured using method ASTM E 1311 met the lower bound of 6.04E-02 g/cm{sup 3}. The average measured partial boron density of each sample met the lower bound of 1.65E-01 g/cm{sup 3} measured by the ASTM C 1301 method. The average partial hydrogen density of samples 8.5.1, 8.6.3, and 8.7.3 did not meet the lower bound. The samples, as received, were not wrapped in a moist towel as previous samples and appeared to be somewhat drier. This may explain the lower hydrogen partial density with respect to previous samples.

This report focuses on the potential implications of China's naval modernization for future required U.S. Navy capabilities.

This report provides background information and potential oversight issues for Congress on the Coast Guard's programs for procuring 8 National Security Cutters (NSCs), 25 Offshore Patrol Cutters (OPCs), and 58 Fast Response Cutters (FRCs).

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has broad authority to identify, assess, and address product risks, but faces some challenges in identifying and responding to new risks in a timely manner. CPSC uses various means to stay informed about risks that may be associated with new or existing products. These methods include (1) market surveillance activities for imported products, retail stores, and Internet sales; and (2) formal agreements and various activities with other agencies. However, certain legal restrictions may hamper CPSC's ability to stay informed about new product hazards to public health and safety. Specifically, because of certain restrictions in the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA), CPSC cannot agree to allow foreign agencies to disclose nonpublic information they receive from CPSC. While the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) allows CPSC greater freedom to disclose information to U.S. courts, Congress, and state and local agencies, CPSC has been unable to complete information-sharing agreements with foreign counterparts as envisioned because it cannot offer its counterparts reciprocal terms on disclosure of nonpublic information. Due to the growing number of imported consumer products, this restriction on sharing information may …

This report discusses the earned pension benefits under one of two retirement plans for the federal employees with permanent appointments.

The ability to unplug key waste transfer routes is generally essential for successful tank farms operations. All transfer lines run the risk of plugging but the cross site transfer line poses increased risk due to its longer length. The loss of a transfer route needed to support the waste feed delivery mission impacts the cost and schedule of the Hanford clean up mission. This report addresses the engineering feasibility for two pressure pulse technologies, which are similar in concept, for pipeline unplugging.

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "Agencies did not publish a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), enabling the public to comment on a proposed rule, for about 35 percent of major rules and about 44 percent of nonmajor rules published during 2003 through 2010. A major rule has significant economic impact and may, for example, have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more. Agencies published a total of 568 major rules from 2003 through 2010. Agencies also published about 30,000 nonmajor rules during this period, which have less economic significance and can involve routine administrative issues."

The Hualapai Department of Planning and Economic Development, with funding assistance from the U.S. Department of Energy, Tribal Energy Program, with the aid of six consultants has completed the four key prerequisites as follows: 1. Identify the site area for development and its suitability for construction. 2. Determine the wind resource potential for the identified site area. 3. Determine the electrical transmission and interconnection feasibility to get the electrical power produced to the marketplace. 4. Complete an initial permitting and environmental assessment to determine the feasibility for getting the project permitted. Those studies indicated a suitable wind resource and favorable conditions for permitting and construction. The permitting and environmental study did not reveal any fatal flaws. A review of the best power sale opportunities indicate southern California has the highest potential for obtaining a PPA that may make the project viable. Based on these results, the recommendation is for the Hualapai Tribal Nation to move forward with attracting a qualified wind developer to work with the Tribe to move the project into the second phase - determining the reality factors for developing a wind project. a qualified developer will bid to a utility or negotiate a PPA to make the …

This report summarizes the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) and jurisdiction in cases against foreign defendants and analyzes the recent court of appeals decision.

The primary objectives were (1) to quantify the interactions of organic ligands with Tc(IV) through the generation of thermodynamic (complexation) and kinetic parameters needed to assess and predict the mobility of reduced Tc(IV) at DOE contaminated sites; and (2) to determine the impact of organic ligands on the mobility and fate of reduced Tc(IV) under field geochemical conditions.

Correspondence issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "A total of 22 of the 39 former high-ranking officials (admiral-level and SES officials) who separated from the Coast Guard from 2006 through 2010 were compensated at some point from 2006 through 2011 by contractors that received obligations from the Coast Guard in calendar year 2011. We found that 12 of these former officials were compensated in calendar year 2011 by major Coast Guard contractors--those contractors receiving more than $10 million in obligations during that calendar year. The responsibilities of these officials vary, but 9 of these 12 officials were assigned by major contractors to positions involving the development of new business."

Report from the Texas House Committee on Transportation describing the group's goals, activities, accomplishments, and other information, for review by the 83rd Texas Legislature.