After 7 years of relatively high returns, cattle producers by 1994 were experiencing steeply falling prices--mainly caused by abundant supplies of cattle destined for U.S. feedlots. Record-high grain prices and dry pastures amplified the problem. Because of the lengthy biological cycle governing cattle production, large numbers will be coming onto the market for some time, as producers undertake the slow process of curtailing herd expansion.

A nuclear test ban is the oldest item on the nuclear arms control agenda; Congress has debated the issue since the start of the nuclear age. Three treaties limit testing to underground only, with a maximum force equal to 150,000 tons of TNT.

This report discusses the legislation by the 104th Congress to increase overall adoption rates by prohibiting racial and other discriminatory practices in the adoption process. The report identifies this as a provision of the Small Business Job Protection Act, which will also increase minimum wage.

The Naval Petroleum Reserves (NPR)--consisting of the large Elk Hills Field in California and smaller fields at Buena Vista Hills (CA) and Teapot Dome (WY)--were established in the early 1900s. Congress authorized full production of the NPR in 1976. Production at Elk Hills, the most significant field, peaked at 181,000 barrels per day (b/d) in 1981; currently, it is 65,000 b/d. The Clinton Administration earmarked the NPR for sale in its FY1996 budget, estimating its gross value at $2.6 billion.