Policy Library

6,587 documents

Recess Appointments: A Legal Overview
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Resources · 1,820 words · PDF available
The Constitution provides two methods by which the President can appoint officers. One is through the Appointments Clause; the other is through the Recess Appointments Clause. This In Focus provides a...
Kyrgyz Republic
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Resources · 1,558 words · PDF available
Overview The Kyrgyz Republic (commonly known as Kyrgyzstan) is a mountainous, landlocked country that borders the People’s Republic of China (PRC, or China), Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan (se...
The Three Seas Initiative
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Resources · 1,401 words
The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is a regional effort in Europe to expand cross-border energy, transportation, and digital infrastructure and boost economic development in the area between the Adriatic...
Greenhouse Gas Reporting for Carbon Injection and Sequestration Through Enhanced Oil Recovery Wells
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Resources · 1,864 words · PDF available
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) requires certain facilities to report their emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). The GHGRP also requires an...
Germany’s February 2025 Election
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Posts · 1,031 words · PDF available
Political leaders in Germany—Europe’s most populous country and largest economy—are engaged in negotiations to form a new government following a February 23, 2025, snap parliamentary election. Electio...
Proposals to Limit Financial Activities of Members of Congress: Background and Analysis of Legislative Proposals
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-19 · Reports · 12,787 words · PDF available
In recent years, some Members of Congress have proposed reforms that would prohibit the purchase, sale, or ownership of certain financial instruments by Members of Congress and other specified congres...
Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920 to 2025
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Reports · 6,345 words · PDF available
This report details the evolution of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees’ subcommittee structure from the 1920s to the present. In 1920, the House adopted a change in its rules to consolida...
Child Support Services: Program Basics
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Reports · 9,278 words · PDF available
The Child Support program was enacted in 1975 as a federal-state program (Title IV-D of the Social Security Act). It was originally referred to as the Child Support Enforcement program and was recentl...
Child Support Services Annual User Fee: In Brief
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Reports · 4,720 words · PDF available
Section 454(6)(B)(ii) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 654) requires that states impose an annual user fee for child support services provided to families with no connection to the welfare system...
Traditional, Roth, and Rollover Individual Retirement Account (IRA) Ownership in 2022
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Reports · 4,019 words · PDF available
Households rely on a variety of sources for income in retirement. These include, for example, payments from Social Security, a federal social insurance program that provides monthly benefits to insure...
The Child Support Services (CSS) Program
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Resources · 1,445 words · PDF available
Introduction The child support program was enacted into law on January 4, 1975 (P.L. 93-647). It was originally referred to as the Child Support Enforcement program and was recently renamed by the U.S...
Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) and Public Safety Officers’ Educational Assistance (PSOEA) Programs
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-18 · Reports · 5,707 words · PDF available
The Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) program provides cash benefits to federal, state, and local law enforcement officers; firefighters; employees of emergency management agencies; and members ...
Naming Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Facilities
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Reports · 2,263 words · PDF available
Congress has the authority to name Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities in honor of individuals. This includes naming a facility, structure, or real property of VA, and a major portion (such...
Understanding NOAA’s “Billion-Dollar Disasters”
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Resources · 1,282 words · PDF available
Each year, communities across the United States experience loss of life, injuries, and property damage from disasters related to weather and climate. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administratio...
Kazakhstan
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Resources · 1,532 words · PDF available
Overview Kazakhstan, a U.S. partner in areas such as counterterrorism, regional security, and nuclear nonproliferation, is a strategically situated country with significant hydrocarbon and mineral res...
India-U.S.: Major Arms Transfers and Military Exercises
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Resources · 1,619 words · PDF available
Since 2008, defense trade has emerged as a major pillar of the U.S.-India security partnership, and bilateral military exercises across all services are now routine. The U.S. Congress designated India...
Social Security Administration (SSA): Announced Restructuring and Other Changes
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Posts · 994 words · PDF available
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is an independent agency in the executive branch headed by the commissioner of Social Security (COSS). It is responsible for administering Social Security and ...
Uzbekistan
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-17 · Resources · 1,509 words · PDF available
Overview Uzbekistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia that became independent with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Because it has the largest population in the region and is the onl...
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF): Production Pathways
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Resources · 1,492 words · PDF available
Many in Congress have expressed an interest in sustainable aviation fuel (SAF)—a nascent industry. SAF may potentially provide market opportunities for both agricultural producers and biofuel producer...
Federal Tax Enforcement: An Overview
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Resources · 1,719 words · PDF available
Federal tax enforcement involves a series of adverse actions that the government—primarily the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)—can take against a taxpayer to collect taxes owed and to penalize non-comp...
Indigenous Sacred Sites: Overview and Issues for Congress
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Reports · 21,838 words · PDF available
In federal policy discussions, the term sacred site traditionally has been used to describe places of religious or spiritual importance to the Indigenous peoples who originally inhabited the North Ame...
Availability of Legislative Measures in the House of Representatives (The “72Hour Rule”)
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Reports · 3,731 words · PDF available
House rules govern the length of time legislative measures must be available to Members before being considered on the floor. For measures reported from committee, a draft of the committee report must...
Defense Primer: Department of Defense Classified Funding
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Resources · 1,474 words · PDF available
Introduction The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) annual budget submission includes requests for classified funding. In authorizing and appropriating funding for DOD in fiscal year (FY) 2024, Congress...
House Committee on Ethics: A Brief History of Its Evolution and Jurisdiction
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-14 · Reports · 15,498 words · PDF available
The United States Constitution (Article 1, Section 5, clause 1) provides each House of Congress with the sole authority to establish rules, judge membership requirements, and punish and expel Members....
Introduction to Derivatives and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Reports · 10,472 words · PDF available
Derivatives are financial instruments that come in several different forms, including futures, options, and swaps. A derivative is a contract that derives its value from some underlying asset at a des...
Section 301 and China: Shipping and Shipbuilding Issues
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Resources · 1,723 words · PDF available
Title III of the Trade Act of 1974 (Sections 301-310, codified at 19 U.S.C. §§2411-2420) is referred to as “Section 301.” It is one of the principal statutory means by which the United States enforces...
Yemen: Terrorism Designation, U.S. Policy, and Congress
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Resources · 1,774 words · PDF available
On January 22, 2025, President Donald Trump signed executive order (E.O.) 14175 initiating a process for the redesignation of the Yemeni Shia Islamist group Ansar Allah (Arabic for “the Partisans of G...
Qatar: Issues for the 119th Congress
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Reports · 15,423 words · PDF available
The State of Qatar is a small, energy-rich emirate strategically located near the center of the Persian Gulf. Defense and diplomatic cooperation have anchored close U.S.-Qatari relations: Qatar hosts ...
Executive Order 14210: Using Agency Shutdown Plans to Inform Reductions in Force (RIFs)
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Posts · 992 words · PDF available
As part of his plans to downsize the federal workforce, on February 11, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14210, titled “Implementing the President’s Department of Government Efficiency’ Wo...
Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF): Frequently Asked Questions
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Resources · 1,641 words · PDF available
What Is the Land and Water Conservation Fund? The Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965 (LWCF Act; 54 U.S.C. §§200301 et seq.) was enacted to help preserve, develop, and ensure access to outdo...
Hindu Holidays: Fact Sheet
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-13 · Reports · 1,524 words · PDF available
Hinduism (or Sanatana Dharma) is the third-largest religion in the world behind Christianity and Islam, with nearly 1 billion adherents. According to the Pew Research Center, about 1% of Americans sel...
Federal Requirements on Private Health Insurance Plans
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-12 · Reports · 14,870 words · PDF available
A majority of Americans have private health insurance. Broadly, private health insurance includes group plans (largely made up of employer-sponsored insurance) and nongroup plans (i.e., plans a consum...
U.S. Extended Deterrence and Regional Nuclear Capabilities
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-12 · Resources · 1,710 words · PDF available
One of the stated goals of U.S. nuclear weapons policy is to extend deterrence to over 30 U.S. “allies and partners” and assure these countries that the United States will come to their aid, including...
H5N1 Avian Influenza: The Human Health Response
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-12 · Resources · 1,814 words · PDF available
Since early 2022, a U.S. H5N1 avian influenza (“bird flu”) outbreak in poultry and wild birds has led to outbreaks in dairy herds. Increasing cases of transmission from animals to humans occurred in 2...
The Federal Reserve’s Mandate: Policy Options
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-12 · Resources · 1,710 words · PDF available
The Federal Reserve (Fed) is responsible for monetary policy, which it conducts mainly by setting short-term interest rates to alter economic activity. (For more information, see CRS In Focus IF11751,...
The History and Status of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-12 · Resources · 1,434 words · PDF available
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) created in 1965 to ensure that employers conducting business with the federal government c...
Deferred Resignation or “Fork in the Road”: Selected Relevant Legal Challenges and Considerations for Congress
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Posts · 2,315 words · PDF available
On January 28, 2025, federal employees received an email communicating an option to resign from their positions effective September 30, 2025, by replying to the email. This new program—referred to as ...
Commemorative Coins: Background, Legislative Process, and Issues for Congress
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Reports · 13,798 words · PDF available
Commemorative coins are produced by the U.S. Mint pursuant to an act of Congress and are often proposed by Members of Congress as part of their representational duties. These coins are legal tender th...
Extreme Heat and Climate Change
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,103 words · PDF available
Scientific consensus supports a causal relationship between increasing global temperatures and the incidence of extreme heat. Extreme heat can have a range of serious consequences, with record-breakin...
U.S. Satellite Capabilities for Tracking the Wildfire Life Cycle
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,665 words · PDF available
Satellite capabilities support virtually every aspect of the wildfire life cycle: characterizing the prefire environment (e.g., seasonal climate predictions, vegetation structure); detecting and monit...
Railroad Retirement Board: Retirement, Survivor, Disability, Unemployment, and Sickness Benefits
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Reports · 7,442 words · PDF available
The Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), an independent federal agency, administers retirement, survivor, disability, unemployment, and sickness insurance for railroad workers and their families. During F...
Solomon Islands
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,541 words · PDF available
Solomon Islands (colloquially, the Solomons) is a Pacific Islands Country (PIC) in the Melanesian sub-region roughly 2,000 miles northeast of Australia. Solomon Islands is a heterogenous society, with...
HEA Title IV Student Aid Program Enforcement Actions
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,461 words · PDF available
Financial assistance provided under Title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) is the largest source of federal aid to assist students in obtaining a postsecondary education. Students may use Title IV...
Status of U.S. Offshore Wind Leasing and Permitting: President Trump’s January 2025 Wind Leasing Memorandum
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Posts · 1,132 words · PDF available
On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued the memorandum “Temporary Withdrawal of All Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf from Offshore Wind Leasing and Review of the Federal Government’s Leasing a...
U.S. Democracy and Human Rights Assistance: Recent Administration Actions
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Posts · 1,349 words · PDF available
On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order imposing a 90-day “pause” on nearly all U.S. foreign assistance. Secretary of State Marco Rubio later announced a pause and review of De...
Taiwan’s Role in Global Semiconductor Supply Chains
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Infographics · 588 words · PDF available
/ Information as of March 11, 2025. Prepared by Karen Sutter, Specialist in Asian Trade and Finance; Cassandra Higgins, Geospatial Information Systems Analyst; and Juan Pablo Madrid, Visual Informati...
Housing Cost Burdens in 2023: In Brief
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Reports · 2,361 words · PDF available
This report uses the 2023 American Community Survey to quantify the prevalence of housing cost burden in the U.S. in 2023. The report describes differences in housing cost burden rates among renters a...
The International Monetary Fund
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,553 words · PDF available
The International Monetary Fund (IMF, the Fund) is an international organization that works to ensure the stability of the international monetary system. Founded in 1945, its membership has grown from...
House Rules Changes Affecting Floor Proceedings in the 119th Congress (2025-2026)
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Reports · 4,371 words · PDF available
As agreed to in the House, H.Res. 5, adopting the rules of the House of Representatives for the 119th Congress (2025-2026), provided amendments to the standing rules that affect floor proceedings. In ...
Commemorative Coins: An Overview
Congressional Research Service · 2025-03-11 · Resources · 1,343 words · PDF available
Commemorative coins are produced by the U.S. Mint pursuant to an act of Congress. These coins celebrate and honor American people, places, events, and institutions. Although they are considered legal ...