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CRS report via FAS – The Death of Justice Scalia: Procedural Issues Arising on an Eight-Member Supreme Court – Andrew Nolan, Legislative Attorney, February 25, 2016. “On February 13, 2016, Justice Antonin Scalia unexpectedly passed away at the age of 79, vacating a seat on the Supreme Court that he had held for nearly 30 …
“The U.S. Copyright Office has prepared a Provisional Information Technology Modernization Plan and Cost Analysis at the direction of the House Committee on Appropriations. See H. Rep. No. 114-110 (2015). The Committee directed the Register to advise on the IT upgrades, with a cost estimate, that are “required for a 21st century copyright organization.” The …
“It’s a fiscal Sword of Damocles hanging over America’s future: If no changes are made to the way we operate and finance the Social Security system, its trust fund will run dry around 2033, after which the program will have to pay for itself through ongoing payroll taxes. Those will only be sufficient to cover …
Liberty Street Economics – Jason Bram, Nicole Dussault and Maxim Pinkovskiy: “Since the 1940s, employers that provide health insurance for their employees can deduct the cost as a business expense, but the government does not treat the value of that coverage as taxable income. This exclusion of employer-provided health insurance from taxable income—$248 billion in …
Via FAS – Money for Something: Music Licensing in the 21st Century, Dana A. Scherer, Analyst in Telecommunications. January 19, 2016. “The laws that determine who pays whom in the digital world were written, by and large, at a time when music was primarily performed via radio broadcasts or distributed through physical media (such as …
Pew – “In the high-stakes battle over replacing Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court, a majority of Americans (56%) say the Senate should hold hearings and vote on President Obama’s choice to fill the vacancy. About four-in-ten (38%) say the Senate should not hold hearings until the next president selects a court nominee. Most …
“The U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) has partnered with the Library of Congress (LOC) to make bill status information in XML format available through GPO’s Bulk Data repository on govinfo (www.govinfo.gov) for the 113th and 114th Congresses. Bill status information, which is created by LOC and Congress, describes the activities and status steps for each …
Via FAS – CRS Report – Legislative Options for Financing Water Infrastructure – Claudia Copeland Specialist, in Resources and Environmental Policy; Steven Maguire, Section Research Manager; William J. Mallett, Specialist in Transportation Policy. February 18, 2016. “This report addresses several options considered by Congress to address the financing needs of local communities for wastewater and drinking …
Via FAS – CRS Report – Encryption and Evolving Technology: Implications for U.S. Law Enforcement Investigations, Kristin Finklea Specialist in Domestic Security February 18, 2016. “Because modern-day criminals are constantly developing new tools and techniques to facilitate their illicit activities, law enforcement is challenged with leveraging its tools and authorities to keep pace. For instance, …
Presentation by Keith Hall, CBO Director, at the Robert H. Smith School of Business, University of Maryland, February 23, 2016: “Since 1975, CBO has produced nonpartisan analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process. Each year, the agency’s economists and budget analysts produce dozens of reports and hundreds of cost estimates …
Economic Report of the President 2016 Transmitted to the Congress February 2016 Together With The Annual Report of the Council of Economic Advisers – February 22, 2016. “The U.S. economic recovery entered its seventh year in 2015. Our businesses created 2.6 million jobs in 2015 and the unemployment rate fell to 5.0 percent, half its …
National Archives and Records Administration – Summary of the FY 2017 Request Fiscal Year 2017 Budget Request “The vision, mission, and strategic goals established in the FY 2014–FY 2018 NARA Strategic Plan confirm NARA’s commitment to openness, transparency, and citizen engagement through public access to government records. NARA’s new strategic framework adds context and a …
