Category «Congress»

The Changing Face of America’s Electorate

Center for American Progress – Patrick Oakford – January 6, 2015: “In the wake of the 2012 presidential election, Republican elected officials and conservative political pundits publicly bemoaned the party’s failure to connect with and win over voters of color. Furthermore, they conceded that a failure to fare better with this demographic in future elections …

Subjects: Congress

Congressional Careers: Service Tenure and Patterns of Member Service, 1789-2015

CRS – Congressional Careers: Service Tenure and Patterns of Member Service, 1789-2015. Matthew Eric Glassman, Analyst on the Congress; Amber Hope Wilhelm, Graphics Specialist. January 3, 2015 The average service tenure of Members of the Senate and House of Representatives has varied substantially since 1789. This report presents data on Member tenure and a historical analysis of tenure trends. During the …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents

Final Sequestration Report for Fiscal Year 2015

“The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is required by law to issue a report within 10 days of the end of a session of Congress that provides estimates of the limits (often called “caps”) on discretionary budget authority in effect for each fiscal year through 2021. CBO is also required to report whether, according to its estimates, enacted legislation for the current fiscal …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

Human-Induced Earthquakes from Deep-Well Injection: A Brief Overview

CRS – Human-Induced Earthquakes from Deep-Well Injection: A Brief Overview. Peter Folger, Specialist in Energy and Natural Resources Policy; Mary Tiemann; Specialist in Environmental Policy. December 22, 2014. “The development of unconventional oil and natural gas resources using horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) has created new demand for wastewater disposal wells that inject waste fluids into deep geologic strata. An increasing concern …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Energy, Environmental Law, Government Documents

POGO – Foreign Influence Database

“POGO’s Foreign Influence Database is based on informational materials filed by lobbying and public relations firms working on behalf of foreign entities in the U.S. The Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) requires advocates representing foreign interests to register with the Department of Justice and to file within 48 hours any informational materials disseminated to two …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents, Legal Research, Legislation

EPIC Urges Congress to Hold Hearing on FBI Database

“In a letter to Senators Grassley and Leahy, EPIC has urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to investigate the FBI’s “Next Generation Identification” program. NGI is the most extensive biometric database in the world and raises many privacy risks. In a recent FOIA case, EPIC v. FBI, EPIC obtained documents which show that the FBI accepted …

Subjects: Congress, E-Government, Government Documents, Internet, Knowledge Management, Legal Research, Patriot Act, Privacy

Veteran CRS Researcher Explains Why He Quit

Washington Monthly – January/February 2015 – Why I Quit the Congressional Research Service – How Congress’s dysfunction has degraded its own in-house think tank. By Kevin R. Kosar: “My aspiration was to follow in the footsteps of these great researchers by using my knowledge of government organization to write the kinds of reports that might help Congress fix the USPS …

Subjects: Congress, Government Documents, Knowledge Management

The Politics of Financial Insecurity

“..new analysis of Pew Research Center survey data collected in the fall lead-up to the 2014 midterm elections finds that at least as striking is the degree to which those who are financially insecure opt out of the political system altogether, and how that opting out disproportionately affects Democratic support. Financial security is strongly correlated with …

Subjects: Congress, Economy, Financial System, Government Documents

Global Chilling: The Impact of Mass Surveillance on International Writers

PEN America – “Global Chilling: The Impact of Mass Surveillance on International Writers is a new report demonstrating the damaging impact of surveillance by the United States and other governments on free expression and creative freedom around the world. The report’s revelations, based on a survey of nearly 800 writers worldwide, are alarming. Concern about …

Subjects: Censorship, Civil Liberties, Congress, Free Speech, Freedom of Information, Privacy