Drought in the United States: Science, Policy, and Selected Federal Authorities (CRS R46911)

Drought―a deficiency of moisture that results in adverse effects―occurs to some extent almost every year in areas of the United States. Droughts can simultaneously reduce available water supplies and increase demands for water. Drought has the potential to affect economic and environmental conditions on local, regional, and national scales, as well as to cause disruptions … Read more

Recent CRS Reports – March 2021

The Economic Effects of Financing a Large and Permanent Increase in Government Spending, Congressional Budget Office, CBO Working Paper 57201, March 2021 (42-page PDF) “Recommendation for New U.S. Circuit and District Court Judgeships by the Judicial Conference of the United States (117th Congress),” CRS Insight IN11639, March 26, 2021 (6-page PDF) “District of Columbia Voting … Read more

The Future of Space Tourism (CRS R46500)

Several private companies are developing plans to take paying customers to space on a regular basis. Federal oversight of space tourism has been deliberately light, consistent with the Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-492), in which Congress mandated a “learning period” for companies to develop business models, establish safety standards, and design … Read more

Effects of COVID-19 on the Federal Research and Development Enterprise

Summary The federal research and development (R&D) enterprise is a large and complex system that includes government facilities and employees as well as federally funded work in industry, academia, and the non-profit sector. The nation’s response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is affecting the federal R&D enterprise, and the federal government and others … Read more

Abraham Lincoln (1809 – 1865)

Abraham Lincoln, by G.P.A. Healy, 1887 – from the White House See also James Madison, Father of the Constitution (1751-1836).     Abraham Lincoln became the United States’ 16th President in 1861, issuing the Emancipation Proclamation that declared forever free those slaves within the Confederacy in 1863. The son of a Kentucky frontiersman, Lincoln had … Read more

Recent CRS Reports


Budget Deficit / Budget Surplus (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Budget Deficit / Budget Surplus   Lesson 1 National Debt & Budget Deficit Explained   The relationship between spending and revenues is reflected in the surplus or deficit figure. A surplus is an excess of revenues over outlays, while a deficit is an excess of … Read more

Agency / Department (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Agency photo credit: independentman Agency: No one definition of this term has general, governmentwide applicability. “Agency” and related terms, like “executive agency” or “federal agency,” are defined in different ways in different laws and regulations. For example, the provisions of the Budget and Accounting Act … Read more

Earmarking / Earmarks / Miscellaneous Tariff Bills (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms Earmarking / Earmarks / Miscellaneous Tariff Bills photo credit: Beau B Earmarking: Either of the following: (1) Dedicating collections by law for a specific purpose or program. Earmarked collections include trust fund receipts, special fund receipts, intragovernmental receipts, and offsetting collections credited to appropriation accounts. … Read more

The Militia Clauses – Article I Section 8, Clauses 15 and 16 of the Constitution

The United States Constitution The Militia Clauses are among Congress’ enumerated powers found in the Constitution of the United States, Article. I. Section. 8., clauses 15 and 16: (Clause 15 – The Militia) [The Congress shall have Power] To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and … Read more