Limits on hate crime laws

In mid-February, a 15-year-old boy in Oxnard, CA, was shot in the head by a 14-year-old classmate who now faces murder charges. As reported by the LA Times, several students said the victim had come out as gay. According to authorities, "If the suspect targeted [the victim] because of his sexual orientation, the case could rise to the level of a hate crime."

A recent paper by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) summarizes the constitutional issues for states and Congress when enacting hate crime laws. CRS cites several U.S. Supreme Court cases that provide the parameters for such legislation.

After these landmark cases, the real questions for states involve identifying permissible ways to curtail hate crimes without infringing on any constitutionally protected rights. On the federal level...the question remains as to what extent Congress can broaden the classes of individuals subject to hate crime legislation.

The paper discusses the applicability of the commerce clause, the Reconstruction Amendments (13th, 14th, and 15th), and the 1st and 6th Amendments.

Constitutional Limits on Hate Crime Legislation, RS22812 (pdf, 6pp/76kB, from Open CRS), Feb. 20, 2008

See earlier FR post, Dealing with "symbols of fear and violence," 10.25.07. §706-662, Hawaii Revised Statutes, therein was amended by HB2, which became Act 1, Session Laws of Hawaii 2007, 2nd Special Session.

Recent GAO reports

From the Government Accountability Office (GAO):

HIGHWAY PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS: More Rigorous Up-front Analysis Could Better Secure Potential Benefits and Protect the Public Interest, GAO-08-44 (pdf, 96pp/1.24 MB), Feb. 8, 2008

Highway public-private partnerships show promise as a viable alternative, where appropriate, to help meet growing and costly transportation demands. The public sector can acquire new infrastructure or extract value from existing infrastructure while potentially sharing with the private sector the risks associated with designing, constructing, operating, and maintaining public infrastructure. However, highway public-private partnerships are not a panacea for meeting all transportation system demands, nor are they without potentially substantial costs and risks to the public--both financial and nonfinancial--and trade-offs must be made.....There is no "free" money in highway public-private partnerships.

HEAD START: A More Comprehensive Risk Management Strategy and Data Improvements Could Further Strengthen Program Oversight, GAO-08-221 (pdf, 41pp/632kB), Feb. 12, 2008

This report focuses on the Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) Administration for Children and Families' (ACF) oversight of the Head Start program in which 1,600 local organizations receive $7 billion in grants from ACF. GAO recommends that ACF establish better criteria to spot underperforming grantees, to improve the reliability of its data, and to reduce improper payments.


HEALTH INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: HHS Is Pursuing Efforts to Advance Nationwide Implementation, but Has Not Yet Completed a National Strategy, GAO-08-499T (pdf, 17pp/228kB), Feb. 14, 2008

In 2004 Pres. Bush established the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) with HHS. The key areas of national health IT activities are electronic health records, standardization, networking and information exchange, and health information privacy and security.


STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVE: Options to Improve the Cost-Effectiveness of Filling the Reserve, GAO-08-521T (pdf, 15pp/216kB), Feb. 26, 2008

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) was established in 1975. The SPR currently has almost 700 million barrels of crude oil, about 56 days of oil imports, in Texas and Louisiana. The Energy Policy Act of 2005, P.L. 109-58 (pdf, 551pp.), authorized the Department of Energy (DOE) to increase the SPR to 1 billion barrels by 2018. GAO recommends that DOE consider flexible, cost-effective ways when making fill decisions.

Recycling CFLs

Since 2006, compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) have seen a sharp increase in sales and now comprise 20% of the U.S. light bulb market, according to a report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS). With their increased use, concerns have arisen about the disposal of CFLs because they contain small amounts of mercury and may be deemed household hazardous waste. In light of this designation, the CRS paper includes a discussion of the disposal and recycling of CFLs, and notes recycling programs in Maine and Minnesota, and the Northwest Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) Recycling Project for Oregon and Washington.

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs): Issues with Use and Disposal, RS22807, (pdf, 6pp/80kB, from Open CRS), February 13, 2008

Recent GAO reports

From the Government Accountability Office (GAO):

LONG-TERM FISCAL OUTLOOK: Action Is Needed to Avoid the Possibility of a Serious Economic Disruption in the Future, GAO-08-411T (pdf, 21pp/376kB), January 29, 2008

In testimony by the Comptroller General, 3 key points:

• The federal budget is on an imprudent and unsustainable path
• Rapidly rising health care costs are our nation's number one fiscal challenge
• The window of opportunity for action is shrinking as the first baby boomers retire and begin tapping into Social Security and Medicare

STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS: Growing Fiscal Challenges Will Emerge during the Next 10 Years, GAO-08-317 (pdf, 78pp/716kB), January 22, 2008

As is true for the federal sector, the growth in health-related expenditures is the primary driver of the fiscal challenges facing the state and local government sector. In particular, two types of state and local expenditures will likely rise quickly. The first is Medicaid expenditures, and the second is expenditures by these governments for health insurance for state and local employees and retirees.

ELDERLY VOTERS: Some Improvements in Voting Accessibility from 2000 to 2004 Elections, but Gaps in Policy and Implementation Remain, GAO-08-442T (pdf, 30pp/792kB), January 31, 2008

This report covers voting accessibility by seniors and the disabled, specifically getting to polling places and being able to cast votes once they arrive. Besides impediments to wheelchair users, the forms of ballots, type size of voting instructions, and lack of ballots with audio-tape or braille ballots may affect access. GAO noted an increase in states' providing alternative voting methods such as early voting, absentee voting without medical certification, curbside voting, allowing voters to go to more accessible polling places, and taking ballots to a voter's residence. Some election officials reported that early and absentee voting added to the "cost and complexity" of elections.


BILINGUAL VOTING ASSISTANCE: Selected Jurisdictions' Strategies for Identifying Needs and Providing Assistance, GAO-08-182 (pdf, 86pp/2.8MB), January 18, 2008

This study was mandated by the "Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act of 2006," P.L. 109-246 (pdf, 5pp.), section 9, regarding the implementation of section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Section 203 is codified at 42 USC 1973b(f). GAO gathered information from 14 of the 296 jurisdictions required to provide bilingual voting assistance. It found that evaluating the effectiveness of these programs is difficult, therefore the extent to which they are helpful to language minority voters is unknown.

Recession - who decides?

A four-page paper from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) discusses the definition of a recession. The "generally recognized arbiter" of recessions is the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), specifically its business cycle dating committee. On Jan. 7, the committee issued a memo which stated in part:

A recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales.

CRS notes that since it takes time to compile data, it can be more than a year to date the beginning of a recession. The paper concludes:

Although there can be a significant delay between the onset of a recession and the dating committee determination, there is often little doubt that the economy is, or has been, in recession well before the announcement. For policy to have mitigating effects, it must occur quickly. Policymakers may not have the luxury of holding themselves to as strict a definition of recession as economic analysts.

What is a Recession, Who Decides When It Starts, and When Do They Decide? RS22793 (pdf, 4pp/64kB, from Open CRS), Jan. 23, 2008

Gas prices braking drivers

Citing a 100% increase in U.S. gasoline prices (to $3 per gallon) since 2003, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has published a study on gas price effects on driving and car sales. CBO analyzed data from California highways and sales of new and used vehicles from 2003 to 2006.

Among the findings:

• Freeway motorists are making fewer trips and driving more slowly
• Market share of light trucks (including SUVs and minivans) began to decline in 2004
• Used vehicle prices have shifted, with prices declining for larger models and rising for fuel-efficient cars

CBO notes two policy tools that encourage the use of more-fuel-efficient vehicles: the federal corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards and federal and state gasoline taxes.

Higher prices for gasoline affect both types of policies. By increasing the market demand for fuel-efficient vehicles, higher gasoline prices reduce the economic costs--to manufacturers and to consumers--of achieving stricter CAFE standards. Also, with higher gasoline prices, the average gasoline tax--or any given increase in that tax--is now a smaller share of the price of gasoline than it was in the past.

Effects of Gasoline Prices on Driving Behavior and Vehicle Markets (pdf, 58pp/828kb), January 2008

Recent CRS reports

Congressional Research Service (CRS) reports from Open CRS:

The Effect of State-Legalized Same-Sex Marriage on Social Security Benefits and Pensions, RS21897 (pdf, 5pp/68kB), Jan. 3, 2008

Same-sex spouses are ineligible for Social Security benefits because of gender-based definitions of "wife" and "husband" in the Social Security Act (42 USC 416 (b) and (f)), and the definition of "marriage" in the Defense of Marriage Act, DOMA, P.L. 104-199 (pdf).

Both federal and private pensions regulated by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) are required to comply with DOMA's definition of a spouse as a "person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife."


Dollar Crisis: Prospect and Implications, RL34311 (pdf, 17pp/124kB), Jan. 8, 2008

Since 2002, the dollar in international exchange has fallen about 29%, accelerating in latter 2007. Among the report's findings are three possible reasons why a dollar crisis won't occur: a large share of a global saving glut is attracted to U.S. asset markets, resulting in large capital inflows to the U.S.; under the current global monetary arrangement known as Breton Woods II, central banks, particularly in Asia, use dollar reserves to stabilize their currencies; and the "dark matter argument"--that large measurement errors in U.S. trade data understate U.S. exports and overstate U.S. net external debt, the dark matter being invisible assets.


Regulation of Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emissions: State and Federal Standards, RS22788 (pdf, 6pp/76kB), Jan. 11, 2008

This report stems from the denial by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of California's request for a waiver to establish its own greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards and compares them with federal standards. California was denied a waiver because federal fuel economy standards in the 2007 energy bill (P.L. 110-140) "will be more stringent than the California program." CRS cites the two relevant California bills that were enacted: AB1493 (pdf, 8pp), in 2002, requiring GHG reductions for vehicles from model year 2009, and AB32 (pdf, 13pp), in 2006, requiring additional GHG reductions.

See earlier FR posts on the energy bill (H.R. 6 that became P.L. 110-140):
     Smart grid - the bigger picture (1-8-08)
     Smart grid (1-3-08)

End-of-life care

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a report on end-of-life care in four states: Arizona, Florida, Oregon, and Wisconsin. GAO relied on studies from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to identify six key components of end-of-life care:

• Care management to coordinate service delivery
• Services to assist individuals in noninstitutional settings
• Pain and symptom management
• Family and caregiver support
• Communication among individuals, families, and program staff
• Assistance with advance care planning

GAO interviewed providers of the following programs in the four states that incorporate these key components: Program of All Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), Arizona Long Term Care System (ALTCS), Wisconsin Partnership Program (WPP), and palliative care programs.

End-of-Life Care: Key Components Provided by Programs in Four States, GAO-08-66 (pdf, 27pp/364kB), December 14, 2007 (released Jan. 14, 2008)

Feds blow it

The federal government failed dismally in The American Lung Association's annual report card on federal and state tobacco control legislation and policies to tighten regulation of tobacco and discourage smoking. Reuters reports that the study also found states falling far short.

"While many states have failed to make meaningful progress at protecting their most vulnerable citizens, the tobacco companies are spending billions of dollars annually marketing their deadly products," the report reads.

The report tracked progress on tobacco regulation and reported on gains, losses and issues stalled throughout 2007. According to The American Lung Association website:

The Lung Association's report card grades each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico on their tobacco control policies in smokefree air, cigarette tax, tobacco prevention spending, and youth access to tobacco products. The report grades federal tobacco control efforts on cigarette tax, giving the FDA authority over manufactured tobacco products, cessation and ratification of the international tobacco control treaty.

Hawaii faired much better than the federal government and many states, receiving A's and B's in the Association's four areas of analysis:

1. Tobacco Prevention & Control Spending (A)
2. Smokefree Air (A)
3. Cigarette Tax (B)
4. Youth Access (B)

For 2007, The American Lung Association

recognizes Hawaii for increasing its cigarette tax by $0.20 to $1.80 per pack, and for funding its tobacco control program above the minimum level recommended by CDC for the first time.

The American Lung Association State of Tobacco Control 2007
(2007, HTML)

Press Release (HTML)

State Summary for Hawaii
(HTML)

Smart grid - the bigger picture

A recent post covered a report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) on Smart Grid, part of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, H.R. 6 that became P.L. 110-140 (still unavailable online). CRS subsequently issued a report on the entire act, providing a summary of its major provisions.

The report cites the law's key provisions as:

• Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE). Sets a target of 35 miles per gallon for the combined fleet of cars and light trucks by model year 2020.


• Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). Sets a modified standard that starts at 9.0 billion gallons in 2008 and rises to 36 billion gallons by 2022.


• Energy Efficiency Equipment Standards. Includes a variety of new standards for lighting and for residential and commercial appliances, including residential refrigerators, freezers, refrigerator-freezers, metal halide lamps, and commercial walk-in coolers and freezers.

CRS summarizes each of the 16 titles in the new law.

Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007: A Summary of Major Provisions, CRS Report RL34294 (pdf, 27pp/152kB, from Open CRS), Dec. 21, 2007

Smart grid

On Dec. 19, President Bush signed into law the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, H.R.6, which became P.L. 110-140 (not currently available online). According to a NY Times article, it is "Legislation that will slowly but fundamentally change the cars Americans drive, the fuel they burn, the way they light their homes and the price they pay for food...."

On Dec. 20, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on Smart Grid, provided for in Title XIII of the act.

The term Smart Grid refers to a distribution system that allows for flow of information from a customer's meter in two directions: both inside the house to thermostats and appliances and other devices, and back to the utility....The goal is to use advanced, information-based technologies to increase power grid efficiency, reliability, and flexibility, and reduce the rate at which additional electric utility infrastructure needs to be built.

Section 1307 therein provides for state consideration of Smart Grid. As summarized by CRS:

The Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 (16 U.S.C. 2621 (d)) is amended to require each state to consider requiring electric utilities demonstrate that prior to investing in non-advanced grid technologies, Smart Grid technology is determined not to be appropriate. States must also consider regulatory standards that allow utilities to recover Smart Grid investments through rates.

Smart Grid Provisions in H.R. 6, 110th Congress, CRS Report RL34288 (pdf, 11pp/248kB, from Open CRS), December 20, 2007

Video of Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking in favor of the bill, Dec. 6, 2007 (10:03), from YouTube:

Recent GAO reports

SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION: Status of Efforts to Address a Range of Funding and Governance Challenges, GAO-08-250T (pdf, 32pp/1MB), December 12, 2007

This testimony by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) is a follow-up to its September 2007 report, Smithsonian Institution: Funding Challenges Affect Facilities' Conditions and Security, Endangering Collections, GAO-07-1127 (pdf, 90pp/2.7MB). The testimony focuses on three areas: (1) the Smithsonian's real property management efforts, (2) the Smithsonian's strategies to fund its revitalization, construction, and maintenance projects, and (3) governance changes made by the Smithsonian's Board of Regents.


PRIVATE PENSIONS: Low Defined Contribution Plan Savings May Pose Challenges to Retirement Security, Especially for Many Low-Income Workers, GAO-08-8 (pdf, 65pp/1MB), November 29, 2007

Based on the 2004 Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), the latest available, GAO found: (1) only 36 percent of workers participated in a defined contribution (DC) plan; (2) the median account balance was $22,800; and (3) recent regulatory and legislative changes could promote DC plan coverage, participation, and savings.


AVIATION RUNWAY AND RAMP SAFETY: Sustained Efforts to Address Leadership, Technology, and Other Challenges Needed to Reduce Accidents and Incidents, GAO-08-29 (pdf, 92pp/5.3MB), November 20, 2007

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) to handle increased volumes of air traffic. At airports, FAA provides safety oversight on runways while oversight of ramp areas is handled by airlines and the airports. GAO cites insufficient data hindering progress in promoting safety in these areas. GAO also faults the FAA's Office of Runway Safety for not fulfilling its leadership role. Among GAO's recommendations is to address air traffic controller overtime and fatigue issues.


DIGITAL TELEVISION TRANSITION: Increased Federal Planning and Risk Management Could Further Facilitate the DTV Transition, GAO-08-43 (pdf, 54pp/1.3MB), November 19, 2007

The Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 requires all television stations to stop analog broadcasting by Feb. 17, 2009, and transition to digital television (DTV). The act also requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to subsidize consumers' purchases of digital-to-analog converter boxes. GAO reports on the progress made in (1) facilitating the transition, (2) educating consumers, and (3) implementing the converter box subsidy program.

DIGITAL TELEVISION TRANSITION: Questions on the DTV Converter Box Subsidy Program and a DTV Inter-Agency Task Force, GAO-08-297R (pdf, 5pp/100kB), November 19, 2007

In the subsidy program, GAO sees "challenges" such as the readiness of retailers to accept coupons, issues relating to inventory planning, and especially the coordination of NTIA, its contractor IBM, converter box manufacturers, retailers, and consumers.

State greenhouse gases

This week the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on state greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The report uses three variables, or emissions drivers, to calculate GHG emissions: population, per capita income, and GHG emissions intensity. Of the three, CRS considers GHG intensity the most relevant to climate change policy. GHG intensity is a measure of GHG emissions from state sources divided by the gross state product (GSP). Hawaii ranks 46th in GHG emissions and drivers. The report also covers CO2 emissions intensity, which account for 85% of GHG emissions in the U.S. In a ranking of CO2 emissions intensity and its drivers, Hawaii ranks 34th.

State Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Comparison and Analysis, CRS Report RL34272 (pdf, 34pp/200kB, from Open CRS), December 5, 2007

Curbing Internet gambling

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently reported on proposed regulations to implement the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA), Title VIII of the SAFE Port Act, PL 109-347 (pdf, 80pp/228kB), 120 Stat. 1952. The regs identify five payment systems in which to interdict the flow of illegal Internet gambling proceeds: cards systems, money transmission systems, wire transfer systems, check collection systems, and the Automated Clearing House (ACH) system. The report notes that except for financial institutions that deal directly with illegal Internet gamblers, tracking revenues in wire transfer, check collection, and ACH systems is not currently feasible.

CRS cites three bills introduced in the 110th Congress to augment UIGEA: the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act of 2007, HR 2046 (pdf, 26pp), Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2007, HR 2607 (pdf, 4pp), and the Skill Game Protection Act, HR 2610 (pdf, 6pp).

Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act and Regulations Proposed for Its Implementation, CRS Report RS22749 (pdf, 6pp/72kB, from Open CRS), November 1, 2007

Recent CBO reports

Testimony on Approaches to Reducing Carbon Dioxide Emissions       (pdf, 16pp/116kB), Nov. 1, 2007

The Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) testified before the House Budget Committee on reducing CO2 emissions. He advocated an incentive-based approach as more economically efficient than "command-and-control" policies. Two main incentives would be taxes (to regulate the price of emissions) or a cap and trade system (to regulate the quantity of emissions). Of the two, a "well-designed tax would yield higher net benefits."


The Long-Term Outlook for Health Care Spending
      (pdf, 35pp/552kB), November 2007

This study gives CBO's projections of health care spending over the next 75 years under current federal law. In view of rising health costs, CBO assumes that employers, households, and insurance firms, to avoid reducing consumption of other goods and services, will change their behavior, e.g., higher cost sharing, increased utilization management, reduced insurance coverage by employers, and greater scrutiny of new technologies.

See related FR post, "Medicare and nursing homes" (8/1/07)


Long-Term Unemployment (pdf, 34pp/476kB), Oct. 2007

Unemployment lasting more than six months has increased. This report examines such long-term unemployed workers during 2001-2003 - their characteristics, sources of income, and subsequent activities.

Funding transportation infrastructure

On October 25, Robert Puentes of the Brookings Institution presented Congressional testimony on the funding of surface transportation infrastructure, "Not So Fast: Key Policy Considerations for Surface Transportation Investment Needs" (pdf, 11pp/64kB). His basic premise was that "we are a metropolitan nation," and "Unfortunately, our nation's transportation policy does not recognize the primacy of metropolitan areas..." Puentes saw three critical problems:

• Spending is not targeted to achieve certain outcomes
• There is little attention to reducing demand for spending
• The system is not priced correctly

In his testimony, Puentes referred to a publication of the U.S. Dept. of Transportation (DOT), 2006 Status of the Nation's Highways, Bridges, and Transit: Conditions and Performance (html) (pdf, 436pp/7.5MB). From the report's Introduction:

This document is intended to provide decision makers with an objective appraisal of the physical conditions, operational performance, and financing mechanisms of highways, bridges, and transit systems based both on the current state of these systems and on the projected future state of these systems under a set of alternative future investment scenarios.

Relevant to this subject area are two commissions connected to DOT: the National Surface Transportation Infrastructure Financing Commission and National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.

Dealing with "symbols of fear and violence"

From the Jena Six case in Louisiana to the recent (Oct. 22) sending of a noose to a black principal in Brooklyn, as reported by the New York Times, there has been a growing number of incidents involving nooses. The latter AP story, found on the ABC News website, notes that "the frightening symbol of segregation-era lynchings has been turning up around the country."

Earlier this month, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on state laws against what are basically hate crimes. According to the report, virtually every state has criminal statutes covering burning crosses, exhibitions of nooses, and similar displays, or those that cover coercion, terroristic threats, harassment, or the deprivation of civil rights that can be applied to misconduct like cross burning. CRS provides an extensive analysis of First Amendment protection of speech and expressive conduct relating to these statutes.

CRS also notes that most states have enhanced sentencing laws for hate crimes. In Hawaii, §706-662, Hawaii Revised Statutes, provides for extended terms of imprisonment. Subsection (6) therein specifically covers hate crime offenders. On October 1, 2007, in State v. Maugaotega (html) (pdf, 39pp.), the Hawaii Supreme Court declared §706-662 unconstitutional because it authorizes a court, rather than a jury, to make the finding that an extended term is necessary.

Burning Crosses, Hangman's Nooses, and the Like: State Statutes That Proscribe the Use of Symbols of Fear and Violence with the Intent to Threaten, CRS Report RL34200 (pdf, 20pp/144kB, from Open CRS), October 5, 2007

State e-waste laws

Twelve states (AR, CA, CT, ME, MD, MA, MN, NH, OR, RI, TX, and WA) have enacted laws on managing electronic waste. A recent report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) analyzes these laws - discussing the issues leading to state action, their common elements, and an overview of each law.

CRS considers the following issues as spurring state legislation: the volume and bulky nature of e-waste, hazardous components of e-waste, cost of recycling electronics, and the inability of stakeholders to agree on a national system. The common provisions of the laws noted by CRS are: definition of "covered electronic devices" (CEDs); funding mechanism (consumer or producer pays); collection and recycling criteria (banning landfill disposal, restricting e-waste exports, setting recycling standards, and prohibiting prison labor); and product restrictions (labeling and registration requirements, restrictions on using certain materials, and restrictions on retailers).

Managing Electronic Waste: An Analysis of State E-Waste Legislation, CRS Report RL34147 (pdf, 24pp/156kB, from Open CRS), August 29, 2007

Medicare and nursing homes

Rising costs in Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal health-related programs represent the central long-term fiscal challenge facing the nation. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is therefore increasingly focusing on analyzing the causes of those rising costs and potential policy responses.

Thus begins the preface to a recent report from CBO on Medicare payments to skilled nursing facilities (SNF). In this study, in calculating how Medicare's payment rates impact the volume of SNF services, CBO used two separate analyses: geographic-level and provider-level. In the geographic-level analysis, data came from 3,436 hospital service areas. In the provider-level analysis, volume was the number of Medicare-covered SNF days provided by a facility in a year. Changes in payment rates were calculated using "a Laspeyres-type index" and a mix of patients in the base year and the following year.

The paper found that the volume of SNF services varied positively with payment rates. At the provider level, SNF volume responded only to increases in payment rates, while at the geographic level, SNFs responded to both increases and decreases in payment rates.

Background Paper: The Impact of Medicare's Payment Rates on the Volume of Services Provided by Skilled Nursing Facilities (pdf, 32pp/732kB), July 2007

Food from China

The safety of foods, medicines, and other products from China is the subject of a recent report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS), which also discusses congressional criticisms of China's food safety system and U.S. safeguards of food imports. According to the report, when the values of food, agricultural, and seafood products are combined, China is the third largest supplier to the U.S. after Canada and Mexico.

The two primary federal agencies responsible for food safety are the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the Dept. of Agriculture (USDA). On June 28, 2007, in what CRS calls "perhaps the most significant move to date," the FDA issued Import Alert #16-131, ordering "Detention Without Physical Examination" of five aquaculture products from China: catfish, basa (related to catfish), shrimp, dace (related to carp), and eel. The FDA has also provided a Q&A on the import alert.

The report notes the various bills that have been introduced in Congress concerning China imports and U.S. food safety measures, as well as for quicker implementation of country-of-origin labeling (COOL).

Food and Agricultural Imports from China, CRS Report RL34080 (pdf, 18pp/132kB, from Open CRS), July 17, 2007

Recent GAO reports

BIOFUELS: DOE Lacks a Strategic Approach to Coordinate Increasing Production with Infrastructure Development and Vehicle Needs, GAO-07-713 (pdf, 56pp/1.4MB), June 8, 2007

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found limited progress in the production and distribution of biofuels. Some of the challenges:

• in 2006 the wholesale price of ethanol was 33 percent higher than gasoline
• whether the rail industry, by which biofuels are generally transported, can meet the growing demand
• in early 2007, only 1 percent of U.S. fueling stations offered E85
• for flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) to have an impact on biofuel use, E85 must become less expensive and more widely available.

GAO recommends that the Dept. of Energy (DOE) develop a comprehensive strategy for increasing biofuels and vehicle production and developing biofuel infrastructure.

Related FR posts:
     Ethanol - 100 billion gallons by 2025? 8-23-06
     Ethanol - background and policy issues, 3-9-06


AVIAN INFLUENZA: USDA Has Taken Important Steps to Prepare for Outbreaks, but Better Planning Could Improve Response GAO-07-652, (pdf, 60pp/3.2MB), June 11, 2007

GAO reports on steps the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) has taken for outbreaks of a highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza (AI), H5N1. For this study, GAO visited 5 states (California, Delaware, Maryland, Texas, and Virginia) that have experienced outbreaks in the last 5 years. Since the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) is responsible for emergency planning and response, GAO urges USDA and DHS to better coordinate their roles and responsibilities.


INFLUENZA PANDEMIC: Efforts to Forestall Onset Are Under Way; Identifying Countries at Greatest Risk Entails Challenges, GAO-07-604 (pdf, 78pp/3.5MB), June 20, 2007

According to GAO, the risks of avian influenza causing an influenza pandemic in humans depend on a country's environmental and preparedness risk factors: the presence of AI in that country or a neighboring country, and high-risk poultry farming practices, and the capacity to control outbreaks.

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has categorized countries by level of risk.

Related FR post:      Pandemic flu effects - from macro to you


SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS: Use is Widespread and Protection Could Be Improved GAO-07-1023T (pdf, 18pp/260kB), June 21, 2007

This testimony addresses: (1) use of SSNs by government agencies, (2) use of SSNs by the private sector, and (3) vulnerabilties that remain to protecting SSNs. It notes that in April 2007, the President's Identity Theft Task Force released a strategic plan to combat identity theft.

Congress and climate change

On June 27 Reuters reported that the U.S. House passed a bill "recognizing the 'reality' of climate change," increasing federal funding for research on climate change, and establishing a new commission to address scientific questions.

The bill is HR 2643 (pdf). Title V therein (p. 111, et seq.) expresses "the sense of the Congress" that there should be a program of limits on greenhouse gases. The new commission is established in Title II (at p. 56).

In a related matter, on June 25 the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a report on the the role of carbon dioxide in climate change. Recognizing that "Congress is considering several legislative strategies that would reduce U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases--primarily carbon dioxide (CO2)," CRS examines the global carbon cycle, which is the exchange of carbon between the atmosphere, the oceans, and Earth's land surface. From the Summary:

Less than half of the total amount of CO2 released from burning fossil fuels during the past 250 years has remained in the atmosphere because two huge reservoirs for carbon--the global oceans and the land surface--take up more carbon than they release. They are net sinks for carbon. If the oceans, vegetation, and soils did not accumulate as much carbon as they do today, then the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere would increase even more rapidly. . . .

Congress may opt to consider how land management practices, such as afforestation, conservation tillage, and other techniques, might increase the net flux of carbon from the atmosphere to the land surface.

The Carbon Cycle: Implications for Climate Change and Congress, CRS Report RL34059 (pdf, 14pp/240kB, from Open CRS), June 25, 2007

Good-bye, trash

Yesterday both Honolulu dailies, the Advertiser and the Star Bulletin, published articles on the city's plans to send its trash to the mainland beginning in early 2008. The Advertiser cited a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision (pdf) upholding "flow control" ordinances that would support Honolulu's plans. (Today the Advertiser reported briefly on Oahu's limited landfill options.)

For a national overview, last week the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on interstate shipment of solid waste (the data being generally from 2005). According to CRS, the largest waste importer is Pennsylvania, receiving over 7.9 million tons, most of it from New York and New Jersey; NY and NJ are the largest exporters. For Oahu's waste, the Advertiser reported that three companies are considering shipping trash to Washington or Oregon. In the CRS report, Oregon imported over 1.7 million tons and Washington over 147,000 tons of waste, both as of 2005.

Interstate Shipment of Municipal Solid Waste: 2007 Update, CRS Report RL34043 (pdf, 30pp/260kB, from Open CRS), June 13, 2007

Federal R&D

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) each recently issued a report relating to federally funded research and development. The CBO report looks at federal support generally for R&D, while the GAO report analyzes the dissemination of research from three agencies.

According to the CBO report, in FY2007 $137 billion was budgeted for federal R&D, and tax preferences have provided incentives for R&D in the private sector. The report reviews trends in federal R&D support, assesses the government's role in R&D, evaluates the results of federal R&D funding, and looks at tax preferences for R&D.

In light of concerns that some researchers are being restricted from sharing their findings on controversial topics, the GAO report examines the policies for dissemination of research of three agencies: the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Dissemination occurs through such avenues as publications, presentations, press releases, and media interviews, the latter two being more problematic. GAO recommends clarifying media policies, ensuring an appeals process for dissemination decisions, and providing training for those policies.

Federal Support for Research and Development (pdf, 42pp/824kB, from CBO), June 2007

FEDERAL RESEARCH: Policies Guiding the Dissemination of Scientific Research from Selected Agencies Should Be Clarified and Better Communicated, GAO-07-653 (pdf, 102pp/2.93MB, from GAO), May 17, 2007 (released June 18, 2007)

Recent GAO reports

INTERNET ACCESS TAX MORATORIUM: Revenue Impacts Will Vary by State GAO-07-896T (pdf, 28pp/624kB), May 23, 2007

In 1998, Congress passed the Internet Tax Freedom Act (P.L. 105-277, Title XI, 112 Stat. 2681-719 et seq.), temporarily barring taxes by state and local governments on Internet access. GAO testified, "Because it is difficult to know what states would have done to tax Internet access services if no moratorium had existed, the total revenue implications of the moratorium are unclear." Bills have been introduced in Congress this year to make the moratorium permanent.

PEDIATRIC DRUG RESEARCH: The Study and Labeling of Drugs for Pediatric Use under the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act GAO-07-898T (pdf, 18pp/296kB), May 22, 2007

According to GAO, two-thirds of drugs prescribed for children have not been studied for pediatric use. Under the 2002 Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act (BPCA), if manufacturers of drugs that are still on-patent (have marketing exclusivity) conduct pediatric studies at the requst of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), FDA may extend the exclusivity period (no equivalent generic drugs to be marketed) for 6 months. GAO presents testimony on the drug studies conducted under BPCA for on-patent and off-patent drugs, and the impact of BPCA on the labeling of pediatric drugs.

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION: Preliminary Analysis of Changes to and Trends in FTA's New Starts and Small Starts Programs GAO-07-812T (pdf, 30pp/496kB), May 10, 2007

In 2005, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) was signed into law. It authorized the New Starts program in which the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) recommends funding for new fixed-guideway transit projects. New Starts spawned a separate program called Small Starts for smaller transit projects. GAO discusses changes in New Starts and future trends for New Starts and Small Starts.

TEACHER QUALITY: Approaches, Implementation, and Evaluation of Key Federal Efforts GAO-07-861T (pdf, 17pp/224kB), May 17, 2007

Title II of both the 1998 amendments to the Higher Education Act (HEA) and the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLBA) provided funds for professional development and recruitment. This testimony discusses activities under the two acts, how the Dept. of Education (Education) supports these activities, and how funds are being used.

Legal Services Corporation

Since 1975, the private, non-profit, and federally funded Legal Services Corporation (LSC) has provided civil legal services to the poor. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently published a report on LSC's background and funding. LSC's primary responsibility is to oversee federal funds granted to local legal services providers, called LSC grantees. LSC grantees supplement LSC monies with other government and private funding, from such programs as the federal Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), private foundations, and national, state, and local bar associations. In FY2007 Congress appropriated $348.6 million to LSC. In FY2006, Hawaii received approximately $1.46 million from LSC, 22% of a total $6.6 million in funds to serve low-income clients.

According to the report, under federal law LSC grantees may not engage in certain actions, such as those related to redistricting, abortion, assisted suicide, drug-related eviction proceedings, or reforming a federal or state welfare system.

In 2006, CRS reports, LSC funded 138 local programs with 3,600 attorneys, down from 320 local programs with 4,500 attorneys in 1994.


Legal Services Corporation: Background and Funding, CRS Report RL34016 (pdf, 14pp/112kB, from Open CRS), May 23, 2007

Children's health insurance

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has published a report on the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), as Congress considers its reauthorization this year. SCHIP was established by the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, P.L. 105-33 (pdf), Title IV, Subtitle J, chap. 1 (111 Stat. 552 et seq.), which provided funding for SCHIP from 1998 to 2007.

According to the report, SCHIP provides medical coverage to children in families with income that is low but too high for Medicaid. It is federally and state funded and administered by the states within federal guidelines. In 2006, SCHIP covered 6.7 million children, at a cost of $4.8 billion in federal funds.

CBO lists possible changes to SCHIP for Congress to consider in reauthorizing the program:

• Intensifying efforts to enroll uninsured, eligible children
• Redefining the target population
• Changing the allocation formula for state funding
• Modifying the rules for redistribution of unspent funds
• Changing state matching rates
• Modifying benefits states are required to provide

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (pdf, 31pp/1.9MB), May 2007

Greenhouse gas emissions

Two reports on greenhouse gas emissions issued last month by the Congressional Research Service (CRS), one on state actions and the other from an international perspective, were provided on Open CRS.

According to the report on state actions, since there is no federal program mandating greenhouse gas reductions, many states have addressed this issue. However, California and several Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states have taken "the most aggressive actions." CRS devotes the first part of its report to California and the second part to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a collaboration of 8 states - CT, DE, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, and VT - to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. From January 2009, the initiative will begin a mandatory cap-and-trade program for carbon dioxide, setting a cap on emissions and allocating credits among individual sources. (The concluding section of the report reviews issues for Congress presented by these state actions.)

In the international report, CRS discusses the interactions of three variables in measuring greenhouse gas emissions: population, income, and intensity of emissions. The report refers to three initiatives addressing climate change and the growth in greenhouse gases: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC); the Kyoto Protocol (Wikipedia); and the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP). CRS notes the great divide between developed and less-developed nations. While developed countries may practice conservation and energy efficiency, population and economic growth increase total energy use. In less-developed countries, increases in emissions result from energy expended for economic development.

Greenhouse Gas Reductions: California Action and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, CRS Report RL33962 (pdf, 21pp/148kB), April 13, 2007

Greenhouse Gas Emission Drivers: Population, Economic Development and Growth, and Energy Use, CRS Report RL33970 (pdf, 36pp/280kB), April 24, 2007

One country, one card, one hearing

The Sacramento Bee reported Sunday on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposal for states to enhance driver's licenses and identification cards to minimum standards. DHS publishes the proposed rule and a questions and answers page on their website.

The Bee writes [my emphasis]:

On Tuesday, both sides will have their say when the U.S. Department of Homeland Security holds the nation's only public hearing on the 2005 Real ID Act [P.L. 109-13] on the campus of the University of California, Davis.

State officials from throughout the nation are scheduled to attend the four-hour town hall meeting, which begins at 10 a.m in Freeborn Hall.

Considered by many to be a de facto national identity card, Real ID further alarms with the threat of pervasive ID theft and the all too real, staggering costs to states to implement such a system.

It's uncertain where the money will come from. The Real ID Act allows states to use some of their homeland security funding, but critics say this would increase vulnerability elsewhere.

On February 28, U.S. Sens. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, and John Sununu, R-N.H. introduced legislation (S. 717) that would repeal the Real ID Act's requirement for nationally standardized driver's license data and systems.

To repeal title II of the REAL ID Act of 2005, to restore section 7212 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which provides States additional regulatory flexibility and funding authorization to more rapidly produce tamper- and counterfeit-resistant driver's licenses, and to protect privacy and civil liberties by providing interested stakeholders on a negotiated rulemaking with guidance to achieve improved 21st century licenses to improve national security.

Recent GAO reports

CLIMATE CHANGE: Financial Risks to Federal and Private Insurers in Coming Decades are Potentially Significant GAO-07-760T (pdf, 22pp/272kB), April 19, 2007

The above testimony was based on the report below that was released on the same date:

CLIMATE CHANGE: Financial Risks to Federal and Private Insurers in Coming Decades Are Potentially Significant, GAO-07-285 (pdf, 74pp/1.3MB), March 16, 2007

Insurance costs of most weather-related damages are borne by private insurers and two federal programs: the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC). For this report, GAO was asked to (1) describe how climate change may affect future weather-related losses, (2) determine past insured weather-related losses, and (3) determine what major private insurers and federal insurers are doing to prepare for potential increases in such losses.


ELECTIONS: All Levels of Government Are Needed to Address Electronic Voting System Challenges, GAO-07-741T (pdf, 55pp/852kB), April 18, 2007

GAO addresses four issues relating to voting systems: (1) contextual role and characteristics of electronic voting systems, (2) security and reliability concerns reported about these systems, (3) experiences and management practices of states and local jusrisdictions regarding these systems, and (4) longstanding and emerging intergovernmental challenges using these systems.

Discusses the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) of 2002 which, among other things, established the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) for election reform.


TITLE INSURANCE: Actions Needed to Improve Oversight of the Title Industry and Better Protect Consumers, GAO-07-401 (pdf, 74pp/1.25MB), April 13, 2007

The report examines (1) the characteristics of title insurance markets across states, (2) factors influencing competition and prices within those markets, and (3) the current regulatory environment and planned regulatory changes.

GAO reviewed laws and market practices in 6 states: California, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, New York, and Texas.


OLDER DRIVER SAFETY: Knowledge Sharing Should Help States Prepare for Increase in Older Driver Population, GAO-07-413 (pdf, 60pp/3.6MB), April 11, 2007

GAO looks at (1) federal government actions in promoting practices to make roads safer for older drivers and states' implementation of those practices, (2) states' assessment of fitness of older drivers and the support provided by the federal government, and (3) initiatives selected states have implemented for older driver safety. Case studies were done in 6 states considered progressive in improving older driver safety--California, Florida, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, and Oregon.


FIRST RESPONDERS: Much Work Remains to Improve Communications Interoperability, GAO-07-301 (pdf, 75pp/1.5MB), April 2, 2007

In this report, communications interoperability refers to "the capability of different electronic communications systems to readily connect with each other and thus enable timely communications." Communications interoperability among first responders (emergency personnel such as firefighters, police officers, and ambulance services) is vital. From 2003 through 2005, the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) granted $2.15 billion in funding to states and localities to improve communications interoperability.

GAO's objectives in this study were to determine (1) how much DHS funding and technical assistance have helped to improve interoperable communications in selected states, and (2) the progress made in the development and implementation of interoperable communications standards.

Discusses the SAFECOM program of DHS, which provides interoperability assistance to emergency response agencies, and Project 25 (Wikipedia), a set of national standards for radio communications.

Global storm

Charged with finding the top ten actions federal policymakers could take to insure that America can successfully compete, prosper and be secure in the new world technology of the 21st century, the National Academies found the necessary technological and scientific building blocks seriously eroding.

"A comprehensive and coordinated federal effort is urgently needed to bolster U.S. competitiveness and pre-eminence in these areas [the marketplace, science and technology] so that the nation will consistently gain from the opportunities offered by rapid globalization," says a new report published by the National Academies Press (NAP).

Some of their recommendations include:

• Increase America's talent pool by vastly improving K-12 mathematics and science education.
• Sustain and strengthen the nation's commitment to long-term basic research.
• Develop, recruit, and retain top students, scientists, and engineers from both the United States and abroad.
• Ensure that the United States is the premier place in the world for innovation.

As reported in earlier FR posts, states have already begun the conversation focusing on the need for an educated and world aware citizenry .

Rising Above The Gathering Storm:
Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future
(2007, 590 pages, Open Book, NAP)

Juvenile justice in Congress

Anticipating that Congress will consider the reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act (JJDPA), the Congressional Research Service (CRS) has prepared a report on the subject.

Originally enacted in 1974, P.L. 93-415, JJDPA was last reauthorized in 2002 by the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act, P.L. 107-273 (pdf), Division C, Title II, Subtitle B. As CRS reports, juvenile justice is primarily the domain of the states. JJDPA created the federal agencies and grant programs to assist states' juvenile justice systems, and established core mandates for states to receive grant funding.

CRS sees the following as potential issues in JJDPA's reauthorization:

• Rehabilitation versus accountability
• Expanding or modifying the core mandates
• Juvenile Delinquency Prevention Block Grant
• Overlap in grant programs
• Coordination of federal efforts

Juvenile Justice: Legislative History and Current Legislative Issues, CRS Report RL33947 (pdf, 37pp/204kB, from Open CRS), April 2, 2007

Unfunded mandates

One of the provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) of 1995, P.L. 104-4 (pdf, 25pp/144kB), requires the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to inform Congress about the costs of mandates in proposed legislation. CBO has issued a report on its 2006 UMRA actions.

Under UMRA, a mandate is any provision in legislation, statute, or regulation that would impose an enforceable duty on state, local, or tribal governments or the private sector, or that would reduce or eliminate the amount of funding authorized to cover the costs of existing mandates

Of the 321 public laws enacted in 2006, 30 contained one or more intergovernmental mandates, and 39 contained one or more private-sector mandates. Two public laws contained intergovermental mandates whose costs exceeded the statutory threshold of $64 million.

In addition to identifying mandates passed in 2006, the report gives overviews of mandate statements prepared by CBO in 2006 and mandates with above-threshold costs enacted since 1996.

A Review of CBO's Activities in 2006 Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (pdf, 72pp/592kB), April 2007

The "middle class"

Legislation before Congress is often for the "middle class," but there is no consensus definition or official government definition of the term, according to a recent paper from the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS attempts to give the term some perspective by using income data. In 2005 the median household income was $46,235. Using data in which household income distribution is divided into fifths, or quintiles, CRS considers one definition of middle class to comprise the three middle quintiles, with incomes ranging from $19,178 to $91,705, accounting for 60% of all households and 46.2% of all household income.

The paper also discusses the "economics of happiness," related to relative income and self-assessment.

Who Are the "Middle Class"?, CRS Report RS22627 (pdf, 6pp/68kB, from Open CRS), March 20, 2007

Medicare Advantage

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has published testimony on the Medicare Advantage program presented by its Director in the U.S. House.

According to the testimony, Medicare Advantage (MA) is a departure from the traditional Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) program by allowing private plans such as health maintenance organizations (HMOs), preferred provider organizations (PPOs), and private fee-for-service plans (PFFS) to participate in Medicare.

The Director's main points:

• Unexpectedly strong growth in MA enrollment in 2006-early 2007 led CBO to increase its projections for MA enrollment and spending
• Medicare's payments for MA beneficiares are higher than for FFS beneficiaries, increasing net Medicare spending
• Increase in enrollment and cost differential with traditional FFS are especially large in PFFS plans, which are largely in rural and some suburban areas
• Reducing the payment differential betweeen MA and FFS would result in savings to Medicare but would also reduce the supplemental benefits and cash rebates.

Testimony on the Medicare Advantage Program: Trends and Options (pdf, 20pp/116kB), March 21, 2007

See related FR post, Premium support in Medicare, Dec. 12, 2006

Health costs - seniors not the main driver

A recent report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) concludes that the increase in health care costs comes from demand from all age groups, not just the elderly. The report notes:

...population aging is itself a relatively minor factor in the growth of national spending for health care. Other factors, including rising per capita income, the availability of new health care products and services, health insurance coverage, and characteristics of the health care system, play a much bigger role.

However, even if aging has a minor impact on national health spending, it will have a larger impact on federal spending because of growth in costs and enrollment in Medicare.

Health Care Spending and the Aging of the Population, CRS Report RS22619 (pdf, 6pp/80kB, from Open CRS), March 13, 2007

Dow down - the bigger picture

In light of the Dow's "biggest loss since '03" yesterday (Washington Post, Feb. 28), the release of testimony today on economic volatility by Peter R. Orszag, Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), is timely. His testimony covers macroeconomic volatility; workers' earnings and households' income; and risk sharing, income fluctuations, and taxation. Orszag's conclusion:

The U.S. economy has become less volatile: Macroeconomic fluctuations are now much milder than they were in the past. At the same time, however, households continue to experience substantial variability in their earnings and income, and that variability may now be greater than in the past--perhaps contributing to anxiety among workers and families. The tax system can help to smooth fluctuations in income not only at the macroeconomic level but also at the level of workers and households. The income insurance provided as a result may be quite valuable but needs to be weighed against the other effects of the tax system.

Economic Volatility (pdf, 15pp/120kB), Feb. 28, 2007

Safe Schools in Congress

The Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act (SDFSCA), Title IV, Part A, of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), was amended and reauthorized through FY2007 by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) (P.L. 107-110). The Congressional Research Service (CRS) has issued a report on possible actions the 110th Congress may take regarding reauthorization of SDFSCA.

According to the report, NCLB authorizes funding for the SDFSA program, "which is the federal government's major initiative to prevent drug abuse and violence in and around schools." Grants are awarded to state and local educational agencies and to governors. Governors receive 20% of a state allotment to award grants and contracts to public and private entities.

The Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act: Reauthorization and Appropriations, CRS Report RL33870 (pdf, 16pp/120kB, from Open CRS), Feb. 8, 2007

Genetic testing - some background

In a recent report, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) noted that several bills relating to genetic and genomic technology and testing were introduced in the 109th Congress. Although none passed, "they signal the growing importance of the public policy issues surrounding the clinical and public health implications of new genetic technology." In its report, CRS summarizes fundamental concepts in genetics and provides an overview of genetic tests and key policy issues.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regulate genetic tests through the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) of 1988 (P.L. 100-578). CRS emphasizes that CLIA regulates the analytical validity of genetic tests but not their clinical validity and thus is subject to criticism that it "does not go far enough to assure the accuracy of genetic tests."

Genetic Testing: Scientific Background for Policymakers, CRS Report RL33832 (pdf, 13pp/108kB, from Open CRS), January 26, 2007

Recent GAO reports

Budget

Long-Term Budget Outlook: Deficits Matter--Saving Our Future Requires Tough Choices Today, GAO-07-389T, January 23, 2007
      Abstract (html)    Testimony (pdf, 24pp/308kB)

      Main points of testimony by the Comptroller General:

• The current financial condition in the United States is worse than is widely understood.
• The current fiscal path is both imprudent and unsustainable.
• Improvements in information and processes are needed and can help.
• Meeting the long-term fiscal challenge will require (1) significant entitlement reform to change the path of those programs; (2) reprioritizing, restructuring and constraining other spending programs; and (3) more revenues--hopefully through a reformed tax system.
• This will take bipartisan cooperation and compromise.

Drugs

Prescription Drugs: An Overview of Approaches to Negotiate Drug Prices Used by Other Countries and U.S. Private Payers and Federal Programs, GAO-07-358T, January 11, 2007
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/68kB)    Report (pdf, 21pp/252kB)

• Other countries limit their drug purchase costs by such means as: establishing maximum prices manufacturers may charge; using local or international price comparisons of drugs in a therapeutically similar group to establish a single or maximum price; limiting a manufacturer's profits per product or within a specified period of time.
• U.S. private payers generally contract with pharmacy benefit managers to manage prescription drug benefits.
• While adhering to U.S. laws and health care delivery, federal programs utilize elements common to approaches used by other countries and by private payers.

Medicaid Outpatient Drugs: Estimated 2007 Federal Upper Limits for Reimbursement Compared with Retail Pharmacy Acquisition Costs, GAO-07-239R, December 22, 2006
      Abstract (html)    Report (pdf, 31pp/820kB)

      Discusses the new methodology for calculating the federal upper limit (FUL) for drugs, the maximum that state Medicaid programs may receive in federal matching funds for reimbursements. Previously 150 percent of the lowest price for a drug, from Jan. 1, 2007, a drug's FUL will be based on the average manufacturer price.

Education

Highlights of a GAO Forum: Global Competitiveness: Implications for the Nation's Higher Education System, GAO-07-135SP, January 23, 2007
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/68kB)    Report (pdf, 26pp/7.2MB)

Steps the U.S. needs to take to continue to attract talented international students:

• Develop a national strategic plan - to recruit students and improve coordination among the federal government and other organizations as well as with students.
• Consider changes to the U.S. immigration system.
• Explore new sources of students, such as developing countries.

Poverty

Poverty in America: Economic Research Shows Adverse Impacts on Health Status and Other Social Conditions as well as the Economic Growth Rate, GAO-07-344, January 24, 2007
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/56kB)    Report (pdf, 35pp/436kB)

      GAO was asked to review economic literature on the links between (1) poverty and adverse social conditions, such as poor health, crime, and participation in the labor force, and (2) poverty and economic growth.

NCLB in Congress

Anticipating that Congress will amend and extend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act which was most recently amended by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 (P.L. 107-110), the Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on NCLB reauthorization issues that it believes Congress will focus on:

• Assessments
• Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)
• Performance based sanctions - which generally apply only to Title I-A schools
• Staff qualifications - regarding "highly qualified teachers"
• Funding levels
• International competitiveness
• Federal role

A Jan. 15 editorial in the Honolulu Advertiser noted, "Last year, 66 percent of public schools in Hawaii failed to meet the AYP requirements under No Child Left Behind...(but) it did show an overall improvement in student proficiency in both math and English." The editorial urges the federal government to allow states to use such student progress as an assessment measure rather than a rigid pass or fail benchmark.

It's unfair to deny students the chance to be measured against this more-forgiving scale. During the next few months, Congress will decide whether to reauthorize the law, or make improvments to it. Considering the stakes--our children's education--making improvements is not an option. It's an obligation.

The No Child Left Behind Act: An Overview of Reauthorization Issues for the 110th Congress, CRS Report RL33749 (pdf, 33pp/196kB, from Open CRS), December 16, 2006

See related FR post: NCLB - Measuring progress

How Congress appropriates

Earlier this month, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a report on the congressional appropriations process. The report covers the following:

• annual appropriations cycle
• types of appropriations measures
• spending ceilings for appropriations associated with the annual budget resolution
• relationship between authorization and appropriation measures

The annual appropriations cycle begins when the president submits his annual budget to Congress. Congress then adopts a budget resolution, considers appropriation measures, votes on the bills, and if passed, sends them to the president for his signature or veto.

The types of appropriations measures are 11 regular appropriations bills, continuing resolutions (to maintain temporary funding if a regular appropriations measure is not enacted by the deadline), and supplementals for additional funds or for unforeseen needs such as disasters.

The budget resolution covers at least five fiscal years. For each year, it sets the total budget and allocates spending among 20 functional categories (such as national defense, transportation, etc.).

Authorization and allocation measures are considered in sequence. Authorizations establish, continue, or modify agencies or programs. Appropriation measures then give these agencies and programs their budgets.

The Congressional Appropriations Process: An Introduction , CRS Report 97-684 (pdf, 32pp/176kB, from Open CRS), December 8, 2006

Recent GAO reports

Education

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT: Education's Data Improvement Efforts Could Strengthen the Basis for Distributing Title III Funds GAO-07-140, December 7, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/92kB)    Report (pdf 57pp/1.7MB)
      Title III of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) provides for the education of students with limited English proficiency.

POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION: Multiple Tax Preferences and Title IV Student Aid Programs Create a Complex Education Financing Environment GAO-07-262T, December 5, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/76kB)   Testimony (pdf, 41pp/1MB)
      Compares postsecondary student aid under Title IV of the Higher Education Act with tax preferences such as the Hope Credit.

Eminent Domain

EMINENT DOMAIN: Information about Its Uses and Effect on Property Owners and Communities Is Limited GAO-07-28, November 30, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/60kB)   Report (pdf, 58p/932kB)
      Includes general information on post-Kelo (pdf, 58pp/412kB) legislation enacted by 29 states, from June 23, 2005, through July 31, 2006.
      See earlier FR post, Jan. 06

Financial Management

FINANCIAL LITERACY AND EDUCATION COMMISSION: Further Progress Needed to Ensure an Effective National Strategy GAO-07-100, December 4, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/60kB)   Report (pdf, 54pp/740kB)
      Discusses the National Strategy for Financial Literacy.

Health

NEW DRUG DEVELOPMENT: Science, Business, Regulatory, and Intellectual Property Issues Cited as Hampering Drug Development Efforts, GAO-07-49, November 17, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/100kB)   Report (pdf, 52pp/1MB)
      Addresses concerns that new drug applications (NDAs) for new molecular entities (NMEs) have declined since 1996.
      See related FR post, Oct. 06

Premium support in Medicare

One of the strategies proposed to control escalating Medicare costs is converting Medicare to a premium support system, whereby the federal government would give beneficiaries an amount to purchase regular Medicare fee-for-service coverage or to enroll in a private plan. Formulating such a system is the subject of a recent 66-page report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

According to the report, about 17 percent of Medicare beneficiaries are enrolled in private Medicare Advantage plans that provide Medicare benefits. For each private enrollee, the government sets a maximum payment called the benchmark, which is set at the county level. In a premium support system, CBO proposes that the government's contribution could be established by competitive bidding by private plans or be a set amount. In a bid approach, benchmarks could be determined by the bids rather than by statutory rules as currently done.

In its analysis, CBO notes a number of uncertainties in the effects of such a system, from costs and premiums to whether a benefits package should be standardized. Under the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, P.L. 108-173 (pdf, 416pp/1MB), the government is to conduct a six-year, six-city demonstration of premium support beginning in 2010.

Designing a Premium Support System for Medicare (pdf, 66pp/608kB), December 2006

Recent GAO reports

Prevalence of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault, Dating Violence, and Stalking, GAO-07-148R, November 13, 2006
      Report (pdf, 54pp/644kB)
      The Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act of 2005, P.L. 109-162 (pdf, 177pp/596kB), requires GAO to do a study on (1) data measuring domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking, and (2) services for victims. This report addresses (1); (2) is in process.

HIGHER EDUCATION: More Information Could Help Education Determine the Extent to Which Eligible Servicemembers Serving on Active Duty Benefited from Relief Provided by Lenders and Schools, GAO-07-11, November 1, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/92kB)   Report (pdf, 48pp/1.35MB)
      The Dept. of Education has no plans to complete a study it was required to do on the extent to which servicemembers are benefiting from the Higher Education Relief Opportunities for Students (HEROES) Act of 2003, P.L. 108-76 (pdf, 6pp/36kB), because of the cost of the study's design and Education's inadequate data systems, but GAO recommends that the study be done.

IMPROPER PAYMENTS: Agencies' Fiscal Year 2005 Reporting under the Improper Payments Information Act Remains Incomplete, GAO-07-92, November 14, 2006
      Highlights (pdf, 1p/72kB)   Report (pdf, 83pp/1.13MB)
      FY2005 was the second year for executive agencies to report improper payments (payments that should not have been made or made in an incorrect amount) under the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002, P.L. 107-300 (pdf, 2pp/28kB).

TAX ADMINISTRATION: Most Filing Season Services Continue to Improve, but Opportunities Exist for Additional Savings, GAO-07-27, November 15, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 1p/228kB)   Report (pdf, 62pp/2.35MB)
     GAO reviewed performance of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in services and cost savings, and the status of the Taxpayer Assistance Blueprint (TAB), IRS's "long-term strategy" for cost-effective taxpayer services.

Meeting disaster

The Disasters Roundtable (DR), of the Division of Earth & Life Studies (DELS), a division of the National Academies of Sciences (NAS), convened a workshop, their sixteenth in the series, on March 20, 2006 to examine "community resilience in the face of disaster."

pre-disaster preparedness planning efforts involving all relevant stakeholders are also needed to guide emergency responses...Participants focused on the local level, where the greatest impact of disasters is felt...

The workshop program is available on the Roundtable's pages of the DELS web site. Several of the presentations can be downloaded as pdf, including Community Diversity, Vulnerability and Resilience: What's the Connection?; Measuring Community Emergency Preparedness; and Lessons Learned About Recovery in the Business and Other Sectors. The summary of the roundtable is published as an Open Book by National Academies Press (NAP).

Community Disaster Resilience: A Summary of the March 20, 2006 Workshop of the Disasters Roundtable
(2006, Open Book, 15 pp)

Recent GAO reports

CHILD WELFARE: Improving Social Service Program, Training, and Technical Assistance Information Would Help Address Long-standing Service-Level and Workforce Challenges, GAO-07-75, October 6, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 1p/80kB) Full report (pdf, 56pp/1.3MB)
     Most state agencies identified 3 primary challenges: providing adequate mental health and substance abuse services for both parents and children; high caseloads; and finding homes for children with special needs.

FOOD STAMP TRAFFICKING: FNS Could Enhance Program Integrity by Better Targeting Stores Likely to Traffic and Increasing Penalties, GAO-07-53, October 13, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 1p/336kB) Full report (pdf, 41pp/2.8MB)
     The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) replaced paper coupons in the Food Stamp Program (FSP) with electronic benefit transfer (EBT) cards, but retailer fraud continues.

HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SHORTAGE AREAS: Problems Remain with Primary Care Shortage Area Designation System, GAO-07-84, October 24, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 1p/68kB) Full report (pdf, 66pp/1.75MB
     Federal programs use the health professional shortage area (HPSA) designation to allocate resources or provide benefits to geographic areas, population groups, and facilities.

Retirement Challenges in the 21st Century, GAO-07-125CG, October 10, 2006
     Slide-show presentation (pdf, 46pp/640kB) by David M. Walker, Comptroller General, at the annual International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans (IFEBP) conference, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Energy stats

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently updated its statistical report on energy supply and consumption in the U.S. The report begins with an overview of total energy consumption, then presents detailed analyses of trends and statistics for oil, electricity, natural gas, and coal.

On gasoline prices, the report comments:

A significant and not often noted fact is that, like many commodities, the long-term trend in gasoline prices, adjusted for inflation and excluding temporary surges, has been down. As shown in Figure 8, the real price of gasoline peaked in 1980, then fell precipitously in the mid-1980s. The surge in prices since the summer of 2004 brought the price close to the peak of 1980 (in real dollars).

The statistics are largely from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) of the Dept. of Energy (DOE).

Energy: Selected Facts and Numbers, CRS Report RL31849, October 6, 2006 (pdf, 184KB, 30p., from Open CRS)

Recent GAO reports

Education

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT: Education Actions Needed to Improve Implementation and Evaluation of Supplemental Educational Services, GAO-06-1121T, September 21, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 59KB, 1p.) Full testimony (pdf, 494KB, 27p.)
     Discusses Supplemental Educational Services (SES) in schools receiving Title I funds.

Elderly

GUARDIANSHIPS: Little Progress in Ensuring Protection for Incapacitated Elderly People, GAO-06-1086T, September 7, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.) Full testimony (pdf, 188KB, 17p.)
     Updates a 2004 GAO report.

Mortgages

ALTERNATIVE MORTGAGE PRODUCTS: Impact on Defaults Remains Unclear, but Disclosure of Risks to Borrowers Could Be Improved, GAO-06-1112T, September 20, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.) Full testimony (pdf, 564KB, 16p.)

ALTERNATIVE MORTGAGE PRODUCTS: Impact on Defaults Remains Unclear, but Disclosure of Risks to Borrowers Could Be Improved, GAO-06-1021, September 19, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.) Full report (pdf, 1.6MB, 64p.)
     Report and testimony discuss risks of interest-only, adjustable rate mortgages for less sophisticated borrowers.

Social Security

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM: Implications of Different Indexing Choices, GAO-06-804, September 14, 2006
     Highlights (pef, 56KB, 1p.) Full report (pdf, 1MB, 74p.)
     Analyzes the role of indexing in Social Security's long-term solvency as well as income adequacy and benefit equity.

Pharmaceutical R&D

Perceptions that the pace of new-drug develoment has slowed and that the pharmaceutical industry is highly profitable have sparked concerns that significant problems loom for future drug development.

The foregoing spurred a recent study by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) which looks at the current state of pharmaceutical R&D, how it is affected by complex economic forces, and how efficiently new drugs are delivered.

CBO also examines the following related issues:

• What explains the cost of developing new drugs?
• Does federal investment in R&D stimulate or displace private investment?
• Has the drug industry's innovative performance declined?
• How profitable are drug firms,and how do profits affect the amount and type of R&D that companies conduct?

According to the study, R&D costs vary depending on the type of drug being developed, the highest generally being for a new molecular entity (NME), rather than a modification of an existing drug. A recent estimate for an NME is $800 million, but that amount factors in failed projects and forgone investments and reflects research strategies related to expected revenues.

Research and Development in the Pharmaceutical Industry (pdf, 596KB, 65p.), October 2006

FTC - T is for Tech

November 6-8, 2006, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will host hearings on Protecting Consumers in the Next Tech-ade. The Commission encourages participation by "consumers, government regulators, industry members, technologists, consumer advocates, academics, law enforcement officials and other interested members of the public."

The hearings will provide an opportunity to examine changes that have occurred in marketing and technology over the past decade, and to garner experts' views on coming challenges and opportunities for consumers, businesses, and governmental bodies.

To provide continuous coverage of the hearings, the FTC launched their FTC Tech-ade Blog focusing on the new technologies and developing business practices especially impacting the consumer. The blog will offer interviews with hearing participants and tech experts and will provide live coverage of the hearings. The blog includes full blog interactive features allowing comments.

The hearings will run three days on the campus of The George Washington University and is open to the public, with a final day on November 9 open only to law enforcers and government officials. A sampling of topics include:

• How Will We Communicate in the Next Tech-ade?
• Social Networking
• User-generated Content
• Benefits to Consumers of Living in an Instant Information Culture
• RFID Technology
• New Products - New Challenges
• How to Make Sense of it All - Consumers' Perspective

The full agenda of workshops may be viewed on the Tech-ade site.

Upper limit in the depths

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) requested The National Academies' Ocean Studies Board (OSB) examine "the impacts of fishing on non-target resources and habitat." Finding more severe changes than anticipated to "the genetic structure and age composition of fished stocks, as well as decreasing the diversity of marine communities," the panel concluded:

• Identifying and understanding these potential impacts and interactions will be essential for developing future management actions.
• Fisheries management strategies currently employed in the United States generally do not take into account ecosystem effects and multi-species interactions.
• New governance and management instruments that create stewardship incentives among user groups should be evaluated and considered for adoption in the United States for multi-species fisheries management.
• Promoting Better Stewardship of the Marine Environment Fisheries management structures should ensure that a broad spectrum of social values is included in policy and management decisions.
• Research should also be conducted on how ecosystem management objectives can be incorporated into incentive-based governance mechanisms.
• There is an additional need for a repository and data management system for ecosystem-level research that will allow access to data through multiple-user portals.

The panel further finds, "Seventy-six percent of the world's stocks are fully exploited, overexploited, or depleted," with few resources remaining for future development of new sustainable fisheries.

Whether the unwanted, negative influences of fishing on marine food webs and communities can be reversed is generally unknown.

Dynamic Changes in Marine Ecosystems: Fishing, Food Webs, and Future Options (2006, NAP Open Book, 154pp)

See also, FR post, Offshore aquaculture

Recent GAO reports

Disaster Management

CATASTROPHIC DISASTERS: Enhanced Leadership, Capabilities, and Accountability Controls Will Improve the Effectiveness of the Nation's Preparedness, Response, and Recovery System, GAO-06-618, September 6, 2006
     Highlights, (pdf, 60KB, 1p.) Full report (pdf, 2.7MB, 147p.)
     Reviews lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina.

Elections

ELECTIONS: DOD Expands Voting Assistance to Military Absentee Voters, but Challenges Remain, GAO-06-1134T, September 28, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 64KB, 1p.) Full testimony (pdf, 424KB, 26p.)
     Covers the Federal Voting Assistance Program (FVAP).

Environment

AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION: USDA Should Improve Its Process for Allocating Funds to States for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, GAO-06-969, September 22, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.) Full report (pdf, 892KB, 62p.)
     Hawaii's EQIP funding for FY2006 is $7.5 million.

CLIMATE CHANGE: Federal Agencies Should Do More to Make Funding Reports Clearer and Encourage Progress on Two Voluntary Programs, GAO-06-1126T, September 27, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 64KB, 1p.) Full testimony (pdf, 464KB, 21p.)
     The two voluntary programs are Climate Leaders and Climate VISION.

ENDANGERED SPECIES: Many Factors Affect the Length of Time to Recover Select Species, GAO-06-730, September 6, 2006
     Highlights (pdf, 57KB, 1p.) Full report (pdf, 726KB, 77p.)
     Covers 31 species nearing recovery.

Cybersecurity - Homeland Security's role

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently testified before two House subcommittees on the role of the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) in cybersecurity and recovery from Internet disruptions. Under the Homeland Security Act of 2002, PL 107-296 (pdf, 187p.), and federal policy, DHS is responsible for the security of the nation's cyberspace, which includes Internet recovery. GAO sees DHS impeded in fulfilling its role as the government's focal point in both areas.

Cybersecurity. DHS has made progress in 13 key cybersecurity reponsibilities, e.g., the release of its National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) in June 2006, but none have been completely met. GAO sees DHS facing "a particular challenge in attaining the organizational stability and leadership it needs to gain the trust of the stakeholders in the cybersecurity world" - government as well as the private sector.

Internet recovery. GAO was asked to summarize its earlier report on this subject. It found that DHS has begun initiatives on a public/private recovery plan but its efforts are neither complete nor comprehensive. Key challenges include: (1) diffuse control of the Internet's many networks, (2) lack of consensus on DHS's role, (3) legality of DHS's ability to restore Internet service, (4) reluctance of the private sector to share information, and (5) again, leadership and organizational problems.

Critical Infrastructure Protection: DHS Leadership Needed to Enhance Cybersecurity, GAO-06-1087T, September 13, 2006
      Full testimony (pdf, 160KB, 24p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Internet Infrastructure: Challenges in Developing a Public/Private Recovery Plan, GAO-06-1100T, September 13, 2006
      Full testimony (pdf, 144KB, 26p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Earlier GAO report:
Internet Infrastructure: DHS Faces Challenges in Developing a Joint Public/Private Recovery Plan, GAO-06-672 (pdf, 2.5MB, 81p.), June 16, 2006

Asia info from the Fed

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco (FRBSF) is one of twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks. The FRBSF district encompasses nine western states, including Hawaii, and American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Among FRBSF's numerous information resources is AsiaSource, its "gateway to publicly available information on Asia." AsiaSource comprises two main sources for publications and analysis - the Center for Pacific Basin Studies (CPBS) and the Country Analysis Unit (CAU). Additional Resources, its third component, provides links to Asian and international financial bodies and other relevant websites.

BRCA1 & BRCA2 - new study

In a news release yesterday, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced the publication of a study it funded on mutations in two breast cancer genes - BRCA1 & BRCA2.

Each year, approximately 200,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer. The majority of breast cancer cases are caused by genetic changes that occur during a woman's lifetime and not by genetic mutations inherited from her parents. However, researchers estimate that inherited mutations play a role in anywhere from 5 to 27 percent of all breast cancer cases. In the mid 1990s, researchers found that mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes are a major cause of the hereditary form of the disease.

The advantage of the new study was its inclusion of "under-studied" groups such as African American and older women. The study's findings appear in the article "Prevalence and Predictors of BRCA1 and BRCA2 Mutations in a Population-Based Study of Breast Cancer in White and Black American Women Ages 35 to 64 Years" in the current issue of Cancer Research. See abstract. (Full text requires subscription or fee.)

The approximately 2300 women in the study were also participants in the Women's Contraceptive and Reproductive Experiences (CARE) study of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD).

For the federal government information source for women's health, go to the National Women's Health Information Center.

Boomer retirement - no market meltdown

Scenario: The first wave of baby boomers will turn 62 and become eligible for Social Security in 2008; they will strain our health and retirement systems; they will sell off financial assets to a smaller pool of workers, thereby depressing prices and rates of return. How likely is the last? Not very, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). Why? Most boomers have few assets to sell, and the minority that owns a lot will need to sell little, if any. If boomers follow the pattern of current retirees, they will spend down their assets slowly. Longer life expectancy and working past traditional retirement ages will also spread out the sale of assets.

What are the "broader risks"? GAO notes the decline in traditional defined benefit pensions and Social Security's uncertain solvency. So, individuals' financial literacy will be vital for a secure retirement.

Among the sources GAO consulted for this study were the Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF), sponsored by the Federal Reserve Board (Fed), and the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), produced by the University of Michigan and sponsored by the National Institute on Aging (NIA).

BABY BOOM GENERATION: Retirement of Baby Boomers Is Unlikely to Precipitate Dramatic Decline in Market Returns, but Broader Risks Threaten Retirement Security, GAO-06-718, July 28, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 1.1MB, 70p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 84KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Related FR posts:

• Older workers - a better future?
• Pensions as time bombs

NCLB - Measuring progress

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) requires that states (1) improve students' academic performance so that they achieve reading and math proficiency by 2014, and (2) close achievement gaps between high- and low-performing students. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently did a study on how states measure schools' academic achievement, or adequate yearly progress (AYP), in meeting these goals. States now set annual targets using status models that calculate test scores 1 year at a time. In addition to status models, 26 states use growth models that measure changes in test scores over time. Another 22 states, Hawaii among them, are considering implementing growth models. In its report, GAO assesses states' use of growth models, whether they achieve NCLB goals, and how the Department of Education (Education) is assisting states in using growth models.

The House Committee on Education and the Workforce asked GAO to testify on its report. The testimony was released on July 27.

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT: States Face Challenges Measuring Academic Growth That Education's Initiatives May Help Address, GAO-06-661, July 17, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 2MB, 54p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 372KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ACT: States Face Challenges Measuring Academic Growth, GAO-06-948T, July 27, 2006, Testimony (pdf, 1MB, 24p.)

Related FR posts:

• Report card on NCLB, year 4
• No Child, "a product of negotiation, not law"

See Hawaii Dept. of Education (DOE) AYP news release, July 20, 2006

Higher energy prices - overall effects not bad

Contrary to general expectations, the large and persistent rise in energy prices that has occurred over the past two and a half years has not caused substantial problems for the overall U.S. economy.

So begins a recent paper from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analyzing the short-term macroeconomic effects of rising energy prices. The paper draws comparisons to the more negative fallout of the energy crisis that occurred in the 1970s. The current effects on gross domestic product (GDP), employment and inflation have been "moderate." Why? In brief: strong consumer spending, business investment and exports; better management of monetary policy; and the economy's increased flexibility and stability. Factors that have contributed to the economy's flexibility include deregulation, advances in informtion technology, and innovations in financial markets and institutions.

Deregulation and the newer information technolgies have joined, in the United States and elsewhere, to advance flexibility in the financial sector. Financial stability may turn out to have been the most important contributor to the evident significant gains in economic stability over the past two decades. --Alan Greenspan, Sept 27, 2005.

The Economic Effects of Recent Increases in Energy Prices (pdf, 448 KB, 26p.), July 2006

Paperwork reduction?

A major goal of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) is to minimize the burden of Americans providing information to federal agencies while maximizing the public benefit of the information collected. Under PRA, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is required to approve all information collections and to make an annual PRA report, the Information Collection Budget (pdf, 140p.). The Government Accountability Office (GAO) presented testimony, released July 18, on OMB's annual report on estimates of agencies' paperwork burden and on a May 2005 GAO report on PRA processes and compliance.

GAO testified on OMB's report that paperwork burden increased 5.5 percent to 8.4 billion hours in FY2005. "Nearly all this increase is the result of the implementation of new statutes. For example, there was an increase of about 224 million hours from the implementation of voluntary prescription drug coverage under Medicare." OMB expects an increase of 250 million hours in the burden estimate of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for FY2006 because of a new model for estimating, but it will not affect the burden on taxpayers.

PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT: Increase in Estimated Burden Hours Highlights Need for New Approach, GAO-06-974T, July 18, 2006
     Full testimony (pdf, 448KB, 36p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT: New Approach May Be Needed to Reduce Government Burden on Public GAO-05-424 (pdf, 1.3MB, 82p.), May 20, 2005

Congress and state corporate income taxes

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) recently published a report giving an overview of state corporate income taxes and analyzing current congressional activity affecting those taxes. There are two reasons Congress has a role in state corporate income taxes: (1) interstate commerce regulatory oversight, and (2) federal and state corporate income tax interaction.

The report focuses on four bills that are now before Congress:

H.R. 1956 (pdf, 10p.) and S.2721 (pdf, 10p.) are similar. These bills impose uniformity for nexus determination and expand the definition of goods and services relative to nexus.

S.2152 (pdf, 21p.) and S.2153 (pdf, 29p.) are streamlined sales tax legislation. States would have to simplify their sales and use taxes before they can compel remote vendors to collect those taxes.

State Corporate Income Taxes: A Description and Analysis, CRS Report RL32297 (pdf, 104KB, 19p., from Open CRS), June 30, 2006

Medicaid costs - getting a grip

Donald B. Marron, Acting Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), presented testimony today before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging at its hearing on "From Medicaid to Retiree Benefits: How Seniors Impact America's Health Care Costs."

In Marron's testimony, CBO projects that federal spending for Medicaid will nearly double over the next 10 years, from $190 billion in FY2006 to $363 billion in 2015, when it will account for about 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). Medicare spending by the states will also increase, and for the economy as a whole, health care costs of GDP will climb from 16.5 percent in 2006 to 20 percent in 2015.

CBO offers the following options for controlling Medicaid spending:

• Reduce the federal contribution
• Reduce mandatory benefits or restrict coverage
• Increase beneficiaries' cost sharing
• Encourage greater use of lower-cost services

Testimony on Medicaid Spending Growth and Options for Controlling Costs
(pdf, 168KB, 28p.), July 13, 2006

Developing geothermal energy

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released testimony presented in the Senate on the future of geothermal energy in the U.S. The testimony was based on a GAO report issued in May.

The testimony notes, "In the United States, geothermal resources are concentrated in Alaska, Hawaii, and the western half of the country, primarily on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM)." Also,

Geothermal resources currently account for about 0.3 percent of the annual electricity produced in the United States, or 2,534 megawatts--enough electricity to supply 2.5 million homes. Even though the percentage of electricity generated from geothermal resources is small nationwide, it is locally important. For example, geothermal resources provide about 25 percent of Hawaii's electricity, 5 percent of California's electricity, and 9 percent of northern Nevada's electricity.

Not only do geothermal resources currently play only a small energy role, developing these resources involves "significant financial, technical, and logistical challenges." The Energy Policy Act of 2005, P.L. 109-58 (pdf), attempted to address some of these issues with provisions for tax credits, clean renewable energy bonds, transmission facilities, and incentive-based rates for electricity in interstate commerce. Because several of the Act's major provisions require implementation by agencies in the Dept. of the Interior (DOI), the testimony concludes that the future of the nation's geothermal energy depends on these agencies' actions.

RENEWABLE ENERGY: Increased Geothermal Development Will Depend on Overcoming Many Challenges, GAO-06-930T, July 11, 2006
     Full testimony (pdf, 276KB, 19p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 136KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

RENEWABLE ENERGY: Increased Geothermal Development Will Depend on Overcoming Many Challenges, GAO-06-629, May 24, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 1.7MB, 53p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 600KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Child support expenditures

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a study today on federal expenditures for the child support enforcement (CSE) program. CSE is a federal-state partnership, and states are generally reimbursed 66 percent of their administrative costs. On the federal level, CSE is run by the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) which establishes program policies and oversees and audits state agencies.

From FY 2000 to FY 2004, total net federal expenditures for administrative costs increased, but child support collections and the program's cost-effectiveness ratio (total collections divided by total administrative expenditures) also increased. For FY 2004, cost-effectiveness ratios ranged from 8.70 for Hawaii to 1.83 for the Virgin Islands. The minimum to receive an incentive payment is 2.0.

The report provides a 50-state map of percentage changes in net federal expenditures, from FY 2000 to FY 2004, on p. 17.

CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT: More Focus on Labor Costs and Administrative Cost Audits Could Help Reduce Federal Expenditures, GAO-06-491, July 6, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 2MB, 62p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 80KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Universal Service Fund

The Universal Service Fund (USF) was mandated by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to further the federal goal of providing universal service in telecommunications to U.S. residents regardless of income or geography. USF matters because it is funded by payments from telephone companies which can, and do, pass this cost on to their customers. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recently issued a paper on increased spending in USF's High-Cost Program which serves consumers in rural areas. This program's expenses have increased more than 50 percent since FY2000 to about $7 billion.

The High Cost Program is one of four that USF supports. The others are: the Low-Income Program, the Schools and Libraries Program, and the Rural Health Care Program.

The Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service makes recommendations to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on USF matters.

Factors That May Increase Future Spending from the Universal Service Fund (pdf, 900KB, 48p.), June 2006

Related CBO report:

Financing Universal Telephone Service (pdf, 504KB, 34p.), March 2005

Foster care costs

Costs for adoption and foster care programs are expected to rise from $6 billion in FY2003 to $8 billion in FY2008, according to a study issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday. Federal aid to help states pay for these programs increased 7% between FY2000 and FY2004 from $2.5 to $2.6 billion. The programs are authorized by Title IV-E of the Social Security Act and administered by the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Administration for Children and Families (ACF).

GAO found that 80% of the increase could be attributed to six states, with California accounting for 31% of the total. The study reviewed spending in 11 states and found that different methods for identifiying eligible children and staff costs and uneven compliance with criteria for reporting costs or interpretation of criteria have made HHS oversight difficult.

FOSTER CARE AND ADOPTION ASSISTANCE: Federal Oversight Needed to Safeguard Funds and Ensure Consistent Support for States' Administrative Costs, GAO-06-649, June 15, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 1.7MB, 54p.)
     Highlights (pdf,356KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Social security - long term

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has updated its long-term (100-year) projections for Social Security. From its June 2006 report:

At the present time, Social Security revenues are greater than outlays, but as the baby-boom generation continues to age, outlays will grow substantially faster than revenues. CBO projects that outlays will begin to exceed revenues in 2019 and that the Social Security trust funds will be exhausted in 2046.

CBO's projections of benefit levels indicate that future beneficiaries will receive higher retirement benefits--and pay higher Social Security taxes--than current beneficiaries do, even after adjustments for inflation and for the reductions that occur after the trust funds are exhausted. However, those benfits will represent a smaller percentage of their preretirement earnings than is the case now.

Updated Long-Term Projections for Social Security, (pdf, 480KB, 26p.), June 2006

CBO first released long-term projections in June 2004 and updated them in March 2005:

The Outlook for Social Security (pdf, 1.2MB, 49p.), June 2004

Updated Long-Term Projections for Social Security
(pdf, 936KB, 16p.) (also available in html), March 2005

Wastewater down

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has published a study on the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) program of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). In 1987, amendments to the Clean Water Act created the CWSRF program to provide low-interest financing to states for water quality projects. States can use their CWSRFs for wastewater infrastructure, nonpoint source pollution control, and estuaries. Since 1987, an overwhelming 96 percent of these funds ($50 billion) has gone to wastewater treatment. In light of states' flexibility in spending CWSRFs, GAO examined how effectively the funds have been allocated.

CLEAN WATER: How States Allocate Revolving Loan Funds and Measure Their Benefits, GAO-06-579, June 5, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 4MB, 54p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Surf's up!

The devastation caused by the Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004 raised awareness and concerns about how well U.S. coastal communities are prepared for a similar event. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today issued a report on federal and state efforts to mitigate tsunami risks and impacts.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is the lead agency for tsunami detection and warning. The GAO report is based on NOAA's determination that the Pacific coast states of Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington, as well as Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, face the highest tsunami risk. The five states, together with NOAA, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) participate in the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program (NTHMP). For this study, GAO visited those states and twelve at-risk communities, two of which were in Hawaii - Hilo and Honolulu.

Hawaii also plays an important role for tsunamis as the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, one of two tsunami warning centers operated by NOAA's National Weather Service (NWS). is located in Ewa Beach. The other center, the West Coast & Alaska Tsunami Warning Center is in Palmer, Alaska.

U.S. TSUNAMI PREPAREDNESS: Federal and State Partners Collaborate to Help Communities Reduce Potential Impacts, but Significant Challenges Remain, GAO-06-519, June 5, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 2.5MB, 65p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 44KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Health insurance - your way, sort of

The rising cost of health care coverage has prompted growing interest and enrollment in consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs), according to a study released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday. CDHPs are offered by private health insurance carriers to employers and individuals. A CDHP combines a high-deductible health plan with a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) or health savings account (HSA), both of which have tax advantages.

HRAs and HSAs allow CDHP enrollees greater discretion in their health care. Because unused funds can be accrued, the report notes the incentive for enrollees to limit their health care expenditures; the counter-argument is that with its high deductibles, CDHPs may only attract healthier individuals and thereby raise premiums in traditional plans where the less healthy remain. Because CDHPs are relatively new, GAO did a broad survey of government and industry officials and employers and financial institutions for this study.

CONSUMER-DIRECTED HEALTH PLANS: Small but Growing Enrollment Fueled by Rising Cost of Health Care Coverage, GAO-06-514, April 28, 2006
     Full report (pdf, 644KB, 38p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 56KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Related GAO reports on CDHPs for federal employees:

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM: First-Year Experience with High-Deductible Health Plans and Health Savings Accounts, GAO-06-271 (pdf, 544KB, 28p.), January 31, 2006

FEDERAL EMPLOYEES HEALTH BENEFITS PROGRAM: Early Experience with a Consumer-Directed Health Plan, GAO-06-143 (pdf, 480KB, 27p.), November 21, 2005

Offshoring in human services? (Revised)

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today issued a revised version of its March 28 report on Offshoring in Six Human Services Programs "to correct errors in data reported...."

OFFSHORING IN SIX HUMAN SERVICES PROGRAMS: Offshoring Occurs in Most States, Primarily in Customer Service and Software Development, GAO-06-342
     Full report (pdf, 632KB, 46p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 80KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

See earlier FR post, Offshoring in human services?

Pandemic flu effects - from macro to you

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) yesterday issued an update to its December 2005 report on the macroeconomic effects of an avian flu pandemic. As stated in the cover letter, this update focuses on "changes in the level of preparedness." The federal government's preparedness policy is evolving in three areas: vaccines and vaccine production capacity, antiviral drugs and other medications to mitigate the effects of a pandemic, and preparing state and local government responses to an outbreak.

Since the December 2005 assessment, CBO notes several developments: additional studies, one of which predicts a milder impact than previous estimates; the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) contracting with six vaccine manufacturers to be able to inoculate, by 2011, the entire U.S. population within six months of an outbreak; the Administration's publication this month of a National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Implementation Plan (pdf, 4MB, 233p., from the Homeland Security Council); and the enactment of the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act, P.L. 109-148 (pdf), at 119 Stat. 2818, which protects "countermeasure" manufacturers from liability.

A Potential Influenza Pandemic: An Update on Possible Macroeconomic Effects and Policy Issues (pdf, 132KB, 22p.), May 22, 2006

A Potential Influenza Pandemic: Possible Macroeconomic Effects and Policy Issues (pdf, 312KB, 50p.), Dec. 8, 2005

HHS has created a pandemic-avian flu website which includes planning and response information for each state.

For Hawaii - pandemic flu information:

• HHS site
• Hawaii Dept. of Health (DOH) site
• Hawaii Pandemic Flu Summit, April 25, 2006

National park air tour fees

In a report issued May 11, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the National Park Service has not been able to collect all the air tour fees it is due. Of 86 park units, only three meet the criteria established by the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993, P.L. 103-66, to charge air tour fees: Grand Canyon, Haleakala, and Hawaii Volcanoes National Parks.

While the Park Service is responsible for collecting air tour fees, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has sole jurisdiction of airspace over national park units. The FAA, together with the Park Service, is charged with regulating air tours pursuant to the National Parks Overflights Act of 1987, P.L. 100-91, and the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000 (pdf), P.L. 106-181,title VIII, but the FAA is not required to enforce payment of fees.

GAO found that the Park Service is hindered in collecting fees because it cannot verify air tour activity and thus cannot enforce compliance, and because P.L. 103-66 and P.L. 106-181 set different geographic standards for air tours incurring fees.

NATIONAL PARKS AIR TOUR FEES: Effective Verification and Enforcement Are Needed to Improve Compliance, GAO-06-468
     Full report (pdf, 560KB, 42p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 84KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

See related FR post, National park air tours

UI - overpayments; reemployment

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday released testimony relating to two aspects of unemployment insurance (UI): (1) efforts by the Department of Labor (Labor) to prevent overpayments, and (2) federal and state efforts to get UI claimants back to work. According to the testimony, in FY2004 UI paid $41 billion in benefits to 9 million claimants, and Labor estimated that $3.4 billion was overpaid in calendar year 2004.

UI is a federal-state partnership. GAO reported that one new step Labor has taken to help states detect and prevent overpayments is a pilot program using the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH). NDNH is a database of the Office of Child Support Enforcement (CSE) in the Dept. of Health and Human Services (DHHS) containing information on newly hired employees, quarterly wage reports, and UI claims nationwide.

For reemployment assistance, GAO noted two major changes to UI since its enactment as part of the Social Security Act (SSA) in 1935. In 1993 Congress required states to establish a Worker Profiling and Reemployment Services (WPRS) system to identify claimants needing reemployment services early in their claim. Then the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, PL 105-220 (pdf), in §121, established the one-stop system, requiring states and localities to combine 17 federally-funded employment and training services into one system.

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: Enhancing Program Performance by Focusing on Improper Payments and Reemployment Services, GAO-06-696T
      Full report (pdf, 272KB, 22p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 88KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Related GAO reports:

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: Factors Associated with Benefit Receipt and Linkages with Reemployment Services for Claimants, GAO-06-484T (pdf, 380KB, 27p.), March 15, 2006

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: Factors Associated with Benefit Receipt, GAO-06-341 (pdf, 2.7MB, 93p.), March 7, 2006

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE: Better Data Needed to Assess Reemployment Services to Claimants, GAO-05-413 (pdf, 868KB, 47p.), June 24, 2005

Tobacco money and the states

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday released its fifth and final report on payments to 46 states pursuant to the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement (MSA, pdf, 272KB, 88p., from the Office of the Attorney General, State of California), between the states and four of the nation's largest tobacco companies, and the states' allocations of those funds to various programs. The reports were required by the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, (PL 107-171, §10908, pdf, 1MB, 408p., from GPO). Hawaii reported receiving $38, 357,999 in FY 2005 and expects to receive $42,154,625 in FY 2006.

TOBACCO SETTLEMENT: States' Allocations of Fiscal Year 2005 and Expected Fiscal Year 2006 Payments, GAO-06-502
     Full report (pdf, 1.6MB, 73p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 88KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

See related FR post, A smoker's promise?

National parks funding

On April 5 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report and a companion statement on funding trends for the National Park Service. The Park Service manages 390 park units in over 20 designations, from national parks to national memorials, such as the USS Arizona Memorial. Appropriations to the Park Service totalled almost $1.7 billion in FY 2005. The Park Service allocates funds to park units in two categories: daily operations and specific projects. Broadly, GAO found that from 2001 to 2005 funding for operations declined while funding for projects increased. Project-related allocations primarily went towards reducing an estimated $5 billion maintenance backlog and to protecting natural resources through an initiative called the Natural Resource Challenge.

The 12 park units GAO selected for this study:

• Acadia National Park
• Badlands National Park
• Bryce Canyon National Park
• Gettysburg National Military Park
• Grand Canyon National Park
• Grand Teton National Park
• Mount Rushmore National Memorial
• Shenandoah National Park
• Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park
• Yellowstone National Park
• Yosemite National Park
• Zion National Park

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: Major Operations Funding Trends and How Selected Park Units Responded to Those Trends for Fiscal Years 2001 through 2005, GAO-06-431
     Full report (pdf, 2.7 MB, 107p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE: Major Operations Funding Trends and How Selected Park Units Responded to Those Trends for Fiscal Years 2001 Through 2005, Statement for the Record by Robin M. Nazzaro, Director, Natural Resources and Environment (NRE), GAO; GAO-06-631T
     Full report (pdf, 460KB, 26p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 64KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

See related FR post, National park air tours

Offshoring in human services?

In a study released March 28, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined offshoring in four federally-funded, state-administered programs: child support enforcement, food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and unemployment insurance; and two federally-administered student aid programs: Pell Grant and Federal Family Education Loan. GAO found offshoring in 43 of 50 states, primarily in customer service for food stamps and TANF, and software development for unemployment insurance and child support enforcement; and no offshoring in the student aid programs. State officials report lower costs as a benefit, but offshore expenditures in the four programs appear to be relatively small. GAO also reported that state agencies rarely contract directly with foreign companies, but in outsourcing, their U.S. contractors subcontract work in foreign countries. (Hawaii reported offshoring in its food stamp program.)

See FR post on revised report issued May 25, 2006.

Links to the six programs in the report:

Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (CSE)
State CSE web sites
Food Stamp Program
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
Unemployment Insurance
Pell Grant
Federal Family Education Loan

OFFSHORING IN SIX HUMAN SERVICE PROGRAMS: Offshoring Occurs in Most States, Primarily in Customer Service and Software Development, GAO-06-342
     Full report (pdf, 628KB, 45p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 80KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Related GAO report:
Offshoring of Services: An Overview of the Issues, GAO-06-5 (pdf, 3.2MB, 87p.), Nov. 28, 2005

Wireless E911 progress

On March 10 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) published a study on the progress of implementing wireless enhanced 911 (E911) services in the U.S. Enhanced 911 gives emergency responders the location and callback number of callers using landline phones. Wireless E911 gives the same callback information from mobile phone users and "is inherently more challenging." In response to the ENHANCE 911 Act of 2004, PL 108-494 (pdf, 108KB, 14p., from GPO), GAO reviewed the use of state and local funds to deploy wireless E911. GAO found "significant progress" since its last report in 2003 but noted that states are in varying stages of implementation.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS: States' Collection and Use of Funds for Wireless Enhanced 911 Services, GAO-06-338
     Full report (pdf, 656KB, 27p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 64KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Related GAO report:

Telecommunications: Uneven Implementation of Wireless Enhanced 911 Raises Prospect of Piecemeal Availability for Years to Come, GAO-04-55 (pdf, 1.5MB, 42p.), Nov. 7, 2003

Related LRB report:

Wireless Enhanced 911 Working Group: Report of Proceedings, Report No. 2, 2004 (pdf, 448KB, 42p.)

Disability under the ADA

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a report March 9 on the definition of disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA, codified in 42 U.S.C. §§12101 et seq., defines disability with respect to an individual as "(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual; (B) a record of such an impairment; or C) being regarded as having such an impairment." (42 U.S.C. §12102)

The study discusses five U.S. Supreme Court decisions addressing "disability": Bragdon v. Abbot (1998; HIV); Sutton v. United Airlines (1999; pilot's vision); Murphy v. United Parcel Service (1999; commercial driver's high blood pressure); Albertsons, Inc. v. Kirkingburg (1999; truck driver's vision); and Toyota Motor Manufacturing v. Williams (2002; carpal tunnel syndrome).

The report also reviews lower court decisions interpreting the Supreme Court's rulings in the areas of: mitigating measures, major life activity of working, "history of" an impairment, and being "regarded as" having an impairment.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): The Definition of Disability, CRS Report RL33304
(pdf, 64KB, 14p., from Open CRS)

Related CRS report:

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA): Statutory Language and Recent Issues, CRS Report 98-921A, updated April 23, 2003 (pdf, 192KB, 45p., from the U.S. Dept. of State)

Computerized voter lists

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report yesterday on nine states that have implemented computerized voter registration lists as required by the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA, PL 107-252, pdf, 212KB, 66p., from GPO). HAVA required that states create these lists by Jan. 1, 2004, but they could apply for a 2-year waiver to Jan. 1, 2006. All but nine states obtained the waiver. This study reviews the experiences of the nine states that implemented the HAVA voter registration provisions, Hawaii being one of them (see Appendix VI).

ELECTION REFORM: Nine States' Experiences Implementing Federal Requirements for Computerized Voter Registration Systems, GAO-06-247
     Full report (pdf, 1.4MB, 65p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 332KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Related GAO reports:

Elections: Views of Selected Local Election Officials on Managing Voter Registration and Ensuring Eligible Citizens Can Vote, GAO-05-997 (pdf, 2.2MB, 120p.), September 27, 2005

Elections: Federal Efforts to Improve Security and Reliability of Electronic Voting Systems Are Under Way, but Key Activities Need to Be Completed, GAO-05-956 (pdf, 1.3MB, 107p.), September 21, 2005

Elections: Additional Data Could Help State and Local Elections Officials Maintain Accurate Voter Registration Lists, GAO-05-478 (pdf, 1.6MB, 71p.), June 10, 2005

Related FR posts:

• States' voting systems not ready for November
• Electronic voting machines (DREs)
• Electronic poll books
• Electronic voting
  
• Electronic voting in California

Ethanol - background and policy issues

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report on ethanol last week (Mar. 3). The study focuses on ethanol made from corn, since that is the primary source in the U.S.; in other countries it is cane sugar.

According to the study, finding alternatives to petroleum is a constant in U.S. energy policy, and ethanol plays a key role. While ethanol's primary use currently is as a gasoline additive, "it has the potential to significantly displace petroleum demand." CRS traces the initial spur for ethanol production to the mid-70s, as a response to the oil embargoes of 1973 and 1979. Thereafter, the ethanol industry got a boost when the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (S.1630 which became PL 101-549) created the reformulated gasoline (RFG) program. As the report explains, RFG requires oxygenates in gasoline to reduce carbon monoxide and other emissions, and ethanol is one of the two most commonly used oxygenates. The study also discusses the most recent legislation, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (PL 109-58, pdf, 3MB, 551p., from GPO). The Act established renewable fuel standards (RFS), mandating ethanol and other renewable fuels in gasoline.

The study asserts that the ethanol market relies heavily on federal incentives such as tax credits, import tariffs, and mandates for its use, which to ethanol opponents "amount to corporate welfare for corn growers and ethanol producers." The report concludes that ethanol's benefits in terms of energy consumption and greenhouse gases are limited, but federal incentives have promoted significant growth in the industry. In requiring renewable fuels in gasoline, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 will continue to create demand for ethanol, CRS believes.

The report notes that in the current 109th Congress, H.R.4409 (pdf, 180KB, 89p., from GPO) eliminates the tariff for fuel ethanol, among other provisions.

Fuel Ethanol: Background and Public Policy Issues, CRS Report RL33290
(pdf, 116KB, 26p., from Open CRS)

Fisheries management

"Overfishing is a problem with far-reaching environmental and economic consequences," begins a Feb. 23 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the fourth in a series on fisheries management. This report concerns stakeholder participation in fishing quota decisions. "Stakeholders" here includes the states, vessel owners and crew, processors, fishing communities, environmentalists, consumers, and the public.

To curb overfishing and promote conservation, one of the management tools the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) uses is dedicated access privilege, DAP (pdf), programs. Under a DAP program, NMFS sets an allowable catch in a fishery and allocates portions to eligible parties, such as fishermen. Effective and equitable participation by stakeholders in quota decisions is critical but this participation may not be occurring. (NMFS is under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA.)

The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 (PL 94-265, codified as amended at 16 USC §§1801-1883) established eight regional fishery management councils to manage fisheries in federal waters. The councils develop fishery management plans, including DAP programs. Both NMFS and the councils are responsible for implementing DAP programs. GAO recommends that NMFS and the councils develop a framework for effective stakeholder participation. The report cites the Marine Resource Education Project (MREP) for its promising examples of cooperation, although the training may be costly and reach few stakeholders.

For this study, GAO reviewed four regional fishery management councils: the Gulf of Mexico, New England, North Pacific, and Pacific councils.

FISHERIES MANAGEMENT: Core Principles and a Strategic Approach Would Enhance Stakeholder Participation in Developing Quota-Based Programs, GAO-06-289
     Full report (pdf, 1MB, 55p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

The three earlier reports in the series:

Individual Fishing Quotas: Management Costs Varied and Were Not Recovered as Required, GAO-05-241 (pdf, 616KB, 44p.), March 11, 2005

Individual Fishing Quotas: Methods for Community Protection and New Entry Require Periodic Evaluation, GAO-04-277 (pdf, 2.3MB, 51p.), Feb. 24, 2004

Individual Fishing Quotas: Better Information Could Improve Program Management, GAO-03-159 (pdf, 1.3MB, 56p.), Dec. 11, 2002

Data security - federal and state laws

In a 6-page report issued Feb. 3, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) presents a brief discussion of federal and state data security laws. The report traces public awareness of security breaches of electronic personal data to the California Security Breach Notification Act, which became effective in 2003 (Cal. Civ. Code §1798.82). The report covers federal data security standards, federal data breach notification standards, and state data breach notification laws. As of December 2005, 35 states had introduced legislation and 22 had enacted data security laws.

Data Security: Federal and State Laws, CRS Report RS22374
(pdf, 48KB, from Open CRS)

Recent CRS reports referred to in the above report, all from Open CRS:

Personal Data Security Breaches: Context and Incident Summaries, RL33199 (pdf, 136KB, 21p.), Dec. 16, 2005

Internet Privacy: Overview and Pending Legislation, RL31408 (pdf 116KB, 25p.), updated Oct. 19, 2005

Information Brokers: Federal and State Laws, RS22087 (pdf, 36KB, 5p.), updated May 17, 2005

Data Brokers: Background and Industry Overview, RS22137 ((pdf, 36KB, 5p.), May 5, 2005

Privacy Protection for Customer Financial Information, RS20185 (pdf, 40KB, 6p.), updated April 18, 2005

Health Savings Accounts in the states

Related to FR's earlier post on federal rules governing Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) is a compendium of state legislation on HSAs and Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs) from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), made available online Feb. 2.

2004-2006 State Legislation on Health Savings Accounts and Medical Savings Accounts

Health Savings Accounts - 2006 rules

On Jan. 31 the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published an overview of current rules for Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). (See earlier FR post here.) The publication summarizes the principal rules governing HSAs, such as eligibility, qualifying health insurance, contributions, and withdrawals.

An HSA is a tax-exempt account for paying qualified medical expenses not covered by insurance. HSAs were established in the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA, PL 108-173, Title XII, 117 Stat. 2469 (pdf, 1MB, 416p., from GPO).

As explained in the CRS report, HSAs may be established with banks, insurance companies, or other entities approved by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to hold Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) or Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs). Insurance companies that offer high deductible health plans (HDHPs) may also establish HSAs for their policyholders. HSAs do not need state approval but individuals cannot have HSAs without an HDHP, and states may require all insurance to include benefits with no or low deductibles.

Health Savings Accounts: Overview of Rules for 2006, CRS report, RL33257
(pdf, 64KB, 14p., from Open CRS)

Why higher gas prices?

Testimony on factors influencing gasoline prices, presented by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to the Senate Judiciary Committee, was released Feb. 1 by GAO. Gas prices impact the economy because of our heavy use of motor vehicles. The U.S. consumes about 45 percent of all gasoline consumed in the world. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) calculates that every ten cents added to a gallon of gas adds $14 billion to the nation's gas bill. GAO's testimony addressed: (1) factors that affect gas prices, (2) the pattern of oil company mergers in the U.S., and (3) effects of mergers on market concentration and wholesale gas prices.

GAO found: (1) "Crude oil prices are the fundamental determinant of gasoline prices." Other factors include U.S. refinery capacity, gasoline inventories, and regulatory factors such as air quality standards. (2) In the 1990s there were over 2600 mergers involving all three segments of the U.S. petroleum industry - 85% of the mergers were in exploration and production, 13% in refining and marketing, and 2% in transportation. Since 2000 there have been 8 mergers in different segments of the industry. (3) Mergers increased market concentration in refining and marketing, resulting in small wholesale price increases from 1 to 7 cents per gallon.

ENERGY MARKETS: Factors Contributing to Higher Gasoline Prices, GAO-06-412T
     Full report (pdf, 196KB, 13p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Earlier GAO reports referred to in the testimony:

GASOLINE MARKETS: Special Gasoline Blends Reduce Emissions and Improve Air Quality, but Complicate Supply and Contribute to Higher Prices, GAO-05-421, June 17, 2005
     Full report (pdf, 1.14MB, 51p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 40KB, 1p.)

MOTOR FUELS: Understanding the Factors That Influence the Retail Price of Gasoline, GAO-05-525SP, May 2, 2005
     Full report (pdf, 3.67MB, 61p.)
     Abstract (html)

ENERGY MARKETS: Effects of Mergers and Market Concentration in the U.S. Petroleum Industry, GAO-04-96, May 17, 2004
     Highlights (pdf, 88KB, 1p.)

National park air tours

Noise concerns prompted Congress to pass the National Parks Air Tour Management Act of 2000, PL 106-181, title VIII, 114 Stat. 185 (pdf, 452KB, 137p., from GPO), to regulate air tours over national parks. The Act requires the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the National Park Service to formulate air tour management plans (ATMPs) for parks where air tour operators apply to conduct tours. In a study released Jan. 27, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reported that six years after the Act's passage, no ATMPs have been completed.

According to GAO, in January 2003 FAA and the Park Service began developing ATMPs for nine parks, the first six of which were in Hawaii: Haleakala and Hawaii Volcanoes National Parks; Kalaupapa, Pu'uhonua o Honaunau, and Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Parks; and Puukohola Heiau National Historic Site. In July 2005 the latter three were removed from the ATMP process because air tour operators withdrew their applications for those parks and "instead agreed to fly at least one half-mile outside" the parks.

Among GAO's recommendations for more effective implementation of the Act are to give FAA and the Park Service greater flexibility in determining which parks require ATMPs and that FAA improve enforcement of the Act.

National Parks Air Tour Management Act: More Flexibility and Better Enforcement Needed, GAO-06-263
     Full report (pdf, 980KB, 69p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 76KB, 1p.)

Minors and violent, sexual video games

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report on Jan. 18 on the constitutionality of limiting minors' access to video games rated M (Mature) or AO (Adults Only). These ratings, which have no legal effect, are given by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board (ESRB), a non-governmental entity established by the Interactive Digital Software Association (ISDA). ESRB's criteria for its M and AO ratings are found on its website:

Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content, and/or strong language.

Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content that should only be played by persons 18 years and older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity.

The CRS report states that the primary constitutional issue is whether a statutory ban of these videos to minors would violate the First Amendment right of free speech. According to CRS, the U.S. Supreme Court has never ruled on the constitutionality of such a statute, but every lower federal court has found such statutes unconstitutional or issued a preliminary injunction on the likelihood that the statute in question would be found unconstitutional.

The report analyzes the application of First Amendment principles to violent and sexual material and discusses violent and sexually explicit video games decisions. It concludes that for an effective ban, the government would have to present empirical evidence that the games harm minors or cause them to become violent. Even so, because of the vagueness of the M and AO ratings, a law prohibiting video games with these ratings could be found "unconstitutional on its face."

Constitutionality of Proposals to Prohibit the Sale or Rental to Minors of Video Games with Violent or Sexual Content or "Strong Language", CRS report, RL33232
(pdf, 72KB, 15p., from Open CRS)

Fed's Beige Book - Economic snapshot

The term Beige Book refers to the report, "Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District," published by the Federal Reserve Board (FRB) eight times a year. The first Beige Book of 2006 was released today. The book consists of a Summary and a report by each of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts (Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Richmond, Atlanta, Chicago, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Kansas City, Dallas, and San Francisco) on the economy in their respective regions. About Hawaii, the San Francisco District report notes:

District travel and tourism activity remained vigorous, especially in Hawaii, where growth in visitor numbers and spending has been setting records and hotel occupancy rates have continued to rise.

And

...residential real estate markets showed little or no sign of cooling, and conditions reportedly heated up further in some markets, such as Oregon and especially Hawaii.

The Beige Book is issued two Wednesdays before each Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. While the FRB is responsible for the discount rate and reserve requirements, the FOMC is responsible for open market operations. Together, the Federal Reserve sets monetary policy and the interest rate.

Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District (Summary & 12 District Reports)

Improving nursing home quality, safety

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is the federal agency responsible for Medicare and Medicaid programs and compliance with federal nursing home standards. (States contract with CMS to conduct annual nursing home surveys.) Since 1998 the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a series of reports on nursing home quality and safety and weaknesses in federal and state oversight. Today GAO released an assessment of CMS's progress in addressing oversight deficiencies. GAO found a decline in nursing homes with serious quality problems but noted two continuing issues: inconsistency in how states conduct surveys and understatement of quality problems.

One of the initiatives CMS has taken to improve its services is a Web site, Nursing Home Compare, to provide information on nursing homes in each state.

NURSING HOMES: Despite Increased Oversight, Challenges Remain in Ensuring High-Quality Care and Resident Safety, GAO-06-117
     Full report (pdf, 1.62MB, 81p.)
     Highlights (pdf, 60KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (html)

Medical marijuana

An AP story on Jan. 3 reported that Rhode Island became the 11th state to legalize medical marijuana and the first since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that people who smoke medical marijuana can still be prosecuted under federal drug laws.

Earlier, on Dec. 29, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a review of federal and state policies on the subject as Congress debates whether to continue supporting the executive branch's pursuit, by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), of medical marijuana patients and providers. There are currently two bills in Congress. The States' Rights to Medical Marijuana Act (HR 2087, pdf, 36KB, 4p., from GPO) would move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II of the Controlled Substances Act and allow its medical use in states that have such programs. The Steve McWilliams Truth in Trials Act (HR 4272, pdf, 36KB, 4p., from GPO) provides an affirmative defense that medical use of marijuana is legal under state law. (The CRS report lists 11 states that allow medical marijuana, and this was prior to Rhode Island's legalization, but notes that one of them, Arizona, has no active program because its law provides for marijuana prescriptions and federal law prohibits doctors from prescribing marijuana; other states' laws allow doctors to recommend marijuana.) In 2000 Hawaii became the first state to legalize (H.R.S. [§329_121-128]) medical marijuana by legislation (Act 228, SLH 2000) rather than by ballot initiative.

Medical Marijuana: Review and Analysis of Federal and State Policies, CRS report, RL33211
(pdf, 220KB, 44p. from Open CRS)

States assisting veterans

There are approximately 700,000 unemployed veterans, and the U.S. Department of Labor (Labor) expects that number to increase as service members leave active duty. In 2002 Congress passed the Jobs for Veterans Act (JVA) (PL 107-288, pdf, 76KB, 16p., from GPO) to improve employment and training for veterans and encourage employers to hire them. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was mandated to review the implementation of JVA and released its report Dec. 30.

JVA amended two Labor programs that are exclusive to veterans and administered by the Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS): the Disabled Veterans' Outreach Program (DVOP) and the Local Veterans' Employment Representative program (LVER). (For its review, GAO surveyed state VETS directors and state workforce administrators.) JVA not only changed the way services are provided through DVOP and LVER but gave states more flexibility to tailor services to their area veterans; that greater flexibility, however, calls for greater accountability. GAO recommends that Labor improve its oversight and monitoring functions, assist with integrating staff into one-stop service centers, and better enforce federal contractor requirements.

VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE: Labor Actions Needed to Improve Accountability and Help States Implement Reforms to Veterans' Employment Services, GAO-06-176
      Full report (pdf, 1.6MB, 62p.)
      Highlights (pdf, 208KB, 1p.)
      Abstract (html)

Electronic voting machines (DREs)

Also on Dec. 14, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a study on the direct recording electronic voting machine, or DRE. Most voting systems in the U.S. use computers in some way, CRS reports, and the most computerized is the DRE where votes are recorded directly onto computer memory devices. DREs have been used since the early 1990s but concerns about their security and reliability sharply increased from 2003 because of two factors: (1) DREs provide the only voting system that meets the requirements of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA, PL 107-252, PDF, 212KB, 66p., from GPO) to permit the disabled to vote, and (2) potential security problems were publicized. CRS feels there has been confusion about what the problems of DREs are, and this confusion can lead to misperceptions of the issues and the options to resolve them. Closely linked with the use of DREs is the voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT), and this study addresses both.

For earlier FR posts on electronic voting, see here, here, and here.

The Direct Recording Electronic Voting Machine (DRE) Controversy: FAQs and Misperceptions, CRS report, RL 33190
(available in PDF, 96KB, 20p., from Open CRS)

Split the 9th Circuit?

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) issued a report Dec. 14 on current legislation in Congress to split the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. "The nation's largest in geography, population, and caseload, the Ninth Circuit on occasion has been noted for its controversial rulings," CRS observes in its opening summary.

On Nov. 18, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (HR 4241, PDF, 1.36MB, 830p., from GPO) which, among its many provisions, seeks to split the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals into two circuits - a new Ninth and a Twelfth Circuit (HR 4241, Title V, Subtitle D, p. 519). The new 9th would include four of the current 11 jurisdictions: California, Guam, Hawaii, and the Northern Mariana Islands. The 12th would comprise the remaining seven: Alaska, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington. Seven bills have been introduced in the current Congress proposing to split the 9th Circuit, but with its passage on Nov. 18, HR 4241 has become the focal point regarding the split, notes CRS.

(An AP story on Dec. 9 reported that Hawaii's two senators oppose the court split.)

Proposals in the 109th Congress to Split the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, CRS report, RL33189
(available in PDF, 116KB, 29p., from Open CRS)

Readying IDEA children for preschool

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the primary federal education law for children with disabilities. Part C of IDEA covers children from birth to age 3 and requires states to provide certain early intervention services. Part C is administered by the U.S. Dept. of Education's (Education) Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report yesterday on how well states are implementing Part C and transitioning children from Part C to Part B, which covers children from age 3 who then become eligible for preschool programs. To help states provide a more seamless transition, GAO recommends that Education give states more guidance on transition planning and services. Hawaii was one of seven states where GAO conducted site visits for this study.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: Education Should Provide Additional Guidance to Help States Smoothly Transition Children to Preschool, GAO-06-26
     Full report (PDF, 4.37MB, 41p.)
     Highlights (PDF, 88KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (HTML)

IDEA '97 Law & Regs ((available in various formats, including PDF for the law (368KB, 143p.), from the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) via a link from the OSEP site))

Cool site...eCycling

States are having to contend with a deluge of discarded electronic equipment, Stateline.org reported Dec. 12, and a majority of them have introduced legislation to deal with such e-waste. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides an informative web site on this subject, eCycling, which covers the reuse or recycling of consumer electronics. Among its several links, eCycling offers region-specific information and lists donation, recycling, and manufacturers programs.

Relevant to this, in November the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued Electronic Waste: Strengthening the Role of the Federal Government in Encouraging Recycling and Reuse, GAO-06-47, (PDF, 1.18MB, 62p.). GAO found that economic and regulatory factors discourage the reuse and recycling of e-waste and recommended Congressional and agency measures to address these barriers.

Older workers - a better future?

As millions of baby boomers age, longer life spans and falling birth rates pose serious challenges to workers, employers, and the economy. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) yesterday released a report on the implications of an aging workforce on the nation's productivity, public benefits (Social Security and Medicare), and retirement and health programs. At the same time, many older Americans face less secure retirements. GAO found that these looming problems could be mitigated if employers had policies to hire and retain older workers and if older workers who wanted to work were given viable options to do so. GAO recommends that the Dept. of Labor (DOL) mount a high-profile public awareness campaign to help employers and employees better plan for the future and to bridge the gap between their respective needs.

OLDER WORKERS: Labor Can Help Employers and Employees Plan Better for the Future, GAO-06-80.
     Full report (PDF, 9.98MB, 60p.)
     Highlights (PDF, 76KB, 1p.)
     Abstract (HTML)

National Guard Youth Challenge Program

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) reviewed the National Guard Youth Challenge Program and issued its report today. The Challenge Program was established by the National Defense Authorization Act (PL 102-484) in 1992 as a pilot program to use military-based training to help high school dropouts in life skills and employability. The Program was made permanent in 1998. There are now 29 program sites in 24 states (Hawaii has one) and Puerto Rico.

The Department of Defense (DOD) sets overall policy for the Program, and the National Guard Bureau (NGB) manages it. From initially covering 100 percent of the Program's costs, DOD now pays 60 percent of state operating costs, and states pay 40 percent. Since 1993 NGB has used $14,000 per student as a cost basis for funding. NGB now suggests increasing the per student cost to $18,000 and the federal cost share to 75 percent. GAO's position is that there has been little cost analysis of the Program, and without better financial information, DOD cannot justify increased funding.

DEFENSE MANAGEMENT: Actions Are Needed to Improve the Management and Oversight of the National Guard Youth Challenge Program, GAO-06-140.
     Full report (PDF, 904kb, 45p.)
     Highlights (PDF, 72kb, 1p.)

See also: Hawaii National Guard Youth Challenge Academy

Cool site...American Memory

American Memory is a multimedia Web site of the Library of Congress (LOC) with over 10 million items -- historic maps, photos, documents, audio, video -- of American history and culture. Browse the collections by topic (American Expansion, Folklife, Literature, Native American History, etc.), by time period (1400-1699 to 1970-present), by content (maps, motion pictures, sheet music, sound recordings), or by place (regions of the U.S., All U.S., International).

Enter "Hawaii" in the search box and you'll find such gems as an 1877 book on the Big Island, Report of the Royal Commission on the Development of the Resources of the Kingdom. Island of Hawaii (14p.), (Nineteenth Century: Books); a 1912 photo of Kilauea Crater (Panoramic Photographs); this 1913 song, "Fair Hawaii" (Historic American Sheet Music); and more recently, a quilt, 1994 Hawaii State winner, Victorian Rose (Quilts in America).

Historic American Sheet Music, "Fair Hawaii," Music A-6264, Duke University Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library

Workforce Investment Act (WIA)

The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) (PL 105-220, available in PDF, 1MB, 313p., from GPO), which replaced the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA), is the key federal employment and training program. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) today released a report on the quality of performance data for WIA from the states. WIA is implemented in partnership with states and localities and relies on their data to track participant outcomes. WIA overhauled how federally funded employment and training services are provided and introduced significant changes in the way performance data are collected and reported. These major shifts required that states retool their IT systems, and there were inconsistent results. This report addresses the issue of improving WIA data quality.

WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT: Labor and States Have Taken Actions to Improve Data Quality, but Additional Steps Are Needed
     Full Report (PDF, 868K, 45p.)
     Highlights (PDF, 92K, 1p.)
     Abstract (HTML)
     All from GAO