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The Property Rights Issue

Description: The property rights issue arises because societal goals are sometimes pursued through government restrictions on the use of private property. At bottom, it is the age-old conflict between public goals and private rights.
Date: January 20, 1995
Creator: Meltz, Robert
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Travel Restrictions: U.S. Government Limits on American Citizens' Travel Abroad

Description: The U.S. government currently maintains limitations or restrictions on travel to four countries: Cuba, Libya, Iraq, and North Korea. This paper briefly outlines the nature of such restrictions, who administers them and why, and compares the restrictions among the four targeted countries.
Date: January 28, 2003
Creator: Epstein, Susan B. & Rennack, Dianne E.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Privacy Law and Online Advertising

Description: This report will examine the application of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and the Communications Act to online behavioral advertising in more detail. It is likely that in many cases these laws could be held to apply to such activities and that these methods of data collection would be forbidden unless consent is obtained from one of the parties to the communication.
Date: January 20, 2010
Creator: Ruane, Kathleen Ann
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Congress and U.S. Policy on North Korean Human Rights and Refugees: Recent Legislation and Implementation

Description: This report discusses U.S. policy and legislation in response to Pyongyang's human rights record. North Korea's systematic violation of its citizens' human rights and the plight of North Koreans trying to escape their country have been well documented in multiple reports issued by governments and other international bodies.
Date: January 30, 2009
Creator: Chanlett-Avery, Emma
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Critical Infrastructure Information Disclosure and Homeland Security

Description: This report discusses the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) that was passed to ensure by statute citizen access to government information. Nine categories of information may be exempted from disclosure. Three of the nine exemptions provide possible protection against the release of critical infrastructure information: exemption 1 (national security information); exemption 3 (information exempted by statute); and exemption 4 (confidential business information). Congress has considered several pr… more
Date: January 29, 2003
Creator: Moteff, John D. & Stevens, Gina Marie
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA): Background, Legislation, and Policy Issues

Description: This report provides background on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), discusses the categories of records FOIA exempts from public release, and analyzes statistics on FOIA administration. It also provides background on several legal and policy issues related to FOIA, including the release of controversial records, the growth in use of certain FOIA exemptions, and the adoption of new technologies to improve FOIA administration. The report concludes with an examination of potential FOIA-relat… more
Date: January 23, 2014
Creator: Ginsberg, Wendy R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court

Description: This report provides an overview of the Combatant Status Review Tribunals (CSRTs) procedures. It summarizes relevant court cases and the effect of the Detainee Treatment Act, as well as pending legislation. The report also provides an analysis of relevant constitutional issues that may have some bearing on Congress's options with respect to detainees held at Guantanamo and elsewhere.
Date: January 29, 2009
Creator: Elsea, Jennifer K.; Garcia, Michael J. & Thomas, Kenneth R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

The United Nations Human Rights Council: Issues for Congress

Description: This report provides historical background of the the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council, including the role of the previous Commission. It discusses the Council's current mandate and structures, as well as U.S. policy and congressional actions. Finally, it highlights possible policy issues for the 112th Congress, including the overall effectiveness of the Council in addressing human rights, implications for U.S. membership, and U.S. financial contributions to the Council.
Date: January 26, 2011
Creator: Blanchfield, Luisa
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Internet Privacy - Protecting Personal Information: Overview and Pending Legislation

Description: The privacy of information collected by operators of World Wide Web sites is a growing issue of concern. Many in Congress and the Clinton Administration prefer to rely on industry self regulation to protect consumer privacy, but frustration at industry's slow pace led to the 1998 passage of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act in 1998 (P.L. 105-277). This report provides a very abbreviated overview of Internet privacy issues and tracks pending legislation.
Date: January 16, 2001
Creator: Smith, Marcia S.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Privacy Protection for Customer Financial Information

Description: Title V of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (P.L. 106-102, H.Rept. 106-434) requires financial institutions to provide their customers with notice of their privacy policies, including those relating to sharing of customer information with affiliated entities. It prohibits sharing personally identifiable customer information with non-affiliated third parties and prohibits financial institutions from providing account numbers to non-affiliated third parties for marketing purposes.
Date: January 5, 2001
Creator: Murphy, M. Maureen
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Obama Administration's Open Government Initiative: Issues for Congress

Description: This report reviews the objectives delineated in President Obama's Open Government Initiative (OGI) and examines the expectations placed on agencies to meet these objectives. This report reviews department and agency attempts to implement Obama Administration initiatives that seek to make the federal government more transparent, participatory, and collaborative. The report then analyzes options for congressional action in this area.
Date: January 28, 2011
Creator: Ginsberg, Wendy R.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
open access

Medical Records Privacy: Questions and Answers on the HIPAA Final Rule

Description: This report discusses the issue facing Congress on whether to continue to support the executive branch’s prosecution of medical marijuana patients and their providers, in accordance with marijuana’s status as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, or whether to relax federal marijuana prohibition enough to permit the medical use of botanical cannabis products by seriously ill persons, especially in states that have created medical marijuana programs under state law.
Date: January 3, 2003
Creator: Redhead, C. Stephen
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Satellite Surveillance: Domestic Issues

Description: Report that provides background on the development of intelligence satellites and identifies the roles various agencies play in their management and use. Issues surrounding the current policy and proposed changes are discussed, followed by a discussion of legal considerations.
Date: January 13, 2011
Creator: Best, Richard A., Jr. & Elsea, Jennifer K.
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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National Security Letters in Foreign Intelligence Investigations: A Glimpse at the Legal Background

Description: This report discusses the USA PATRIOT Act (107-56) and its expanded authority to issue national security letters (NSLs). A report by the Department of Justice's Inspector General (IG) found that in its pre-amendment use of expanded USA PATRIOT Act authority the FBI had "used NSLs in violation of applicable NSL statutes, Attorney General Guidelines, and internal FBI policies," but that no criminal laws had been broken.
Date: January 3, 2014
Creator: Doyle, Charles
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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