The Open House Project » open crs

CRS on Electronic Rulemaking

John Wonderlich — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 17:20:19 +0000

Here’s a CRS report on e-rulemaking, outlining legislation and implementation of e-rulemaking, especially as it relates to the relationship between the legislative and executive branch.

For a little more detail on the foundations of that relationship in terms of oversight, here are two recent CRS reports on Inspectors General, one about the offices’ history and statutory basis, and one about their independence and legal reform.

CRS Tuesday: SCHIP Edition

John Wonderlich — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:45:04 +0000

In light of the current debate over SCHIP (and President Bush’s veto threat), here are two recently released CRS reports on the State Childrens’ Health Insurance Program legislation.

This report, released August 14th, is specifically about H.R. 3162.

The other document is a CRS report from August 7th on Medicaid, SCHIP, and FY2008 issues.

Documents from OpenCRS.com, as usual.

Legislative Branch Appropriations CRS Report

John Wonderlich — Fri, 31 Aug 2007 15:47:29 +0000

Just a quick post to point out that I just found a Congressional Research Service Report on the Legislative Branch Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2008.

Provided by Open CRS.

CRS Tuesday: Mortgages, the Federal Reserve, and the Angry Analyst

John Wonderlich — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 14:56:23 +0000

Many of us saw the outburst recently on CNBC by outspoken financial analyst/entertainer Jim Cramer:

Most people probably have at least a solid idea of the financial mechanisms he’s imploring Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke to control. For a reliable and accessible review of some basic governmental controls of financial markets, the best source, as usual, is the Congressional Research Service…

This report details the Federal Reserve system:

In 1913, Congress created the Federal Reserve System to serve as the central bank for the United States. The Federal Reserve formulates the nation’s monetary policy, supervises and regulates banks, and provides a variety of financial services to depository financial institutions and the federal government. The System comprises three major components, the Board of Governors, a network of 12 Federal Reserve Banks, and member banks. Congress created the Federal Reserve as an independent agency to enable the central bank to carry out its responsibilities protected from excessive political and private pressures…

For the other part of the equation, the “subprime” mortgages, whose purported effects the Fed is being asked to control, you could see this recent report, entitled Subprime Mortgages: Primer on Current Lending and Foreclosure Issues.

Subprime mortgages are loans extended to borrowers with weak credit profiles. Subprime mortgages entail higher risk of delinquency and default. Recent increases in subprime borrower foreclosures and lender bankruptcies have prompted concerns that some lenders’ underwriting guidelines are too loose and that some borrowers may not have fully understood the risks of the mortgage products they chose. Regulatory agencies are revisiting the guidance they provide lenders and are reevaluating required disclosures to consumers. In addition, Congress is holding hearings on the subject and may consider consumer protection legislation.

Both the government and the issues it deals with are more accessible when you’ve got access to the research Congress relies on to be reliably aware.