FAS

The Fifth Amendment in Congressional Investigations, and More from CRS

09.16.15 | 1 min read | Text by Steven Aftergood

How should a congressional committee respond when a witness before the Committee asserts his Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination, and refuses to provide the testimony or documents sought by investigators?

The options available to the Committee were discussed by the Congressional Research Service in a new memorandum. See The Fifth Amendment in Congressional Investigations, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 11, 2015.

Other new and updated CRS publications include the following.

Election in Greece, CRS Insight, September 14, 2015

OSHA Proposed Rule Contradicts D.C. Circuit Decision, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 14, 2015

Confederate License Plates are Government Speech, Rules Supreme Court, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 14, 2015

“Just Mayo” Just Isn’t, Warns FDA, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 14, 2015

District Court Holds House has Standing to Pursue Portions of ACA Lawsuit, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 11, 2015

Jim Thorpe’s Tribe and Sons Continue Fight against the Borough of Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania, CRS Legal Sidebar, September 11, 2015

The FY2014 Government Shutdown: Economic Effects, updated September 11, 2015

The Debt Limit Since 2011, updated September 11, 2015

Surface Transportation Program Reauthorization Issues for Congress, updated September 11, 2015

Procedures for Congressional Action in Relation to a Nuclear Agreement with Iran: In Brief, updated September 11, 2015

Abortion: Judicial History and Legislative Response, updated September 11, 2015

The United Arab Emirates (UAE): Issues for U.S. Policy, updated September 14, 2015

publications
See all publications
Government Capacity
Blog
A Research, Learning, and Opportunity Agenda for Rebuilding Trust in Government

At a recent workshop, we explored the nature of trust in specific government functions, the risk and implications of breaking trust in those systems, and how we’d known we were getting close to specific trust breaking points.

11.10.25 | 6 min read
read more
Education & Workforce
day one project
Policy Memo
Analytical Literacy First: A Prerequisite for AI, Data, and Digital Fluency

tudents in the 21st century need strong critical thinking skills like reasoning, questioning, and problem-solving, before they can meaningfully engage with more advanced domains like digital, data, or AI literacy.

11.07.25 | 13 min read
read more
Emerging Technology
day one project
Policy Memo
Behavioral Economics Megastudies are Necessary to Make America Healthy

When the U.S. government funds the establishment of a platform for testing hundreds of behavioral interventions on a large diverse population, we will start to better understand the interventions that will have an efficient and lasting impact on health behavior.

11.06.25 | 10 min read
read more
Global Risk
Press release
FAS Receives $500k Grant On Emerging Disruptive Technologies and Mobile Nuclear Launch Systems

The grant comes from the Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY) to investigate, alongside The British American Security Information Council (BASIC), the associated impact on nuclear stability.

11.06.25 | 3 min read
read more