Overview of the Chinese Military, and More from CRS
“From 2005 through 2014, China’s official military budget increased at an average rate of 9.5% per year in real terms, allowing the PLA [People’s Liberation Army] to improve its capabilities in many dimensions,” says a newly updated report from the Congressional Research Service based on open sources.
“The question of how the United States should respond to China’s military modernization effort is a central issue in U.S. defense planning and foreign policy. Congress’ decisions on this issue could affect U.S. defense strategy, budgets, plans, and programs, and the U.S. defense industrial base,” the CRS report said. See The Chinese Military: Overview and Issues for Congress, March 24, 2016.
Other new and newly updated products from the Congressional Research Service that Congress has withheld from online public distribution include the following.
What’s the Difference? — Comparing U.S. and Chinese Trade Data, updated March 24, 2016
Navy Irregular Warfare and Counterterrorism Operations: Background and Issues for Congress, updated March 25, 2016:
President Obama’s Historic Visit to Cuba, CRS Insight, March 25, 2016
U.S. Trade Concepts, Performance, and Policy: Frequently Asked Questions, updated March 25, 2016
Commemorative Days, Weeks, and Months: Background and Current Practice, March 25, 2016
The Federal Budget: Overview and Issues for FY2017 and Beyond, March 24, 2016
Public Trust and Law Enforcement–A Brief Discussion for Policymakers, updated March 22, 2016
Navy Ship Names: Background for Congress, updated March 23, 2016
European Security and Islamist Terrorism, CRS Insight, March 23, 2016
Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons, updated March 23, 2016
Investing in interventions behind the walls is not just a matter of improving conditions for incarcerated individuals—it is a public safety and economic imperative. By reducing recidivism through education and family contact, we can improve reentry outcomes and save billions in taxpayer dollars.
The U.S. government should establish a public-private National Exposome Project (NEP) to generate benchmark human exposure levels for the ~80,000 chemicals to which Americans are regularly exposed.
The federal government spends billions every year on wildfire suppression and recovery. Despite this, the size and intensity of fires continues to grow, increasing costs to human health, property, and the economy as a whole.
To respond and maintain U.S. global leadership, USAID should transition to heavily favor a Fixed-Price model to enhance the United States’ ability to compete globally and deliver impact at scale.