On January 6, 2013 Congress will convene to count electoral votes and to formally certify the results of the last presidential election. The process was detailed by the Congressional Research Service in Counting Electoral Votes: An Overview of Procedures at the Joint Session, Including Objections by Members of Congress, November 30, 2012.
The declining economic condition of many state governments is examined by CRS in State Government Fiscal Stress and Federal Assistance, December 3, 2012.
And for members of Congress who never had civics class, CRS explains how a bill becomes a law in Introduction to the Legislative Process in the U.S. Congress, November 30, 2012. See also the elementary Introduction to the Federal Budget Process, December 3, 2012.
Other new and updated CRS reports that Congress has not made publicly available include the following.
Congressional Salaries and Allowances, December 4, 2012
Alternative Minimum Taxpayers by State: 2009, 2010, and Projections for 2012, December 4, 2012
Offsets, Supplemental Appropriations, and the Disaster Relief Fund: FY1990-FY2012, December 4, 2012
The Bayh-Dole Act: Selected Issues in Patent Policy and the Commercialization of Technology, December 3, 2012
Technology Transfer: Use of Federally Funded Research and Development, December 3, 2012
Industrial Competitiveness and Technological Advancement: Debate Over Government Policy, December 3, 2012
Cooperative R&D: Federal Efforts to Promote Industrial Competitiveness, December 3, 2012
IMF Reforms: Issues for Congress, December 4, 2012
China’s Economic Conditions, December 4, 2012
Federal Emergency Management: A Brief Introduction, November 30, 2012
The U.S. should continue its voluntary moratorium on explosive nuclear weapons tests and implement further checks on the president’s ability to call for a resumption of nuclear testing.
To help protect U.S. critical infrastructure workers, the next presidential administration should ensure ample supplies of high-quality respiratory personal protective equipment.
As data fuels the next transformative modernization phase, the federal government has an opportunity to leverage modern practices to leap forward in scaling IT modernization.
To maximize the potential of apprenticeship programs, the federal government should develop a cohesive approach to supporting “apprenticeships of the future,” such as those in cyber, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing.