Newly updated reports from the Congressional Research Service that have not been made readily available to the public include the following.
Navy Virginia (SSN-774) Class Attack Submarine Procurement: Background and Issues for Congress, April 2, 2012
China and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Missiles: Policy Issues, March 30, 2012
Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s Financial Problems, April 2, 2012
Effects of Radiation from Fukushima Dai-ichi on the U.S. Marine Environment, April 2, 2012
Expiring Farm Bill Programs Without a Budget Baseline, March 30, 2012
Afghanistan: Politics, Elections, and Government Performance, March 30, 2012
Military Justice: Courts-Martial, An Overview, March 14, 2012
Renewable Energy R&D Funding History: A Comparison with Funding for Nuclear Energy, Fossil Energy, and Energy Efficiency R&D, March 7, 2012
The proposed Office will resurrect the long-closed Office of Technology Assessment (OTA), the archive of which has been maintained by FAS for decades at https://ota.fas.org/.
If Congress needs help understanding the risks and rewards of a piece of technology, they shouldn’t have to rely solely on the sparknotes from a salesman. The rub is much simpler: Congress needs nerds.
If we set up the new OTA to do its job well, members will see it as the first stop to see what issues are lurking around the corner. They will bring their questions early. And they will keep coming back for more.
Even the best-designed policy rests on assumptions about who will staff it, how it will be funded, whether the responsible institutions have ever coordinated, and if the goals are achievable.