Advanced search Help
Clear all search criteria
Only 2/3! You are seeing results from the Public Collection, not the complete Full Collection. Sign in to search everything (see eligibility).
-
'Tunisia: Examining the State of Democracy and Next Steps for U.S. Policy', Testimony of Alexis Arieff, Before Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Middle East, North Africa and Global Counterterrorism, U.S. House of Representatives, October 12, 2021
This is the October 12, 2021 testimony of Alexis Arieff on "'Tunisia: Examining the State of Democracy and Next Steps for U.S. Policy,'" before the House Subcommittee on Middle East, North Africa and Global Counterterrorism of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. From the Statement of Alexis Arieff: "My statement provides an overview of political, economic, and security issues in Tunisia, and summarizes U.S. relations and aid. I also identify several potential policy issues and challenges facing Congress as you look ahead."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Arieff, Alexis
2021-10-12
-
Pandemic-Related Contract Actions
From the Document: "On June 5, 2020, the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee (PRAC) received a congressional request with questions about high-risk contractors (e.g., first-time contractors and contractors operating outside their normal scope of business) and the procurement process (e.g., how contractors were vetted). [...] To meet our objectives, we inspected the following contract actions that occurred from March 18, 2020, through October 31, 2020: [1] 80 high-risk contract actions with CARES [Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security] Act or pandemic-related coding, totaling $16,791,141 to determine whether contract terms and conditions were fulfilled[;] [2] All DOI [U.S. Department of the Interior] contract actions (both CARES Act and non-CARES Act related) to determine whether bureaus and offices followed departmental guidance and properly accounted for COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] and pandemic-related contract actions using the correct National Interest Action (NIA) code[;] [3] The 523 CARES Act and pandemic-related contract actions to provide information regarding the number of first-time contractors, the number of contractors providing services outside of their regular scope of business, and any contracts awarded without competition (per the congressional request)[.]"
United States. Department of the Interior. Office of Inspector General
2021-10-12
-
Regional Heterogeneity in COVID-19 Risk in the United States During the Time of Delta (July 1 - September 15, 2021): The US South Suffers the Highest Case and Death Rates and Greatest Inequities
From the Abstract: "COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] monitoring dashboards and data journalism have actively been documenting how, among US regions, the US south has experienced the brunt of the surge associated with the delta variant, which took off in July 2021, at a time when all US adults had been eligible for vaccination for at least 3 months. However, less attention has been given to regional heterogeneity in COVID-19 inequities. In this brief report, we document that during the period July 1 - September 15, 2021, the US South not only has experienced the highest COVID-19 case and death rates (per 100,000 person-years), as previously noted, but also that this region has the highest COVID-19 inequities, as measured using a variety of county-level social metrics."
Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies
Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T.; Testa, Christian . . .
2021-10-12
-
False Allegations of Biological-Weapons Use from Putin's Russia
From the Abstract: "From 1949 until 1988, the Soviet Union conducted a nearly continuous campaign of false allegations of biological-weapon (BW) use by the United States. In 1995, senior Russian military officials revived this pattern of false allegations, which continues to the present day. Russian officials amplified the campaign after the US government funded the transformation of former Soviet BW facilities in the Commonwealth of Independent States under the Nunn-Lugar program. The outbreak of the COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] pandemic in China in January 2020 prompted a very greatly expanded Russian-government BW-related disinformation effort. This paper aims to present a reasonably comprehensive account of these activities and to assess their significance. The Russian government under President Vladimir Putin has demonstrated open disdain for both the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention and the Chemical Weapons Convention." An appendix is also available for this document: [https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=859835]
Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group
Leitenberg, Milton
2021-10-12
-
H. Rept. 117-142: Small Business Advanced Cybersecurity Enhancements Act of 2021, Report to Accompany H.R. 4513, October 12, 2021
From the Document: "The purpose of H.R. 4513, the 'Small Business Advanced Cybersecurity Enhancements Act', is to amend the Small Business Act to provide for the establishment of enhanced cybersecurity assistance and protections for small businesses. [...] As Small Business Administration (SBA) Resource Partners, Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) promote the economic growth of small firms, generating business revenue, job creation and job retention, as well as advancing local and regional economies. SBDCs deliver management and technical assistance to small businesses through an extensive business education network comprised of 62 lead centers managing nearly 1,000 outreach locations throughout the country. They deliver professional business advice and training focused on strategic planning, business development, financial planning, and cash flow management to hundreds of thousands of business clients annually. As more small businesses adopt digital tools, they become more vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks. These incidents can have major consequences, but small businesses may not have the resources to mitigate cybersecurity risks. Small businesses may not have designated information technology (IT) staff and lack in-house technical knowledge to manage adequate protection measures. In the event of a cyberattack, small businesses may face loss of income and customers as well as regulatory fines and penalties, and damage to credit. Because small businesses are often part of the supply chain for large companies and government procurement systems, a breach could have significant impact on the larger economy."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-12
-
H. Rept. 117-138: SBA Cyber Awareness Act, Report to Accompany H.R. 3462, October 12, 2021
From the Purpose and Bill Summary: "The purpose of H.R. 3462, the 'SBA Cyber Awareness Act', is to amend the Small Business Act (the Act) to require the Small Business Administrator (SBA) to issue annual reports assessing its information technology (IT) and cybersecurity infrastructure and notify Congress and affected parties of cyber incidents when they occur. Specifically, the bill would require SBA to issue annual reports, which must include the following information: (1) an assessment of SBA's IT and cybersecurity infrastructure; (2) its strategy to improve cybersecurity protections; (3) a detailed account of any IT equipment of SBA that was manufactured by an entity with a principal place of business in the People's Republic of China; and 4) an account of any cybersecurity risk or incident occurring within the two years preceding the date the report is submitted, and SBA's actions to remediate the cybersecurity risk or incident. In addition, if a cybersecurity risk or incident occurred, SBA is instructed to notify the House and Senate small business committees (committees) within 7 days. And within 30 days notify the individuals and small business concerns affected by the cybersecurity risk or incident, and submit a report summarizing how the cybersecurity risk or incident occurred and how many parties were affected to the committees."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-12
-
H. Rept. 117-143: Small Business Development Center Cyber Training Act of 2021, Report to Accompany H.R. 4515, October 12, 2021
From the Purpose and Bill Summary: "The purpose of H.R. 4515, the 'Small Business Development Center Cyber Training Act', is to amend the Small Business Act to help Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) become better trained to assist small businesses with their cybersecurity and cybersecurity strategy needs. Specifically, the bill would establish a cybersecurity counseling certification program in lead SBDCs to better assist small businesses with planning and implementing cybersecurity measures to defend against cybersecurity attacks. The Small Business Administration (SBA) would be authorized to reimburse SBDCs for employee certification costs up to $350,000 per fiscal year."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-12
-
In Their Own Words: Foreign Military Thought: Lectures on Joint Campaign Information Operations
From the Preface: "This lecture is guided by Mao Zedong's military thought, Deng Xiaoping's armed forces building thought in the new era, Jiang Zemin's defense and armed forces building thought, and Hu Jintao's important discourse on defense and armed forces building under new circumstances and it thoroughly implements the scientific development view; with the military strategic concept of the new era as its unified grasp and with the 'Chinese PLA [People's Liberation Army] Joint Campaign Outline' as its basis, it focuses on the characteristics and laws of local war under informationized conditions; tightly combines PLA realities; it borrows from the effective methods of foreign IO [Joint Campaign Information Operations] in recent period local wars; it emphasizes the study of joint campaign IO for the next 5-10 years in the following issues: characteristics, guidance thought and operational principles, operational strengths, operational objectives, basic fighting methods, operational preparations, operational implementation, command modes and adjusting-coordination and control; operational support; logistic support; equipment support; political work; a variety of operational patterns of IO; operational effectiveness evaluations; training; and building. It strives to establish a more robust joint campaign IO theoretical tixi system, and it provides a theoretical basis for organizing and implementing IO and training by the joint campaign commander and his command organ."
National Defense University Press; China Aerospace Studies Institute (U.S.); Project Everest
Wenxian, Yuan
2021-10-12?
-
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: S. 1894, Regional Ocean Partnership Act
This is the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Cost Estimate as ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on June 16, 2021. From the Document: "S. 1894 would authorize the appropriation of specific amounts totaling $57 million over the 2022-2026 period for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to provide grants to regional ocean partnerships. Those partnerships would consist of coastal states that share a common ocean or coastal area. Under the bill, a partnership would coordinate conservation efforts and other related activities of state, federal, and tribal governments and work with international counterparts to conserve shared coastal resources. The bill would designate four current partnerships under the program and create a process for other groups of two or more coastal states to apply for recognition as such a partnership. Based on historical spending patterns for similar activities, and assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts, CBO estimates that implementing S. 1894 would cost $49 million over the 2022-2026 period and $7 million after 2026 (about 1 percent of the authorized amounts would not be spent)."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2021-10-12
-
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate: H.R. 4094, One-Stop Pilot Program Act of 2021
This is the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) Cost Estimate as passed by the House of Representatives on September 29, 2021. From the Document: "Under current law, international air passengers arriving in the United States who have subsequent transfer flights generally must be screened at an airport security checkpoint before boarding the transfer flight. H.R. 4094 would authorize the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), in coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to conduct a pilot program that would allow passengers and baggage arriving from certain foreign airports to bypass that security screening, under conditions specified in the act. TSA could conduct the pilot program under agreements with up to six foreign airports and the program would terminate six years after enactment. H.R. 4094 would require TSA to brief the Congress before each agreement takes effect and report within five years of enactment on how the program was implemented. Using information from TSA on the cost of similar programs, CBO estimates that implementing the act would cost $1 million over the 2022-2026 period; any spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds."
United States. Congressional Budget Office
2021-10-12
-
Congressional Court Watcher: Recent Appellate Decisions of Interest to Lawmakers (Oct. 4-Oct. 10, 2021)
From the Document: "The federal courts issue hundreds of decisions every week in cases involving diverse legal disputes. This Sidebar series selects decisions from the past week that may be of particular interest to federal lawmakers, focusing on precedential decisions of the Supreme Court [hyperlink] and the courts of appeals for the thirteen federal circuits [hyperlink]. Selected cases typically involve the interpretation or validity of federal statutes and regulations, or constitutional issues relevant to Congress's lawmaking and oversight functions."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Garcia, Michael John
2021-10-12
-
Amid the Pandemic, Black and Latino Men Have Experienced the Largest Drop in Life Expectancy: We Need to Examine the Social Determinants of Health to Determine Why
From the Webpage: "The COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] virus was the third leading cause of death in 2020 after heart disease and cancer, claiming approximately 375,000 American lives [hyperlink]. As a result of this pandemic, U.S. life expectancy declined by a full year-and-one-half, according to The National Center for Health Statistics [hyperlink]. But for specific racial groups the drop in life expectancy has been more pronounced. Black and Latino or Hispanic people experienced a staggering 2.9- and 3-year downturn in life expectancy, respectively, compared to 1.2 years for white people. [...] Understanding life expectancy declines caused by COVID-19 provides an opportunity to spotlight racial and health disparities related to the pandemic and beyond. The pandemic exacerbated existing disparities in work, education, housing and health care. In this paper, we use a social determinants of health framework to explore some of the factors contributing to why Black and Latino or Hispanic individuals have experienced a noticeably larger decline in life expectancy over the last year."
Brookings Institution
Perry, Andre M.; Shiro, Ariel Gelrud; Barr, Anthony . . .
2021-10-11
-
Statin Use and COVID-19 Infectivity and Severity in South Korea: Two Population-Based Nationwide Cohort Studies
From the Introduction: "COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] is caused by SARS-CoV-2 [severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2], and started in Wuhan, China. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 12, 2020 [...]. In Korea, the first COVID-19 patient was diagnosed on January 20, 2020. During the period from January 1, 2020, to May 31, 2020, the number of daily confirmed COVID-19 cases was less than 2000 and the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases was 11,468 with 270 deaths [...]. During this pandemic phase, efficient strategies for triage and therapeutics are crucial due to the high number of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection, and the relatively limited facilities and medical resources [...]. The effective treatment of patients with COVID-19 has still not been established. Previous studies have suggested potential therapeutic candidates, including antimalarial drugs [...], antivirals such as lopinavir and ritonavir in combination [...], remdesivir [...], previous bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccination [...], famotidine [...], and immunoglobulin-containing sera from convalescent patients with COVID-19 [...]. However, antimalarial drugs and the lopinavir-ritonavir combination proved ineffective in clinical trials [...], and previous studies on BCG vaccination, famotidine, and immunoglobulin-containing sera had small sample sizes and preliminary study designs [...]. Remdesivir improved clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19, but it is not readily available[.]"
JMIR Publications
Lee, Seung Won; Kim, So Young; Moon, Sung Yong . . .
2021-10-08
-
Bank Mergers and Acquisitions [October 28, 2021]
From the Document: "On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order on competition, which, among other things, encourages the Attorney General and the federal banking regulators 'to review current practices and adopt a plan, not later than 180 days after the date of this order, for the revitalization of merger oversight.' Congress has been interested in mergers among large banks in recent years (see Table 1), particularly how they might affect competition. This In Focus provides an overview of the bank merger process and policy issues."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Labonte, Marc; Scott, Andrew P.
2021-10-08
-
Military's COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate [Updated October 8, 2021]
From the Document: "Since the onset of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, Members of Congress have expressed interest in Force Health Protection [hyperlink] (FHP) measures the Department of Defense (DOD) might implement to protect servicemembers and mitigate pandemic-related threats to military operations. DOD has implemented a variety of conditions-based FHP [hyperlink]measures that mirror the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's recommended protective measures [hyperlink], to limit the spread of COVID-19 among military personnel. On August 9, 2021, the Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) issued a Message to the Force [hyperlink] indicating his intent to require COVID-19 vaccination for servicemembers 'no later than mid-September, or immediately upon the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) licensure [of a COVID-19 vaccine], whichever comes first.' [...] This Insight summarizes the COVID-19 vaccination mandate for servicemembers and offers considerations for Congress as the MILDEPs [Secretaries of the Military Departments] implement the mandate. For an overview of DOD's vaccination policy and program, see CRS [Congressional Research Service] InFocus 11816 [hyperlink]."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Mendez, Bryce H. P.
2021-10-08
-
Political Lean: A Crucial Variable for Monitoring COVID-19 in the United States
From the Abstract: "Descriptions and monitoring of the social and spatial population distribution of COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] cases and deaths in the US have largely relied on individual- and county-level sociodemographic data and vulnerability indices that draw primarily or exclusively from data available in US health records and US census data. In this brief report, using US data from September 1, 2020 to September 15, 2021, we provide empirical evidence demonstrating that county-level data on political lean (Republican vs. Democrat for the 2020 US presidential election) adds critical information to understanding population distributions of COVID [coronavirus disease] cases and deaths - and also document the importance of socioeconomic variables in addition to data on racialized groups."
Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies
Krieger, Nancy; Chen, Jarvis T.; Testa, Christian . . .
2021-10-08
-
Chemical Security Analysis Center Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Annual Report
From the Document: "The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) Chemical Security Analysis Center (CSAC) is the Nation's only federal studies, analysis, and knowledge management center for assessing the threat and hazard associated with an accidental or intentional large-scale chemical event or chemical terrorism event in the United States. CSAC's mission is to assess and address chemical threats to the homeland. CSAC accomplishes its mission by: [1] Collecting, consolidating, curating, storing, and sharing chemical data; [2] Generating meaningful assessments, recommendations, and forecasts based on vetted data; [and] [3] identifying, prioritizing, and addressing data gaps through high quality chemical research, development, test, and evaluation[.]" This document includes an overview of CSAC as well as program accomplishments and expanded core technical resources for the 2020 fiscal year.
United States. Department of Homeland Security
2021-10-08?
-
MMWR: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, October 8, 2021
The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) Series is prepared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). [It] is the agency's primary vehicle for scientific publication of timely, reliable, authoritative, accurate, objective, and useful public health information and recommendations. This issue of MMWR contains the following: "HIV Preexposure Prophylaxis Awareness and Referral to Providers Among Hispanic/Latino Persons -- United States, 2019"; "Prevalence of Arthritis and Arthritis-Attributable Activity Limitation -- United States, 2016-2018"; "Walking and Other Common Physical Activities Among Adults with Arthritis -- United States, 2019"; "Distribution of SARS-CoV-2 [severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2] Variants in a Large Integrated Health Care System -- California, March-July 2021"; "Multicomponent Strategies to Prevent SARS-CoV-2 Transmission -- Nine Overnight Youth Summer Camps, United States, June-August 2021"; "COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] Outbreaks at Youth Summer Camps -- Louisiana, June-July 2021"; "National and State Trends in Anxiety and Depression Severity Scores Among Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic -- United States, 2020-2021"; and "QuickStats: Percentage of Women Aged 25-44 Years Who Had Ever Used Infertility Services, by Type of Service -- National Survey of Family Growth, United States, 2006-2010 and 2015-2019." Notifiable Diseases and Mortality Tables from this issue can be accessed at the following link [https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/index2021.html].
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (U.S.)
2021-10-08
-
What Happens If the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) Lapses? [Updated October 8, 2021]
From the Document: "This Insight provides a short overview of what would happen if the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) were not to be reauthorized by December 3, 2021, and allowed to lapse"
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Horn, Diane P.
2021-10-08
-
Brief Introduction to the National Flood Insurance Program [Updated October 8, 2021]
From the Document: "The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is the primary source of flood insurance coverage for residential properties in the United States. The NFIP has two main policy goals: (1) to provide access to primary flood insurance, thereby allowing for the transfer of some of the financial risk of property owners to the federal government; and (2) to mitigate and reduce the nation's comprehensive flood risk through the development and implementation of floodplain management standards. A longer-term objective of the NFIP is to reduce federal expenditure on disaster assistance after floods. As a public insurance program, the goals of the NFIP are different from the goals of private sector insurance companies. It encompasses social goals to provide flood insurance in flood-prone areas to property owners who otherwise would not be able to obtain it and to reduce the government's cost after floods. The NFIP also engages in many 'noninsurance' activities in the public interest: it identifies and maps flood hazards, disseminates flood-risk information through flood maps, requires community land-use and building-code standards, contributes to community resilience by providing a mechanism to fund rebuilding after a flood, and offers grants and incentive programs for household- and community-level investments in flood-risk reduction."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Horn, Diane P.
2021-10-08
-
Public Law 117-46: Helping American Victims Afflicted by Neurological Attacks Act of 2021
This law is "An Act [t]o amend the Central Intelligence Agency Act of 1949 to authorize the provision of payment to personnel of the Central Intelligence Agency who incur qualifying injuries to the brain, to authorize the provision of payment to personnel of the Department of State who incur similar injuries, and for other purposes."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-08
-
Public Law 117-47: K-12 Cybersecurity Act of 2021
From the Document: "An Act [t]o establish a K-12 [kindergarten through twelfth grade] education cybersecurity initiative, and for other purposes. [...] Congress finds the following: (1) K-12 educational institutions across the United States are facing cyber attacks. (2) Cyber attacks place the information systems of K- 12 educational institutions at risk of possible disclosure of sensitive student and employee information, including-- (A) grades and information on scholastic development; (B) medical records; (C) family records; and (D) personally identifiable information. (3) Providing K-12 educational institutions with resources to aid cybersecurity efforts will help K-12 educational institutions prevent, detect, and respond to cyber events."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-08
-
H. Rept 117-136: Recommendations to Increase Staff Capacity, Diversity and Inclusion, Strengthen Congressional Internships and Fellowships, and Expand Accessibility to Congress, October 8, 2021
From the Document: "The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress (Select Committee) has been charged with the important responsibility of recommending improvements to the U.S. House of Representatives to help members of Congress and their staff better serve the American people. During the 116th Congress, the Select Committee passed 97 recommendations to make Congress a more efficient and effective institution. These recommendations addressed many issues within the Select Committee's jurisdiction and were detailed in the Committee's Final Report for the 116th Congress. The Select Committee met on July 29, 2021, to pass its sixth set of recommendations. These recommendations are the first set passed in the 117th Congress and reflect the work of the Select Committee's new roster of members. The recommendations are broadly focused on issues connected to congressional staff and focus on increasing staff capacity, diversity and inclusion, strengthening the congressional internship and fellowship experience, and expanding accessibility to Congress for staff as well as the general public. The recommendations address issues the Select Committee took up in public hearings, virtual discussions, member meetings, and in meetings with stakeholders."
United States. Government Publishing Office
2021-10-08
-
COVID States Project: A 50-State COVID-19 Survey Report #66: Update on Executive Approval
From the Document: "The COVID [coronavirus disease] States Project survey regularly asks people in all 50 states about their approval of their governors and the President. Since our last report on executive approval, which examined trends through March 2021, the pandemic has notably evolved, with huge surges of cases and deaths associated with the Delta variant throughout the summer and early fall. Most states reacted to the dip in coronavirus infections and increase in vaccinations in late spring and early summer by lifting indoor mask mandates, only to struggle to adapt as cases surged again in the late summer and early fall 2021. Some of these states were responding to CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] guidance [hyperlink], which announced in May that fully vaccinated people no longer needed to wear masks indoors or outdoors, only to reverse that guidance a few months later and recommend masks indoors for Americans living in areas of high transmission regardless of vaccination status. Other states rebuffed the guidance of public health agencies by, for instance, banning mask mandates in schools, businesses, and other public places. These policy decisions received wide criticism1 particularly as COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, and deaths surged in those states with the loosest pandemic restrictions. [...] In this report, we examine the approval of governors and the President for their handling of the pandemic -- and for the president's overall approval -- over time across the U.S. to assess how the public reacted to the policy decisions and developments surrounding the pandemic as well as state and federal governmental responses."
Northeastern University (Boston, Mass.); Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy; Harvard Medical School . . .
Safarpour, Alauna; Quintana, Alexi; Baum, Matthew A., 1965- . . .
2021-10-08
-
Disaster Relief Fund: Monthly Report as of September 30, 2021 (Final Report to Congress for Fiscal Year 2021)
From the Background: "P.L. [Public Law] 116-260 requires that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator provide a report by the fifth business day of each month on the Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) that includes a funding summary, a table delineating DRF funding activities each month by state and event, a summary of the funding for the catastrophic events, and the fund exhaustion date, or end-of-fiscal-year balance. P.L. 116-136 requires that both projected and actual costs for funds provided by it for major disasters and any other expenses be provided to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees. Consequently, the following report elements are included: 1. Appendix A is an appropriations summary that includes a synopsis of the amount of appropriations made available by source, the transfers executed, the previously allocated funds recovered, and the commitments, allocations, and obligations. 2. Appendix B presents details on the DRF funding activities delineated by month. 3. Appendix C presents obligations and estimates by spending category for Hurricanes Sandy, Harvey, Irma, and Maria; Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); and declarations since August 1, 2017. 4. Appendix D presents funding summaries for the current active catastrophic events including the allocations, obligations, and expenditures. 5. Appendix E presents the fund exhaustion date, or end-of-fiscal-year balance. 6. Appendix F presents a bridge table that provides explanation for the monthly and baseline change for all activities to include details for catastrophic events. 7. Appendix G presents the fund history and current status of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC)/Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program."
United States. Department of Homeland Security; United States. Federal Emergency Management Agency
2021-10-07
-
COVID-19-Related Loan Assistance for Agricultural Enterprises [Updated October 7, 2021]
From the Document: "The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act; P.L. 116-136) created the Small Business Administration's (SBA's) Paycheck Protection Program [hyperlink] (PPP), expanded eligibility for Emergency Economic Injury Disaster Loans [hyperlink](EIDLs), and established Emergency EIDL grants to provide short-term, economic relief to certain small businesses and nonprofits [hyperlink]. The CARES Act also made certain agricultural enterprises eligible for SBA COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] relief. When the SBA stopped accepting PPP loan applications on May 31, 2021, it had approved more than 11.8 million PPP loans, totaling nearly $800 billion."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Dilger, Robert Jay, 1954-; Lindsay, Bruce R.
2021-10-07
-
Adoption of Preventive Measures During the Very Early Phase of the COVID-19 Outbreak in China: National Cross-Sectional Survey Study
From the Introduction: "The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on January 30, 2020 and declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Globally, there were 177.9 million infections and 3.8 million deaths (June 22, 2021), respectively. In China, the outbreak coincided with the critical 7-day Chinese New Year holidays (January 25 to February 1), during which billions of trips were made across the country. On January 20, 2020, the government announced evidence of human-to-human transmission. Wuhan (the epicenter) was immediately locked down, and subsequently, other cities were also locked down. Comprehensive control measures were enacted (eg, testing, quarantining, contact tracing, cancelling public events, closing of public areas, extending Chinese New Year holidays, and mandatory face-mask wearing), and patients with COVID-19 were treated in more than 30 speedily built hospitals by medical specialists in different provinces across the country. Many countries soon used similar standard strategies to combat COVID-19."
JMIR Publications
Lau, Joseph; Yu, Yanqiu; Xin, Meiqi . . .
2021-10-07
-
Excess Mortality During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Jordan: Secondary Data Analysis
From the Introduction: "The impact of COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] and its response measures on health, economy, and society has been substantial. By the end of 2020, more than 380 million COVID-19 cases were confirmed worldwide, and more than 1.9 million deaths were attributed to COVID-19 [...]. In Jordan, the death toll has reached 3834, with more than 294,000 people diagnosed with COVID-19 at the end of 2020 [...]. The number of officially reported COVID-19 deaths in Jordan [...] does not reflect the true burden of the pandemic because some people with COVID-19 died without being diagnosed and because of the indirect impact of COVID-19 and its response measures."
JMIR Publications
Khader, Yousef Saleh; Al-Nsour, Mohannad
2021-10-07
-
Burnout in Hospital-Based Healthcare Workers During COVID-19
From the Summary: "Burnout is characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and diminished professional achievement. Prior to the COVID-19 [coronavirus disease 2019] pandemic, severe burnout was typically found in 20%-40% of healthcare workers. Contributors include workplace factors (e.g., workload, interpersonal conflict, moral distress, administrative burdens and documentation) and provider factors (e.g., low self-efficacy, emotional exhaustion, reduced sense of personal accomplishment,). Burnout is harmful for the healthcare system, workers, and patients. Risk factors have been exacerbated during the pandemic, resulting in an urgent need for intervention. This brief focuses on healthcare workers in hospitals. Similar challenges exist in other healthcare settings (e.g., long-term care, primary health care, public health), which are not reviewed here."
Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table
Maunder, Robert G.; Heeney, Natalie D.; Strudwick, Gillian . . .
2021-10-07
-
Human Trafficking: Key Federal Criminal Statutes [October 7, 2021]
From the Document: "This In Focus outlines key federal criminal laws addressing human trafficking within the United States, found mainly in Chapters 77 and 117 of the U.S. Criminal Code. It also highlights federal immigration-related crimes that may sometimes be relevant to trafficking activity, such as those addressing the smuggling of non-U.S. nationals (aliens) into the United States. Besides crimes discussed in this In Focus, other laws may also be relevant, including those targeting the sexual exploitation of children (regardless of whether done for commercial purposes)."
Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Santamaria, Kelsey Y.
2021-10-07
