SECRECY NEWS
from the FAS Project on Government Secrecy
Volume 2013, Issue No. 39
April 18, 2013

Secrecy News Blog: http://blogs.fas.org/secrecy/

CYBERSECURITY, RICIN, AND MORE FROM CRS

For reasons that are hard to comprehend, Congress for many years has directed the Congressional Research Service not to make its products directly available to the public.

CRS reports naturally vary in quality, originality and breadth of focus. But as a class of documents, they are both interesting and useful. Along with impartial treatments of complex policy issues, they often provide unexpected, telling detail. ("At present, about 30 million Americans, nearly 10% of the population, are subject to debt collection for amounts averaging $1,500 per person," a newly updated report on the subject notes in passing, citing the CFPB.) Even in cases where individual reports are deficient, they are nonetheless significant to the extent that they help to inform congressional deliberation. It is therefore proper and necessary that they should be available to the public.

Some of the latest CRS reports that have been withheld from public access are posted below.

The Army's Ground Combat Vehicle (GCV) Program: Background and Issues for Congress, April 17, 2013:

Western Sahara, April 14, 2013:

Cybersecurity: Selected Legal Issues, April 17, 2013:

Cybersecurity: Authoritative Reports and Resources, April 17, 2013:

Ricin: Technical Background and Potential Role in Terrorism, April 17, 2013:

Child Welfare: Structure and Funding of the Adoption Incentives Program along with Reauthorization Issues, April 18, 2013:

The Independent Payment Advisory Board, April 17, 2013:

The World Bank Group Energy Sector Strategy, April 16, 2013:

Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), April 11, 2013:

Codes of Conduct for Multinational Corporations: An Overview, April 16, 2013:

Changes to the Residential Mortgage Market: Legislation, Demographics, and Other Drivers, April 16, 2013:

International Climate Change Financing: The Green Climate Fund (GCF), April 16, 2013:

Submission of Mental Health Records to NICS and the HIPAA Privacy Rule, April 15, 2013:

Teenage Pregnancy Prevention: Statistics and Programs, April 15, 2013:

Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Acquisition: Issues for Congress, April 16, 2013:

"Gang of Four" Congressional Intelligence Notifications, April 16, 2013:

Ensuring That Traffic Signs Are Visible at Night: Federal Regulations, April 16, 2013:

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Secrecy News is written by Steven Aftergood and published by the Federation of American Scientists.

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