WASHINGTON, Jan. 15 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. R46816) on Jan. 11, 2023, entitled "The Minority Business Development Agency: An Overview of Its History and Programs:" (Continued from Part 1 of 2) * * * Agency Overview Mission and Structure MBDA's mission is to foster the economic growth and global competitiveness of MBEs. The agency's activities are designed to expand access to capital, markets, and contracts through public and private sector pro  more

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. RS22478) on Jan. 13, 2023, entitled "Navy Ship Names: Background for Congress" by naval affairs specialist Ronald O'Rourke. Here are excerpts: * * * Summary Names for Navy ships traditionally have been chosen and announced by the Secretary of the Navy, under the direction of the President and in accordance with rules prescribed by Congress. Rules for giving certain types of names to certain types of Na  more

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. RS22478) on Jan. 13, 2023, entitled "Navy Ship Names: Background for Congress:" (Continued from Part 1 of 4) * * * Rules for Ship Types Now Being Procured or Recently Procured For ship types now being procured for the Navy, or recently procured for the Navy, naming rules (and exceptions thereto) are summarized below. The July 2012 Navy report to Congress discusses current naming rules (and exceptions   more

WASHINGTON, Jan. 15 -- The Congressional Research Service issued the following report (No. RS22478) on Jan. 13, 2023, entitled "Navy Ship Names: Background for Congress:" (Continued from Part 2 of 4) * * * Aspects of Navy Ship Names Two State Names Not Currently Being Used, Particularly Kansas As noted earlier in the section on evolution over time in Navy ship-naming rules, state names were once given to battleships, then later to nuclear-powered cruisers and ballistic missile submarines,   more

WASHINGTON, Jan. 16 -- The Government Accountability Office has issued a report (GAO23104709) entitled "Agency Relocations - Following Leading Practices Will Better Position USDA to Mitigate the Ongoing Impacts on Its Workforce." Here are excerpts of summaries associated with the report. What GAO Found: "The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) identified numerous legal authorities and requirements and took various actions in relocating two of USDA's research agencies--the Economic Research S  more