In 1985, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) reserves had accumulated over $2 billion in reserve surplus, precipitating the program's first refund. Concerned about FEHBP reserve practices, the chairman of the House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, United States Congress, asked the General Accounting Office (GAO) to…

This report provides eligibility and benefit determination information for 54 of the larger needs-based Federal benefit programs. Needs-based programs are defined as those which provide cash and in-kind benefits to low income, needy, and/or distressed individuals who do not financially contribute to the programs. The report is divided into three…

A study investigated how 22 Service Delivery Areas (SDAs) were implementing the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA). In 19 SDAs the same organization was the grant recipient and administrative entity. A number of arrangements existed between the Private Industry Councils (PICs) and the SDAs. The most common pattern was for the PIC to play an…

This guide presents profiles of 116 Chapter 1 projects recognized through the 1984-85 National Identification Program and identified as unusually successful in meeting the special needs of disadvantaged students. The projects, which serve neglected, delinquent, and/or migrant students are listed alphabetically by district within states. Each…

Provided in this report are the text of and explanatory statements about the conference agreement reached by House and Senate committee members concerning the Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1986 (later to become Public Law 99-425). The Act authorizes 4 years of appropriations to continue several existing human services programs of the…

Testimony in this hearing covers how the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) is working in the state of Massachusetts, how the business community perceives and receives the JTPA program, and how Congress may improve the program to better serve and reach the intended population. The hearing was held in Massachusetts, a state leading in forging…

Rural schools, which comprise 67% of the nation's school systems, experience distinct educational environments and have unique strengths and weaknesses. Quality research to assess the effectiveness of rural education has been hampered by inconsistently applied definitions of "rural" and inadequate data to compare rural and urban…

Begun in June 1984, the national study utilized questionnaires from 461 rural education researchers and practitioners to provide the first empirical data for prioritization of rural education research needs. Since conducting and supporting rural education research are clearly federal functions, the study was prepared for dissemination to federal…

The overall objective of this review was to obtain information on several issues raised in the Congress pertaining to the reauthorization of the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) program. The information includes: (1) what CSBG funds are used for and whether CSBG-supported services duplicate other local social service programs, (2) what role…

Intended to provide teachers with an analysis of contemporary United States agriculture, this analysis begins with an overview of the farm community focusing on the income distinction between wealthy commercial farmers and other farmers. The cause of farm unrest is that earnings are too low relative to expenses. The problems of declining farm…

Since 1978, Federal policy has sought to encourage the development of local comprehensive service programs for pregnant and parenting adolescents through demonstration grants, research, and dissemination of information about exemplary program models. The prevailing interventive model used is based on the development of local and comprehensive…

This document describes the population of youth needing special assistance in the transition to adulthood and the special problems they face. It describes the social systems that attempt to serve these youth and examines the deficiencies of current social policies. Promising developments in policy and practice that can offer guidance in finding…

This document presents the testimony of Arnold P. Jones, Senior Associate Director of the United States General Accounting Office, before the Senate Subcommittee on Immigration and Refugee Affairs, on the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. The Act established a legalization program that permits undocumented aliens to become permanent…

This document provides guidelines for judges in child support enforcement. The first chapter discusses the child support problem in detail, identifies its effects on society at large and the legal system in particular, and assesses the effectiveness of the federal Child Support Enforcement Program, including the Child Support Enforcement…

This document presents a Congressional report on the topic of children and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). These topics are addressed: (1) dramatic increases in AIDS among infants and young children; (2) differences in pediatric AIDS and AIDS among adults; (3) minority children's disproportional rate of infection with AIDS; (4)…