Contents: (1) Recent Developments: 111th, 110th, 109th Congress; Non-Congress. Developments; (2) Background: Early Governance of Puerto Rico (PR); Development of the Const. of PR; Fed. Relations Act; Internat. Attention; Supreme Court Decisions; (3) Status Debates and Votes, 1952-1998: 1967 Plebiscite; 1991 Referendum; 1993 Plebiscite; 1998 Action in the 105th Cong.; 1998 Plebiscite; (4) Fed. Activity After 1998; (5) Issues of Debate on Political Status. Appendices: (A) Brief Chronology of Status Events Since 1898; (B) Puerto Rico Status Votes in Plebiscites and Referenda, 1967-1998; (C)Congress. Activity on Puerto Rico¿s Political Status, 1989-1998; (D) Summary of Legislative Debates and Actions. Tables.

This is a print on demand edition of a hard to find publication. Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM), as federal law and a program activity, began in 1997. Congress established a pilot program, which FEMA named ¿Project Impact,¿ to test the concept of investing prior to disasters to reduce the vulnerability of communities to future disasters. Contents of this report: (1) Overview of Pre-Disaster Mitigation: Program Purposes; (2) PDM Legislative and Appropriations History; (3) Mitigation Funding and Studies: Post-Katrina Funding; (4) Issues for Congressional Consideration: The Pace and Breadth of PDM Funding Distribution; Terrorism and Pre-Disaster Mitigation; Methods of Awarding PDM Funds; Allocations vs. Competition. Charts and tables.

Public diplomacy describes a government¿s efforts to conduct foreign policy and promote national interests through direct outreach and commun. with the population of a foreign country. Activities include providing info. to foreign publics through broadcast and Internet media and at libraries and other outreach facilities in foreign countries; conducting cultural diplomacy, such as art exhibits and music performances; and admin. internat. educational and professional exchange programs. This report discusses the issues concerning U.S. public diplomacy. Determining levels of public diplomacy funding. Establishing capabilities to improve monitoring and assessment of public diplomacy activities. Charts and tables.