Given that Congressional hearings are established legislative and political information generating tools for committee members engaging in oversight, fact finding, and agenda setting, I examine whether or not hearings provide information to actors outside of government. More specifically, does...

Austin Logistics Inc. Solutions provides tools that help centralize resource management, optimize and maintain compliance of calling schedules for consumer financial service organization (banks, financial institutions). With the increasing number of customers, the amount of rework and...

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) offers preservationists a unique tool with the potential to revolutionize hazard mitigation for historic resources. The program’s ability to link information to a specific geographical location and efficiently disperse this information can solve two of...

In the recent years, the number of nonprofit organizations in the Austin area has proliferated. At the same time, the state economic budget crisis has reduced public and private resources available to social service providers. In addition, potential clients face many barriers to accessing the...

This study focused on identifying factors that significantly affect the potentially insolvent status of life insurers. The potentially insolvent status is indicated based on insurer’s Risk-based capital ratio (RBC ratio) reported in the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC)...

The RPS has become the most important instrument in United Statesto encourage the generation of electricity through the use of renewable energy.In brief, the RPS is a policy mechanism that requires suppliers of electricity to providea specific percentage of their energy supply from some form of...

This dissertation contains two empirical papers on income and premature mortality, and one methodological paper that concerns the summary measurement of the extent of social inequalities in health. Income dynamics and adult mortality: Canada and the USAChapter 4 examines the effects of income...

Everyday the financial world is dominated by news from the international stock markets. A general market meltdown is viewed with alarm and dismay by all those investors who take a short-term view of investments or see their pensions erode. Nothing can be done to what has already happened, but a...

Eight small businesses in the electronics industry from Rochester, NY were studied inorder to determine whether the European Union’s directives, Waste Electrical andElectronic Equipment (WEEE) and Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directives(RoHS) are spurring innovation in the US....

Energy forecasts are widely used by the U.S. government, politicians, think tanks,and utility companies. While short-term forecasts were reasonably accurate, medium andlong-range forecasts have almost always been highly erroneous. In the U.S. many energypolicy decisions are driven by Annual...