Here in no particular order is a list of policy cases that students might consider in choosing a topic to research and report upon over the course of the term; students may propose their own topics but in any event the instructor has to approve each student's proposal

• Prescription Drug Act of 2003
• Requirements of the Department of State for reports on the human rights performance of countries receiving US foreign assiistance
• No Child Left Behind
• Don't Ask, Don't Tell
• Medical marijuana
• Regulation on media ownership (# of units, cross-ownership)
• FDA regulatory authority over tobacco
• Establishment of AMTRAK, CONRAIL
• Three strikes rules (criminal law, not baseball)
• Federal Highway Act of 1956
• Gun control laws (various)
• Credit Card Reform Act of 2009
• Mandatory sentencing laws
• Fast-tracking of trade agreements
• Stem cell research
• Cap & Trade
• Minimum drinking age of 21
• Bakruptcy Reform Act of 2005
• Endangered Species Act
• Regulating internet indecency
• Gender equality in school sports
• Partial birth abortion
• Net neutrality
• WIC program
• Cancelling the Space Shuttle program

To maximize the availability of accessible information necessary to research and write reports on a policy case, students should choose a US national policy issue. Only if a student can make a compelling case, and provide evidence of adequate source material to support the work, can students undertake work on a non-national US case (that is, a state poliicy case or a policy case from another country). Moreover, students are advised to choose the case of a policy that was adopted two or more years ago and which has had some period of implementation. (If students choose a policy that has been defeated--that is, not adopted--they will still be required to address in the third report the implementation and evaluation phases by a thoughtful and systematic analysis of likely outcomes had the policy been adopted.)