1.   And it would prohibit the government from entering into consent decrees with private companies that call for the use of hiring and promotion goals.

2.   Both credit-card and debit-card payments were approved by the new tax legislation, but the law prohibits the government from paying fees to card companies.

3.   A U.K. Transport Department official said that under current legislation the government is prohibited from providing financial backing for Eurotunnel.

4.   But DeParle said the federal government is prohibited from filing claims against a third party to recover Medicaid losses.

5.   But even then, British-owned Argenbright will be ineligible, because the law prohibits the government from contracting with companies owned by foreigners.

6.   But the largest independent federal employees union is seeking a court injunction to prohibit the government from requiring their members to work without pay.

7.   Federal law prohibits local governments from denying applications by wireless service providers to build towers.

8.   Federal law prohibits the government from prosecuting most crimes, other than capital offenses, that happened more than five years before a person is indicted.

9.   Federal law prohibits the government from getting customer information without a subpoena or court order, which the investigator did not have.

10.   Gov. George W. Bush gave a pre-session endorsement Monday to legislation that would prohibit government from interfering with the free exercise of religion.