FEDERAL DOCUMENTS: DESCRIPTIONS AND SOURCES
Note: Descriptions of many document types based on Lexis/Nexis Congressional.
Title
Access: Indexes or
Cataloging
Congressional Bills
Legislation can be written by
anyone, but only a member of
Congress can introduce a bill for
consideration.
Reports and documents associated with
bills from 1789-present are indexed in
L/N Congressional but the bill texts
themselves are only searchable in
Congressional
from 1989-
The actual text of proposed bills
frequently is drafted by legislative
aides working either for members of
Congress or Congressional
committees.
Occasionally, the same piece of
legislation will be introduced as a
companion bill in both chambers.
Availability in Government
Publications and on the
Internet.
Microprint 1957-60
Microfiche 1979-present.
Online versions of recent
bills are available in Congressional
(1989-), Thomas(1989-) and FDSYS
(1993-)
Full text of selected bills are
available in the Congressional
Record when read into the record on the
floor
Note: Government
Publications does not own a
complete set of bills. 1
NOTE:
1. Although most legislative materials are now distributed to depository libraries, this has not always been the case.
Government Publications has purchased microfiche copies of many retrospective publications to fill in its collections, but
will not always own a copy of all materials indexed in Congressional or other tools.
Published Hearings
Hearing transcripts
are an official record of a
committee's proceedings on
pending legislation or issues of
public policy and national concern.
Hearings can have legislative,
oversight or investigative focus.
Can be searched in Chinook.
Searchable in Congressional
from 1824Indexing, 1833-1969; indexing
and abstracts, 1970-
Testimony from government
and public witnesses at hearings are
typically arranged in chronological
order of appearance of witnesses.
Print copies in Government
Publications.
Microfiche copies for 18331944, 1975-present in Government
Publications.
Electronic versions of selected
hearing transcripts and testimony
(submitted statements) available in
Congressional, 1988Complete full-text electronic version
availability 1824-1979, 2004- in
Congressional (for spring 2009
there is full-text availability for all
hearings)
Electronic versions of hearing
transcripts for House and Senate
Committees available at committee
websites through Thomas
(coverage varies by committee-)
and on FDSYS (1995- ).
Unpublished House and
Senate Hearings
Transcripts of hearings which
were never officially published.
Print indexes available for House
(1833-1972) and Senate (18231984)
Searchable in Congressional
Indexing for House, 1833-1972,
For Senate, 1824-1984
Committee Prints
This generic document-type
can be anything the
committee wants to issue in
support of its legislative and
oversight functions.
Committee prints can be
approved and issued by the
committee or issued by only a
portion of the committee, in which
case there is specific language on
the cover that the print does "not
reflect the consensus" of the
committee.
1830- present searchable in
Congressional
Note: Government
Publications does not own a
complete set of hearings.
Microfiche copies for all in
Government Publications.
Complete full-text electronic version
availability in Congressional 18241979, 2004- (for spring 2009 there
is full-text availability for all hearings)
Microfiche copies in
Government Publications,
1975-present.
Electronic versions available from
1830-present in Congressional
Electronic versions of recent prints
also available in GPO Access
(105th-).
House and Senate Reports
Records for 1976-present in
Chinook.
House and Senate reports are
the designated class of
publications by which
Congressional committees
report and make
recommendations to the
House or Senate as a whole.
These reports concern the
findings of committee
hearings or outcome of
committee deliberations. They
can contain discussions of
legislative intent or a short
history of a bill. Reports are
assigned separate sequential
numbers within each chamber
(e.g., H.Rept. 99-1, S.Rept.
99-1)
Prior to 1912, the House and
Senate Reports include
reports of executive agencies
not related to bills.
1789- present indexed in
Congressional.
Print copies of the American
State Papers. (1st fifteen
Congresses) ASP also available
full-text electronically in A Century
of Lawmaking for a New Nation.
Print copies in Government
Publications. Unbound copies first
received as slip reports.
Eventually bound in the U.S. Serial
Set.
Government Publications
has a fairly complete print set of the
Serial Set.
The digital Serial Set is now
available from 1817-1967. Use link
on GovPubs homepage or search
Chinook under title: Serial Set
Microfiche, 1975-present
Microprint copies of very old
reports.
Electronic versions of recent reports
in Congressional (selected 1990), Thomas (1995 -) and
FDSYS(1995-).
House and Senate
Documents
Issued by the full chamber
with the designation H.Doc.
or S.Doc., this publication
type can contain Presidential
messages on new legislation or
vetoes, special reports of executive
branch agencies, or biannual
reports on committee
activities.
Records for 1976-present in
Chinook.
1789-present indexed in
Congressional
Print copies in Government
Publications. Unbound copies
received first as slip documents.
Eventually bound in the U.S.
Serial Set.
The digital Serial Set is now
available from 1817-1967. Use link
on GovPubs homepage or search
Chinook under title: Serial Set
Microfiche, 1975-present.
Microprint copies of very old
reports.
Electronic versions of recent
documents in Congressional
(selected 1995-) and FDSYS(1995).
Note: GovPubs set fairly
complete.
Executive Documents/
Treaty Documents
Issued by the Senate when the
President asks it to ratify a
treaty, Executive Documents
were lettered sequentially
within each session of
Congress (e.g., Exec. Doc.
A). Beginning in 1981, this
document type was replaced
by Treaty Documents which
are numbered sequentially
within each Congress (e.g.,
Treaty Doc. 99-1)
Records for 1976-present in
Chinook.
Indexed in
Congressional (1817-)
Print copies in Government
Publications. Eventually
bound in the U.S. Serial Set.
Unbound copies received as
slip documents.
The digital Serial Set is now
available from 1817-1967. Use link
on GovPubs homepage or search
Chinook under title: Serial Set
Microfiche copies from 18171969, 1976-present.
Electronic versions of these
documents in Congressional (1995-)
and FDSYS (1995-).
Note: GovPubs set fairly
complete.
Senate Executive Reports
An Executive Report contains
committee recommendations
concerning the ratification of
a proposed treaty.
Executive Reports are
numbered sequentially within
each Congress (e.g.,
Exec.Rept. 99-1).
Records for 1976-present in
Chinook.
Reports indexed in
Congressional (1817-)
Print copies in Government
Publications. Eventually
bound in the U.S. Serial Set.
Unbound copies received as
slip documents.
The digital Serial Set is now
available from 1817-1967. Use link
on GovPubs homepage or search
Chinook under title: Serial Set
Electronic versions of recent
documents in Congressional (1990-)
And GPO Access (1995-).
Note: GovPubs set fairly
complete.
Congressional Research
Service Reports.
Prepared at the request of a
congressional member, these reports
are nonpartisan and objective reports
of public policy issues. CRS is the
research arm of Congress,
established in 1914.
Records for print versions available in
Chinook.
Searchable on Congressional from
1916-present
.
Microfilm or microfiche
copies in Govpubs. A few are
available in paper.
Electronic versions available in
Congressional 1916-present
.
Congressional Record
Record of the proceedings in
the House and Senate,
including debate on proposed
legislation and full text of
some bills.
GAO Reports. The Government
Accountability Office is the
investigative arm of
Congress. Charged with examining
matters relating to
the receipt and disbursement of
public funds, GAO performs audits
and evaluations of government
programs and activities.
Subject, author and bill indexes in
print volumes
Searchable in Congressional,
Thomas, and FDSYS.. An index
(separate from the text) is available
on Thomas and GPO Access for
recent years.
Annual print indexes. Most
reports available in Chinook.
Paper copies of the
Congressional Record and its
predecessors:
Annals of Congress 17891824
Congressional Debates 18241837
Congressional Globe 1835-1873
Congressional Record 1874present.
Electronic version recent volumes
available in
Congressional (1985-),
Thomas (1989-) FDSYS(1994-)
and Hein Online..
Spring 2009 --- all volumes
available full-text on
Congressional through a TRIAL
subscription.
Material in microfiche and paper in
Government Publications.
Electronic versions of reports from
1995-present in GPO Access; from
1975-present also available on the
GAO website; from 2004-present
electronic versions available on
Congressional (in Committee
Prints database)
Legislative Histories
Legislative histories may contain
the following categories of
publications:
o SLIP LAW
o ENACTED BILL
o RELATED BILLS
o DEBATE
o COMMITTEE REPORTS
o COMMITTEE
HEARINGS
o COMMITTEE PRINTS
o HOUSE & SENATE
DOCUMENTS
MISCELLANEOUS, including
citation to Weekly Compilation of
Presidential Documents
Presidential statements issued
upon signing of the law.
Complete, All Public Laws, 1999-:
Congressional
Complete, Major Public Laws,19841998: Congressional
Abbreviated, All Public Laws, 19691983: Congressional