Library Guides: Business and Public Policy Research Guide: Legislative Research (U.S.)

Document Trail Chart

How to track a law from the bill stage though passage into law.

GAO = Government Accountability Office

CRS = Congressional Research Service

CBO = Congressional Budget Office

Legislative Histories and Bill Tracking

Congress.gov
1973-present. From the 93rd Congress onward.

ProQuest Congressional
Offers access to congressional publications dealing with the wide variety of topics addressed by Congress.
ProQuest Legislative Insight
Features thoroughly researched compilations of digital full text publications created by Congress during the process leading up to the enactment of U.S. Public Laws.
HeinOnline
Provides full-text online access to all legal journals, rare and out-of-print collections and all back issues of indexed legal journals into a searchable electronic format.

Congressional Record

Congressional Record is the proceedings of the United States Congress.

Congressional Record (via ProQuest Congressional)
The official record of the proceedings, debates, and activities of Congress. Although the Record contains a substantially verbatim account of the proceedings and debate, it also contains extensive inserted materials, communications from the President and executive agencies, memorials, and petitions.

Congressional Record (via HeinOnline)
The Congressional Record, and the preceding titles Annals of the Congress of the United States, Register of Debates in Congress, and the Congressional Globe are all available through HeinOnline.

Congressional Reports

Congressional Reports eventually become part of the U.S. Congressional Serial Set. Congressional Reports, consisting of Senate and House Reports, are important for several reasons: 1) they often present the legislative intent of congressional bills (why was this law needed?; what were the legislators thinking?; and 2) they often present statistics and other useful background information.

Discover U.S. Government Information
Congressional Reports (Library of Congress)
1833-1917 (selected documents only).

Congressional Hearings

ProQuest Congressional
Offers access to congressional publications dealing with the wide variety of topics addressed by Congress.

Browse Congressional Hearings
85th, 1957/1958 to present. Note: not all hearings are represented.

Other Legislative Sources

ProQuest CRS Reports
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) was established within the Library of Congress to provide members, committees, and congressional staff with nonpartisan and objective research and analysis on all public policy issues.

Browse GAO Reports and Comptroller General Decisions
1989 to 2008.
CRS Reports
Government Accountabilty Office (GAO)
"GAO examines how taxpayer dollars are spent and provides Congress and federal agencies with objective, reliable information to help the government save money and work more efficiently."

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Business and Public Policy Research Guide