Research Guides: United States Federal Government Resources: Legislative Branch

The Legislative Process

Statutory Law

"US Capitol" by keithreifsnyder is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Statutory laws are those passed by the federal or state Congress (or other legislative body) and signed by the President or Governor. These resources pertain to all steps of the legislative process, allowing one to track a bill during all steps of its process through the legislature in question.

United States Statutes at Large
Call Number: US Gov Docs, AE 2.111:
United States Code
Call Number: Reference KF62 2012 .A2

Congress.gov
Currently contains legislation from the 103rd Congress (1993) to the present, member profiles from the 93rd Congress (1973) to the present, and some member profiles from the 80th through the 92nd Congresses (1947 to 1972).
GovInfo.gov
Provides access to sources of information from all three branches of the Federal Government, as well as the capability to search based on date, collection, and further criteria.
Public and Private Laws ("Slip Laws")
Public and private laws are also known as slip laws. A slip law is an official publication of the law and is competent evidence admissible in all state and Federal courts and tribunals of the United States. Public laws affect society as a whole, while private laws affect an individual, family, or small group.
Statutes at Large (govinfo.gov)
Permanent collection of all laws and resolutions enacted during each session of Congress.
United States Code (govinfo.gov)
Codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. Digitally authenticated documents.
United States Code (House Ofc of the Law Revision Council)
Codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. This is easier to browse than the version at govinfo.gov, but it is not an "official" source of information. Use the govinfo.gov link for digitally authenticated documents.
United States Code (Library of Congress/HeinOnline, 1925-1988)
HeinOnline has agreed to make selected documents available through the Library of Congress web site. This collection provides access to historic editions of the US Code that are not currently available through govinfo.gov.
How Our Laws are Made
Complete text of The Honorable Charles W. Johnson's booklet of the same title, about the federal legislative system

Senate Websites

Senate Web Page
Includes information about Senators, committees, floor activities, historical information, visitor information, and other reference resources.
Senate Leadership
Descriptions of leadership roles and the current leadership assignments.
Senate Floor Webcast
Live and archived coverage of happenings on the Senate floor.

House of Representatives Websites

House of Representatives Web Page
Includes information about Representatives, committees, floor activities, historical information, visitor information, and other reference resources.
HouseLive.gov (Video)
Live and on-demand video access to the Floor proceedings of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Congressional Record

The Ort Library holds most volumes of the Congressional Record back to the 77th Congress, 2nd session (1942). Please see list below when checking on availability.

The Congressional Record is available online in the following locations:

GPO's FDsys: 1994-Present (103rd Congress, 2nd session)
THOMAS: 1989-Present (101st Congress).
Congress.gov: 1995-Present (104th Congress) (Information on THOMAS will be moved to Congress.gov before THOMAS is retired.)

Congressional Record Item List
List of volumes of the bound (permanent) Congressional Record available at FSU.

Legal Research Guide

For additional information about legal research, including legislation, administrative law (regulations) and case law, please visit the Legal Research Guide.

FSU's Legal Research Guide

Who are your representatives?

Congress.gov provides a directory of members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, however you must already know who your representatives are in order to use this successfully.

If unsure of your representatives, use the Senate and House of Representatives Web pages. These offer search options (at top, right), to let you search for your representatives by location.

Members of Congress (Congress.gov)
Directory of current members of Congress, provides basic information and limited biographical information about the member. Must know the Senator or Representative's name to search.
House of Representatives Web Page
Includes information about Representatives, committees, floor activities, historical information, visitor information, and other reference resources.
Senate Web Page
Includes information about Senators, committees, floor activities, historical information, visitor information, and other reference resources.

Agencies Supporting Congress

Congressional Research Service Reports
Links to the CRS website as well as to independent sources of CRS Reports.
Congressional Budget Office
Provides independent analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process.
Copyright Office
Provides expert leadership and advice on copyright law and policy to Congress, federal agencies, the courts, and the general public.
Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars.
Library of Congress
The nation's oldest federal cultural institution. Serves as the research arm of Congress. The Library's mission is to support the Congress in fulfilling its constitutional duties and to further the progress of knowledge and creativity for the benefit of the American people.
Legislative Branch Agencies Supporting Congress
Additional agencies with a primary role of supporting Congress.

Legislative Visualization

Leg/Ex - Legislative Visualization
View the movement of bills through Congress with a variety of customization options.