Research Guides: WRPR 123: Old Age in the Modern Age (HC) Spring 2021: Government Documents

U.S. Government Documents

Congressional Record
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This publication records what members have said on the floor of the Senate and the House of Representatives since 1873. They also on occasion have the texts of documents read into the record. This is an important online source for finding debate and for finding members' explanations for their political actions.
Congressional Research Service Reports
The Congressional Research Service prepares policy reports for Congress on all issues under consideration for legislation. Beginning in 2018, these reports have been released to the public. See CRS Reports from congress.gov for these recent and updated reports. Work is being done to add earlier reports.
Prior to 2018, Individual legislators made selected reports available. Check OpenCRS and UNT Digital Library: Congressional Research Service Reports for copies of these reports organized by topic areas.
Government Accountability Office Reports
This link allows you to search GAO reports, testimonies, and the full web site. As an investigative arm for Congress, GAO monitors compliance and accountability within government agencies, industry and business, and the public sector.

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Disseminates official information from all three branches of the United States federal government including a comprehensive list of federal resources available online and links to other government agencies.
ProQuest Congressional
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Provides daily updated information on the U.S. legislature, including full text of bills starting in 1989, public laws starting in 1988, committee reports starting in 1990, House and Senate documents starting in 1995, Congressional Record starting in 1985, Federal Register starting in 1980, National Journal starting in 1977 and other government information.
U.S. Congressional Serial Set
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Provides full-text of all reports, documents, and journals of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. You can trace the development of ideas, policies and programs across time from 1817 to 1994. For 1995 to the present, see the serial set volumes available in Hein Online.

United States Senate Special Committee on Aging
The Special Committee on Aging was established in 1961 to study issues and oversee programs. Among its resources the website has an extensive full text collection of hearings dating back to 1961.

Finding Congressional Bills and Laws

Even if a bill does not become law, the Congressional debate surrounding it and the publications which are produced, especially hearings, can be very useful sources of information for policy analysis of an issue.

Searching by Subject

You can identify Congressional materials (in most cases from 1970 to the present) relevant to a particular issue by searching by keyword in ProQuest Congressional. On the Advanced Search screen enter search terms. You can also do keyword searching limited to the various types of Congressional publications (e.g. bills, hearings, reports, laws, etc.).

Given both the volume of congressional activity and the fact that narrowing a search is difficult since most major public policy issues are dealt with in some way in almost every Congress, it is easier to use background sources to identify more precise search terms, i.e., specific bill, law or report numbers, specific legislators, individual witnesses at hearings, etc.

Using a Bill or Law

First, use Congressional Quarterly Magazine to identify bills or public laws relating to an issue. CQ magazine provides full-text news and analysis on U.S. federal legislative activity and related political issues. Includes floor votes, bill status, analysis, and more. Covers 1983 to the present.

WIth bill or law numbers or titles, you can search for related hearings, reports and other materials:

Public Laws

Use the P.L. number, e.g., P.L. 105-89, or title, e.g., Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, to search the Legislative Histories section of ProQuest Congressional (choose "CIS Index" from the main menu). A legislative history provides a list of all Congressional publications associated with the debate and passage of a public law. Please note: Legislative histories are available for laws passed from 1970 onwards; those starting in 1984 are more complete.

Bills

If a bill did not become law, use the bill number, e.g., S. 254, or title, e.g. Violent and Repeat Juvenile Offender Accountability and Rehabilitation Act of 1999, to search for a bill tracking report on ProQuest Congressional (choose "Bills" from the main menu). A bill tracking report provides a summary of the bill and all Congressional activity associated with it as well as a list of the related publications. Please note: Bill tracking reports are available for bills introduced in the 101st Congress or later (1989 or later).