UNCG LIBRARY CONGRESSIONAL INFORMATION WEB SITE
Thomas - the primary, official Congressional access web site, maintained by the Library of Congress. Full text of bills, reports and laws back to 1989. Index back to 93rd Congress (1973).
GPO Access to Congress - access to many of the publications of the Congress.
Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis) - the most powerful, full text access to the publications of the Congress. Available ONLY to UNCG affiliates. Full text back to mid-80's. Index back to 1789.
CQ Weekly. Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report online. Available ONLY to UNCG affiliates. Annual CQ Almanac received in bound volumes, 1945- . Latest ten years of both are always to be found in the Reference Room. CQ Congressional Roll Call and CQ Guide to Congress also latest in Reference Department.
CIS Index (Congressional Information Service Index). 1970-1998. Subscription stopped, available on Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis), described above. Shelved in Reference.
Digest of Public General Bills and Resolutions. 1942-. Ceased publication with the 101st Congress. Same information now on Thomas site, above. Shelved in Reference.
Including slip laws (public laws), slip bills, committee reports, committee prints and committee hearings, as well as House and Senate documents series. Most of this material can be found full text under the "Congress" web links listed above, for all recent congresses and for the 104th Congress onward (GPO Access United States Congress) and for the 101st Congress onward (Thomas site). All publications except for bills are available full text from the 1980's from Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis). Many hearings are now available on the individual committee web sites via the Thomas site. The complete American State Papers series, 1789-1838, the predecessor to the Serial Set, and selected Serial Set volumes after that, are available via A Century of Lawmaking For A New Nation. Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention can be found via the Library of Congress site.
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set - Congressional committee and general publications are essentially "generic" and grouped under the designations hearings, prints, reports, and documents. ONLY the reports and documents are included in the official Congressional Serial Set series. Some of these publications for recent congresses can be found via the web links listed above. Jackson Library has the Serial Set material (reports and documents) complete, from 1789 through roughly 1950 on microprint, from 1950 through roughly 1980 in bound volumes, and from 1980 onward in fiche. ASK FOR HELP AT THE REFERENCE DESK IN LOCATING THIS MATERIAL! The Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis) database has a complete index to the Serial Set under "Historical Indexes, 1789-1969", and "CIS Index", which covers 1970 onward.
Public bills and resolutions - Latest two years maintained on microfiche (ask at Reference desk). 101st Congress onward, full text bills and resolutions available via Thomas.
Public laws - (also called "slip laws"). Paper issues kept until bound volumes of United States Statutes at Large are received. Full text from the 101st Congress onward, available on Thomas. United States Statutes at Large, online via the Library of Congress, covers 1789-1875 at present. Bound volumes from 1950-, are shelved in Reference, in addition to a complete set on microfiche for vols. 1-76, (KF 50 in the classified fiche).
Hearings - Congressional committee hearings are NOT included in the Serial Set. Jackson library has most hearings from early 1964 (when we became a U.S. Government Depository Library) until roughly 1980 in paper, and then on fiche since that date. Many recent hearings are available via Thomas, and Lexis-Nexis Congressional Universe has full text back to the mid-1980's, searchable under "Testimony". Recently, GPO Access has added a Congressional Hearings: Browse site, for access to hearings from the 105th Congress onward. There are many print indexes to the Congressional hearings, covering various groupings of years, from the beginning down through the "CIS" U.S. Congressional Committee Hearings Index, which covers 1959-1969. From 1970 onward, hearings are completely covered in the CIS Index, as well as in Lexis Nexis Congressional Universe, linked above.
Prints - Congressional committee "prints" are NOT included in the Serial Set, but the library has most prints from 1964 to roughly 1980 in paper, and since that date on fiche. Prints are indexed in Lexis-Nexis Congressional Universe. Early prints are covered in the CIS U.S. Serial Set Index from 1789 through 1969, and there are several smaller indexes covering much of the 20th century.
III. Debates and Proceedings on the Floor of Congress
Congressional Record, 1874- . The most recent years can be found online at GPO Access (1994-) or Thomas (1989-), or Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis) (1985-). Issued daily, when Congress is in session. Paper editions are available in from 1947 to the present, while earlier editions are available on microfilm (Film 4465). Previous titles for Congressional debates, with location and format, are: Annals of Congress, Register of Debates (Film 590), and Congressional Globe (Film 1303). The early "Journals" of the House and Senate, and the titles, Annals of Congress, Register of Debates, and Congressional Globe, as well as some Serial Set materials, and the Statutes At Large, are fully or partially available, full text, via the Library of Congress at,
A Century of Lawmaking For A New Nation, via the Library of Congress. There is one other title found in many older libraries, the Abridgment of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856, edited by senator Thomas Hart Benton, up to his death (J15.B4 in the library stacks). For a useful history of U.S. Congressional debates publishing, see the Senate site, Reporters of Debate and the Congressional Record.
IV. Manuals and Directories
Congressional Directory online at GPO Access. Most recent copy also in Reference, with back issues available in the Documents stacks.
United States Government Manual online at GPO Access. Most recent copy in Reference, with back issues in the Documents stacks.
The Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, is available in a "CQ" version, (Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1996), and an official version thru 1989. The Web site version linked above is to the present.
V. Codification and Regulation/Administrative Law
Federal Register online via GPO Access. Most recent two years of the paper isssues located in the Reference Department. A very helpful online reference tool - ABOUT The Federal Register.
Code of Federal Regulations online at GPO Access. The most recent complete paper edition is located in Reference Department, Government Documents Area. A helpful online reference tool - ABOUT the CFR.
United States Code online at the House of Representatives or GPO Access. Most recent complete paper edition is located in Reference Department.
Patrons should note that executive orders and proclamations also appear in both Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations, mentioned above, as well as in Weekly Compilation..., mentioned below. Generally, there will be about five years of Presidential documents, speeches, etc., available on the web sites mentioned.
Some White House publications, speeches and press briefings primarily, can be found at the White House News site, and can be searched at the White House Search site.
Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents (1965-), is available in paper in the documents stacks, and also online via GPO Access from 1993 onward.
Public Papers of the Presidents is available online at GPO Access, and via the NARA. Both sites cover 1992 onward. Bound volumes from 1929 forward are located in the main stacks (J80.A283). (the Franklin Roosevelt papers are in a separate set)
A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents, 1789-1908 is located in the main stacks (J81.B97). This is the only reasonably comprehensive collection of presidential papers through 1908.
Papers of a few presidents may be found at the Library of Congress "American Memory" site:
George Washington - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gwhtml/gwhome.html
Thomas Jefferson - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/mtjhtml/mtjhome.html
Abraham Lincoln - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/alhtml/alhome.html
James Madison - http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/madison_papers/
Thoedore Roosevelt - http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/trhtml/trhome.html
