U.S. Federal Documents & Resources

Congressional bills are legislative proposals from the House of Representatives and Senate within the United States Congress.

For more visit Congressional Bills.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print Congressional Hearings are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number Y 4.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) serves as shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. CRS experts assist at every stage of the legislative process — from the early considerations that precede bill drafting, through committee hearings and floor debate, to the oversight of enacted laws and various agency activities.

Congressional Committee Prints are publications issued by Congressional Committees that include topics related to their legislative or research activities, as well as other matters such as memorial tributes. The prints are an excellent resource for statistical and historical information, and for legislative analysis. 

For more visit Congressional Committee Prints.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print Congressional Committee Prints are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number Y 4.

Congressional reports originate from congressional committees and deal with proposed legislation and issues under investigation.

For more visit Congressional Reports.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print Congressional Committee Reports are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number Y 1.1/5: for the Senate and Y 1.1/8: for the House.

Congressional Documents 

The Congressional Documents collection consists of House Documents, Senate Documents, and Senate Treaty Documents.

For more visit Congressional Documents.

The U.S. Serial Set contains the House and Senate Documents and the House and Senate Reports. The reports are usually from congressional committees dealing with proposed legislation and issues under investigation. The documents include all other papers ordered printed by the House or Senate. Documents cover a wide variety of topics and may include reports of executive departments and independent organizations, reports of special investigations made for Congress, and annual reports of non-governmental organizations. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, executive-branch materials were also published in the Serial Set.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print U.S. Serial Set volumes are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number Y 1.1/2. 

The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress.

For more visit Congressional Record.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print Congressional Records are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number X.

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.

For more visit Public and Private Laws.

The United States Code is the codification by subject matter of the general and permanent laws of the United States. It is divided by broad subjects into 54 titles and published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the U.S. House of Representatives. 

For more visit U.S. Code.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print the United States Code is located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number Y 1.2/5.

The J.D. Williams Library's collection of print United States Statutes at Large are located on the 1st floor in the Federal Documents room at call number AE 2.111.