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An A to Z directory of help pages, research guides, lists, popular saved searches, and more. Legislative Process Glossary terms are in italics.

A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z |  


A

About Congress.gov

accounts - create a Congress.gov account to manage saved searches

Active Legislation (Senate.gov finding aid)  

adjourn

adjournment sine die

agencies

Departments and Agencies of the U.S. Government - USA.gov

Organization Chart of the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government - USA.gov

Amending Appropriation Bills: a Basic Guide - House Committee on Rules

amendment

amendment exchange

amendment in the nature of a substitute

amendments to the Constitution - Constitution Annotated

anomalies - Legislative Data Anomalies

AOC - Architect of the Capitol

Plan a visit

Explore Capitol Hill

appropriations – See Appropriations and Budget Research Guide

archived congressional websites

Library of Congress archived websites - includes archived websites of Representatives and Senators from the 107th and 108th Congresses.

National Archives Web Harvests- one-time captures of Federal agency websites

 Audio and Visual Coverage Research Guide

B

bicameral

bill

Bill of Rights

Bill of Rights- National Archives

Bill of Rights – Primary Documents in American History

Bill of Rights in the Constitution Annotated

bill records in Congress.gov

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (1774-)

books - Library of Congress Online Catalog

browse lists - view items filtered by selected criteria

budget - See Appropriations and Budget Research Guide

Budget of the United States Government - GPO

budget resolution

by request

C 

C-SPAN- live TV and radio coverage of proceedings of the U.S. Congress

calendar

calendars - See Calendars and Schedules Research Guide

Cannon's Precedents of the House- GPO

Capitol Police

Capitol Visitor Center (CVC) 

Caucuses House and Senate

CBO - Congressional Budget Office

Congressional Budget Office website

CBO publications

Cost Estimates for Bills

Census Bureau

Congressional Apportionment

Fast Facts for Congress

Century of Lawmaking - Congressional documents and debates 1774-1875

CIA World Factbook

cloture

Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

Annual edition from GPO

e-CFR

committee / subcommittee

committee activity

committee chair

Committee of the Whole

committee report

About Committee Reports

Search Committee Reports

Browse Committee Reports

committee websites: House and Senate- may include transcripts of hearings, markups, and reports

committees

Committees of the U.S. Congress

About Committee Profiles

About Committee Hearings

House Committee Hearings and Meetings Video

Subcommittee Jurisdiction by Program - GPO (PDF)

companion measure

concurrent resolution

conferees

conference committee

conference report

congress (i.e. 2-year time frame)

Congress.gov - learn about Congress.gov

Congresses and corresponding years, 1927-

Congressional Agencies

CBO - Congressional Budget Office

CRS - Congressional Research Service

GAO - Government Accountability Office

GPO - Government Printing Office

LOC - Library of Congress

congressional apportionment

Congressional Apportionment Census

Congressional Apportionment Census 2010

Congressional Apportionment Census 2000 Brief (PDF) - trends 1900-2000

Congressional apportionment in the House by state - number of Representatives; 1st Census-present; from House Clerk

Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

Cost Estimates

Publications

Congressional Directory - official printed directory from GPO

Congressional District Maps - from the National Atlas of the United States

congressional districts: Fast Facts for Congress - Census Bureau data on US, states, counties, congressional districts

Congressional Documents - selected House documents and Senate documents from GPO

Congressional gold medal recipients - Clerk of the House list, 1776-

Congressional Pictorial Directory (GPO) 

Congressional Record

Most recent issue

About the Congressional Record

Browse by date

Get the app in iTunes

congressional report  - see also committee report

Congressional Research Service -  see CRS

Constitution Annotated - Constitution of the United States: Analysis and Interpretation. Legal analysis and interpretation of the United States Constitution, based on Supreme Court case law.

Featured Topics and Cases

continuing resolution (continuing appropriation)

Copyright Office

cosponsor

County Governments

CRS - Congressional Research Service

D 

Daily Digest

Most recent issue

Browse by date

See also: Congressional Record

Data.gov - machine readable data sets of the Executive branch; launched May 2009 by Federal CIO Council 

Days in Session calendars for House and Senate. See also Calendars and Schedules Research Guide

Declaration of Independence - Primary Documents in American History; Library of Congress web guide

 E

embed a search box - For instructions and code go to How to Embed the Search Box on Your Website.

enacted

Enactment of a Law - by the Senate Parliamentarian

en bloc

engrossed measure

enrolled measure

ethics

House Ethics Manual (PDF) and other documents from the Committee on Ethics

Senate Ethics Manual (PDF) and other documents from the Select Committee on Ethics


Executive Calendar

Archive of Senate Executive calendars

executive orders

Codification of Presidential proclamations and executive orders (National Archives), 1945-1989

Index - National Archives - Executive orders disposition tables, 1953-

Presidential documents on National Archives (NARA) website

White House  Presidential Actions - recent executive orders, Presidential memoranda, and proclamations

executive reports - GPO

executive session

executive vacancies - Federal Vacancies Act reports - GAO;  Judicial vacancies - US Courts

Expiring authorizations and unauthorized appropriations - Congressional Budget Office,1998-

F 

facets - Refining with Facets

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions  about Congress.gov

federal depository library

Federal Judiciary

Courts

Judges

Browse or Search on GPO FDsys

Reginfo.gov - OMB/GSA status of agency documents undergoing review

Regulations.gov and its Frequently asked questions- find and comment on Federal Register documents

See also: Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

Federalist Papers

feedback - submit a survey to Congress.gov

field searching help page

field value lists - how to search

congresses

major action codes

policy areas

legislative subject terms

 filibuster

FindLaw- case law, forms, find a lawyer

floor

C-SPAN index to video of floor proceedings

House current floor proceedings video and audio archive

Senate current floor proceedings video and archive

Senate legislative activities: On the Senate Floor

House Legislative Activities

Floor schedules - see Calendars and Schedules Research Guide

Frequently Asked Questions about Congress.gov

Gallery of U.S. Founding Documents

GAO - Government Accountability Office

Search or browse for reports

Today's reports (and previous reports)

Vacancies

Judicial vacancies- US Courts

germaneness

Global Legal Monitor

glossary of legislative process terms

GPO - Government Printing Office

GPO - Government Printing Office website

FDsys: GPO's Federal Digital System

Government Manual

H

hearing

hearings - committee/subcommittee hearings

Browse and Search selected Congressional hearings on GPO (105th Congress – Present)

Federal Document Clearing House (FDCH) - transcripts of major hearings

House Committee Hearings – current hearings in House Library, Office of the Clerk

House Committee Hearings and Meetings Video on Congress.gov

Law Librarians Society of Washington DC: Quick links to committee hearings, transcripts, etc.

Law Library of Congress - selected Congressional hearings, 1908-2006

Live Audio and Video of Floor and Committee proceedings - see Audio and Visual Coverage

Text of House transcripts, listed by committee (selected)

help pages

Frequently Asked Questions

About Congress.gov

Search Tips Overview

What’s new on Congress.gov

Hind's Precedents of the House - GPO

History of Bills and Resolutions on GPO

Browse lists by bill type on GPO; updated day after Congressional Record published

Search Page on GPO; 1983-

 hold

 hopper

House of Representatives Research Guide

House Rules committee

How Our Laws are Made

How Our Laws Are Made (PDF) - House Document 110-49 (2007)

 I

identical bill

index terms used to find legislation - see Find Bills by Subject

international

CIA World Factbook

International Law - United Nations

International Organizations - Library of Congress guide

Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs) - Northwestern University Library

National government websites- list from Northwestern University Library

J 

Jefferson's Manual and Rules of the House  and Search the manual and rules - GPO

Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) publications - official estimates for all tax legislation considered by the Congress

joint explanatory statement

joint resolution

Joint Sessions of Congress - House.gov

journal

jurisdiction


L

Law Library of Congress

About the Law Library

Guide to Law Online

Legal Topics

Leadership 

House leadership- Speaker, majority and minority leaders, whips, etc.

House leadership and officers - 1789 to present

Senate leadership - President of the Senate, President Pro Tempore, majority and minority leaders, whips,etc.

Senate party leadership- Democratic Conference, Republican Conference, party policy committees, historical lists, etc.

 Learn About the Legislative Process

Legislation - About Legislation of the U.S. Congress

Legislative

Center for Legislative Archives - National Archives repository of Congressional records

Legislative histories - guide to producing legislative histories; from the Law Librarians' Society

Legislative histories of selected US laws on the Internet (Law Librarians' Society)

Legislative Process - nine videos explain common legislative phases

legislative action steps

legislative subject term

Library of Congress (LOC)

line item veto notices (NARA)

links - linking to Congress.gov

lists - see browse lists

Lobbying Disclosure: House Senate

M 

major action

majority leader - see leadership

majority whip - see leadership 

maps - Congressional district maps from the National Atlas of the United States

markup

House committee and subcommittee websites [some provide the text of selected markups]

Senate committee and subcommittee websites [some provide the text of selected markups]

measure

media galleries: House and Senate

U.S. Government RSS Library - a directory of feeds from the U.S. government

Members of Congress - find members and see sponsored and cosponsored legislation

About Congressional Member Profiles

Directories of House Members and Senate Members in the current Congress

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (1774-)

Congressional Directory (GPO)

Congressional Pictorial Directory (GPO)

Guide to House and Senate Members - 113th Congress (GPO)

         List by committee with Member assignments: House (PDF) and Senate

List by Member with committee assignments: House and Senate

List by Member with state/district/party information: House and Senate

List by state: House and Senate

Member remarks - search the Congressional Record

Websites: House and Senate

motion to proceed to consider

motion to recommit

motion to table

N 

NARA (National Archives and Records Administration)

Center for Legislative Archives (NARA)

Line item veto notices (NARA)

Presidential documents on NARA websites

Public laws: Current session of Congress

Public Laws Update Service recording: (202) 741-6043

National Conference of State Legislatures [NCSL]

nomination

nominations 

About Nominations

Search Nominations

Supreme Court Nominations - Law Library of Congress

Cabinet and Supreme Court nominees - U.S. Senate

nongovernmental organizations(NGO) - information from the United Nations

O 

official title

ordered reported

original bill

 P

parliamentarian

party caucus / conference

Party divisions of the House - 1789-present; from the Clerk of the House

phrase searching - See Search Overview

ping-pong

point of order

policy area term

Policy area terms - field value list

Browse bills by policy area term

popular title

president

The American Presidency Project – Papers of the President

Codification of Presidential proclamations and executive orders [National Archives] [1945-1989]

Compilation of Presidential Documents (GPO) - includes statements, messages, remarks (1993- ; daily and weekly updates)

Papers of the Presidents from American Presidency Project

Presidential Documents Guide on National Archives (NARA) website

Presidential libraries - National Archives (NARA) list of all Presidential libraries

Presidential nominations. See: Nominations

Presidents, Vice Presidents and coinciding Congressional sessions (Clerk of the House list, 1789-)

2004 Presidential Term Web Harvest National Archives (NARA)

White House Executive Clerk's Office recording: (202) 456-2226

White House latest news from the Briefing Room

previous question

private legislation - provides benefits, such as citizenship, to individuals when administrative or legal remedies are exhausted

Browse Private Laws

privileged nomination

pro forma session

procedurally-related measure

Project Vote Smart - voting data for members of Congress

proposed/offered Senate amendment

public laws

public laws sorted by law number (113th Congress)

Public laws: Current session of Congress - National Archives list of current Public Law numbers

Public Laws Update Service recording: (202) 741-6043 (National Archives; most current Public Law numbers)

Q

quorum

quorum call

R    

ranking member

recess appointment

referral

refine a search

reported

reserved bill number

Riddick's Senate Procedure

Rules, precedents, and procedures - see House and Senate Research Guides

S

schedules for Congress - see Calendars and Schedules Research Guide

search examples

search tips

Senate Research Guide

Senate pending and proposed amendments - Senate Amendment Tracking System

Senate Floor Webcast

Sessions of Congress

Days in Session Calendars

Joint sessions, joint meetings, and inaugurations (Clerk of the House list, 1789-)

Presidents, Vice Presidents and coinciding Congressional sessions (Clerk of the House list, 1789-)

Saturday and Sunday legislative days of Congress (Clerk of the House list, 1789-)

Sessions of Congress with corresponding debate record volume numbers (Law Librarians' Society, 1789-) (PDF)

Table of Congressional Publication Volumes and Presidential Issuances (Law Librarians' Society, 1789-) (PDF)

short title

simple resolution

Speaker of the House - see leadership

special rule

sponsor

sponsors and cosponsors

Search legislation by sponsor/cosponsor

Browse legislation by sponsor/cosponsor

State and Local Governments

State Legislature Websites

subject

submitted Senate amendment

substantive similarities

supermajority

Supreme Court

suspension of the rules

statistics

Congressional Apportionment Census

Fast Facts for Congress - Census Bureau data on US, states, counties, Congressional districts

FedStats - statistics produced by federal agencies

Résumé of Congressional Activity (1947- )

Statutes at Large

1789-1875 -volumes 1-18; from the Library of Congress American Memory project

2003-  volume 117- (GPO)

Statutes at Large and the U.S. Code -  a guide from the Law Librarians' Society

subcommittees - see Committees

T

think tanks and advocacy groups

 Public Disclosure - Senate Office of Public Records

 Lobbying Disclosure - Clerk of the House

Political Information.com  - list of political and policy websites

Think tanks and public interest organizations  - list of political science resources from U of Michigan Documents Center

tips - see Search Tips Overview

trade agreements - text of trade agreements from the Department of Commerce Trade Compliance Center

Twitter -The Law Library of Congress tweets about legislation and Congress.gov enhancements via @Congressdotgov.

U

Unanimous Consent Agreement

uniform laws - uniform state laws

United Nations: International Law

United States Government Manual - official handbook of the Federal Government

U.S. Capitol Police

U.S. Code and the Classification Tables - House of Representatives: Office of the Law Revision Counsel

U.S. Founding Documents

USA.gov

V

vacancies

Federal Vacancies Act reports- from GAO

Judicial vacancies - from US Courts

veto

vetoes

Browse vetoed legislation

Historical lists of regular and pocket vetoes - Secretary of the Senate indexes, 1789-

vice presidents

Presidents, Vice Presidents, and coinciding Congressional sessions - Clerk of the House list, 1789-

Vice Presidential tie-breaking votes in Senate (97th-) and complete list (1789-) from Senate Library

video - Audio and Visual Coverage Research Guide

Visitor Center at the U.S. Capitol

votes

Head-to-head vote comparison from OpenCongress.org

Late-night votes from the Washington Post's U.S. Congress Votes Database (1991-)

Missed votes by each Member, "Missers" from the Washington Post's U.S. Congress Votes Database (1991-)

Project Vote Smart voting data for Members of Congress

Recent key votes from the Washington Post's U.S. Congress Votes Database (1991-)

Roll Call Votes by Congress

W  

Washington PostU.S. Congress Votes Database (1991-)

Website archive of Clinton administration archived White House Web sites (1994-2000)

Website archive of Bush administration archived White House Web site (2001-2008)

World Association of NGOs

 

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