U.S. Government

Learn more about the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the U.S. government.

A basic outline of the numerous steps of our federal law-making process from the source of an idea for a legislative proposal through its publication as a statute.

Established by Article I of the Constitution, the Legislative Branch consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, the right to confirm or reject many Presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers.

As per the Constitution, the U.S. House of Representatives makes and passes federal laws. The House is one of Congress’s two chambers (the other is the U.S. Senate), and part of the federal government’s legislative branch. The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at no more than 435, proportionally representing the population of the 50 states.

The annual series of meetings of a Congress is called a session. Each Congress generally has two sessions, based on the constitutional mandate that Congress assemble at least once a year.

Produced by the LLSDC Legislative Research Special Interest Section, the Legislative Source Book contains a collection of resources to help with complex historical and contemporary questions in legislative 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. The subjects of the Committee Prints vary greatly due to the different concerns and actions of each committee. Some basic categories of Congressional Committee Prints are: draft reports and bills, directories, statistical materials, investigative reports, historical reports, situational studies, confidential staff reports, hearings, and legislative analyses.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the investigative arm of Congress. Its mission is to support Congress in meeting its Constitutional responsibilities (e.g. oversight, policy, and funding decisions) and to help improve the performance and accountability of the Federal Government for the American people. Most reports are done at the request of members of Congress — often committee chairpersons and ranking minority members. All published reports, testimonies, correspondence, and special publications are included.

The Key Issues pages provide information about GAO's work on a range of issues facing the nation and highlight some of its most relevant reports. These pages are updated periodically to reflect recent GAO reports.

GAO Reports and Comptroller General Decisions from 1989 - 2008

The CBO has produces independent, nonpartisan analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process.

The Law Library of Congress produces reports primarily for members of Congress. The legal research reports, which are listed by topic provide commentary and recommended resources on issues and events. These reports are provided for reference purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. The information provided reflects research undertaken as of the date of writing, which has not been updated unless specifically noted

The successor to THOMAS.gov, it is the current public site for legislative information. The site contains legislation from the 107th Congress (2001) to the present, member of Congress profiles from the 93rd Congress (1973) to the present, and selected member profiles from the 80th through the 92nd Congresses (1947 to 1972).

Brief explanations of legislative terms used throughout Congress.gov

Congressional documents and debates, 1774-1875. Contains the largest and most up-to-date collection of Congressional Research Service reports available online. Content spans 1993-present and covers a wide array of subject areas.

Provides Congress with analyses needed for economic and budget decisions. Site includes current and historical budget data and economic projections. Subject arrangement with key word search.

Searchable and browsable directory of congress members, congressional committees, and congressional agencies, also includes executive agencies, 1997 to present.

The Congressional Pictorial Directory provides a color photograph of each member of the House of Representatives and the Senate for the 113th Congress. It also includes information about a Member of Congress' length of service, political party affiliations, and Congressional district. Also contains pictures of the President, Vice President, and House and Senate officers and officials.

Congressional Gold Medal Recipients, 1776 to Present.

Official record of the proceedings and debates of Congress, 1994 to present.

Official information and services from the U.S. government’s legislative branch.

The primary publisher and distributor of government information products. Through FDsys and the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications provides access to federal web sites and government information products.

The premier government library and collector of government information for the nation.

A clearinghouse of Senate information on the Web and guides to resources in libraries and archives.

How to find materials related to the legislative process and the Senate.

The Library of Congress's American Memory collection offers the Journal from 1789-1875.

The Journal is the official record of proceedings of each legislative day in the House of Representatives, 2000 - 2012 on FDsys.gov

The Senate Manual, prepared during the second session of each Congress by the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, contains the standing rules, orders, laws, and resolutions affecting the Senate, as well as copies of historical U.S. documents, such as Jefferson’s Manual, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, Constitution of the United States, et cetera. and selected statistical information on the Senate and other Government entities. It is generally issued each Congress as Senate Document 1.

Govinfo.gov's Congressional Calendars collection includes the Calendars of the U.S. House of Representatives and History of Legislation and the Senate Calendar of Business. The Calendars of the U.S. House of Representatives and History of Legislation is prepared under the direction of the Clerk of the House of Representatives by the Office of Legislative Operations. It is published daily by 8:00 a.m. when the House is in session.

The House Rules and Manual is published by the House Parliamentarian's Office. This document is formally entitled Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and Rules of the House of Representatives and contains the fundamental source material for parliamentary procedure used in the House of Representatives.

Includes governing actions controlled by the law, as well as congressional documents, the Federal Register, nuclear regulations, et cetera