Guides: Political Science Research Guide: Govt Resources

US Government Resources

Congress.gov
Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information. Search through Committee Hearings, Committee Reports, Legislation, and Members of Congress. Bills are searchable from 1973-present, the Congressional Record from 1995-present, and Members from 1929-present. Data are usually updated the morning after a session adjourns.
Congressional (ProQuest)
Indexes proposed laws, legislative histories and regulations; with full text and a directory of Congress. Includes access to CRS Reports. Formerly known as LexisNexis Congressional.
Govinfo
The U.S. Government Printing Office disseminates official information from all three branches of the Federal Government. Search the entire catalog of government publications. Formerly called FDsys.
Access note: Freely available to the public.
Extent: Multidisciplinary

GovTrack
The site helps find and track bills in the U.S. Congress and understand their representatives’ legislative record.

Congress and the Nation
From CQ Press, this resource offers comprehensive coverage of Congressional action from 1945-2008, browsable by topic or time period. It is the authoritative reference on Congressional trends, actions, and controversies.
Dates Covered: 1945-2008.
Politics in America
Information on members of the US Congress and their districts. Detailed member profiles, analysis of personalities, political styles, legislative agendas, political ambitions, and reputations at home and on the Hill. Updated 6 months after the end of each 2-year term.

Federal Register
Each day Federal agencies publish numerous documents (articles) in the Federal Register, including proposed rules, final rules, public notices, and Presidential actions. The Office of the Federal Register posts this unofficial, XML-based edition of the Federal Register on FederalRegister.gov.
Council of State Governments
Founded in 1933, The Council of State Governments is our nation’s only organization serving all three branches of state government. CSG is a region-based forum that fosters the exchange of insights and ideas to help state officials shape public policy. This offers unparalleled regional, national and international opportunities to network, develop leaders, collaborate and create problem-solving partnerships.

Statistical Abstract of the U.S. (ProQuest)
A comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. Printed volumes available in Reference at Lincoln Park and Loop at R.317.3 U58S.

Illinois Blue Book
Official register of Illinois state government, including biographies of all state legislators and elected officials.
Illinois State Handbook

Open States - Illinois
Find your legislators, review their votes, search upcoming legislation, track bill progress, find data.
Access note: Freely available to the public.

Illinois Sunshine
A tool for browsing political contributions in the state of Illinois. The data comes from the Illinois State Board of Elections, which has been collecting this data electronically since 1994.
Access note: Freely available to the public.

OpenSecrets.org
Tracks money in politics and its effect on elections and public policy. The website of the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan, non-profit research group based in Washington, D.C.
Access note: Freely available to the public.