Government and Legislative Information

Find general state and federal government information including information on lawmakers and elected officials, legislation, government agencies, and statistics. For more government information check the guide to Census Information or see the guide to Political Science.

• State Government Information
  Minn Legislative Info | Minn Government | Local Government | Other states
• Federal Government Information
  Gov Docs and Legislative | Directories | Other Resources
• International Government Information
• Sources About Using Government Documents

State Government Information

Minnesota Legislation and Bill Status
Search current and past House and Senate Bills. From the Minnesota Legislature.

Minnesota State Legislature
Links to the Minnesota House and Senate, Minnesota statutes and laws, directories, and other state government information.

Minnesota Statutes, Session Laws, and Rules
Search Minnesota Statutes by keyword or number, browse Session laws, and find Minnesota Rules.

Not sure what the difference is between a statute and a law? See Frequently Asked Questions About the Minnesota Legislature

CSG (Council of State Governments) State Directory

Directory I - Elective State Officials 1999 REF JK2403 .B6 Suppl. 1 (1999)

Directory II - Legislative Leadership, Committees and Staff 1999 REF JK2495 .B6 Suppl. 2 (1999)

Directory III - Administrative Officials 1999 REF JK2403 .B6 Suppl. 3 (1999)

Minnesota Legislative Manual (Blue Book) REF JK6130 .A36 (year) Current year at reference desk. 1995-2002 in Reference. Older editions in stacks.

Comprehensive Minnesota government information. Current and past two years also available online: Blue Book Online

Minnesota North Star
The official website of the state of Minnesota. Government information and services. Links to state offices, tourist information, and forms.

Minnesota Planning
Current and future Minnesota policy issues from the Department of Administration: census, population, crime statistics, environment and land management. Also includes custom map feature.

Minnesota State Court System
Find current and archived court opinions from the State Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.

MinnStats
A repository of socio-economic data produced by state of Minnesota agencies, a project of the Economic Resource Group.

Local Government on Minnesota North Star
The official website of the state of Minnesota. Government information and services. Links to state offices, tourist information, and forms.

Local Governments from Firstgov.gov
Links to local governments around the nation. Includes American Hometowns, National League of Cities, and National Association of Counties, among others.

The Municipal Year Book REF JS344 .C5 A24 (year)

Authoritative source book for local government data and developments including budgets, salaries, and directories.

Council of State Governments
A non-partisan, non-profit organization designed to facilitate communication with state leaders. Also includes StateNews, continuously updated news about the states.

State and Local Governments from Firstgov.gov
Links to state government homepages (including Minnesota), as well as U.S. Territories and Outlying Areas. Also includes links to state and local resources.

Stateline
Non-partisan daily reports of developments in state government. Areas covered include education, taxes/budget, healthcare, welfare reform, land use and election reform.

 

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Federal Government Information

FirstGov: The US Government's Official Web Portal
All-inclusive source of information about the United States Federal Government including links to government department and agency web pages.

Thomas: Legislative Information on the Internet
U.S. Legislative information, including the full text of legislation and the Congressional Record, as well as bill summaries and status. Includes information about the legislative process and text of some historical documents. A service of the Library of Congress.

GPO Access
Full-text databases and access to US Government documents: Congressional Directory, Congressional Bills, United States Code, Federal Register, and others.

FedWorld.gov
Gateway to Government agencies and information, managed by the National Technical Information Service (NTIS).

Federal Register
The official daily publication for Rules, Proposed Rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as Executive Orders and other presidential documents. Includes records back to 1994.

Core Documents of U.S. Democracy
The basic documents defining United States democracy. A core group of current and historical Government publications available for free, permanent, public access via GPO Access, including the Constitution, the Gettysberg Address, the Federalist Papers, American FactFinder, the Emancipation Proclamation, Presidential Inaugurations, and much more.

100 Milestone Documents
Digital images of 100 documents of importance to the American people. Included among the 100 documents are the Monroe Doctrine, Dred Scott v. Sanford, the Homestead Act, the Gettysburg Address, the United Nations Charter, Brown v. Board of Education, and the Civil Rights Act.

Metavid
Archived collection of the televised proceedings of the US Senate and House of Representatives.

NARA: National Archives and Record Administration
The National Archives houses the country's historic documents. Direct access to the Federal Register. Go to the Research Room for genealogy, veteran's service records, and the archival research catalog. Links to grant information, online exhibits such as the Charters of Freedom which includes the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and the Bill of Rights. Links to the digital classroom, records of Congress, and the presidential libraries and museums.

Internet Law Library
Originally created by the US House of Representatives, the Internet Law Library is now hosted by a number of sites. Includes Federal laws, state laws, and the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register, and various other government files. Also contains links to treaties and laws of other nations

United States Government Manual REF JK421 .A3 (year) Current year at reference desk. Previous year in Reference.

Comprehensive source for government information including the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution, legislative, judicial, and executive branches, and other government departments, corporations, and agencies. Current and past editions also available online: The United State Government Manual

CQ Almanac REF JK1 .C66 (year). 1997-2001 in Reference. Older editions in stacks.

A comprehensive analysis of congressional action for a given year including records of House and Senate votes.

CQ Weekly Report (Periodicals collection in alphabetical order)

Weekly information on current policy, Bills, and House and Senate votes.

Statistical Abstract of the United States REF HA202 (year) Current year at Reference Desk. 1997-2001 in Reference. Older editions to 1913 in stacks.

A standard summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States. A reference source and guide to other statistical publications and information. Also available online:http://www.census.gov/statab/www/

Congressional Directory
Current and past congressional directories available online from the United States Congress.

US Blue Pages
Directory of US Government agencies, services, and officials

Congressional Staff Directory REF JK1012 .C65 (1999 Summer)

Contact and biographical information for members, committees, and staff.

Federal Staff Directory REF JK723 .E9 F44 (1999 Summer)

Contact and biographical information for the White House and government departments and agencies.

Judicial Staff Directory REF JK1012 .J8 (1995)

Includes maps of court jurisdiction

Congressional Quarterly's Washington Information Directory 2001-2002 REF F192.3 .W33 (2001-2002).

Subject areas are divided into three information sources: agencies, Congress, and nonprofit organizations. Includes index.

 

CyberCemetery
A partnership with the US Government Printing Office and the University of North Texas Libraries to provide permanent access to electronic documents and websites of federal agencies and commissions. Listed alphabetically and by category.

Uncle Sam
Powered by Google, this web search engine retrieves websites with URL's ending in .gov or .mil.

The Oxford Guide to United States Government REF JK9 .P384 (2001)

Authoritative information on key figures and events, the US Presidency, Congress, Supreme Court, and other government agencies. Includes index.

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International Government Information

United Nations
The official website of the United Nations.

United Nations Bibliographic Information System (UNBISnet)
Catalog of United Nations(UN) documents and publications indexed by the UN Dag Hammarskjöld Library and the Library of the UN Office at Geneva.

United Nations Documentation Center
General Assembly and Council documents of the United Nations.

Europa: Gateway to the European Union
The official website of the European Union.

Europa: Gateway to the EU - Publications
Click on the "EN" to access official publications in English. Also available are General Publications about the European Union,Official publications by the European Union, and a Portal to publications by the European Union and its agencies.

European Union Documents
All the documents available from the European Union. The site is divided into three sections and contains links to legislation, activity reports, brochures, audio-visual material, internal documents, archives, and more.

International Governmental Organizations
Gateway site put out by Northwestern University Library. Extensive list of international governmental organizations arranged alphabetically, with links to their websites.

Sources About Using Government Documents

The Complete Guide to Citing Government Information Resources : A Manual for Writers & Librarians REF Desk J9.5 .G37 1993
Since government document publications do not always follow standard publishing practices, this manual is designed to supplement standard style/citation manuals for writers, librarians, government documents specialists, and others who are citing government information sources.

Encyclopedia of the U. S. Census REF HA37 .U55 E53 2000
A comprehensive one-volume work that provides ready reference on the US Decennial Census. Designed to be a concise and accurate way to answer questions about the US Census, past and present.

Government Information on the Internet REF ZA5075 .N68 2001
Contains thousands of entries for government web sites including descriptions and current URLs. Includes index.

U.S. Government on the Web REF ZA5075 .H47 2003
A guide to the wealth of information available to the public via various government organizations and departments.

Guide to U.S. Government Publications REF Z1223.Z7 A574 2001
A comprehensive annotated guide to the important series, periodicals, and reference tools published by US government agencies.

Introduction to United States Government Information Sources REF J83 .M674 1999
Provides information on general and specific, print and non-print federal government information sources. Designed for use by library school students, information professionals, and researchers.

Using Government Information Sources : Print and Electronic REF J83 .S4 2000
A reference guide to US government information for beginners and experienced researchers. Provides guide to popular government documents and related search strategies.