LIBR 201: Introduction to Research Strategies: Government Information Resources: Home

Subject Guides

Search Engines

USA.GOV
The government's own search engine, it searches federal, state, and local government sites, including Native American tribal governments, state universities, and the military.

Access Washington [State of Washington]
A portal to WA and US government services and information. Find state facts, laws, consumer protection information, and other public information.

Catalogs

CGP: Catalog of U.S. Government Publications [U.S. Government]
A catalog of print and electronic publications created by federal agencies. Citations and full-texts are available with coverage beginning in 1976.

FDsys
The Government Printing Office's source for free access to official government publications.
Govinfo
The government's next generation collection of official publications. It is still in Beta and will replace FDsys.

Databases

HeinOnline
A database of historical and government documents, including complete coverage of 2,600 law-related periodicals.

Includes the Congressional Record, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports back to 1754, treaties, constitutions, case law, world trials, classic treatises, international trade, foreign relations, U.S. presidents, and other topics.
Nexis Uni (formerly Lexis-Nexis)
A database of publications in reference, business, medicine and law. Includes newspapers, legal cases, law reviews, and company profiles.
ProQuest Congressional [ProQuest]
A database of congressional publications. Includes bills, hearings, legislative histories and profiles of members of Congress.

Canada-Related Databases

Our Catalogue (Canadian Government)
A list of reports and publications of the Canadian federal government.
Open Information Portal
The goal of Open Information is to provide easy access to all of the Government of Canada’s information. This provides Canadians with greater transparency of government programs, activities, publications and spending.

Depository Collections

Western is a depository library for U.S. government publications. The federal government sends WWU publications (mostly digital links now), which the university promises to make available to the public. Western has been a depository since the 1960s and has hundreds of thousands of federal publications.

Western is also a depository for Washington state and was a depository for Canadian federal documents until that system closed in 2013. Western sometimes receives exclusive access to federal websites. For example, the Homeland Security Digital Library is only available, full-text, through depository libraries.

Most government publications can be found in the library catalog. (However, most U.S. federal documents published before 1976 are NOT in the catalog.) Most government documents circulate. They can be checked out by anyone with valid identification, not just Western students.

U.S. Federal Documents - Collections

Cybercemetery of Former Federal Web Sites [University of North Texas]
A collection of U.S. Government websites that are no longer in use. The search function is broken, but websites can still be browsed by name, date of expiration, or branch of government.

EveryCRSReport
A non-government site that attempts to include every report that the experts in the Library of Congress's Congressional Research Service creates at the request of congresspersons. These reports are non-partisan layperson-friendly reports on issues facing lawmakers.
FBI Vault (Freedom of Information Reading Room)
The FBI provides information on filing FOIA requests. Their Reading Room contains the files most often requested under the Freedom of Information Act, i.e. John Lennon, Marilyn Monroe, Malcolm X.
Government Accountability Office (GAO) Reports

Homeland Security Digital Library [U.S. Department of Homeland Security / Naval Postgraduate School]
A collection of documents related to homeland security, policy, strategy, and organizational management.

Includes material published by federal, state, and local governments; international governments and institutions; nonprofit and private sector organizations; think tanks, research centers, colleges, and universities. Covers terrorism, border issues, climate change, immigration, pandemics, school violence, and food security.
National Archives [U.S. National Archives and Records Administration]
A database providing full-text access to U.S. Government archive material, including the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register, Public Laws, United States Government Manual, Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, U.S. Congress Information, and GPO Access Search.
Science.gov [U.S. Government]
A comprehensive, multi-database search engine for more than 200 million pages of science information published by U.S. government agencies.

Popular U.S. Government Websites

Explore Census Data
The U.S. Census Bureau's main webpage for information from the 2000 Census and related data.
American Memory at the Library of Congress
American Memory "provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity."

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"These materials, from the collections of the Library of Congress and other institutions, chronicle historical events, people, places, and ideas that continue to shape America, serving the public as a resource for education and lifelong learning."
Geographic Names Information Service
GNIS lists two million place names in the United States, with links to maps, and latitude/longitude information.
White House
The main website for the White House, including links to all cabinet departments and mjor independent agencies.
World Factbook
Published annually by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, it contains almanac-style information about all the countries of the world.