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Finding Government and Public Information Online Subject Guide: Home

A pathfinder designed to educate people about how to access public and government information (OPRA).

Print Resources - In Library Use Only

Print Resources

Web Resources

Catalog of US Government Publications
http://catalog.gpo.gov/F
Search government publications by author, title, subject area, or keywords on this site.
 

FirstGov
http://www.firstgov.gov/
"FirstGov is intended to be your first resource to find any government information on the Internet, with topics ranging from business and economy to money and benefits to science and technology - and everything in between!... FirstGov allows users to browse a wealth of information and enables users to conduct important business online - such as applying for student loans, tracking Social Security benefits, comparing Medicare options and even administering government grants and contracts."
 

Govinfo
https://www.govinfo.gov/
Govinfo is a service of the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO), which is a Federal agency in the legislative branch.
Govinfo provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government..

 

The National Security Archive
http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/
"The National Security Archive is an independent non-governmental research institute and library located at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The Archive collects and publishes declassified documents acquired through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)." View selected documents at this site on topics ranging from the Cuban Missile Crisis to the Nixon-Elvis meeting.
 

Search Systems
http://www.searchsystems.net/
A directory of freely available public information databases for the United States, individual U.S. states, and Canada. Availability varies from state to state, but databases frequently cover such topics as legislative information, sex offender registries, corporate filings, property records, obituaries, and the like.

 

FOIA Resources 
http://www.archives.gov/foia/resources.html
This page is run off of the National Archives website and gives pertinent information about how to file for government records.

 

THOMAS (Library of Congress)
http://thomas.loc.gov/
"The Library of Congress THOMAS site is the source for federal legislative information.  THOMAS provides several options for finding bills, resolutions, and legislative histories from 1973 to the present.  Legislative information can be searched across multiple Congresses.  THOMAS is also the source for presidential nominations, treaties, committee reports, legislative resources for researchers and teachers.  THOMAS draws on the resources of the Library of Congress to provide users with valuable and historical information related to the legislative process."

 

U.S. Courts: Federal Judiciary Homepage
http://www.uscourts.gov/
Homepage for the Federal Judiciary, with links to the Supreme Court, U.S. Courts of Appeals, Bankruptcy, and District Courts. Has links to all circuit courts of appeal, including D.C. and U.S. Bankruptcy courts of appeal, as well as state District Courts and Bankruptcy Courts within each circuit. Contains links to periodicals, publications, reports, statistics and other resources

 

United States Government Manual
https://www.usgovernmentmanual.gov/AboutUs.aspx
"The United States Government Manual database contains comprehensive information on the agencies of the legislative, judicial and executive branches. The Manual also includes information on quasi-official agencies; international organizations in which the United States participates; and boards, commissions and committees. Documents are available as ASCII text and as Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files." Updated annually.