Guides: Congressional Information: Finding Databases / Periodicals / Journals

Databases

Congress Collection This link opens in a new window
Presents biographical and voting information on all members of Congress, beginning with the 79th congress (1945) as well as summaries and analyses by the CQ staff.
CQ Press public affairs collection This link opens in a new window
Offers reports covering major public affairs subject headings with access to primary sources, statistical and historical analyses.
ProQuest Congressional This link opens in a new window
Provides information produced by or pertaining to the U.S. Congress, including House and Senate documents from 1995 onward, directories of members, committee rosters, the full text of bills from 1989 and of committee reports from 1990. Provides access to the Congressional Information Service Index from 1970, Congressional Indexes 1789-1969, the Congressional Record from 1985, the United States Code, the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register from 1980, The Hill and Roll Call.
ProQuest legislative insight This link opens in a new window
"...a Federal legislative history service that makes available thoroughly researched compilations of digital full text publications created by Congress during the process leading up to the enactment of U.S. Public Laws."
CRS reports This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to all reports from 1916 to the present prepared by the Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress for the U.S. Congress.
GovInfo This link opens in a new window
Provides authenticated, free online access to official federal government publications.

Print & Online Periodicals of Interest

Almanac of American Politics
REF JK 1012 A44

A biennial publication that analyzes elected political figures in the House and Senate, governors, big city mayors, and the presidency. Detailed geographic, social, economic, political, and cultural analysis are also provided for electoral districts, states and territories.
Almanac of American Politics (Online) (1992-)

CQ almanac This link opens in a new window
Offers access to original reports by the CQ staff of all the activity of Congress since congressional year 1945, the first year covered in the print edition. ay.
Arranged thematically, it organizes, distills, and cross-indexes for permanent reference the full year in Congress and in national politics.
CQ's politics in America This link opens in a new window
Contains in-depth profiles of every member of Congress as well as data on their constituencies, apportionment, and redistricting.

Congress and the Nation
Offers comprehensive and signature coverage of Congressional action. Users can: Quickly navigate through nearly 60 years of coverage of politics and policy, access tables, graphs, and charts that help explain the issues, search and browse within consistent topics areas from one volume to the next, and explore content from all volumes with a linkable cumulative index.
Congressional Roll Call
Jones Ref JK1 .C6635
A chronology and analysis of votes in the House and Senate.
Historic Documents series
Each annual volume contains approximately 100 documents covering the most significant events of the year. Includes presidential speeches, international agreements, Supreme Court decisions, U.S. governmental reports, scientific findings, and cultural discussions. Documents are preceded by introductory material to provide historical and intellectual context.

Vital statistics on American politics This link opens in a new window
Provides data on American politics.
Washington information directory : a guide to national organizations and government agencies This link opens in a new window
Provides information on U.S. governmental and nongovernmental agencies and organizations.

Online Journals (a few highlights)

Congressional Digest
"Reports on pros and cons, background and verbatim arguments of legislation before Congress, each issue dealing with one law under consideration." --Congressional Digest description

CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
Provides in-depth, unbiased coverage of health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy.
CQ Magazine This link opens in a new window
Provides non-partisan news and analysis on how legislation is shaped.

Congressional Digest
"An independent, scholarly publication featuring controversies before Congress. Congressional Digest is not an official organ, nor is it controlled by any party, interest, class or sect.

Early in the last century, suffragette Alice Gram Robinson realized that discerning students of the legislative process had few places to turn to for, in her words, “an impartial view of controversial issues.”

With the launch of Congressional Digest in 1921, Robinson pioneered what was to become an enduring publication format: the even-handed presentation of opposing views on contentious national questions, PRO&CON®."
Harvard Journal on Legislation
Focuses on the analysis of legislation and the legislative process and provides a forum for scholarship on legislative reform and on the efficiency and effectiveness of legislative decision-making. The Journal includes articles that examine public policy problems of national significance and proposed legislation to resolve them.

Congressional Information

Databases

Print & Online Periodicals of Interest

Online Journals (a few highlights)

University Libraries