Library Resources on the
U.S. Congress
POS 6934/Spring 2008
Librarian: Bruce Barron
ACCESSING INFORMATION
The address of the Library’s web site is (http://www.fau.edu/library).
In order to access databases from home you must use
EZ Proxy.
This can be done by going to Quick Links on the homepage and then
clicking <Off Campus Connect>. You must then enter your Owl Card
number.
LexisNexis Congressional,
CQ Weekly,
and
National Journal can be found by choosing
Index/Databases from the Quick Links and then selecting the
appropriate letter under Databases by Title.
Thomas can be found
in the Government Resources links. Choose
Research
and then Find on the homepage. Select Federal Government Resources
and then Legislative Branch on the Government Resources
homepage.
SELECTED RESOURCES
Thomas - Legislative Information On the Internet
You can review detailed information concerning the legislative process by
selecting The Legislative Process and then From a Bill to a
Law from the Learn section of the homepage.
Begin by choosing
Search Multiple, Previous Congresses and then use keyword search for
bills from selected sessions of Congress. Make sure to mark
Enrolled Bills Sent to the President if you are looking for bills that
have become law.
Track a bill by selecting Bill Summary and Status followed by
All Congressional Action. You will find committee actions,
reports, roll call votes, and links to the Congressional Record for your
bill.
LexisNexis Congressional
Use this database to find hearings conducted on your bill, many of which
will be available full text. From the homepage, select Legislative
Histories, Bills & Laws
followed by Get a Document. Enter the Enacted Bill Number or Public
Law Number to find a list of documents including hearings.
If the hearing is available full text, you may print or email the
information. If only an abstract is available, check the Library’s
catalog to see if the full text print version is owned.
You may do a search to track a bill similar to Thomas
by selecting Bills and then searching by keyword or bill number.
National Journal
Use this resource to read commentary about your bill. Use the Advanced
Search mode and select keywords as well as dates when your bill was
being discussed.
Information on the dealings that involve your bill can also be found by
searching appropriate dates in This Week on the Hill. In
addition, you may search for more details in Congress Daily.
CQ Weekly
Use this resource to read about the “inside story” concerning your bill.
Remember to write down the dates when your bill was being acted upon to help
you locate articles about it.
You may search
articles in this database using keywords in Quick Search and then
modify the results page to date order. You may also search in the Archives
by selecting
Browse by Issue Date or Browse by Topic.
Ask-A-Librarian email reference help
Government Documents Department phone number:
561-297-3788
Reference Desk phone number: 561-297-3785
Make an appointment with a librarian:
One-on-one reference consultation
