Legal Information Center
Guide to Locating Federal Bills
Introduction
A bill is a draft of a proposed law. Bills may originate in either the House of Representatives or in the Senate. They are designated either H.R. or S. and are numbered consecutively throughout a Congress. (House bills are abbreviated either with a "H" or "HR". "HR" always refers to a bill introduced in the House of Representatives and never to a House Report). Each Congress consists of two sessions and each session lasts one year. For example, the 102nd Congress began in January 1991. The first session runs through 1991, and the 102nd Congress, second session extends through 1992. To match session of Congress to the appropriate years, go to Congressional Session Chart. A bill retains the same number throughout the two sessions of a single Congress. If the bill has not passed by the end of a Congress, it has to be reintroduced in the next Congress, and it is assigned a new number at that time.
Bills are the usual means of introducing Congressional legislation, both for enacting new legislation and for amending previous legislation. Joint resolutions, concurrent resolutions, and simple resolutions are also types of Congressional legislation.
Joint resolutions can also become law. However, they usually involve more limited subject matter than bills. They are used primarily for money measures and for proposing amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Joint resolutions must pass both Houses of Congress and be signed by the President. Thus, they have the same legal effect as bills. They are also assigned a public law number and are printed in United States Statutes at Large.
Concurrent resolutions are a means for Congress to express its opinions and otherwise make statements about issues and events. Concurrent resolutions must be passed by both Houses of Congress and, if passed, are published in the U.S. Statutes at Large.
Simple resolutions or resolutions are used mostly for internal matters of the House and Senate, such as rules and procedural matters. They need be passed by only one Congressional body.
Of the thousands of pieces of legislation introduced in each Congress, only about 20% are ever reported out of committee and usually less than 5% become law. Those that do become public law are given a PL number (PL 99-123). The first digits refer to the two-year session of Congress during which the bill was passed.
Once a bill passes both houses and is signed by the President, it becomes a public law and is assigned a two part number; e.g., PL 101-1 is the first piece of legislation to have been signed into law in the 101st Congress.
For general information on how bills become laws, go to Congressional Universe.
Finding Bills Online
GPO Access 103rd Congress - present Thomas 1993-present University of Michigan coverage depends on source selected Congressional Universe (Gatorlink only) 101st Congress - present Westlaw (Database identifier is CONG-BILLTXT) 104th Congress - present Lexis-Nexis (Database identifier is BILLS) 101st Congress - present
Click on One of the Following
Part 1 - Searching for a Bill by Subject
1) CCH CONGRESSIONAL INDEX
Current edition is located at Reference (KF49 .C6). Earlier editions are in call number order (KF49 .C6) on the second floor. The index for both Senate and House legislation is in volume one. Be sure to check the index, the current index and the latest additions. It is updated weekly.
a) When you have found the appropriate subject, bill numbers will follow. This index includes references to resolutions, joint resolutions and concurrent resolutions, as well as bills.
b) Verify that you have the correct bill by checking the brief description of the bill. The brief description of Senate bills is found following the Senate Bills tab in volume one. The brief description of House bills is found following the House Bills tab in volume two. The bill entry includes a brief summary of the bill, date of introduction, name(s) of member(s) who introduced the bill, and name of committee to which it was referred.
c) Search Subject Index to Public Laws in volume one behind ENACTMENTS--VETOES tab. The Enactments by Public Law Number in the same section may also be useful.
2) CONGRESSIONAL RECORD INDEX
The Congressional Record Index includes a topical index to legislation, an index by the name of legislators, and a history of bills. The History of Bills and Resolutions, published since 1873, is located at the end of the Index volume. It is arranged in order by bill number. Each entry includes a brief description of the bill, and Congressional Record page references to debate, reports numbers, legislative consideration, and information about the bill status. If the bill passed the public law number is provided. The Index is published every two weeks with the current set.
The Legal Information Center has the index of the Record in the compact shelving on the first floor. The call number is KF35.U58. The full text of back issues of the Congressional Record are available in microfilm or microfiche, but the index is available in hard copy.
3) CRS [Congressional Research Service] BILL DIGEST: DIGEST OF PUBLIC GENERAL BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS
The Digest provides an outstanding archival record of bills introduced. The Digest includes a subject index to legislation introduced, a short title index, an index of identical bills, and an index by sponsor. In addition, each issue of the digest includes sections on "action taken during the Congress" and "Digests of public general bills and resolutions." The "action" part is divided into sections on public laws and a section on "other measures receiving action." Each entry includes a digest and a table of action on the public law or other measure, i.e., bill, resolution. The Digest of Public General Bills and Resolutions includes digests of all public bills and resolutions in order as introduced. The Legal Information Center has the Digest from 89th Congress (1965-) until the 101st Congress (1989-1990); back issues are shelved under call number J52A3 in the compact shelving on the first floor.
4) CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY ALMANAC
The Congressional Quarterly Almanac is published at the end of each session. It includes articles summarizing legislative developments and provides a permanent reference summary of the legislative session. It includes a subject index of the session which can be used to obtain information about bills introduced on a topic. The current issue is available in the Reference area; back issues are shelved under the call number JK1C66. Congressional Quarterly Weekly, a companion work, is a congressional news weekly. The table of contents includes a section entitled "major legislative action." A regular feature at the back of each issue is "status of major legislation." CQW also features periodic cumulative indexes by subject. These publications can be used to find legislation by subject. Back issues are shelved under the call number P C749 on the lower level.
Part 2 - Checking the Status of a Bill
1) CCH CONGRESSIONAL INDEX.
Check the bill status tables behind the Status tabs in the House volume and in the Senate volume of the CCH CONGRESSIONAL INDEX. The tables are organized by bill number. If the bill has become law, it is marked with an asterisk (*). Be sure to check the current and latest additions for the most up to date information. The status table provides a chronological list of major actions on the bill. If the bill became law, the public law number is also included.
To find out if a bill has passed in the current legislature, turn to the tab Enactments-Vetoes in CCH CONGRESSIONAL INDEX. Included in this section is a chronological table of public law numbers with short titles of bills, a table by bill number with it corresponding public law number and title, and a subject index referring to public law numbers.
2) CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY WEEKLY REPORT.
In the back of each issue is a Status of Major Legislation table. Included are titles, summaries, bill numbers (both houses), status in each House and public law numbers for bills that have passed. This source shows more recent passed legislation than CCH Congressional Index. In addition, some issues contain articles on important proposed legislation with a section set apart called "box scores". Information included in the box: bill number, title, latest action, next likely action, report numbers, and other Weekly Report reference page numbers.
NOTE: To speed up the legislative process, bills are often introduced in both houses so that the House and Senate are working on a proposal at the same time. These are often called companion bills. The subject index of CCH Congressional Index will pick up bill numbers for both houses if two bills have been introduced. You would then want to check the status of both bills.
Part 3 - Locating a Copy of a Bill
1) 1789-1899 available full-text on MICROFILM; University Libraries, Library West Microform Center, first floor; call number 328.732U58b microfilm. Bills introduced during the 1st -55th Congresses.
2) 1963-present available full-text on MICROFICHE.
3) If you do not locate a copy of a bill in fiche, go to a looseleaf set if there is one covering the area of law in question. For a bill relating to taxes, go to Federal Tax Coordinator, 2d to see if the bill has been printed in one of these tax services. Often bills of importance are printed in looseleaf sets first.
Part 3 - Finding Bill Numbers from the Public Law Number
To find a bill number when you know the public law number, check any of the following publications:
CCH CONGRESSIONAL INDEX - Enactments Table =
USCCAN - Locate the Public Law; bill number will be mentioned in parenthesis
CALENDARS OF BUSINESS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Special thanks to Berring's How to Find the Law 9th ed. (RMS).