Free Legal Research on the Web: Legislative History

Congressional Bills

• American Memory (Library of Congress) - Browse Congressional bills and resolutions available for selected sessions beginning with the 6th Congress in the House, the 16th in the Senate, and the 18th for the Senate Joint Committe. Search by keyword, session, or type of legislation.
• GPO FDsys (1993-present) - Search by keyword, bill number, session, or type of legislation. Use advanced search option to search full text.
• Thomas (1989-present) - Filter for "Current" or "All Legislation" and search bills and resolutions by keyword or bill number.

Congressional Hearings

• GPO FDsys - Covers selected hearings from 1985-present, none from 101st. Search by session and keyword. Use advanced search to search full text of hearings.
• Law Librarians' Society of Washington D.C. (LLSDC) - provides links to hearings pages of Congressional committees containing transcripts of selected hearings. (Part of the LLSDC Legislative Source Book). Search by committee.

Congressional Committee Reports

• American Memory - Provides selected reports from 1833-1917 (23rd-64th Congresses) - Search by session or keyword.
• GPO FDsys (1995-present) - Search by session and keyword. Use advanced search to search full text of reports.
• Thomas - (1995-present) - Filter for "Committee Reports" and search by report number, keyword, or date.

Congressional Debates (Congressional Record)

• American Memory: Annals of Congress (1789-1824), Register of Debates (1824-1837), The Congressional Globe (1833-1873). Search by session or keyword.
• GOP FDsys: Congressional Record Index (1983-present). Search by session or keyword. Use advanced search option to search full text of record.
• Thomas (1989-present) - Filter for "Congressional Record" and search by keyword, date, or member of Congress.