U.S. Government Information

The Collections

The federal government is the world's largest publisher of statistical information, including state, local, national, and international data. The University of Delaware Library is an officially designated depository for federal government publications and has been a depository since 1897. The Depository number is 087. The Library currently receives most of the publications distributed through the Federal Depository Library Program (about 73%). The documents collection is quite extensive and contains information on a variety of subjects.

Most federal government publications published today are available on the Internet. For older publications, search DELCAT or WorldCat Local.

Not all documents are listed in DELCAT (or WorldCat Local). If you do not find what you are looking for, ask for assistance at the Reference Desk. Information for documents received since June 1994 will be in DELCAT; information for documents received from 1976 to 1994 is likely to be in DELCAT. Prior to 1976, information on documents was selectively added to DELCAT.

The U.S. Documents Reference collection contains current and historical Census and legal reference materials. The U.S. Documents-Microfiche collection contains microfiched publications, from approximately 1980 to the mid-1990s. Both of these collections are located on the Lower Level of the Morris Library.

The Call Numbers (SuDocs Classification)

The documents are arranged by a call number system specifically designed for federal documents, called the Superintendent of Documents (SuDocs) classification system. These call numbers indicate the agency which released the document. For example, a publication from the Department of Agriculture has a call number beginning with "A", such as A 1.114:92 or one from Labor has an "L", such as L 2.70: C 14.

Agencies or bureaus under Departments have the letter or letters for that department (the "parent agency") and a number unique to the sub-agency or bureau. For example, "A 13" is the Forest Service and "A 93" is the Economic Research Service, both of which are agencies under the Department of Agriculture.

Reading SuDocs Call Numbers

SuDocs call numbers are arranged alphabetically by the letters indicating the agency, then numerically by the first group of numbers, then the next group, etc. All numbers are treated as whole numbers, unlike Library of Congress call numbers. There are no decimals. For further information, consult the guide SuDocs Call Numbers or ask for assistance at the Reference Desk.

Locating Government Documents

Government documents records in DELCAT or WorldCat Local will specify a location:

Morris Library | U.S. Documents Reference
Morris Library | Census Area
Morris Library | U.S. Documents-Microfiche
Morris Library | U. S. Documents-Serial Set
Morris Library | U.S. Documents-Oversize
Library Annex

If you are using specialized indexes and guides, check for the SuDocs call number and title in DELCAT or WorldCat Local.

Guides to Government Information

USA.gov Location: Internet (http://www.usa.gov/ or http://usa.gov/): The official government portal site. Breakdowns by topics and by audience groups offer links to resources from all government agencies. Includes links to partner sites, such as science.gov.

Guide to U.S. Government Publications (Andriot). McLean, VA: Documents Index. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Z1223 .Z7 A574) latest at Reference desk Location: Morris Library (Z1223 .Z7 A574) Earlier eds.: A quick guide to major government series, annuals, and periodicals; does not list individual reports or monographs. Arranged in SuDocs call number order. Has indexes by agency and by title of series. Includes information about the publishing agency. Usually called "Andriot" -- the name of the original editor.

Morehead, Joe. Introduction to United States Government Information Sources. 6th ed. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited, 1999. Location: Morris Library - Reference (J83 .M67x 1999)

Popular Names of U.S. Government Reports. Washington, DC: Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service, 1984. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Z1233 .A199 B47 1984) Reference desk Location: Internet (http://bl-libg-doghill.ads.iu.edu/gpd-web/popnames/popnames.html): Lists reports that have become known by popular names, rather than by their official name; describes the report or committee and provides bibliographic information. Covers reports of Congressional committees, the President, and commissions, boards and committees of Congress and the Presidency. The web site has a PDF version of the original publication and a searchable database, updated to include new information.

Robinson, Judith Schiek. Tapping the Government Grapevine; the User-Friendly Guide to U. S. Government Information Sources. 3d ed. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 1998. Location: Morris Library - Reference (J83 .R62 1998) Reference desk

Sears, Jean L. and Marilyn K. Moody. Using Government Information Sources: Electronic and Print. 3d ed. Phoenix, AZ: Oryx Press, 2001. Location: Morris Library - Reference ( Z1223.Z7 S4 2001) Reference desk

Explore GovDocs. (UMich Library Government Documents Center) Location: Internet (http://www.lib.umich.edu/government-documents-center/explore)

Directories & Guides to Government Agencies

Sources for information about the federal government; useful in helping to identify the responsibilities of agencies and finding contacts in agencies.

United States Government Manual. Washington, DC: Office of the Federal Register. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (JK421 .A3) latest at Reference desk Location: Internet (http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS2410) (via GPO Access) Location: Earlier eds., see holdings in DELCAT: The official handbook about the United States government. Describes the major agencies in the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of the government, as well as many quasi-official agencies and commissions. Includes organization charts of the departments and of selected agencies. Began publication in 1935.

Federal Regulatory Directory. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, Inc. Location: Morris Library - Reference (JK671 .F4) latest at Reference desk Location: Morris Library (JK671 .F4) Earlier eds.: Provides an overview of the regulatory process and current trends in regulation. It describes the federal agencies involved in regulation, the agency's history, authority, organization, and information sources. Useful appendices include a reprinting of some major acts, such as the Freedom of Information Act, and a description of how to use the two major sources of government regulations: the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations.

Federal Staff Directory. Mount Vernon, VA: Congressional Staff Directory. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (JK723 .E9 F447) latest at Reference desk Location: Morris Library (K723 .E9 F447) Earlier eds.

A Historical Guide to the U.S. Government. George Thomas Kurian, ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. Location: Morris Library - Reference ( JK9 .H57 1998) Reference desk

Washington Information Directory. Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly, Inc. Location: Morris Library - Reference (F192.3 .W37) latest at Reference desk Location: Morris Library (F192.3 .W37) Earlier eds.

Official Congressional Directory. Washington, DC: U.S. GPO. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (JK1011 .A1) latest at Reference desk Location: Earlier eds., see holdings in DELCAT Location: Internet (http://www.gpoaccess.gov/cdirectory/index.html) (via GPO Access): Also see Congressional Pictorial Directory and the committee and biography information in LexisNexis Congressional.

Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-... Washington, D.C.: U.S. G.P.O. Location: Internet (http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS69614) Location: Morris Library - Reference (JK1010 .A5) Location: Internet (http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS21383) database: The Biographical Directory is available as a PDF file and also as a searchable database. The text of the biographies are the same. The database version has additional information including pictures of Senators and a Guide to Research Collections.

Handbooks & Fact Books

Statistical Abstract of the United States. Washington, DC: Bureau of the Census. Annual. Location: Morris Library - Reference (HA202 .A1) latest at Reference desk Location: Morris Library - Reference (CD-ROM 215) Computer #36 Location: Morris Library - Census Area(first row) Location: Internet (http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS2878) Location: Internet (http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/past_years.html) earlier eds.: The single most important source for statistics. Published annually since 1878. The Statistical Abstract includes statistics from all federal sources and from commercial publishers and professional and trade organizations. The statistical tables include notations indicating the source of the data. Note: The Statistical Abstract in CD-ROM format provides links to agency Web pages and provides tables in spreadsheet format; these tables include more data than the same table in the PDF format (either on the Web or on CD). The historical volumes on the Web are in PDF format and date back to 1878.

USA Counties. Washington, DC: Bureau of the Census. Location: Internet (http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS22642): A handy source for demographic, economic, and other information for counties and for the United States.

Indexes & Databases

The Library has been adding newly received government documents to DELCAT since mid-1990s. Most of the vast collection of documents are not listed. The following specialized indexes can be used to find government documents which are not in DELCAT. Ask at the Reference Desk for advice on which index is best for which type of government information. See Historical Indexes: A Research Guide for a list of indexes/databases covering earlier publications (prior to 1976).

Catalog of United States Government Publications (CGP). (Title varies) Washington, DC: U.S. GPO. Location: Internet (http://catalog.gpo.gov/) 1976 to present Location: Morris Library - U.S. Documents Reference (GP 3.7: and GP 3.7x: and GP 3.8:): A catalog of government publications cataloged by the Government Printing Office. Published since 1895. Previous title: The Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications. The Web version includes hypertext links to publications available on the Internet.

LexisNexis Congressional. Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]: Comprehensive access to United States legislative information. Contains a great deal of full-text information including bills, testimony given in Congressional hearings, and the Congressional Record. The database contains the information on congressional publications from 1789 to present. It includes indexing for House and Senate Documents and Reports (the Serial Set). House and Senate Documents and Reports published after 1990 (102nd Congress) are available full text in text format. The Bills section provides bill tracking and full-text bills from the 101st Congress (1989) to present.

LexisNexis Government Periodicals Index. Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]: An index to articles in government magazines and journals, covering 1988 to present. Includes links to publications available on the Internet.

Index to U.S. Government Periodicals. Location: Morris Library - Reference (Z1223 .Z9 I5): An index to articles in government magazines and journals. Covers 1970 to 1987.

Google: U.S. Government Search Location: Internet (http://www.google.com/unclesam)

LexisNexis Academic. Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]: Particularly useful for full text of federal cases and laws and for articles in newspapers.

NTIS (National Technical Information Service) Database. Location: Morris Library - Computerized service by request at Reference desk Location: Internet (http://www.ntis.gov/) 1990 to present: A catalog of government produced technical publications, distributed by NTIS (National Technical Information Service). Includes reports produced as a part of government-sponsored contracts, even if the reports are not strictly technical in nature. Ask at the Reference Desk for a search of the fee-based system NTIS Database, DIALOGweb File #6. This file covers1964 to present. For more information, see Technical Reports: A Research Guide.

PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service). Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]: Indexes and provides abstracts for books, government publications (federal, state, local, and international), and scholarly journals covering the fields of public policy, politics, demography, foreign relations, and international affairs.

U.S. Government Bookstore. Location: Internet (http://bookstore.gpo.gov/): A listing of federal government information products currently offered for sale by the Superintendent of Documents Office (Government Printing Office).

LexisNexis Statistical. Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]

The database has two important components: "Search Tables Research Edition" and "Search Abstracts." The Tables section provides the ability to search for data and view the statistical tables. Many of the tables are also available in spreadsheet format. The Abstracts section provides bibliographic access to many more statistical publications and includes hypertext links to agency Web sites. LexisNexis Statistical covers publications from the United States government (ASI), state governments and private publishers (SRI), and international intergovernmental organizations, such as the United Nations (IIS). The Library has three microfiche full-text subscriptions, one covering all documents not included in the federal depository library system (non-depository ASI), one covering the state and privately published publications in SRI, and the third covering the intergovernmental organizations in IIS. These microfiche sets are located in the Morris Library Microforms area (Student Multimedia Design Center). LexisNexis Statistical corresponds to three print indexes:

ASI: American Statistics Index (federal government; excluding depository publications)
SRI: Statistical Reference Index (state governments and commercial publishers)
IIS: Index to International Statistics (intergovernmental organizations)

Academic OneFile. Location: Library Databases [restricted to UD]: Comprehensive database for articles from more than 8,000 scholarly journals and general interest periodicals (magazines), many of which are available full text. Subject areas include the humanities, social sciences, non-technical general sciences and current events. Includes full-text New York Times articles from 1995 to the present. Covers 1980 to present. Includes about a dozen of the most useful government periodicals, such as the FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin.

Citation Guides & Style Manuals

Brief Guide to Citing Government Publications. Government Publications Department, The University of Memphis. Location: Internet (http://exlibris.memphis.edu/resource/unclesam/citeweb.html)

Cheney, Debora. The Complete Guide to Citing Government Information Resources: A Manual for Social Science and Business Research. Bethesda, MD: Congressional Information Service, 2002. Location: Morris Library - Reference (J9.5 .C44x 2002) Reference desk

This page is maintained by Rebecca Knight, Reference Department.

Version: 9/2009
Last modified: 10/04/09