U.S. Government Documents

There are many possible locations for government publications. Remember to ask a librarian if you have trouble finding a publication. Most non-Congressional U.S. government publications are treated as books or periodicals and are entered in the Library's general catalogs. In addition, the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room has a depository set of government documents beginning in 1979.

Many government reports and reports done by private agencies on government contract are issued by the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). These reports and those issued by various agencies which preceded NTIS are housed in the Science Reading Room (they are not, however, limited to scientific subjects). Such reports are usually not listed in the Library's general catalogs. They can be identified through the Government Reports Annual Index and its predecessors, available in the Science Reading Room (1946 to date) and the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room (1979 to date).

U.S. treaties and Foreign Relations of the United States can be found in the Law Library and in the Main Reading Room. U.S. treaties are also available in the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room. The Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations are found in the Law Library. Current issues of both are also found in the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room. Declassified U.S. government documents are available via the Declassified Documents Reference System, an online collection available at the Library of Congress and other subscribing institutions. The Microform Reading Room also has the microfiche edition of this collection, the indexes for which are available in the Newspaper and Current Periodical Reading Room and the Main Reading Room. The Microform Reading Room also has other collections of government documents. Ask a librarian in the Main Reading Room for assistance in identifying items in those collections.