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Congressional Bills

Description

Bills are proposed legislation.

The State Library's collection of bills begins in 1979. 

• Full text of earlier bills may be reprinted in the related Congressional hearings or reports, or the Congressional Record.

• The Library of Congress Law Library Reading Room (202-707-5079) has microfilmed their collection of Congressional bills back to March 1911.

•  Harvard has the text of bills on microfilm back to 1789.  Copies may be requested on Interlibrary Loan. 

Paper Holdings and Location

We do not acquire bills in paper.

Microfiche Copies and Location

1979 - (96th Congress - present) Bills are located in microfiche cabinets on the 6th floor. Please see Finding Aids below to determine which microfiche contains a specific bill. The types of bills include:

• Senate Bills

• Senate Resolutions: These housekeeping measures are not signed by the President and do not become law.Senate Joint Resolutions: This type of resolution is generally used for limited matters, such as commemorative holidays. Joint resolutions are signed by the President and have the force of law.

• Senate Concurrent Resolutions: This is a resolution dealing with internal matters. A concurrent resolution must be passed by both chambers, but is NOT signed into law by the President and does not have the force of law.

• House Bills

• House Resolutions: These housekeeping measures are not signed by the President and do not become law.House Concurrent Resolutions: This is a resolution dealing with internal matters. A concurrent resolution must be passed by both chambers, but is NOT signed into law by the President and does not have the force of law.

Indexes/Finding Aids

96th Congress, 1979 - present. Final Cumulative Finding Aid, House and Senate Bills, Microfiche, (GIS REF GP 3.28). Since a piece of microfiche can contain more than one bill, each piece is assigned a specific number. Use this Finding Aid to determine exactly which microfiche contains a specific bill. Microfiche is filed by Congress, then session, then bill type, then by the assigned microfiche number.

Online Versions

1989 - present (101st Congress-)  LexisNexis™ Congressional, a database produced by LexisNexis™, is available through the public Internet terminals at the Connecticut State Library.  More information.

1989 - present (101st Congress-) THOMAS

1993 - present (103rd Congress-)GPO Access

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Prepared by the Government Information and Reference Services Unit, page revised 11/2007.