Legislative Research for GOVT 452

Legislative history refers to the progress of a bill through the legislative process and to the documents that are created during that process. Attorneys, judges, and others often turn to these documents to learn why Congress enacted a particular law or to aid in the interpretation of a law.

The Gallagher Law Library at The University of Washington has an excellent resource to explore parts of a legislative history and the process. Their site can be accessed here

Welcome to the GOVT 452 Assignment 2 Infoguide

Use this guide to locate sources to use for your course assignments. We will have two in-class sessions to work on the entire assignment #2. Do not hesitate to contact your librarian or instructor for question The following "road map" explains key step:. ​

• Find Workshop Handouts - Get extra copies of worksheets and handouts
• Session 1: Prepare for Question 6 - Find the law that created your agency, plus associated citations (Library Session 1)
• Session 2: Answer Question 6 - Instructions for answering question 6 for laws pre-1973 and 1973-present (Library Session 2)
• Find an Agency's Regulations - Find out where an agency's regulations are codified
• Find Supreme Court Case - Locate a specific Supreme Court Case
• Know Where to Search - Where to look for specific document collections & date ranges
• Write & Cite - Information on Zotero and contacting the Writing Center
• Get Help - Chat with a librarian or setup an appointment with the Policy and Government Librarian

"How can I answer each question?"

Questions 1, 2, 7, and 12: Prepare for question 6

Question 6, 3: Answer Question 6

Question 10: Find an Agency's Regulations

Questions 5, 8, 9, 11, 14: Read the law, search periodicals, and/or check the agency website

Questions 4 & 13: Google or use Nexis Uni for news/background

Question 16: Find Supreme Court Case (ask your professor for instructions on abstracting the case)