United States Government Research Guide
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Selected Internet Sites

Try these official and unofficial gateways to government information on the federal, state, and local levels:

• Ben's Guide to U.S. Government: Grades 9-12
  Includes documents, branches of government, how laws are made, national vs. state governments, election process, citizenship, etc.
• Constitution of the United States: Analysis & Interpretation
  "The Constitution of the United States comprises the primary law of the U.S. Federal Government. It also describes the three chief branches of the Federal Government and their jurisdictions. In addition, it lays out the basic rights of citizens of the United States."
• Core Documents of U.S. Democracy
  "To provide American citizens direct online access to the basic Federal Government documents that define our democratic society, a core group of current and historical Government publications is being made available for free, permanent, public access via GPO Access."
• Federal Judicial Center
  Created by Congress as the primary research and education support office for the U.S. courts. Site includes publications, judicial history, landmark judicial legislation, and educational materials (biographies of federal judges, histories of various courts, federal courthouses).
• FirstGov
  Official web gateway to U.S. Government information
• First Amendment Center
  Includes "comprehensive research coverage of key First Amendment issues and topics, daily First Amendment news, a unique First Amendment Library and guest analyses by respected legal specialists".
• GPO Access
  Official information from all 3 branches of the Federal Government from the U.S. Government Printing Office
• THOMAS
  Official site for legislative information from the Library of Congress
• U.S. Government Manual
  "The official handbook of the Federal Government, the United States Government Manual provides comprehensive information on the agencies of the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. It also includes information on quasi-official agencies, international organizations in which the United States participates, and boards, commissions, and committees. The Manual begins with reprints of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution."
• Federal Government Resources on the Web (U. of Michigan Documents Center)
• SearchGov
  Locate federal and state and local government information
• GovEngine
  Links to federal, state, and local government information
• U.S. Federal Government Information: Frequently Used Sites

State Government Resources

• State and Local Government on the Net
• Stateline.org (news on the states and current issues)
• National Conference of State Legislatures

Tools for Tracking Legislation

• GovTrack
• Justia Regulation Tracker
• OpenCongress
• U.S. Congress Votes Database (from the Washington Post)

See also Political Science Research Guide