LibGuides: Social Work Policy Analysis: Legislative History Research

How Does A Bill Become A Law

Click on image to enlarge

eCFR (Code of Federal Regulations: Online)

eCFR

dataplanet (formerly Sage Stats)

Data Planet (see Sage Data)
A dynamic tool to scan and search the contents of billions of datasets from the United States. Compare and contrast variables of interest and create customized views in tables, maps, rankings, and charts. Views also include descriptive summaries of the datasets and data sources.

Statistics Resources

Data.gov
Here you will find data, tools, and resources to conduct research, develop web and mobile applications, design data visualizations, and more.
The Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology (FCSM)
An interagency committee dedicated to improving the quality of Federal statistics.
Kids Count
Kids Count Data Center contains over 100 measures including educational, social, economic, and physical well-being of children in the United States, by state and city.
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Statistics for education and literacy, science and technology, and culture and communication, from various countries, collected by UNESCO's Institute for Statistics.

Hannah (Ohio) Capitol Connection

Hannah Capital Connection (formerly Ohio Capital Connection) This link opens in a new window Provides information about current and past legislation of the Ohio General Assembly. Updated daily, it has the complete status and full text of bills introduced in the Ohio General Assembly. This database includes rosters of House and Senate members searchable by name or location, and addresses and biographies of the General Assembly members. While the database focuses on Ohio, information about the Federal government is also available.

State of Ohio Resources

Legislative Process
A flow chart demonstrating how a bill becomes a law, taken from the A Guidebook for Ohio Legislators published by the Legislative Service Commission
Ohio Revised/Administrative Codes
Links to:
Ohio Revised Code includes legislation filed in the Secretary of State's office through 10/21/2011.
Ohio Administrative Code has been updated for all rules final filed and adopted through December 12, 2011.
Lawriter - OAC
Ohio Administration Codes
Ohio Department of Job and Family Services : Office of Child Support

Policy Resources

Childrens Defense Fund
Data from the Children's Defense Fund about the health and welfare of children in each state.
Public Agenda Online
Public Agenda is a nonpartisan, nonprofit public opinion research and citizen education organization, focusing on "school and health care reform, national security, AIDS, crime, economic competitiveness and the environment" in well-balanced reports and research studies.
National Center for Victims of Crime
Covers Victim Assistance, Provider Support, Civil Litigation, Public Policy, and their Resource Library Some information only available via a membership.
National Survey of America's Families
A database of AFDC/TANF rules for all 50 states, from 1997 to 2002. Provided by the University of Michigan's Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research.
Office of Juvenile Justice and Deliquency Prevention
OJJDP provides national leadership, coordination, and resources to prevent and respond to juvenile delinquency and victimization. It supports states and communities in their efforts to develop and implement effective and coordinated prevention and intervention programs and to improve the juvenile justice system so that it protects public safety, holds offenders accountable, and provides treatment and rehabilitative services tailored to the needs of juveniles and their families.

congress.gov

congress.gov
Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information.
congress.gov: Find bills by subject and policy area.
Using Search Terms and Filters on Congress.gov (Video)

Finding Legislative Documents

govinfo
govinfo is a service of GPO to provide free public access to the full text of official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government.
CIS (Congressionsl Information Service) Index
Legislative History volumes for all laws enacted between 1970 and current. Start here to find a law that may interest you. Malone has print only located in the REFERENCE section of the library. (348.731 C49)
The Legislative Process
From the House of Representatives. Click on the RESOURCES link to find more information on bill status, committee reports and congressional records (links to THOMAS).
U.S. Senate
Search for legislation and records by clicking on the tab at the top of their homepage.

GovTrack.us

GovTrack.us
Use GovTrack to track bills for updates by getting alerts and understand the broader context of legislation through our statistical analyses.

CRS

The Congressional Research Service compiles comprehensive and authoritative research reports for Congress.

EveryCRSReport strives to make these reports publicly available. Search by keyword for reports on your topic.

"Congressional Research Service reports are the best way for anyone to quickly get up to speed on major political issues without having to worry about spin — from the same source Congress uses."

Social Work - Federal and State Government Information Resources

This section provides information on social policy as established by federal, state, and local governments. Included are resources related to general information, policies, and statistics. For additional information on Government Document resources, check out the Government Documents Information guide.