Code of Federal Regulations

The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is a continually revised arrangement of all general and permanent federal rules organized by subject. It is organized into 50 titles, and each title contains rules in a general subject area. For example, agricultural rules are in Title 7. The CFR has been printed since 1938 and it is updated annually.

A basic citation to a rule in the Code of Federal Regulations using Bluebook* citation style is as follows:

25 C.F.R. § 531.1 (2014).

The citation refers you to the rule found in Title 25, Section 531.1, of the 2014 edition of the CFR.

* The rules governing the most widely used legal citation style are found in The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation.

The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation by Harvard Law Review Association
Call Number: KF245 .B58
ISBN: 9780692400197
Published/Created: 1991 (15th ed.) -

Free Online Resources

Several websites offer free access to the Code of Federal Regulations online.

GovInfo - Code of Federal Regulations
Editions of the CFR spanning 1996 to the present, in digitally certified PDF format. Appears as it does in print. Helpful resources and finding aids are also available on GovInfo, from the U.S. Government Publishing Office.
eCFR
Current but unofficial HTML edition of the CFR. The eCFR is a joint project of the Office of the Federal Register within the National Archives, and the U.S. Government Publishing Office. These agencies produce an editorial compilation of CFR materials and Federal Register amendments. The information in the eCFR is updated daily. The current update status appears at the top of all eCFR web pages.
Law Library of Congress - Code of Federal Regulations collection
A digitized historical collection of the CFR from 1938-1995.

Subscription Databases

Several subscription legal research databases offer access to the Code of Federal Regulations. The following subscription databases (marked with a padlock ) are available onsite at the Library of Congress:

HeinOnline External This link opens in a new window
Contains over 6,500 full-text ejournals, ebooks, and reports covering domestic and international law. Sources include government legal notices, treaties and agreements, and Supreme Court rulings. Resources available include:
- ABA Law Library Collection Periodicals
- American Law Institute Library : consists of full runs of the Institute's Annual Reports, Proceedings, Annual Meeting Speeches, and the Institute's newsletter, The ALI Reporter.
- Code of Federal Regulations : includes more than 8,000 volumes dating back to 1938
- Congress and the Courts
- English Reports, Full Reprint (1220-1865) : contains more than 100,000 cases, together with the Indexes and Book of Charts
- European Center for Minority Issues : contains several publications of the ECMI, including Reports and Working Papers.
- Federal Register Library : dates to 1936 and includes the CFR (from 1938) as well as the United States Government Manual (1935) and the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents 1965).
- Foreign & International Law Resources Database : FILRD includes the publications of the American Society of International Law along with prominent Yearbooks from around the world (including the Hague Permanent Court of International Justice series).
- Foreign Relations of the United States
- Hague Academy Collected Courses Online Collection
- Harvard Research in International Law
- History of Bankruptcy: Taxation & Economic Reform in America Part III
- Israel Law Reports
- History of Supreme Court Nominations
- Immigration Law & Policy in the U.S.
- Kluwer Law International Journal Library
- Law in Eastern Europe
- Legal Classics : contains more than 1,300 works from some of the greatest legal minds in history
- Manual of Patent Examining Procedure
- Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory: includes the historical archive from its inception in 1868 to 1963.
Additional information on the contents of this resource may be found here.
Nexis Uni External This link opens in a new window
Contains over 6,000 news, business, and legal sources, including deep backfiles and up-to-the-minute stories in national and regional newspapers, wire services, broadcast transcripts, international news, and non-English language sources. Use the included Company Dossier module to retrieve detailed company information and financial performance measures or identify and compare companies matching specific criteria. Areas covered include:
- NEWS Full text of hundreds of newspapers, magazines, and newswires from the U.S. and around the world Hard-to-find broadcast transcripts from the major television and radio Spanish, French, German, Italian, Dutch and other foreign-language newspapers and magazines
- LEGAL Comprehensive coverage of US federal and state case law and statutory law Law review articles from over 500 publications Legal news from more than 300 legal newspapers, magazines, and newsletters Patents from 1971 forward
- BUSINESS Company Dossier service, including detailed financial and operating data on over 43 million US and international companies Business and trade publications SEC filings
ProQuest Congressional External This link opens in a new window
Explore government in action with the most comprehensive web-based resource available for congressional hearings, public issues, legislation, history, and legal research.

The resource includes:
- Hearings 1824-present: published, temporary and unpublished hearings, including written and oral statements of witnesses, transcripts, reports, exhibits, correspondence and other materials.
- CRS Reports 1916-present: Reports from the Congressional Research Service provide nonpartisan research and analysis on public policy issues and news events.
- House and Senate Documents/Reports 1789-present: Reports on legislation and documents included for Congress. Includes documents and reports from the Congressional Serial Set.
- Legislative Histories 1969-present: trace the development of a public law from early consideration to enactment.
- Bills and Laws 1776-present: legislative proposals and enacted legislation.
- Miscellaneous publications 1789-present: Includes publications from Congressional Committees and other government entities such as GAO, CBO, the American State Papers and the House and Senate Journals.
- Vote reports 1987-present: vote reports on bills with details by member, party and sponsor.
- Maps 1789-2007: Includes maps from the Congressional Serial Set.
- Congressional Record 1789-present: provides a record of debates and remarks given on the floor of the House and Senate.
- Executive Branch 1789-1948: Includes material issued by federal departments and agencies, including annual reports, general publications, serials, instructions, rules, circulars, decisions, and registers.
ProQuest Regulatory Insight External This link opens in a new window
Regulatory Insight offers content and functionality to facilitate research, teaching, and learning about historic and recent Federal regulations promulgated by executive branch agencies. Features professionally compiled regulatory "histories" to enable researchers to understand the rulemaking process undertaken to implement specific U.S. Public Laws. Suitable for researchers interested in law, history, government, and any aspect of society impacted by Federal regulations. As a companion to Legislative Insight, Regulatory Insight offers U.S. federal administrative law histories beginning in 1936, organized by federal statute and Executive Order.

The resource includes:
- Federal Register documents for 1936-present
- Code of Federal Regulations from 1938-current
- Regulatory Histories for Public Laws enacted from 1935-current and Executive Orders for 1936-current.<.li>
Westlaw Patron Access This link opens in a new window
Westlaw Patron Access provides access to up-to-date legal information from Westlaw, including case headnotes and synopses, Table of Contents service, Key Cite, West Key Number System, and KeySearch.
Access to this site is only available from the Law Library Reading Room.
The simultaneous user limit for this resource may result in temporary delays.

Print Resources

The official version of the Code of Federal Regulations published by the Government Publishing Office is available onsite at the Library of Congress and at some federal depository libraries. Additional print resources for navigating the CFR are also listed below.

The following titles link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional digital content are provided when available.

Code of Federal Regulations
Call Number: KF70 .A3
The official print bound edition of the CFR published by the U.S. government. Includes CFR Index and Finding Aids volumes.
West's Code of Federal Regulations: General Index
Call Number: KF70.A34 W47
A highly detailed index to the CFR designed to help researchers identify and locate federal regulations relevant to their research.
West's Code of Federal Regulations Annotated
The complete text of select titles of the CFR with annotations (a hybrid primary and secondary source).
- Title 8, Aliens and Nationality (current)
- Title 12, Banks and Banking (2007-2010; discontinued by publisher)
- Title 20, Employee Benefits (2007-2010; discontinued by publisher)
- Title 29, Labor (2006-2016; discontinued by publisher)
- Title 37, Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights (current)
- Title 42, Public Health (current)
- Title 48, Federal Acquisition Regulations System (current)
- Title 49, Transportation (2006-2010; discontinued by publisher)

Legal Research: A Guide to Administrative Law

Code of Federal Regulations

Free Online Resources

Subscription Databases

Print Resources