Digital Collections

The digital collections of the Library of Congress contain federal legislative information such as bills, laws, reports, documents, and roll call votes. The Library's digital collections also contain congressional-related websites that have been archived, both official member websites (2001-present) and campaign websites (2002-present).

The following research guides provide additional guidance on locating congressional publications and images in the Library's digital collections:

Finding Government Documents (Researcher and Reference Services Division) - This guide brings together both online and print resources that contain documents created by the U.S. federal government along with related research tools.
Compiling a Federal Legislative History: A Beginner’s Guide (Law Library of Congress) - A comprehensive research guide on finding federal legislative history documents, including congressional committee reports and hearings, presidential signing statements, and the debates of Congress.
U.S. Congress: Finding Images in the Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division (Prints & Photographs Division) - This overview of collections in the Prints & Photographs Division that feature images of members of U.S. Congress and congressional activity, 1800s to the present, includes sample images, search tips and related resources at the Library and elsewhere.

A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates 1774-1875
Beginning with the Continental Congress in 1774, America's national legislative bodies have kept records of their proceedings. The records of the Continental Congress, the Constitutional Convention, and the United States Congress make up a rich documentary history of the construction of the nation and the development of the federal government and its role in the national life. This collection contains congressional publications from 1774 to 1875, including debates, bills, laws, and journals.
Congress.gov
Congress.gov is the official website for U.S. federal legislative information. The site provides access to accurate, timely, and complete legislative information for Members of Congress, legislative agencies, and the public. It is presented by the Library of Congress (LOC) using data from the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Office of the Secretary of the Senate, the Government Publishing Office, Congressional Budget Office, and the LOC’s Congressional Research Service. Congress.gov is usually updated the morning after a session adjourns. Consult Coverage Dates for Congress.gov collections for the specific update schedules and start date for each collection. Congress.gov also contains the full-text of Congressional Research Service reports, many of which contain information about congressional history.
Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention, 1774 to 1789
This collection contains 277 documents relating to the work of Congress and the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. Items include extracts of the journals of Congress, resolutions, proclamations, committee reports, treaties, and early printed versions of the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.
United States Congressional Serial Set (Bound House and Senate Documents and Reports)
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set, commonly known as the Serial Set, is a compilation of journals, reports, and documents from House and Senate proceedings as well as documents from executive departments and independent agencies. Documents cover a wide variety of topics and may include reports of executive departments and independent organizations, reports of special investigations made for Congress, and annual reports of non-governmental organizations. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, executive-branch materials were also published in the Serial Set. In addition to providing context for the federal legislative process, the Serial Set is a useful resource for understanding issues that have been investigated by Congress throughout history, including the geographical expansion of the United States, the nature of international affairs, national museum acquisitions, and much more. The Law Library of Congress and the Government Publishing Office are collaborating to digitize Serial Set documents published between the 15th (1817) and 103rd (1994) Congresses, thus making accessible two centuries' worth of American legislative history.
United States Congressional Web Archive
The United States Congressional Web Archive includes member websites from the House of Representatives and Senate, as well as House and Senate Committee websites. The Library began actively collecting during the 107th Congress, and we continue to collect member and committee websites on an ongoing basis and release new content. Some earlier content from the 104th through 106th Congresses for some members and committees may also be accessible.
United States Elections Web Archive
The United States Elections Web Archive includes campaign sites archived weekly during the election seasons since 2000, documenting sites associated with presidential, congressional, and gubernatorial elections. The collection includes official campaign sites from general elections, special elections, and off-year elections. The sites archived in this collection typically include social media channels as well, in order to provide a fuller representation of how candidates presented themselves via the Internet to the electorate.
United States Statutes at Large
The United States Statutes at Large is the collection of every law, public and private, ever enacted by the Congress, published in order of the date of its passage. These laws are codified every six years in the United States Code, but the Statutes at Large remains the official source of legislation. Until 1948, all treaties and international agreements approved by the Senate were also published in the set. In addition, the Statutes at Large includes the text of the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, the Constitution, amendments to the Constitution, treaties with Indians and foreign nations, and presidential proclamations.

Congressional History: A Resource Guide

History, Humanities & Social Sciences: Ask a Librarian

Digital Collections