MPA PUBLIC POLICY GUIDE

GOVERNMENT INFORMATION 

Locating Government Information 

Sources for Government Information

Sources for State Government Information

Sources for Municipal Government Information

Locating Government Information

Catalog of US Government Publications (GPO's CGP)

The finding tool for electronic and print publications from the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the US government.

You will find descriptions of historical and current publications along with direct links to items available online. 

• Click Advanced in the top menu to get started. 

• You can search by keyword, title, and authoring agency. 

• Like other databases you can use:
  • Boolean search operators (AND, OR, and NOT)
  • Quotation marks for phrases

• You can limit your search results by year.
• When an electronic copy is available, click the link on the right side to access it.  
• When you find a good publication, use its Subject - LC headings to find similar publications. 

Sources for Government Information

USA.gov

Called the U.S. government's official web portal, this site allows users to search for information across all federal agencies, as well as at the local and state levels.

Congress.gov

This site from the Library of Congress provides legislative information including bill tracking, presidential nominations, the text of committee reports, and other information.

Sources for State Government Information

National Conference of State Legislatures

This site maintains a list of links to legislative resources by state.

NCSL State Legislative Websites Directory

National Governors Organization

A bipartisan organization of the nation's governors—promotes visionary state leadership, shares best practices, and speaks with a unified voice on national policy.

Sources for Municipal Government Information

(Cities, towns, and counties)

National League of Cities

The National League of Cities (NLC) is dedicated to helping city leaders build better communities. Working in partnership with the 49 state municipal leagues, NLC serves as a resource to and an advocate for the more than 19,000 cities, villages, and towns it represents

NLC State Municipal Leagues Directory

United States Conference of Mayors

Official non-partisan organization of cities with populations of 30,000 or more. There are 1,296 such cities in the country today. Each city is represented in the Conference by its chief elected official, the mayor.

Database of Mayors - Full database of over 1,400 mayors from across the United States, representing cities with a population of 30,000 and larger. Search by mayor’s name or by city name. 

American Legal Publishing

This site offers several search options: (1) search all the codes in their library, which covers 32 states; (2) search all the codes within a state; and (3) select a city and search/browse its code.