Congress.gov is a collaboration among the Library of Congress, the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Government Publishing Office. The site is searchable and free and provides the status, full text, and summary to each bill before Congress. It also provides direct links to the Congressional Budget Office which analyzes the cost estimates of each bill. The Congressional Record (which provides a daily transcript of speeches and actions of Congress) provides the process of the bill through Congress. The site gives access to the entire Congressional Record back to its first publication in 1873. Background information on the site are profiles of each member of Congress, legislative process videos, Committee profile pages, historic access to previous bills, and previous public forums.
Once a year, in September, the Library of Congress conducts a public forum to educate the public and to gather feedback on the site. The next public forum has been scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 18 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET.
If you would like to attend the forum virtually here is the registration link. If you are lucky enough to be in Washington and can attend in person at the beautiful Library of Congress, register here.
The forum will present enhancements to Congress.gov based on previous user feedback. It will also show how “legislative information is gathered and made available to the public.” There will also be Q&A discussion segments where attendees can learn about the site and share ideas for future enhancements. Those who cannot attend can also submit suggestions before and after the forum at Congress.gov Public Forum Survey Form.
From the Library of Congress: The Library of Congress is the world’s largest library, offering access to the creative record of the United States — and extensive materials from around the world. It is the main research arm of the U.S. Congress and the home of the U.S. Copyright Office. Explore collections, reference services and other programs and plan a visit at loc.gov; access the official site for U.S. federal legislative information at congress.gov; and register creative works of authorship at copyright.gov.
