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Congressional Documents

About Committee Reports

Committee reports are sometimes written by members of separate House and Senate committees to explain the proposal and intended effects of a bill. These reports usually consist of the agreed-upon bill text from the chamber and an explanatory statement. In some cases, legislators from both the House and Senate develop a conference committee which may also issue a conference report. You will need the House or Senate bill number when searching for reports in the following resources.

Documents are sometimes reprinted in other sources. See the Already Compiled Histories and Using HeinOnline pages of the Federal Legislative History guide for additional resources.

Finding Committee Reports

Committee Reports of the U.S. Congress Library of Congress - Congress.gov
Coverage begins with the 104th Congress (1995-1996). Can search by keyword, browse, or find specific committee reports by number. Under the search bar, select "More Options" for additional search filters, including Report Type, Legislation and Law Number, and Committees.

Congressional Reports govinfo (GPO)
Coverage begins with the 104th Congress (1995-1996). Can Browse by Congressand Report Type. To search Congressional Reports, click the orange "Search" button, select "Advanced", then under "Refine by Collection" select "Congressional Reports". Search results can be further refined by using the side panel on the search results screen. For additional information and tips, see the About Congressional Reports page.

U.S. Congressional Serial Set
Available on HeinOnline. Includes House and Senate Reports. Index coverage from inception to date; full text coverage beginning with 1978. Full text of older materials may also be available.
Once in HeinOnline, from Browse Databases by Name, select U.S. Congressional Serial Set > Congressional Serial Set: 15th-114th Congress (1817-2017). For recent Reports, select U.S. Congressional Serial Set > Congressional Reports 115th-117th Congress (2018-2021).
HeinOnline's U.S. Federal History Library may include links to Committee Reports in its compiled legislative histories. See the Federal Legislative History guide for more information.

House & Senate Reports
Available on ProQuest Congressional. Coverage begins with 1817. Full text may not be available for all reports.

  • To search by Sudoc or Accession Number (CIS number), select Search By Number then click the tab for "All citation searches." Enter the number and click Search.
  • To search by Report number, select Search By Number, then click the tab for "All citation searches." Under "Publication Number," select the Type and Congress, then enter the number and click Search.
  • To search by title, select Advanced Search, then limit to only "House & Senate Document/Reports" using the check boxes on the left side. Enter your search terms and select "Title" from the drop-down menu next to the search box. Can also limit by date.
  • See the Using ProQuest Congressional page of this guide for more information.

Committee Reports
Available on the library's Lexis computers. From the Content tab, select Statutes & Legislation > Federal > Committee Reports [located in the Legislative Histories section]. Coverage includes 1981-1982; 1989-current (selected coverage from 1981-1982 and 1989-1992).

Legislative History - U.S. Code, 1948 to present
Available on the library's Westlaw computers.
Once in Westlaw, from the Content Types tab, select Proposed & Enacted Legislation > Legislative History (located in the Tools & Resources box on the right) > Legislative History - Congressional Reports. Coverage includes all congressional committee reports, including reports on bills that did not become law, beginning with 1990. Also has the legislative history of public laws as reprinted in U.S. Code Congressional and Administrative News (USCCAN) from 1948 through 1989, as well as the legislative history of securities laws beginning with 1933 and presidential signing statements reprinted in USCCAN beginning with 1986.

U.S. Code Congressional and Administrative News: Congressional Committee Reports
Available on the library's Westlaw computers.
Once in Westlaw, from the Content Types tab, select Proposed & Enacted Legislation > Legislative History (located in the Tools & Resources box on the right) > U.S. Code Congressional & Administrative News > Congressional Committee Reports. Coverage includes all congressional committee reports, including reports on bills that did not become law, beginning with 1990. From 1948 to1989, includes all congressional committee reports printed in U.S. Code Congressional and Administrative News (USCCAN). Also includes other selected reports based on availability as well as all congressional committee reports relating to securities laws beginning with 1933.

House Committee Reports
Available on the library's Bloomberg Law computers. From All Legal Content Search, select U.S. Legislative > U.S. Congress > U.S. House of Representatives > House Committee Reports. Coverage begins with the 104th Congress (1995).

Senate Committee Reports
Available on the library's Bloomberg Law computers. From All Legal Content Search, select U.S. Legislative > U.S. Congress > U.S. Senate > Senate Committee Reports. Coverage begins with the 104th Congress (1995).

Jenkins has access to select Congressional Committee reports on microfiche and in print. The reports on microfiche are part of our CIS collection, which covers the years 1970-2010. Contact Research Services at 215.574.1505 or research@jenkinslaw.org for more information.

U.S. Code Congressional & Administrative News (U.S.C.C.A.N.) West/Thomson Reuters
Also available on the library's Westlaw computers. May include text of Public Law, Senate, House, and/or conference report. After 1948, also includes names of reports not reprinted in these volumes.
Jenkins has separate catalog records for U.S. Code Congressional & Administrative News (1952-current), U.S. Code Congressional & Administrative Service (1951), and U.S. Code Congressional Service (1941-1950).