Government Publications
From Library Reference
General Information
The Cullom-Davis Library is a selective depository of federal government publications. We presently select approximately 60% of the publications available to depository libraries. The majority of the government publications we receive are classified under the Superintendent of Documents Classification System (Sudoc) and shelved in a separate collection on the east side of the second floor of the Library. The remaining government publications are integrated into the Library's Library of Congress (LC) classified collections, and can be accessed via the Library Catalog.
Locating and Filing Government Documents in the SuDocs Collection
Those government publications which are not integrated into the Library of Congress classified collections of the library are filed in the Government Documents stacks (or microfiche cabinets or CD-ROM cabinets) according to the Superintendent of Documents Classification System, usually referred to as SuDocs. The SuDocs System classifies publications according to issuing agency, type of document, and individual publication. The system is alphanumeric, similar to the Library of Congress system. Usually the alphabetic symbol used in the first line of the classification number is the same as the first letter in the name of the issuing agency (e.g. Defense Dept. = D, Library of Congress = LC, Treasury Dept. = T).
In order to make this clearer to you, I'll take a SuDocs number apart, so you can see how it was put together.
| Symbol Designator Hierarchy | | |CLASS J Parent Agency Justice Department |STEM | | 21 Sub Agency Immigration & | Naturalization | | .9 Series or Type Federal Textbooks | on Citizenship | |BOOK :C76 Individual monograph Cutter # |NUMBER Publication | | /978 Revisions edition, year,volume, etc. |
There are exceptions to the above arrangement, however, even the exceptions occasionally change, so unless you run across something that is giving you trouble, we won't go into the exceptions here.
Written out, the above classification number would look like this:
J21.9: C76/978
Or, it might be divided at the colon, like this:
J21.9:
C76/978
To find materials, or to file them, you simply break the number down into its hierarchical sections, for instance:
The letter which begins the SuDocs number is its primary designator. All of the materials will be in order first by the Agency Symbol letter, alphabetically.
Within the Agency sections, materials will be filed according to the number directly succeeding the letter, and preceding the period, numerically.
Within the Sub Agency numeric section, the documents are filed by the numbers after the colon, but before the slash, or the individual publication numbers.
Finally, within the individual publication number segment, documents are filed numerically by the number, numbers, or volume numbers succeeding the slash. Frequently, there will be words or letters following the slash, instead of numbers.
In a case where you have some documents with letters and some with numbers following the slash, within the same individual publication number, letters take precedence over numbers.
A FEW GENERAL RULES TO REMEMBER WHEN FILING
- Where all else is the same, colons are filed before slashes.
For instance: Y4.Ag 4: is filed before Y4.Ag 4/2:
It might help you to think of / as designating a fraction, in the above example for instance, you could look at the second number as Y4.Ag 4 and a half.
- Where all else is the same, letters or words are filed before numbers.
For instance: Y4.P96.11: R4 would be filed before Y4.P96/11:98 12
- Numbers which indicate a year take precedence over series numbers, for example:
A 106.16:989 is filed before A 106.16:14/2
- Slashes occurring before the colon indicate a subdivision of the series or type, and do not effect the division of the number, nor do they indicate a revision.
- Slashes occurring after the individual publication number often indicate a revision, and should alert the filer to a possible superseded publication. Superseded publications should be referred to the Documents Assistant for possible discard.
- Revisions of looseleaf publications almost always indicate superseded pages, check with the Documents Assistant concerning discard of replaced pages.
- Duplicate publications discovered while filing or shelving should be brought to the attention of the Documents Assistant for possible discard.
Indexes
For access to government publications not integrated into the Library's general collections, it is necessary to use one of the following indexes.
The Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications is a monthly listing of government publications, with indexing by Subject, Sudoc. #,Report #, Contract #, Stock #, Author, Title, and Title Keywords. The Monthly Catalog is cumulated annually. Cumulated subject and author indexes are available for Multi-year periods. (Ref. Z 1223 .A18)
Monthly Catalog electronic versions contain the data from the Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications from July 1976 on. Another online version, with greater search capabilities, is available through FirstSearch, at: GPO Monthly Catalog
Index to U.S. Government Periodicals (REF. Z1223.Z9 I5) is a commercially published index to government periodicals (the Library owns volumes from 1970-1987). Although there is an annual periodicals volume included in The Monthly Catalog, there's no article level indexing of government periodicals produced by the Government Printing Office. Many government periodicals are indexed in general periodical indexes, such as Academic Search Premier, Wilson Select Plus.
The Cumulative Title Index to United States Public Documents, 1789-1976 (Ref. Z 1223 .Z7 L47, v.1-16) is an alphabetical listing, by title, of publications in the Public Documents Library of the Government Printing Office. It's a useful finding aid for older documents.
American Statistics Index is an index to statistical information published by the federal government. Indexing is by subject, with secondary indexing by such categories as age, sex, state, or city. This second level of indexing makes it possible to find data by more than one access point, for instance per capita income by city or criminal victimization by age or race. Indexes/Abstracts are cumulated annually. (Ref. Z 7554 .U5 A4 1974-2003) A web version of the American Statistics Index is available.
CIS--Congressional Information Service indexes and abstracts Congressional Committee Prints, Hearings, Reports, Documents, Special Publications, and Public Laws. Indexing is by Subject, Name, Title, Bill #, Congressional Report #, and Sudoc #. Since 1984, a Legislative History volume has been included in the series. (Ref. KF 49 .C62 1970-2003)
WorldCat is an online union catalog of holdings in many U.S. and Canadian libraries. While not specifically an index to government publications, WorldCat can function as a useful adjunct to the indexes described above. The data used in creating The Monthly Catalog is regularly loaded into the OCLC database, from which WorldCat is compiled.
Locating Government Publications On the Web
Many government publications (also sometimes called government documents, or just documents) are being made available via the World Wide Web in recent years. If you can use an electronic version of the needed document, one of the easiest ways to locate electronic versions of documents is to search using the Google search engine, limited to government publications. The link for searching is: http://www.google.com/ig/usgov
You may also find it useful to use the USAGov portal, developed by the General Services Administration as an official U.S. Government web portal.
Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government is a portal to government information that was developed for use by children and young adults.
GPO Access is the access point to government information developed by the Government Printing Office.
Locating Print-on-Paper Versions of Government Publications
If you need or prefer a print publication, you can search for documents in Bradley’s collection using the following method. Having found a citation to a government publication you will need to write down the Sudoc # (sometimes called a Government Publication Number) in order to locate the item. You can locate items using the following process:
1. Check the annotated List of Classes Available for Selection by Depository Libraries (REF DESK Z 1223 .A178 L5) to see if our library selects the item. If we have it, go to step 2. If not, go to step 5.
2. Check the citation to determine whether the item is in microfiche format; if not, go to step 3. If the item is in microfiche format, you will find documents microfiche located on the South wall of the Government Documents Collection shelving area. (2nd Floor). Here is a link to a map of the Library's 2nd floor.
'3. If the item is in paper format, check the Library Catalog to see if it has been integrated into the library's general collections; if not, go to step 4.
4. If the item is not in the Library Catalog, look for it in the Government Documents shelves on the 2nd floor. If you have trouble finding an item we should own, ask for assistance at the Reference Desk.
5. If we don't own the item you want, or if you are unable to find the item, even with assistance from the Reference Librarian, you may want to order it on Interlibrary Loan or fill out a "Book Search" card. Book Search cards are available at the Circulation Desk. Nearly all government publications are available on loan, either locally, or from the state's Regional Depository Library (The Illinois State Library).
The Superintendent of Documents Classification System (SUDOCS)
Government publications are classified according to the Superintendent of Documents Classification System, usually referred to as Sudocs.
Under the Sudocs System, each publication is assigned a unique alphanumeric symbol, which classifies the item by its issuing agency, sub-agencies, type of document, and individual identifier. The alphanumeric symbol is hierarchical, beginning always with a letter designating issuing agency. Within the agency/letter sections, then, the materials are filed numerically, according to the remainder of the Sudocs symbol.
If you have difficulty locating items filed under the system, ask for assistance at the Reference Desk, or try using the detailed instructions for filing & finding government publications.
Assistance & Information
For assistance in finding or using government publications, ask for help at the Reference Desk, or call the Government Documents Librarian, Denise Johnson, at 677-2840. You can reach Denise Johnson by e-mail at: johnson@bradley.edu
Major U.S. Government Publications
United States Government Manual As the official handbook of the Federal Government, the United States Government Manual provides comprehensive information on the agencies of the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. It also includes information on quasi-official agencies; international organizations in which the United States participates; and boards, commissions, and committees. The Manual begins with reprints of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. The Manual is published as a special edition of the Federal Register (see 1 CFR 9.1).
A typical agency description includes:
- A list of officials heading major operating units.
- A summary statement of the agency's purpose and role in the Federal Government.
- A brief history of the agency, including its legislative or executive authority.
- A description of its programs and activities.
- Information, addresses, and phone numbers to help users locate detailed information on consumer activities, contracts and grants, employment, publications, and other matters of public interest.
GPO Access contains the U.S. Government Manual from 1995-96 through to the present. The new edition of the Manual is available to the public each year in the late summer. Files are available as ASCII text and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF)." (Government Printing Office description of the U.S. Government Manual)
The Code of Federal Regulations
The Congressional Record The Congressional Record includes floor debates from the U.S. House & Senate.
The Economic Report of the President
2009 Statistical Abstract of the United States & Previous Editions of the Statistical Abstract of the United States
The Statistical Abstract of the United States is the standard compendium of of statistics compiled primarily from government sources. Print-on-paper copies of the Statistical Abstract are also available in the Library, with the latest edition at the Reference Desk and earlier editions in the Reference Stacks and the Government Documents Stacks.
REF. HA 202 (Reference Desk)
Budget of the United States Government. provides comprehensive information on the income and expenditures of the Federal government. Departmental and Agency budgets include current estimates, previous year expenditures, and projections.
Business Statistics". REF HC 101 .A124 (This title is now listed as "Inactive of Discontinued", for recent information, see:
Survey of Current Business, Online
This source publishes historical information on business indicators, commodity prices, the labor force and unemployment, foreign trade, and industrial production.
Census Publications
2007 Agriculture Census The Agriculture Census is taken five years in years ending in 2 and 7.
2007 Economic Census The Economic Census is taken eEvery five years in years ending in 2 and 7.
2000 Population Census The Census of Population is taken every ten years in years ending in 0.
Construction & Housing Data Part of the Economic Census, the Construction & Housing data include: new housing starts, value of new construction, etc.
Census of Manufactures The Census of Manufactures and Annual Survey of Manufactures are available from the Census web site, Annual Survey of Manufactures
Census of Retail & Wholesale Trade C3.255
Census of Service Industries and Service Annual Survey
Census of Transportation C3.233 This census provides information on commodity transportation (tons and ton miles, value of shipments, means of transportation, length of haul, size of shipments, origin and destination); truck inventory and use (number of vehicles, truck-miles, use, miles, model year, body type, fuel, acquisition and maintenance), and a public warehouse survey.
To find more information on the various Economic Census surveys and products, see the Census web page, searching for the specific type of information you need.
Handbook of U.S. Labor Statistics. Ref. HD8051 .H36
This source provides information the labor force, employment, productivity, compensation, unions and industrial relations, and foreign labor statistics. The most current statistics are available in the Monthly Labor Review(2nd Floor, Periodicals), published by the US Labor Department. Issues from 1926- are in the 2nd Floor Periodicals collection.
Periodicals
CPI Detailed Report. (Consumer Price Index) (2nd Floor, Periodicals) The monthly publication of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics gives the consumer price index for the US and selected cities. The CPI is also given for selected goods and services, such as food, housing, apparel, transportation, health, and recreation, tobacco products, alcoholic beverages, and financial services. Now available on the web, at CPI
Economic Indicators. (2nd Floor, Periodicals) This monthly publication of the Council of Economic Advisors provides information on US economic indicators such as output, income and spending, employment and wages, production and business activity, prices, money, credit and securities markets, and Federal finance. Web access available from 1998, at: Economic Indicators
Employment and Earnings. (US Department of Labor) (2nd Floor, Periodicals) This source provides information on employment status by age, sex, and race. It also provides information characteristics of the employed and unemployed, seasonally adjusted employment information, employment by industry, employment in selected areas, and hours worked and earnings nationally and in selected areas. Monthly tables from Employment & Earnings are available on the web.
Federal Reserve Bulletin (2nd Floor, Periodicals) The "Financial and Business Statistics" section of this periodical is the best source for current US banking and monetary statistics. Statistics are included for commercial banks, money market rates, government securities, credit, flow of funds, and international finance. Available from 1996 on the web, at: Federal Reserve Bulletin
Producer Prices and Price Indexes. (2nd Floor, Periodicals) This monthly publication of the US Department of Labor contains producer price indexes for selected industries, their products, special commodity groupings, and the output of selected industries. Data from Producer Price Index is available on the web from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Survey of Current Business Statistics. (2nd Floor, Periodicals) This is an important source for current business statistics which covers general business indicators, employment and earnings, US foreign trade, transportation, communication, and production. Electronic versions of the Survey of Current Business are availablel from the BLS web site.
Free Internet Resources Related to Government
CIA FOIA: Electronic Reading Room
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You can access many of the Library's research resources from the Library's home page, at:
http://library.bradley.edu/
--updated by Bryan Clark, baclark@bradley.edu, 1:14, 18 August 2009 (CDT)
