Congressional Record (Bound Edition)

Last updated on 06-14-2022

Congressional Record (Bound Edition), 1873 to 2016

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Searching the digitized volumes (144 (1998) and prior)


About the Congressional Record (Bound Edition)

What is the Congressional Record (Bound Edition)?

The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. It is published daily when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record began publication in 1873 and is still published today.

At the end of each session of Congress, all of the daily editions are collected, re-paginated, and re-indexed into a permanent, bound edition. This permanent edition, referred to as the Congressional Record (Bound Edition), is made up of one volume per session of Congress, with each volume published in multiple parts, each part containing approximately 10 to 20 days of Congressional proceedings. The primary ways in which the bound edition differs from the daily edition are continuous pagination; somewhat edited, revised, and rearranged text; and the dropping of the prefixes H, S, and E before page numbers.

What is available?

  • Volumes 144 (1998) and prior are made available as digitized versions of the Congressional Record (Bound Edition) created as a result of a partnership between GPO and the Library of Congress. These volumes include all parts of the official printed edition. Searching the digitized volumes
  • For additional information and a detailed description of the daily edition and its four sections, visit the About Congressional Record page.

Searching the Congressional Record (Bound Edition)

You can find and search the Bound Congressional Record by:

  • Using Basic Search for keyword and metadata fielded searches,
  • Using Advanced Search; fields specific to the Bound Congressional Record will display after you select Bound Congressional Record in the Refine by Collection column,
  • Using Citation Search to retrieve a single Bound Congressional Record document in PDF format if you know the Volume and Page of the document,
  • Refining search results by clicking on links in the Refine Your Search panel on the left hand side of the page (the sections under Refine Your Search correspond to the metadata available for the documents), and
  • Browsing the Bound Congressional Record browse page.

General govinfo Search Tips


Searching Digitized Volumes (144 (1998) and prior)

There are several differences between how you can access the digitized volumes (Volume 144 (1998) and previous) and how you can access the more recent volumes:

  • The History of Bills, compilation of Daily Digests, resume of all business transacted during the entire Congress, and the subject index to the Bound Edition are available in the final part(s) of each year in the digitized volumes.
  • The Congressional Record (Bound Edition) is available for full-text searching and you can use metadata fields to craft specific searches using either the basic search or advanced search. Searchable metadata fields for the digitized volumes (Volume 144 and previous) are: Full-Text, Branch, Category, Citation, Government Author, Series, SuDoc Class Number, Title, Congress, and Publication Name.  Additional fields are available for searching the more recent volumes.
  • The digitized volumes (Volume 144 and previous) are available to browse and download at the section level (i.e. House, Senate, and Extensions of Remarks) while the more recent volumes are available at the article level.
  • The digitized volumes (Volume 144 and earlier) are not searchable using the citation search feature.

Searching More Recent Volumes (144 (1998) to present)

Note: Searches in govinfo over the Congressional Record (Bound Edition) from 1999 forward will not search over other sections which are part of the official printed edition. These include the History of Bills, the compilation of Daily Digests, the resume of all business transacted during the entire Congress, and the subject index to the Bound Edition.

Search Examples

Search by Congress Member Speaking – For example, from congress member Lott.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb member:lott
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Speaking from the first box and enter lott in the next box.

Or, for example, documents from congress member Lott with the keyword “defense” in the full text or metadata.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: defense. Then, after clicking search, use the Refine Your Search panel on the left to select Lott, Trent from the Congress Member category. 
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In enter defense in the second text box. Then, after clicking search, use the Refine Your Search panel on the left to select Lott, Trent from the Congress Member category.

Search for documents based on how a member of Congress voted - For example,documents where congress member McConnell voted yes.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb memberyes:mcconnell
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Voted Yes from the first box and enter mcconnell in the next box.

Or, for example,documents where congress member McConnell voted no.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb memberno:mcconnell
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Voted No from the first box and enter mcconnell in the next box.

Or, for example, documents where congress member Lott did not vote.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb membernv:lott
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Not Voting from the first box and enter lott in the next box.

Or, for example, documents with the keyword defense where congress member McConnell voted yes.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: defense collection:crecb memberyes:mcconnell
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Voted Yes from the first box and enter mcconnell in the next box. Then, click + Additional Criteria and enter defense in the empty text box.

Or, for example, documents where congress member McConnell voted yes within a date range of May 1, 1999 and August 31, 1999.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb memberyes:mcconnell publishdate:range(1999-05-01, 1999-08-31)
  • Using Advanced Search, under Date Range, select Date is Between from the first box, then select or enter 05/01/1999 from the next box and 08/31/1999 from the next box. Then, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congress Member Voted Yes from the first box and enter mcconnell in the next box.

Search by Number of Votes – For example,documents with 150 votes.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb votenumber:150
  • Using Advanced Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection, then under Search In select Congressional Vote Number from the first box and enter 150 in the next box.

Search by Date – For example, documents from May 3, 1999.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb publishdate:1999-05-03
  • Using Advanced Search, under Date Range, select Date is from the first box, then select or enter 05/03/1999 from the next box. Then, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) under Refine by Collection.
  • Browse to documents from a certain date on the Bound Congressional Record browse collection page.

Search by Page Number – For example, documents starting on page 8493.

  • Using Basic Search, enter: collection:crecb firstpage:8493

Or, for example, documents starting on page 8493 from Volume 145.

  • Using Citation Search, select Congressional Record (Bound Edition) from the box labeled Select Collection, select 145 from the box labeled Select Volume, then enter 8493 into the box labeled Page Number.

Sample Congressional Record (Bound Edition) URLs

govinfo uses two key pieces of information to construct predictable URLs to documents and Details pages.

  • The Granule ID for the Congressional Record (Bound Edition) is used to identify the specific document within an issue of the publication.
  • The Package ID is used to identify an individual part of the yearly publication.

Identifier

Structure/Metadata Field

Example

Package ID

CRECB-{Year}-pt{Part Number}

CRECB-2001-pt1

Granule ID

For individual documents:

{Package ID}-Pg{Page Number}-{Sequence Number}

 

Note: Page Number is the first page number for the document. Sequence Number is used when there are more than 1 document that start on the same page. Sequence Number is not used for the first document on a page.

 

All documents for a single day:

{Package ID}-issue-{Issue Date} (In YYYY-MM-DD format)

 

Individual documents:

CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg146

CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg146-2

CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg146-3

 

All documents for a single day:

CRECB-2001-issue-2001-01-03

Details Page for an Entire Issue

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/{Package ID}

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CRECB-2001-pt1

PDF File for an Entire Issue

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/{Package ID}/pdf/{Package ID}.pdf

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-2001-pt1/pdf/CRECB-2001-pt1.pdf

Details Page for a Specific Document

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/{Package ID}/{Granule ID}

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CRECB-2001-pt1/CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg7

PDF File for a Specific Document

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/{Package ID}/pdf/{Granule ID}.pdf

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-2001-pt1/pdf/CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg7.pdf

HTML File for a Specific Document

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/{Package ID}/html/{Granule ID}.htm

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-2001-pt1/html/CRECB-2001-pt1-Pg7.htm

Details Page for All Documents for a Single Day

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/{Package ID}/{Granule ID}

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/CRECB-2001-pt1/CRECB-2001-pt1-issue-2001-01-03

PDF File for All Documents for a Single Day

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/{Package ID}/pdf/{Granule ID}.pdf

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-2001-pt1/pdf/CRECB-2001-pt1-issue-2001-01-03.pdf

HTML File for All Documents for a Single Day

Structure: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/{Package ID}/html/{Granule ID}.htm

Example: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-2001-pt1/html/CRECB-2001-pt1-issue-2001-01-03.htm


Congressional Record (Bound Edition) Metadata Fields and Values

Metadata fields and values can be used to increase the relevancy of your searches. The metadata fields available for Congressional Record (Bound Edition) are listed in the table below. Metadata fields and values are used throughout govinfo for

  • Narrowing Your Search,
  • Browsing Government Publications,
  • Field Operators,
  • Advanced Search , and
  • Display on More Information Pages.

Metadata fields and values can be entered into the Search Box using field operators. The field operators available for Congressional Record (Bound Edition) are listed in the table below, along with examples for each metadata field. How to Use Field Operators

Additionally, some of these metadata fields are made available for use on the Advanced Search page. The metadata values can be entered in the same format for the fields available on the Advanced Search Page. How to Use Advanced Search

Metadata Field Display Name

Metadata Field Definition

Field Operator

Field Operator Example

Collection

The collection to which the document belongs. Typically the same as the publication or series.

collection:

 

collection:crecb

"crecb" is used for Congressional Record (Bound Edition)

Government Author

The names of the Government organizations responsible for authoring or assembling the document.

governmentauthor:

governmentauthor:congress

Publication Date

The date the document was first made available to the public.

publishdate:

publishdate:1999-09-30

Date format is YYYY-MM-DD

Language

The language code of the original document, from the ISO639-2b standard.

language:

language:en

Former Package ID

The document ID of the "package" as originally specified on www.gpoaccess.gov.

mods:identifier:(@type:"former package identifier":______)

mods:identifier:(@type:"former package identifier":"br06oc002")

Former Identifier

The document ID of the article on the former www.gpoaccess.gov website.

formerid:

formerid:br06oc00-125

SuDoc Class Number

The SuDoc class number from the U.S. Superintendent of Documents which classifies Government publications by publishing agency.

sudocclass:

sudocclass:"x 1.1:"

The SuDoc Class Numbers in govinfo are generally at the class stem level, not the book number level.

Ingestion Date

The date the document was ingested into the FDsys preservation repository.

ingestdate:

ingestdate:2009-08-01

Date format is YYYY-MM-DD

Electronic Location (URL)

The URL where the document or the document in context (the content detail page) is located.

url:

url:"http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CRECB-1999-pt13/pdf/CRECB-1999-pt1-Pg17839…"

Publisher

The government organization who publishes the document or publication. Not typically the Government Publishing Office (who serves as the printer and distributor), except in the case of Congressional publications.

publisher:

publisher:"u.s. government printing office"

Branch

The branch of Government responsible for the document's contents.

branch:

branch:legislative

Possible Values: executive, legislative, judicial

Type of Resource

The media type for the document, typically "text". Defined as part of the Library of Congress MODS standard.

typeofresource:

typeofresource:text

WAIS Database Name

The name of the WAIS database to which the document belonged in the former GPO Access system.

waisdbname:

waisdbname:1999_bound_record

Record Origin

How the record was originally generated. Typically "machine generated."

recordorigin:

recordorigin:"machine generated"

Publication Title

The title of the publication. Individual Congressional Record documents can be searched using the title field operator.

title:

title:king

Volume

The volume number of the publication to which the document belongs.

volume:

volume:145

Congress Number

The number of the Congress responsible for the document. Congresses last for two years, so for example, the 110th Congress was in session from 2007 through 2008.

congress:

congress:108

Session Number

The session of congress which produced the report.

session:

session:2

Possible Values: 1, 2

Section

The section of the Congressional Record in which the document occurs. Field operator values are house, senate, extensions, and dailydigest.

section:

section:house

Possible Values: See Table below

Type

The type of document found in the Congressional Record. Examples include Prayer, Adjournment, Nomination, House Committee Meetings, Memorial, Resume of Congressional Activity.

crtype:

crtype:executivecomm

Possible Values: See Table below

Pages

The number of the first and last page of the document. Specific pages can be searched using the firstpage and lastpage field operators. Values are always integers.

firstpage:

lastpage:

firstpage:1234

lastpage:1235

Congress Chamber

The chamber which is responsible for the unit of business described in the Congressional Record.

chamber:

chamber:senate

Possible Values: house, senate

RIN Number

The Regulation ID number, or "RIN number" associated with the rule or notice. Usually a number such as "RIN 3206-AJ69"

rinnumber:

rinnumber:3045-AA21

Amendments

A reference to a numbered amendment which may also include the Congress member responsible for it.  For example, Amendment No. 432.

amendnumber:

amendnumber:432

Executive Communication Number

A reference to an executive communication from the president to congress. For example, "EC-1322".

execcommnumber:

execcommnumber:EC-1322

Congressional Vote Number

Information about a vote taken on the floor of Congress.

votenumber:

votenumber:123

Yes Vote Count

The count of congress members voting yes for a particular vote.

yescount:

yescount:223

No Vote Count

The count of congress members voting no for a particular vote.

nocount:

nocount:196

Not Voting Vote Count

The count of congress members not voting for a particular vote.

nvcount:

nvcount:12

Present Vote Count

The count of congress members voting simply "present" for a particular vote.

presentcount:

presentcount:2

Vote Result

The result of the vote, for example: "So the bill was passed".

voteresult:

voteresult:passed

Congress Member Voted Yes

Search for all items where a named congress member voted 'yes' (or 'aye' or 'yea'). Note that the search will be over the congress member's official name, for example "Barbara A. Mikulski".

memberyes:

memberyes:abercrombie

Congress Member Voted

No

Search for all items where a named congress member voted 'no' (or 'nay'). Note that the search will be over the congress member's official name, for example "Barbara A. Mikulski".

memberno:

memberno:bartlett

Congress Member Not

Voting

Search for all items where a named congress member did not vote. Note that the search will be over the congress member's official name, for example "Barbara A. Mikulski".

membernv:

membernv:weller

Congress Member Speaking

The name of the Congress member who spoke on the floor of Congress.

member:

member:obama

Congress Member

Political Party

The party to which the member belongs, either "democratic", "republican", or "independent".

memberparty:

memberparty:d

Possible Values: d, r, i

Congress Member State

Member of Congress state code (the two letter postal code of the state).

memberstate:

memberstate:IL

Use two letter state abbreviation

Congressional Committee

The name of the Congressional committee referenced in the Record.

committee:

 

committee:transportation

Citation

 

The GPO standard method for searching citation references from the selected publication.

citation:

citation:"145 cong. rec. (bound) 7810"

 

Associated Bill Citation

References to associated congressional bills, by citation. These are bills which are primarily associated with the document. For example, "H.R. 132".

associatedbills:

associatedbills:"h.r. 99"

Associated Report Citation

References to associated congressional reports, by citation.  These are reports which are primarily asocated with the document. For example, "H. Rept. 106-100".

associatedcrpt:

associatedcrpt:"h. rept 106-478"

Associated Treaty Citation

References to associated congressional documents.  These are documents, typically Senate Treaty documents which are primarily associated with the document. For example, "Treaty Doc. 106-2".

associatedcdoc:

associatedcdoc:"Treaty Doc. 106-2"

Congressional Bills Citation

Citation references to Congressional Bills. Examples include, "H.R. 99", "S. 99" "H.J. Res. 99", "S.J. Res. 99", "H. Con. Res. 99", "S. Con. Res. 99", "H. Res. 99" or "S. Res. 99".

billscitation:

billscitation:"h.r. 99"

Congressional Calendar Citation

Citation references to Congressional Calendars. For example, "Union Calendar No. 99", "House Calendar No. 99", "Private Calendar No. 9", or "Senate Calendar No. 99".

ccalcitation:

ccalcitation:"Senate Calendar No. 2"

Congressional Document

Citation

Citation references to Congressional Documents. For example, "Treaty Doc. 106-2" or "H. Doc. 106-32".

cdoccitation:

cdoccitation:"h. doc. 106-30"

Congressional Report Citation

Citation references to Congressional Reports. For example, "H. Rept. 106-32".

crptcitation:

crptcitation:"h. rept. 106-656"

United States Code

Citation

Citation references to the United States Code. For example, "42 U.S.C. 5841" or "42 U.S.C. App. 99"

uscodecitation:

uscodecitation:"2 u.s.c. 661"

Statutes at Large

Citation

Citation references to Statutes at Large. For example, "88 Stat. 1242".

statutecitation:

statutecitation:"64 Stat. 1267"

Public and Private Law Citation

Citation references to Public or Private Laws. For example, "Public Law 106-32" or "Private Law 106-3".

plawcitation:

plawcitation:"public law 106-62"

Senate Committee Print Citation

Citation references to Senate Committee Prints. For example, "S. Prt. 106-32"

cprtcitation:

cprtcitation:"S. Prt. 106-32"

Senate Hearing Citation

Citation references to Senate Hearings. For example, "S. Hrg. 106-32".

chrgcitation:

chrgcitation:"108-227"

CFR Citation

Citation references, including title and part numbe,r from the Code of Federal Regulations, in standard citation format. For example "14 CFR Part 802" or "14 CFR Chapter IV".

cfrcitation:

cfrcitation:"25 cfr 61"

Reference Citation

Reference to another document within the text of a document.

refcitation:

refcitation:"25 cfr 61"

Congressional Record Metadata Value Lists

Section Metadata Values

The table below lists the metadata values which can be used when limiting your search using the Section advanced search field or the section: field operator.

Metadata Value

User Readable Value

HOUSE

House of Representatives

SENATE

Senate

EXTENSIONS

Extension of Remarks

Type Metadata Values

The tables below lists the metadata values which can be used when limiting your search using the Type advanced search field or the crtype: field operator.

House, Senate, and Extensions of Remarks Type Metadata Values

Metadata Value

User Readable Value

ALLOTHER

All Other Legislative Business

PRAYER

Prayer

PLEDGE

Pledge of Allegiance

ADJOURNMENT

Adjournment

EXECUTIVECOMM

Executive and other Communications

JOINTMEETINGS

Joint Meetings of the House and Senate

ENROLLEDSIGNED

Enrolled Legislation Signed

ENROLLEDPRESENTED

Enrolled Legislation Presented

MSGPRESIDENT

Messages From the President

TECHNICALCORRECTIONS

Making Technical Corrections

PERSONALEXPLAIN

Personal Explanation

RECOGNIZING

Recognitions

HONORING

Honoring

COMMEMORATING

Commemorations

CELEBRATING

Celebrations

COMMENDING

Commending

PASSINGOF

On the passing of

TRIBUTETO

Tribute

CONGRATULATIONS

Congratulations

RETIREMENT

Retirement Of

DESIGNATING

Designating

INMEMORYOF

In Memory Of

House Type Metadata Fields

Metadata Value

User Readable Value

HDESIGNATION

Designation of The Speaker Pro Tempore

HJOURNAL

The Journal

HMESSAGE

Message From the Senate

HCLERK

Communication From The Clerk of the House

HANNOUNCEMENT

Announcement by the Speaker

HMORNINGDEBATE

Morning Hour Debates

HREPORTON

Report On

HCONFREPORTON

Conference Report On

HSENATEBILLREFERRED

Senate Bill Referred

HLEGPROGRAM

Legislative Program

HTIMELIMIT

Time Limitation Of Referred Bill

HEXPENDITURE

Expenditure Reports Concerning Official Foreign Travel

HCORRECTIONS

Honoring

COMMEMORATING

Commemorations

CELEBRATING

Celebrations

COMMENDING

Commending

PASSINGOF

On the passing of

TRIBUTETO

Tribute

CONGRATULATIONS

Congratulations

RETIREMENT

Retirement Of

DESIGNATING

Designating

INMEMORYOF

In Memory Of

HPETITIONS

Petitions

HAMENDMENTS

Amendments

HEARMARKS

Congressional Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, Or Limited Tariff Benefits

Senate Type Metadata Fields

Metadata Value

User Readable Value

SAPPOINTMENT

Appointment of The Acting President Pro Tempore

SORDER

Order of Procedure

SSCHEDULE

Schedule

SSSCHEDULE

Senate Schedule

SMEASUREDCAL

Measures Placed on the Calendar

SMBUSINESS

Morning Business

SCONBUSINESS

Conclusion of Morning Business

SRECESS

Recess

SADDITIONAL

Additional Statements

SMSGHOUSE

Message From the House

SCOMMREPORT

Reports of Committees

SEXECREPORT

Executive Reports of Committees

SPETANDMEM

Petitions and Memorials

SREFERRED

Measures Referred

SREADFIRST

Measures Read the First Time

SDISCHARGED

Measures Discharged

SDICHARGEREF

Discharge and Referral

SMSGEXEC

Executive Messages Referred

SINTROBILLS

Introduction of Bills and Joint Resolutions

SSUBMISSION

Submission of Concurrent and Senate Resolutions

SCOSPONSORS

Additional Cosponsors

SSTATEMENTS

Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

SSUBMITTED

Submitted Resolutions

SRESOLUTION

Senate Resolution

SAMENDMENTSSUB

Amendments Submitted and Proposed

SAMENDMENTTEXT

Text of Amendments

SNOTICE

Notice of Hearings

SAUTHORITY

Authority for Committees to Meet

SPRIVILEGES

Privileges of the Floor

SPROGRAM

Program

SCALENDAR

The Calendar

SCONSENTAGREE

Unanimous Consent Agreement

SCONSENTREQUEST

Unanimous Consent Request

SORDERFOR

Order For

SEXECSESSION

Executive Session

SEXECCAL

Executive Calendar

SLEGISLATIVE

Legislative Session

SNOMINATIONS

Nominations

SWITHDRAWAL

Withdrawals

SCONFIRMATIONS

Confirmation

SCLOTURE

Cloture Motion

VOTEEXPLAIN

Vote Explanation

VOTECHANGE

Change of Vote

FOREIGNTRAVEL

Foreign Travel Financial Reports

SECRECYREMOVAL

Removal Of Injunction Of Secrecy

AUTHORIZEROTUNDA

Authorizing Use Of Rotunda

Extensions of Remarks Type Metadata Values

Metadata Value

User Readable Value

ESENATECOMMITTEE

Senate Committee Meetings

EINTRODUCTIONOF

Introducing Legislation

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