What's Available

Last updated on 12-11-2023

Jump to: Examples of Content │ Date Ranges │ File Formats

Help with a Specific Collection

Detailed help information is available for the following collections:

Other publications not in a collection listed above.


Examples of Content

Publications on GovInfo include:

  • Legislative, Executive, and Judicial content:
    • Bills and Statutes, congressional committee materials, and proceedings of Congress
    • Presidential and regulatory materials
    • Opinions from more than 100 U.S. courts
  • New content daily- Congressional Record, Federal Register, House and Senate Calendars
  • Multiple file formats- PDF documents, audio, photos, XML
  • Curated collections- Nancy Reagan tribute, documents related to the sinking of the Titanic
  • Digitized historical content- oldest dates back to 1793
  • High-profile publications- 9-11 Report, Post JFK Assassination Audio, Warren Commission Report and Hearings, Financial Crisis Inquiry Report, Nixon’s Watergate Grand Jury Testimony, and landmark legislation: Civil Rights Act and Obamacare
What We Do Have What We Don't Have
Final, published versions of official Federal publications from all three branches Forms, memos, internal records, classified, or copyrighted information
(Check out NARA.gov for records and IRS.gov for tax forms.)
Official versions of Bills, Laws, and Regulations Legal advice or interpretation of laws and regulations
(Consult with an attorney.)
Directories of Congressional members and Federal Government officials A mechanism for you to contact your Congressperson
(Visit Member websites.)
The Plum Book – a listing of policy and supporting positions in the Federal Government A way for you to apply for Federal jobs
(You can do this at USAJOBS.gov )
The official Federal Register publication A way for you to comment on proposed regulations
(You can do this at Regulations.gov )
More than one million publications and growing every day Every document ever published by a Federal entity or every document in a collection
(Check agency websites or a Federal depository library.)
Supreme Court Decisions issued between 1937 and 1975, containing 7,407 Decisions from volumes 300 through 422 of U.S. Reports from the FLITE (Federal Legal Information Through Electronics) system are available for bulk download on GovInfo Recent Supreme Court opinions or U.S. Reports
(See the Supreme Court website instead)
Legislation and regulations regarding genealogy Genealogy resources
(Try the National Archives website. )
Content from all three branches of the Federal Government State government information
(Check out USA.gov or the state’s website.)

Date Ranges

Years available for each collection are indicated on the Browse A to Z list and on each collection's help page. Many collections cover years from approximately 1994 (103rd Congress) forward.


File Formats

Available file formats vary by collection and depend on what formats were provided to GPO by the content originator.

PDF - Adobe Acrobat Portable Document Format (PDF)
Many publications available as PDF have been digitally signed and certified to assure users that the online documents are official and authentic. To verify GPO’s authenticated PDFs, it is recommended to open the file using Adobe Acrobat or Reader software.

XML - eXtensible Markup Language
XML is a machine-readable format often used by data consumers. XML is available for publications in select collections and for bulk download for select collections through GPO's Bulk Data Repository.

EPUB - electronic publication
EPUB is a free and open standard for viewing eBooks. An EPUB reader or browser extension is required to view EPUB eBooks.

Other file formats available for select publications on GovInfo include:


How is content organized?

The types of publications available on GovInfo varies greatly, so the concept of a collection varies as well. For our purposes, a collection is a group of publications logically organized together.

Publications, or issues of publications, in some collections are broken down into smaller pieces (called granules) to improve access to relevant information. The full, publication or "book" level of these documents are called packages. Package and granule levels vary by collection and this distinction is made so you can search and download only the relevant portions of a document.

For example, one issue of the Federal Register is equivalent to a package. Each Federal Register issue consists of many documents that are equivalent to granules (for example, one Notice or one Final Rule might constitute a granule). This way if you're looking for just a single Notice, you can find and download the entire issue of the Federal Register that contains that notice, or you can search specifically for the Notice and download a PDF file that contains just that notice.

The concept of packages and granules is important throughout the site from the structure of URLs to what is included in search results.

Browse pages and Document in Context sections on Details pages allow you to view and access the available levels of a document.


What is the process for making Congressional committee materials available?

Congressional bills are usually made available as soon as the files are received from, and approved to be released by, Congress. Some Congressional reports, Congressional hearings, or Congressional documents are disseminated online. Others are made available in tangible (print) format only. The decision to make the report, document, or hearing available on this site is entirely at the Congressional committee's discretion. If you have questions about a particular publication, you may want to contact the responsible committee. They will know when and how content will be available. Otherwise, the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) typically makes the information available as soon as it is received. The process leading up to distribution or electronic availability can be longer for some publications than others.


Where can I find statements, messages, remarks, and other presidential materials?

Presidential statements, messages, remarks, and other materials can be found in the following publications:

Compilation of Presidential Documents - The Compilation of Presidential Documents is the official publication of presidential documents, messages, remarks, and other materials released by the White House Press Secretary and published by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). As of January 29, 2009, the Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents replaced the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, which first began in 1965 and is available online from 1993 to January 2009. The Daily Compilation is available from January 2009 forward.

Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States - Contains the papers and speeches of the President of the United States that were issued by the Office of the Press Secretary during the specified time period. Currently, GovInfo contains the Public Papers for Presidents Barack Obama, George H.W. Bush, William Clinton, and George W. Bush. Currently, volumes are published approximately twice a year, and each volume covers approximately a 6-month period.

Federal Register - The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is updated daily by 6 a.m. and is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.


Where can I find the Davis-Bacon Wage Determinations for each state?

Issued by the Department of Labor, the Davis-Bacon Act, as amended, requires that each contract over $2,000 to which the United States or the District of Columbia is a party for the construction, alteration, or repair of public buildings or public works shall contain a clause setting forth the minimum wages to be paid to various classes of laborers and mechanics employed under the contract. Under the provisions of the Act, contractors or their subcontractors are to pay workers employed directly upon the site of the work no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits paid on projects of a similar character.

The Department of Labor maintains Davis-Bacon Wage Determinations at http://www.wdol.gov. The site contains Frequently Asked Questions and a User Guide which may give you information to answer your question. If you do not find what you need there, there is a Help link available. The Help page provides instructions on where to direct specific questions and includes a web form for questions that do not fall into the categories described.


How can I purchase a hard copy of a publication?

Some publications are available for sale through GPO's U.S. Government Bookstore website.


Still Need Help?

If the help you need is not addressed on these pages, please let us know how we can do better by submitting feedback or contacting us.