FEDERAL LEGISLATION RESEARCH

The Library of Congress' THOMAS (thomas.loc.gov) site serves as an excellent and unparalled resource for locating federal legislation.

WHEN CAN THOMAS BE USED?
• To search recent and proposed federal legislation
• When limited information is available regarding legislation, e.g., name of sponsor, topic or bill number.
• However, information on Congress number (e.g.--104th, 105th Congress) is necessary.

TIPS FOR USING THOMAS
• Select second option "Bill summary and status"
• From menu, select search option (e.g., bill number, sponsor or topic)
• DO NOT choose first option "Major legislation by Topic"--it is frequently not inclusive

SAMPLE SEARCH: Locate proposed legislation "Electric Consumers' Power to Choose Act of 1997"
• Can be located with only one piece of information--bill number (HR 655), sponsor name (Schaeffer) or topic (e.g., "retail competition")
• After searching legislation, use toolbar "Edit" find option to locate search term quickly
• Note--if "Major Legislation by Topic" option had been chosen, with "Energy" selected as topic, this bill would not have been located.