Government Documents: Find Government Documents

Searching for a Government Document?

Government Documents come in a variety of media types: print documents and books, microfiche, maps, and digital files. Here are a couple different places to search for a government document at the Collier Library or on the web. 

Searching for a Print Item

1. When searching for a print item in the Collier Library's collection, use the Catalog Search or select 'Print' when using the Discovery search on the left-side tool bar.
2. Enter the Title of the Document or the SuDoc Call Number (for an explanation of the SuDoc Classification System, see below.)
3. Click into the record and verify the location of the document. Most of Collier Library's print collection for government documents will be located on the 4th Floor.
4. Ask at the Help Desk or via email for the Government Documents Library for assistance: Margaret McGuire, mmcguire5@una.edu, office number: 265.765.4669

Searching for an Online Item

When searching for an online item, there are a couple of locations depending on the type of document you are looking for. 

1. Discovery or the Library Catalog: Electronic government documents that are included within our collections are recorded in our Library Catalog and searchable through Discovery.
2. GovInfo.gov: The United States Publishing Office provides free online access to official publications from all three branches of government. Holdings include the Code of the Federal Register, Presidential Documents, Congressional Bills, and more.
3. HathiTrust: This substantial digital library contains millions of digitized materials, including government documents. When searching, select the United States agency or department that published the document as the author.
4. National Archives: When looking for historical or archival records from the United States government, the National Archives preserves millions of records within their collections, including digitized copies available on the website.
5. The Avalon Project: Hosted by Yale Law School, the Avalon Project contains a collection of documents, mostly American and European of origin, focused on topics in relation to law, history, economics, politics, diplomacy and government, from 4000 BCE to the present. 
6. FedFlyx: Hosted by the Internet Archive, FedFlyx contains a collection of government films dating back to the 1940's, ranging by subject, agency of origin, etc.

Government documents produced by specific agencies may also be available on their official website or within official government databases. 

1. EPA'S National Service Center for Environmental Publications: Containing the agencies digitized documents, NSCEP contains technical, scientific, research, and educational materials produced by the agency, with free digital access. 
2. The National Library of Medicine: The official NLM website contains access to a broad range of services, resources, and information relevant to ongoing government research, statistics, and health education initiatives. They also have digital collections containing reports, media, and education materials produced by the NLM.