pre-1973
Check Legislative Insight first. UGA Libraries does not possess a complete collection of pre-1973 congressional bills in hard copy. However, the text of shorter bills and amendments is sometimes printed along with the related testimony in Congressional hearings volumes. These are likely to be the version first introduced. The text of bills is sometimes also reproduced in committee reports (Serial Set) which present analysis and recommendations regarding specific legislation to the full chamber or Congress as a whole. Sometimes the bill given is a substitute bill.
Digest of public general bills and resolutions, 1937-1990 (Map and Government Information Library, J84 LC 14.6)
Determine sponsors, committee assignment, and final status of bills introduced in each session of Congress.
Congressional hearings, 1824- Bill inclusion seems to be fairly common in hearings from the 20th century.
Search: Proquest Congressional (GALILEO) in Congressional Publications section / Search by Number tab. This method assumes you know the Congress number and the bill number you are looking for, e.g., 92nd & H.R. 12308 or 76th & H.R. 7424.
In the search results for hearing(s) 1969- the abstract will state if the bill text has been reproduced and give a page reference. For earlier hearings the abstract only states what bill(s) the hearing is associated with--you must find and look in the hearing to know for sure. The full text of published hearings 1824-2003 is available in Proquest Congressional. Just select the pdf link. Be forewarned that many hearings from the 19th century are wholly or partially in manuscript format. Sometimes the bill text is typed. To find a hardcopy of selected hearings write down the SuDoc number of the hearing if present in the database record, add a "J84" in front of this number to form the call number (e.g., J84 Y4.M59/1: T25/2 1940), and proceed to the Map and Government Information Library in the subbasement of the Main Library. Be prepared to check both print and microfiche. NOTE: The UGA Libraries do not have all "published" hearings. The nearest location for "unpublished" hearings is Emory.
Serial Set committee reports, 1817- Worth checking from the late 19th through mid 20th century. May also be useful for other periods.
Search: U.S. Congressional Serial Set, 1817-1994 full text (GALILEO). Use Bill Number search or Advanced Search. Include the Congress number (e.g., 54) and a particular bill number (e.g., H.R. 10294). The bill might be reproduced in the context of the report or in an untitled appendix to the report. The bill text might be a substitute rather than the version originally introduced.
Alternative search method: Proquest Congressional as above to Congressional Publications by bill or public law number. Look in search results for report numbers with “H. Rpt.” or “S. Rpt.” or similar prefixes. Then find the report(s) online in the U.S. Congressional Serial Set, 1817-1994
