Regulations - Government Documents - Congress, Laws, and Legislation - Research Guides at University of Hawaii at Manoa

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Contact OFR

The Office of the Federal Register (OFR) began as the Federal Register Division within National Archives in 1935. It was succeeded by the Office of the Federal Register under the General Services Administration in 1949. In 1985, it was transferred to the National Archives and Records Administration. The OFR compiles the Federal register (FR) and Code of federal regulations (CFR) and issues Public Papers of the Presidents and United States Statutes at Large, among other titles.

The Federal Register Act of 1935 created the FR as a centralized place to publish regulations, notices, and presidential issuances. The FR was first published in 1936, closely followed by the CFR in 1938. The CFR is an annual compilation of federal regulations that have general applicability arranged by subject. Note that regulations that do not apply to the general population are not reproduced in the CFR.

Government Documents has an extensive collection of publications produced by the Office of the Federal Register, including the following:

Federal register (AE 2.106:) Proposed regulations, meeting announcements, executive orders and proclamations, and other legally required announcements are issued in this daily publication. Read this tutorial to learn more. Sources for the Federal register:

The complete Federal register is freely available in Govinfo (1936-present).
Current notices can also be found on each agency's web site.
All issues of Federal register are also available in HeinOnline (UHM login required) in its Federal register library.
You can also search the Federal register in ProQuest Congressional (1981-present; UHM login required), which links the Federal register to the Code of federal regulations.

Code of federal regulations (AE 2.106/3:) The CFR's 50 titles arrange federal regulations by subject. It is updated annually. Sources for the CFR:

Search the current official CFR in Govinfo (1996-present).
The eCFR is an unofficial version that is updated weekly.
All issues (1938-present) of CFR are available in HeinOnline (UHM login required) in its Federal register library.
You can also search the Code of federal regulations in ProQuest Congressional (1981-present; UHM login required), which links the Federal register to the Code of federal regulations. It is especially useful for tracking changes in the CFR.

Public papers of the presidents (AE 2.114:) A compilation of speeches, statements, proclamations, and other issuances. Volumes are also available in the HeinOnline Presidential Library (UHM login required). Not all presidents are included in this series; to search for compilations of other presidents' papers, use OneSearch. The Library of Congress has compiled indexes to the papers of earlier presidents (call no. LC 4.7:).

Weekly/daily compilation of presidential documents (AE 2.109:) was formerly a weekly publication and includes speeches, addresses, and other public communications of the President. It is now issued daily and is available on Govinfo. Older issues are available in the HeinOnline Presidential Library (UHM login required).

Slip laws (public and private laws) (AE 2.110) and United States statutes at large (AE 2.111:) To read the text of a law as it was originally passed by Congress, consult the Statutes at Large of the United States of America (STAT). Statutes at Large is available electronically in Govinfo (1951-present), Law Library of Congress (1789-1950) or HeinOnline (1789-present; UHM login required). Printed copies are available in the Government Documents Collection under call no. AE 2.111: You can find laws using either the Statutes at large citation or the Public Law number, or you can search by subject or title.

The Federal register : what it is and how to use it : a guide for the user of the Federal register-code of federal regulations system by Office of the Federal Register
Call Number: GOVD AE 2.108:F 31/992
Publication Date: 1992
An in-depth guide to the FR.
Codification of presidential proclamations and executive orders
Call Number: GOVD AE 2.113:
This publication links executive orders and proclamations to the laws or executive orders that modified them.
United States government manual
Call Number: GOVD AE 2.108/2:
Describes the establishment, organization, and functions of the major government agencies currently in operation.

OFR web site
eCFR
Unofficial version of the Code of Federal Regulations that is updated daily (rather than quarterly).
Sources for Federal Register
Access to free and subscription-based sources and tools for the FR.
Sources for Code of Federal Regulations
Access to free and subscription-based sources and tools for the CFR.
Executive Orders Disposition Tables
The National Archives maintains this list that indicates which executive orders were amended or revoked by succeeding orders. The list covers EOs issued 1937-2016.
A Research Guide to the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations
Law Librarians' Society of Washington, DC's guide to the FR and CFR

Regulate This! Federal Regulations
Learn how to use the Federal Register and Code of Federal Regulations to find and track federal regulations.
Mastering the Code of Federal Regulations
Tutorial produced by OFR
How Laws are Made: The Administrative Agencies
Administrative agencies are part of the executive branch of Government headed by the President. They make laws through the rule-making process, but they also enforce the rules and have quasi-judicial power.
What is the Federal Register?
"This webinar covers the historical background and purpose of the Federal Register, as well as how to use it in daily life."
What is the Code of Federal Regulations?
The CFR is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the departments and agencies of the Federal Government. This webinar covers the historical background and purpose of the CFR and its associated finding aids.

Government Documents - Congress, Laws, and Legislation: Regulations

Contact the OFR

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