Government Documents - TPSS 652: Search Tips

Government publications refers to works published by  a government agency either in print or online. Government records arer the individually recorded transactions of the government. In libraries, the term government documents refers to publications, while government records are unpublished and are usually stored in archives or records centers. Together, government publications and records constitute forms of government information. Understanding the difference between government publications and government records will help you to know where to go to find this information, or whether there is any possibility of viewing it.

Example: Census of Agriculture Surveys

Individual responses to census surveys are records stored at the USDA. Aggregate data is published on the National Agricultural Statistics Service website.

 It usually takes two to three years for data to be aggregated and published. However, reporting of census data and other types of data is subject to population thresholds to preserve privacy.

To complicate matters further, it can sometimes be difficult to determine which government agency is "in charge" of an area or issue. For example, let's look at invasive species. At the federal level, there are dozens of agencies whose mission includes invasive species. The main agency is the Fish and Wildlife Service. In addition, the U.S. Geological Survey has a division that deals with plants and animals. Even the U.S. Army has an environmental command that engages in habitat restoration and invasive species removal on Army lands. Confused yet? Remember who inspects your luggage for forbidden plants and animals at the airport? That's right, it's the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And let's not forget the National Marine Fisheries Service, which deals with marine animals.

At the state level, a variety of agencies may also be at work keeping out invasive species or working to control or eradicate them. The Hawai`i Invasive Species Committee (part of the Department of Land and Natural Resources) coordinates efforts across the Hawaiian Islands. The State of Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture also works to keep out agricultural pests.

Federal government information is usually available online back to the late 1990s. The availability of historical data varies.

Where to look for online versions of government documents:

HathiTrust

Internet Archive

Google Books

Agency repositories, e.g.,

• Smithsonian
• U.S. Geological Survey
• National Library of Medicine

Pitfalls in full-text searching

• Uncorrected Optical Character Recognition (OCR)-generated text
• Misspelled words, especially Hawaiian names and place names

USA.gov is a search engine that searches federal, state, and local government websites. It offers an advantage over Google because commercial and personal web sites are eliminated from the search results. There is also an A to Z index of federal government agencies.
You can also use Google, Yahoo, or your favorite search engine to restrict your search to a particular domain. For example, if you only want to search the EPA web site, enter your search like this: molasses in:epa.gov

Alternatively, use the Advanced Search option, which can be found under the Tools menu in Google: