Research Guides: U.S. Government Information &amp; Congressional Publications: Serial Set

Unpacking the Serial Set

Reports: a bill is reported from the committee to the floor of the Congress. The Report describes the bill, summarizes committee opinion, and discusses issues. Bills are seldom reported unfavorably; the bill is simply left to "die in committee." Reports are usually considered the best evidence of "legislative intent."

Documents: various types of materials are published as House or Senate Documents. Included are: Congressional Committee Prints, Presidential messages, budget amendments, vetoes; annual reports of federal agencies; reference materials; and miscellaneous reports from quasi-governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations.

Reports and Documents are first published individually and later republished in the bound Serial Set. There is a 3 to 5 year time lag before publication in the Serial Set.

Serial Set:

The U.S. Congressional Serial Set is the permanent bound record of Congressional Reports and Documents as well as any Executive Reports and Documents submitted to Congress. The Serial Set also contains miscellaneous reports from quasi-governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations such as, the Boy Scouts of America.

Serial Set volume numbers begin with the year 1817 (15th Congress). Due to the publishing history of the Serial Set, few libraries have a complete set of the bound volumes.

American State Papers: Prior to the Serial Set, the same types of papers are called The American State Papers (ASP). ASP volume numbers begin with zero.

U.S. Congressional Serial Set This link opens in a new window
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set contains full text House and Senate Documents and House and Senate Reports from 1817-1994. These Congressional papers are a rich source of information about the activities of Congress and the President and about the economic and social conditions of the nation. Special feature: browse Subjects by category. Full text of House and Senate Documents and House and Senate Reports. Covers 1817 (15th Congress) - 1994 (103rd Congress). Includes many maps and illustrations (some color). Also includes the names of persons who applied for petitions and private relief actions, such as widows of soldiers asking for pensions.
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set is bound by session of Congress. It began publication with the 15th Congress, 1st Session (1817). Documents before 1817 are found in the American State Papers, which can be accessed via the A-Z Databases page. The Serial Set does not include Congressional hearings and debates.
House and Senate Reports are usually from congressional committees dealing with proposed legislation and issues under investigation. They include all other papers ordered printed by the House or Senate. Documents cover a wide variety of topics and may include reports of executive departments and independent organizations, reports of special investigations made for Congress, and annual reports of non-governmental organizations. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Executive branch materials were also published in the Serial Set.
After 1994, GPO and the Library of Congress provide digital access to most of the continuing Serial Set materials.
It is possible to search the U.S. Congressional Serial Set Maps directly.
This collection can also be searched on Readex AllSearch, an integrated platform that combines Readex’s primary sources into a single cross-searchable interface.
American State Papers, 1739-1838 This link opens in a new window
Contains full text House and Senate Documents and House and Senate Reports from 1789 (1st Cong) - 1838 (25th Cong).
HeinOnline Academic This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive coverage of U.S. statutory materials, U.S. Congressional Documents (Congressional Record and Hearings early 1900s-present), all U.S. treaties, collections of classic treatises, and presidential documents.
Contains thousdand of law-related journals on a variety of subjects, all dating back to inception with over 90% available through the current issue or volume. Subject related collections are often curated and made available.

The Government Publishing Office, in conjunction with the Law Library of Congress, has begun to digitized and make publicly available the full expanse of the Serial Set. The project will take a number of years, but you can find the earliest volumes already available online here.

The University of Delaware Library has a collection of bound Serial Set volumes. Older editions can be accessed online.

Volumes from 1994 to present are located in our Annex location. Fill out this form to request materials from Annex.

To determine what Reports and Documents are included in a volume of the Serial Set, use the Numerical Lists and Schedule of Volumes (NLSV).

U.S. Congressional Serial Set This link opens in a new window
House and Senate Documents and Reports, constituting a rich set of primary source documents. Covers a variety of topics and may include reports of executive departments and independent organizations, reports of special investigations, etc. (Coverage: 1817-1994)
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set is bound by session of Congress. It began publication with the 15th Congress, 1st Session (1817). Documents before 1817 are found in the American State Papers, which can be accessed via the A-Z Databases page. The Serial Set does not include Congressional hearings and debates.
House and Senate Reports are usually from congressional committees dealing with proposed legislation and issues under investigation. They include all other papers ordered printed by the House or Senate. Documents cover a wide variety of topics and may include reports of executive departments and independent organizations, reports of special investigations made for Congress, and annual reports of non-governmental organizations. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Executive branch materials were also published in the Serial Set.
After 1994, GPO and the Library of Congress provide digital access to most of the continuing Serial Set materials.
It is possible to search the U.S. Congressional Serial Set Maps directly.
This collection can also be searched on Readex AllSearch, an integrated platform that combines Readex’s primary sources into a single cross-searchable interface.

GovInfo Congressional Serial Set
The U.S. Congressional Serial Set, commonly referred to as the Serial Set, contains the House and Senate Documents and the House and Senate Reports bound by session of Congress. It began publication with the 15th Congress, 1st Session (1817). Documents before 1817 may be found in the American State Papers. In general, it includes: committee reports related to bills and other matters, presidential communications to Congress, treaty materials, certain executive department publications, and certain non-governmental publications.
United States Congressional Serial Set
Prior to the 97th Congress, the serial set had no official name; it was popularly known as the Congressional serial set. The set has also been known variously as: Congressional serial set, Serial number set, Congressional edition, Congressional set, Congressional series, Congressional series of United States public documents, Congressional document series, Sheep set, Sheep bound set (owing to its distinctive sheepskin binding), and Serial set.
Numerical Lists and Schedule of Volumes (Haithi Trust)