When searching for articles on the origins of legislation, consider using some of the following words in the title field along with keywords related to your law: Background Congress* Develop* Enact* Histor* House Legislat* Origin* Overview Representative* Review Senat*
Anniversary articles often include history. Consider: Anniversary Birthday "5 yr" "5 year*" "five year*" "10 yr" "10 year*" "ten year*" "20 yr" "20 year*" "twenty year*" "50 yr" "50 year*" "fifty year*" "100 yr" "100 year*" "hundred year*"
Words for the bill's path: Agree* Amend* Approve* Bill Clear* Compromis* Conference* Enrolled Move* Pass* Reconcil* Reauthoriz* Send* Sent Signed Version* Vote*
When searching for journal articles, the following words may be helpful: allocat* appropriat* budget* charg* cost* dollar* economic* expend* expense* fee fees financ* fiscal* fund funded funding funds income* money* monies pay* reimburs* revenue* spend* spent tax*
Many associations, institutes, interest groups, research centers, think tanks, etc. produce opinion pieces, policy briefs, working papers, etc. Many of their websites have search boxes or list the publications in a publications tab or a research tab. To find these organizations, consider the following resources.
EXAMPLES FOR CITING GOVERNMENT ITEMS IN APA STYLE
References to legal materials appear in Appendix 7.1 on pages 216-224 in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. The library has several copies of the APA manual at call number PN 147 A5 2010.
Congress.gov Website (regular reference, website format)
In-text citation (see section 6.05 on page 171 of the APA manual):
Examples:
1) The bill was assigned to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce (Congress.gov, n.d., Major Actions).
Explanation:
Congress.gov is the corporate author
n.d. because the web page has no date information
Major Actions is the section's title
2) The bill establishes a grant system for math and science partnership
programs (Congress.gov, n.d., "Title II: Preparing, Training," para. 2).
Explanation:
Congress.gov is the corporate author
n.d. because the web page has no date information
"Title II: Preparing, Training" because the section's title is too long to type
out completely
para. 2 because the information is in the second paragraph in the
Title II section
Reference page entry:
Congress.gov. (n.d.). H.R.1-No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: 107th Congress (2001-2002). Retrieved from
https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/1?q={%22search%22%3A[%22\%22\\\%22no+child+left+behind
\\\%22\%22%22]}&resultIndex=1
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Congress.gov is the corporate author
n.d. because the web page has no date information
H.R. 1-No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: 107th Congress (2001-2002) because that is the title of the webpage
Retrieved from https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/1?q={%22search%22%3A[%22\%22\\\%22no+child+left+behind\\\%22\%22%22]}&resultIndex=1 because that is the web page's URL.
Enacted Bill / Public Law / Statute (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 9 on page 220, you should include the name of the act and the year.
Examples:
1) The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 changed the language instruction format to include English as a Second Language.
2) Section 301 of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) changed the language instruction format.
Reference page entry (example 11 on page 220):
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, § 301,
115 Stat. 1689 (2002).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is the title of the act for the bill that
was enacted.
Pub. L. No. 107-110 is the abbreviated form for public law
number 107-110.
§ 301 is the section number for language instruction that was
cited in the paper.
115 Stat. is the abbreviated form for volume 115 of the United States
Statutes at Large.
1689 is the beginning page number for section 301 about language
instruction in the U.S. Statutes at Large.
2002 is the publication date for volume 115 of the U.S. Statutes
at Large.
Unenacted House Bill (legal reference, this version of the bill did not become law)
In-text citation:
According to example 14 on page 222 of the 6th edition of the Publication Manual of the APA, you should include the bill number and the year.
Examples:
1) The bill (H.R. 1, 2001) was introduced. The committee revised section 201 on teacher quality.
2) House of Representatives bill H.R. 1 (2001) was revised in the Committee on Education and the Workforce. The committee changed section 201 which related to teacher quality.
Reference page entry:
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, H.R. 1, 107th Cong. § 201 (2001).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is the name of the act for the introduced bill.
H.R. 1 is the abbreviated form for House of Representatives bill number 1.
107th Cong. is the 107th Congressional session when the bill was introduced.
According to the example, you do not need to worry about whether it was
the 1st or 2nd session of that Congress.
§ 201 is the section number for teacher quality that you cited in your paper.
2001 is the year of the bill.
Reference page entry for an entire bill, not just a section
(example 15 on page 222):
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, H.R. 1, 107th Cong. (2001).
Unenacted Senate Bill (legal reference, this version of the bill did not become law)
In-text citation:
According to example 14 on page 222, you should include the bill number and the year.
Examples:
1) The bill (S. 1, 2001) was introduced. The committee revised section 201 on teacher quality.
2) Senate bill S. 1 (2001) was revised in the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. The committee changed section 201 which related to teacher quality.
Reference page entry:
Better Education for Students and Teachers Act, S. 1, 107th Cong.
§ 201 (2001).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Better Education for Students and Teachers Act is the name of the act for the
introduced bill.
S. 1 is the abbreviated form for Senate bill number 1.
107th Cong. is the 107th Congressional session when the bill was introduced.
According to the example, you do not need to worry about whether it was
the 1st or 2nd session of that Congress.
§ 201 is the section number for teacher quality that you cited in your paper.
2001 is the year of the bill.
Reference page entry for an entire bill, not just a section
(example 15 on page 222):
Better Education for Students and Teachers Act, S. 1, 107th Cong. (2001).
Committee or Subcommittee Hearing (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 12 on page 221, you should include the title of hearing and the year. It is okay to shorten the title of the hearing.
Examples:
1) Ms. Foster's testimony at the hearing, Transforming the Federal Role (2001), mentioned three funding problems.
2) Ms. Foster's testimony discussed three funding problems (Transforming the Federal Role, 2001).
Reference page entry:
Transforming the federal role in education for the 21st century: Hearing on
H.R. 1, H.R. 340, and H.R. 345: Hearing before the Committee on
Education and the Workforce, 107th Cong. 9 (2001)
(testimony of Gail E. Foster).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Transforming the federal role in education for the 21st century: Hearing on
H.R. 1, H.R. 340, and H.R. 345: Hearing before the Committee on
Education and the Workforce is the complete title of hearing.
107th Cong. is the Congressional number when the hearing took place. According
to the example, you do not need to worry about whether it was the 1st or
2nd session of that Congress.
9 is the beginning page number for Ms. Foster's testimony.
2001 is the year of the hearing.
testimony of Gail E. Foster is the testimony that you are citing in your paper.
House Committee Report (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 17 on page 223, you should include the report number and the year.
Examples:
1) The House committee report (H.R. Rep. No. 107-63 Part 1, 2001) mentioned several dissenting views.
2) House Report 107-63 Part 1 (2001) includes several opposing views.
Reference page entry:
H.R. Rep. No. 107-63 Part 1, at 1240 (2001).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
H.R. Rep. No. 107-63 Part 1 is the abbreviated form for House of Representatives
report number 107-63 part 1.
at page 1240 is the beginning page number for the dissenting opinions.
2001 is the year of the committee report.
Senate Committee Report (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 17 on page 223, you should include the report number and the year.
Examples:
1) Senate Report 107-7 (2001) provides three dissenting opinions.
2) The Senate committee issued a report (S. Rep. No. 107-7, 2001) that mentioned three dissenting opinions.
Reference page entry:
S. Rep. No. 107-7, at 145 (2001).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
S. Rep. No. 107-7 is the abbreviated form for Senate report number 107-7.
at 145 is the beginning page number for the dissenting opinions.
2001 is the year of the committee report.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate (regular reference, report format)
In-text citation examples:
1) The Congressional Budget Office's cost estimate (2001, p. 1) concluded that the bill would add $99 billion in expenditures.
2) If enacted, the law would require $99 billion in additional expenditures (Congressional Budget Office, 2001, p. 1).
Reference page entry (example 31 on page 205):
Congressional Budget Office. (2001). Congressional Budget Office cost estimate:
H.R. 1: No Child Left Behind Act of 2001: As ordered reported by
the House Committee on Education and the Workforce on May 9, 2001.
Retrieved from http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/28xx/doc2813/hr1.pdf
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Congressional Budget Office is the author of the report.
2001 is the year of the report.
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate: H.R. 1: No Child Left Behind Act of
2001: As ordered reported by the House Committee on Education and the
Workforce on May 9, 2001 is the complete title of the government report.
Retrieved from http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/28xx/doc2813/hr1.pdf is the
Internet URL where you found the report.
Note: There was no report number to include in parentheses. The agency is not included in the Retrieved from section because the agency is the same as the author (see the third bullet point in the instructions for section 7.03 on page 205).
CRS Report (Congressional Research Service) (regular reference, report format)
In-text Citations:
Per APA Style Experts, if more than one item has the same author, year, title, and report number, include alphabet letters after the year in order to distinguish the reports.
Example:
1) Congress learned about two key vulnerabilities (Fernandes-Alcantara, 2012a).
One month later, a third vulnerability was presented to Congress
(Fernandes-Alcantara, 2012b).
Reference page entries:
Fernandes-Alcantara, A. L. (2012a). Vulnerable youth: Background and policies
(Report No. RL33975) [August 29]. Retrieved from http://congressional
.proquest.com/
Fernandes-Alcantara, A. L. (2012b). Vulnerable youth: Background and policies
(Report No. RL33975) [October 1]. Retrieved from http://congressional
.proquest.com/
Explanation of reference page entries:
Fernandes-Alcantara, A. L. is the author of the CRS report.
(2012a) is the year of the report with the added letter "a" to distinguish the
August report from the other report.
(2012b) is the year of the report with the added letter "b" to distinguish the
October report from the other report.
Vulnerable youth: Background and policies is the title of the CRS report.
(Report No. RL33975) is the report number found on the CRS report.
[August 29] is the release date of the CRS report.
[October 1] is the release date of the other CRS report.
Retrieved from http://congressional.proquest.com/ is the main URL for the
ProQuest Congressional database where the CRS report is archived.
See the bullet point on page 192 of the APA manual on why you use
the ProQuest home page for archival documents.
In-text citation for an example of a CRS report that does not have another report by the same author and title for that year. There are no added letters "a" "b" etc. after the year.
Example:
1) Five key issues related to quality were discussed in the
report (Kuenzi, 2011).
Reference page entry for a CRS report that does not have another report by the same author and title for that year.
Kuenzi, J. J. (2011). A highly qualified teacher in every classroom:
Implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act and reauthorization
issues for the 112th Congress (Report No. RL33333). Retrieved from
http://congressional.proquest.com/
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Kuenzi, J. J. is the author of the CRS report.
(2011) is the year of the CRS report.
A highly qualified teacher in every classroom: Implementation of the No
Child Left Behind Act and reauthorization issues for the 112th Congress
is the title of the CRS report.
(Report No. RL33333) is the report number.
Retrieved from http://congressional.proquest.com/ is the main URL for the
ProQuest Congressional database where the CRS report is archived. See
the bullet point on page 192 of the APA manual on why you use the
ProQuest home page for archival documents.
Congressional Record Statement - House of Representatives (legal reference)
In-text citation:
The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query. You should include the title of the Congressman's statement and the year. It is okay to shorten the title of statement.
Example:
1) Representative Capps proposed an amendment for CPR training (Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mrs. Capps, 2001).
Reference page entry: The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query.
Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mrs. Capps, 147 Cong. Rec. H2519
(daily ed. May 22, 2001) (statement of Rep. Capps).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mrs. Capps is the title from the Congressional
Record page where Ms. Capps' statement appears.
147 Cong. Rec. is the volume number of the Congressional Record.
H2519 is the page number of Ms. Capps' statement.
daily ed. May 22, 2001 is the daily edition version of the Congressional Record
and the date of Rep. Capps' remarks.
statement of Rep. Capps tells the reader which discussion applies to
your paper.
Congressional Record Statement - Senate (legal reference)
In-text citation:
The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query. You should include the title of the Congressman's statement and the year. It is okay to shorten the title of statement.
Example:
1) Senator Durbin proposed an amendment for pest management (Better Education for Students and Teachers Act, 2001).
Reference page entry: The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query.
Better Education for Students and Teachers Act, 147 Cong. Rec. S6395-98
(daily ed. June 19, 2001) (statement of Sen. Durbin).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Better Education for Students and Teachers Act is the title from the
Congressional Record page where Mr. Durbin's statement appears.
147 Cong. Rec. is the volume number of the Congressional Record.
S6395-98 are the page numbers of Mr. Durbin's statement.
daily ed. June 19, 2001 is the daily edition version of the Congressional
Record and the date of Sen. Durbin's remarks.
statement of Sen. Durbin tells the reader which discussion applies to
your paper.
Congressional Record Statement - Extensions of Remarks (legal reference)
In-text citation:
The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query. You should include the title of the Congressman's statement and the year. It is okay to shorten the title of statement.
Example:
1) Senator Boehner's comments (Introduction of H.R. 1, 2001) provided key reasons for educational change.
Reference page entry: The following pattern was suggested by the APA in response to my query.
Introduction of H.R. 1: The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, 147 Cong. Rec.
E437 (daily ed. March 22, 2001) (statement of Sen. Boehner).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
Introduction of H.R. 1: The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is the title from
the Congressional Record page where Mr. Boehner's statement appears.
147 Cong. Rec. is the volume number of the Congressional Record.
E437 is the page number of Mr. Boehner's statement.
daily ed. March 22, 2001 is the daily edition version of the Congressional
Record and the date of Sen. Boehner's remarks.
statement of Sen. Boehner tells the reader which discussion applies to
your paper.
Conference Committee Report (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 17 on page 223, you should include the report number and the year.
Examples:
1) The conference committee issued a report (H.R. Rep. No. 107-334, 2001) that described the changes to section 301 which relates to language format.
2) House Conference Committee Report 107-334 (2001) describes the changes to section 301 and mentions the requirement for English as a Second Language.
Reference page entry:
H.R. Rep. No. 107-334, at 270 (2001).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
H.R. Rep. No. 107-334 is the abbreviated form for House of
Representatives report number 107-334.
at 270 is the beginning page number for section 301 where language
format is mentioned.
2001 is the year of the conference committee report.
Presidential Remarks When Signing the Bill into Law (regular reference, periodical format)
In-text citation examples:
1) President Bush (2002) signed the bill into law and gave a speech that explained why education would be better in the future.
2) The President explained why education would be better in the future (Bush, 2002).
Reference page entry (example 3 on page 199):
Bush, G. W. (2002). Remarks on signing the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
in Hamilton, Ohio, January 8, 2002. Weekly Compilation of Presidential
Documents, 38, 26-29. Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg
/WCPD-2002-01-14/pdf/WCPD-2002-01-14-Pg26-2.pdf
Explanation of reference page entry:
Bush, G. W. is the author of the article.
2002 is the year of the article.
Remarks on signing the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 in Hamilton,
Ohio, January 8, 2002 is the title of the article.
Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents is the journal's name.
38 is the volume number of the journal.
26-29 are the pages of the article.
Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/WCPD-2002-01-14/pdf/WCPD
-2002-01-14-Pg26-2.pdf is the URL of the article.
Note: The journal's pagination is continuous. Therefore, the reference entry has no issue number. The full URL is given in order to aid retrieval. APA style permits the full URL (see the instructions on page 193 and the first bullet point in example 9 on page 200).
Enacted Bill / Public Law / Statute (legal reference)
In-text citation:
According to example 9 on page 220, you should include the name of the act and the year.
Examples:
1) The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 changed the language instruction format to include English as a Second Language.
2) Section 301 of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001) changed the language instruction format.
Reference page entry (example 11 on page 220):
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, Pub. L. No. 107-110, § 301,
115 Stat. 1689 (2002).
Explanation of the reference page entry:
No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 is the title of the act for the bill that
was enacted.
Pub. L. No. 107-110 is the abbreviated form for public law
number 107-110.
§ 301 is the section number for language instruction that was
cited in the paper.
115 Stat. is the abbreviated form for volume 115 of the United States
Statutes at Large.
1689 is the beginning page number for section 301 about language
instruction in the U.S. Statutes at Large.
2002 is the publication date for volume 115 of the U.S. Statutes
at Large.
Green Book (regular reference, print book format)
In-text citation examples:
1) The Committee on Ways and Means (2004, p. 9-41) reported that 25,577 children in Nebraska had development fund support.
2) Development funds supported 25,577 children in child care settings in Nebraska (Committee on Ways and Means, 2004, p. 9-41).
Reference page entry (example 18 on page 203):
Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives. (2004).
2004 green book: Background material and data on the programs within
the jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means (18th ed.).
Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
Note: The Green Book uses a different system for page numbers. Each section has its own page numbers. Page 9-41 is page 41 within section 9.
Green Book (regular reference, electronic book format)
In-text citation examples:
1) The Committee on Ways and Means (2004, p. 9-41) reported that 25,577 children in Nebraska had development fund support.
2) Development funds supported 25,577 children in child care settings in Nebraska (Committee on Ways and Means, 2004, p. 9-41).
Reference page entry (example 19 on page 203):
Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives. (2004).
2004 green book: Background material and data on the programs within
the jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means (18th ed.).
Retrieved from http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/browse/collection.action
?collectionCode=GPO
Note: The Green Book uses a different system for page numbers. Each section has its own page numbers. Page 9-41 is page 41 within section 9.
United States Constitution (legal reference)
In-text citation examples:
State the part of the Constitution, or if quoting, give the exact location. No year is given in the in-text citation.
1) The President must provide a State of the Union to Congress (U.S. Const. art. II § 3, cl. 1).
2) To prevent tyranny, the President cannot serve more than two terms (U.S. Const. amend. XXII, § 1).
Explanation:
U.S. Const. is the APA abbreviation for United States Constitution
art. is the APA abbreviation for Article
§ is the symbol for Section
cl. is the APA abbreviation for Clause
amend. is the APA abbreviation for Amendment
Reference page entry:
1) Example for an Article: U.S. Const. art. I § 9, cl. 2.
2) Example for an Amendment: U.S. Const. amend. XIV, § 2.
3) Example for the Preamble: U.S. Const. pmbl.
Website with More Resources in APA Format:
Westfield State University Ely Library
APA Style - Citing Legal Materials
http://lib.westfield.ma.edu/content.php?pid=486574&sid=3991782
The following words may help you as you conduct searches for the pro/con of a topic.
ASSESS terms:
accountab* analys* analyz* argu* assess* background cause* choice*
choosing chose* comparative comparing comparison conclud* conclusion*
debat* determin* differences dilemma* discuss* effects evaluat* examin*
expert* factor* future implement* indicator* issues judg* look*
measur* option* outcome* outlook overview* perspective* policy
prefer* principle* re-examin* reason* reexamin* research*
result* review* status summary
PRO terms:
accomplish* achiev* advoca* affect* affirm* agree* approv* assent*
beneficial* benefit* best better capable "case for" compliant* complies
comply* concur* consent* cure* desire* effective* enhanc* fantastic*
gain* good great happy help* impact* importan* improv* "in favor of"
keep learn* like* love malleable merit* opinion* opportunit* permission*
permit* persua* positive* praise* praising preach* pro progress*
promise* proponent* pros prove* proving realit* recommend* right*
solution* solve* solving strength* "subscribe to" succeed* success* support*
truth* understand* upgrad* uphold* value* win winner* winning* wins
won wonderful* work*
CON terms:
acced* acquiesce* against alter* antagonist* anti awful* backlash bad
barrier* battl* bitter* block blunder* bump "case against" catastroph*
cautio* challeng* change* changing con concern* conflict* confus* cons
consequence* constrain* contentio* contest* contrary controvers* cost*
critic* critiqu* damag* danger* defeat* defer* deficien* deficit*
deleterious* demand* destroy* deter* detract* detriment* difficult*
discontent* discourag* dislike* dismal* drawback* error* evil* exclud*
exclusion* fail* fallac* false falter* farce* fault* fear* fight* fix*
flaw* foe foes folly* forbear* forebod*
forego* forsak* fought hamper* harm* hate* hinder* hindrance*
horrible* hurdle* hurt* impair* impasse* imped* imperil* implicat*
inaccessib* inaccura* inappropriat* ineffective* inhibit* insufficien*
interfer* judg* kill* lack* leaves lesson* lies limit* lose* losing loss*
malarky malcontent* misconception*
misconduct* mistake* misunderstand* modifi* modify* myth* negative*
nightmare* obstacle* obstruct* opponent* oppos* peril* perplex*
pitfall* portend* preclud* preclusion* predicament* prevent* problem*
protest* rancor* reduc* reform* repeal* rescind* resist* rethink* re-think*
revamp* revise* revision* rhetoric* risk* roadblock* rotten* shortcoming*
skeptic* "stumbling block*" terrible* thwart* transform* trouble* tyrann*
undermin* unsuccess* untruth* vex* weak* weakness* withdraw*
withhold* wrong* yield*
