Introduction
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) publishes over 3,000 studies and reports each year in its role as the research and analysis arm of the Library of Congress. CRS Reports are available from the Library of Congress and through the subscription and free services listed below.
CRS was established within the Library of Congress to provide members, committees, and congressional staff with nonpartisan and objective research and analysis on all public policy issues. Originally established in 1914 as the Legislative Reference Division, CRS was originally organized as a typical library reference service. Under the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, it was officially named the Legislative Reference Service, given permanent status as a separate department within the Library, and directed to employ senior specialists in various program areas. The Legislative Reference Service was renamed Congressional Research Service under the Legislative Reference Act of 1970.
Currently, the CRS research divisions are: American Law; Domestic Social Policy; Foreign Affairs, Defense and Trade; Government and Finance; Knowledge Services; and Resources, Science and Industry. Many CRS reports are updated at varying intervals, so it is always important to note the exact date of issuance rather than just the title and the year of publication.
CRS Reports
You can search for any reports located in the Boley Law Library or Watzek Library using the Primo catalog. Search for "Congressional Research Service" and [topic]. Most of the results will be from the microfiche set "Major Studies and Issue Briefs of the Congressional Research Service" from 1976-2007. This set is located in cabinet #32 of our microform collection. There is a paper index that goes with the set on top of the cabinet.
The law library also subscribes to the databases below which include digitized versions of CRS Reports:
- CRS Reports on HeinOnlineCRS Reports from 1997 to present.
- Bloomberg Law This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
CRS Reports from 2003 - present available (search under the Legislative & Regulatory tab).
Free Online Collections
- CRS ReportsSearchable CRS Reports provided by the Congressional Research Service, a legislative agency within the Library of Congress.
- CRS ReportsUNT Digital Library (University of North Texas). This site aims to provide integrated, searchable access to many of the full-text CRS reports that have been available at a variety of different web sites since 1990.
- EveryCRSReportEvery CRS report that’s available on Congress’s internal website CRS.gov, plus about 5,100 archived reports from the University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department CRS reports collection
- CRS ReportsThurgood Marshall Law Library. Before CRS reports became more readily accessible to the research community through the open web, the Thurgood Marshall Law Library created an online CRS archive collection in the subject areas of Homeland Security/Terrorism and Health Law and Policy from 1993 – 2013.
Specialized Online Collections
- CRS Reports from the Federation of American ScientistsCRS Reports on a variety of topics:
-General National Security Topics
-Middle East
-Foreign Policy and Regional Affairs
-Secrecy and Information Policy
-Intelligence
-Homeland Security
-Nuclear Weapons and Arms Control
-Conventional Weapons Systems
-Terrorism
-Miscellaneous Topics - CRS Reports on Homeland Security and Related IssuesHomeland Security Digital Library. Comprehensive collection, 1991 - present.
- IP, Cyberlaw & E-Commerce ReportsFrom the University of New Hampshire School of Law. Comprehensive collection, 1993 - present.
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