Database Information

The Daily Congressional Record is issued daily when Congress is in session. Each issue (sometimes printed in more than one part) consists of the sections bulleted below. The page numbers within each section begin with "1" on the first day of the Congress and continue numbering consecutively until the end of that Congress.

• Senate Remarks (pages begin with S) contain the legislative debates, communications from the executive branch, memorials, petitions, and information on legislation introduced or passed, including amendments and cosponsors in the Senate
• House Remarks (pages begin with H) contain the legislative debates, communications from the executive branch, memorials, petitions, and information on legislation introduced or passed, including amendments and cosponsors in the House of Representatives
• Extensions of Remarks (pages begin with E) contain the additional legislative statements not delivered on the floor of the House of Representatives or the Senate, such as speeches delivered outside Congress, letters from and tributes to constituents, and newspaper or magazine articles
• Daily Digest (pages begin with D) contain the daily summaries of actions taken by the House and Senate, committees and subcommittees during the legislative day, as well as a listing of activities scheduled for the next day

A citation to the Daily Congressional Record could be to an entire section, to a quote by a specific speaker, to a bill text, or to a specific roll call vote.

For each citation, include:

• Speaker, if provided - the title "Representative" (use for speakers in pages beginning with H) or "Senator" (use for speakers with pages beginning with S) should be added to speaker's name only if the speaker's first name is not provided. In addition, identify the home state of the speaker, if it is provided. This can serve to distinguish speakers with the same last name (for example, Representative Smith (RI) and Representative Smith (MA)). The state can be abbreviated or provided in its entirety.
• Title - provided for each entry
• Congressional Record volume, issue, date, and page - all located in the header information for each record. Note that the page numbers can begin with H for House, S for Senate, or E for Extensions of Remarks.
• Web service name (Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional)
• Date accessed by the user (Accessed: date)

For example:

• Representative McCollum (MN). "Megan's Law." Congressional Record 142: 89 (May 7, 1996) p. H4451. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 5/18/05.
• Senator Hatch (UT). "Differences in Judicial Philosophy." Congressional Record 142:93 (June 6, 1996) p. S5903. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 8/23/04.
• Forbes, Michael P. (NY) "The Long Island Advance's 125th Anniversary Purchased for $500 in 1871." Congressional Record 142:25 (February 28, 1996), p. E235. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 8/23/04.

Quote by a specific speaker

This database provides exact paging in the header at the beginning of each entry and also at the top of each screen. This allows the citation to a specific quote to include the exact page number containing that quote. For example:

Senator Dole (KS). "Health Care Reform." Congressional Record 142:94 (May 10, 1996) p. S5986. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 8/23/04.

Bill text

The text of a bill can frequently be located in the Congressional Record. Try to locate the bill number and include it in the citation. In addition, always use the exact page number where the bill text begins. For example:

"Healthy Meals for Children Act (H.R. 2066)." Congressional Record 142: 90 (May 14, 1996) p. H4911. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 8/23/04.

Vote

All roll call votes are numbered. The number must be included in the citation to identify the specific vote being cited. For example:

"Unfunded Mandate Reform Act of 1995: Roll Vote No. 25." Congressional Record 141:22 (January 23, 1995) p. H498. Available from: ProQuest^® Congressional; Accessed: 8/23/04.