Use the Legislative Citations option on the Search by Number form to locate a public law by a specific law, statute, or bill number. This option searches all public laws from 1988 to the present. Public laws are added to the database within two weeks after they are passed.

Public laws may be retrieved using Public Law numbers, Statutes at Large numbers, or Enacted bill numbers as follows:

Public Law Number

Public laws are assigned sequential numbers within a Congress (for example, P.L.104-1). If you know the public law number, you can retrieve a legislative history for that law. Use the drop-down list to select a specific Congress, then enter the bill number in the form.

Statutes at Large Number

Statutes at Large is the official compilation of legislation passed and signed into law during each session of Congress. A new volume, arranged sequentially in order of passage, is issued for each Congress. To retrieve documents using a Statutes at Large citation, you must know the volume and page number.

Enacted Bill Number

Bills are assigned sequential numbers within a Congress (for example, the first bill introduced in the Senate during the 104th Congress would be S. 1). If you know the enacted bill or resolution number associated with a public law, you can find the full text of the law. Use the Enacted Bill Number drop-down list to help you enter the bill number correctly.