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FW ECOL 515: Natural Resources Policy (Fall 2023) : Government information

Welcome to the weird, wonderful world of government information!

Government information is great because...

  • You see YOUR government at work
  • Government publications are primary sources
  • You get to participate (sometimes) in creating government information

 

Government information can be complicated, because

  • Most government publications are NOT written for the general public
  • Most government publications are the results of government processes, many of which are complicated and drawn out

 

The more you know about government processes, the easier government information is to work with.  If you feel overwhelmed at times, you're not alone!  Often, even government specialists need to look at reference materials, or brush up on their civics to find certain publications.  And it can take specialists a while to find or understand specific materials.

If the federal government shuts down...

If the federal government shuts down, it will affect the production of government information.  Just how government information products/publications will be affected depends on a combination of factors, including the priorities and funding of the publishing/producing agency and the subject matter or nature of products/publications.

Here's some information about agencies and websites' contingency planning for shutdowns.

Regulatory publications

  • Regulations.gov said (as of Saturday, September 30):  
    • "In the event of a lapse in Federal government appropriations, Regulations.gov will continue to operate as normal, including help desk support from our contractors, and availability of eRulemaking PMO staff. For questions regarding impacts to individual agency rulemaking or non-rulemaking actions posted for comment, please contact the relevant agency."
  • The Federal Register (the official vehicle for publishing proposed rules, rules, notices, etc) will publish a document, Publication Procedures for Federal Register Documents During a Funding Hiatus, on October 3, 2023.  
    • An entry on the Federal Register's blog from January of 2019 said that
      • "As explained in our Notice, during an appropriations lapse, agencies without appropriations who wish to submit a document to the OFR must attach a special handling letter to the document which states that publication in the Federal Register is necessary to safeguard human life, protect property, or provide other emergency services consistent with the performance of functions and services excepted under the Antideficiency Act."
      • The notice says that it's submitting agencies who have to certify "that publication the Federal Register is necessary to safeguard human life, protect property, or provide other emergency services..."

 

Congressional publications

  • Govinfo.gov, the platform that digitally publishes Congressional materials, will continue to print the publications of Congress.

 

Federal government agencies

  • US Government Information: Shutdown, a guide from the University of California-San Diego Librar.y has links to contingency plans from U.S. federal agencies.  The guide says "these may indicate which of the agency's activities will continue and which will cease, which staff will be furloughed and which are "excepted" from furlough, and other details."
    • The agencies listed are mostly cabinet-level agencies or independent agencies and commissions.  In some cases, bureaus and sub-agencies are listed under their "parent" agencies.
    • For instance, contingency plans for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and National Park Service can all be found by following the Department of the Interior link.  Contingency plans for the Forest Service can be found by following the Department of Agriculture link.

How the federal government is organized

When looking for federal government information, it helps to know a little bit about the government, its organization, and processes.

  • The legislative branch (Congress) makes laws.
  • The executive branch (president, vice-president, Cabinet, agencies) implements laws.
  • The judicial branch (the Supreme Court and the federal court system) interprets laws.

These three branches are interrelated, and form a system of checks and balances (described in Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government.)

Here's another overview of the three branches, from USA.gov

How laws and regulations differ

Reading citations to government publications

Citing government publications

The "Citing Government Publications" section of the U.S. Government Publications at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Research Guide links to general guides to citing government information, as well to resources about citing government information using APA, MLA, Turabian, and Chicago styles.

Librarian

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Beth Harper
she/her/hers
Contact:
Memorial Library
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Government Information Specialist

Steenbock Librarian

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Karen Dunn
Contact:
Steenbock Library;
Science & Engineering Libraries (SEL)

I am happy to schedule consultations!