What is Government Information?
Government information, sometimes referred to as government documents, describes materials produced by government agencies or departments that describe their programs, actions, and/or findings. These materials are released in a variety of formats, including print, microforms, CD, DVD, and online formats.
What does that mean at USU?
The Government Information Collection includes materials released by the U.S. Government as part of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). Since 1907, the department has collected materials from every government agency, from the Department of Agriculture to the War Department. Materials are organized by the federal department/agency that created them. See "How to Read Call Numbers for Government Information" for details.
Currently, the vast majority of materials are released digitally. The Library Catalog provides access to these materials. See "Finding Government Information" for search tips and strategies.
Introduction to Government Information
- Finding Government InformationEssential links and information about how to access materials produced by U.S. federal agencies, bureaus, and offices.
- Reading Government CitationsInformation about how to read and find citations to government information like bills, laws, statutes, codes, and regulations.
Information about Fisheries, Land, and Water
- NOAA Fisheries"NOAA Fisheries' science-based conservation and management of sustainable fisheries, marine mammals, endangered species, and their habitats have become global models for marine stewardship and sustainability." This links to their science and data page where you can access databases, open data, and research.
- Geospatial Data ResourcesThis LibGuide provides access to a variety of open data portals from federal and state governments.
- US Fish and Wildlife Data PortalIncludes links to national and regional data sources.
- Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) Environment, Fish and Wildlife FunctionsIncludes access to BPA's online resources regarding Fish & Wildlife, Environmental Analysis, Cultural Resources, and Pollution Prevention & Abatement. Also see Government Information Collection areas E 5. and I 44. at the Merrill-Cazier Library.
- Utah WatershedsMaps of Utah watersheds. Includes links to reports, usage data and more by management units.
Government Reports & Publications
- US Fish & Wildlife Service National Digital LibraryThe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s National Digital Library is a searchable collection of selected images, historical artifacts, audio clips, publications, and video, most of which are in the public domain. Those not in the public domain are intended for personal, private use.
- U.S. Geological Survey PublicationsThe Publications Warehouse provides access to over 160,000 publications written by USGS scientists over the century-plus history of the bureau.
The Government Information Collection at the Merrill-Cazier Library has print materials from these agencies as well. For U.S. Fish & Wildlife, see I 49. For it's predecessor agency, the Bureau of Fisheries, see I 45. and C 6. For the U.S. Geological Survey, see I 19. For various fisheries commissions, see Y 4.N 81/7, Y 4.F 53, and Y 4.M 53. For assistance searching for historic materials, please contact the Government Information Librarian.
Historic Publications
- HathiTrustThe HathiTrust is a shared digital repository, incorporating digitized content from some of the largest research libraries in the United States.
Note: Login required for some collections.
- GovinfoGovinfo is a site produced by the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO) that provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government.
