Related Libraries Guides
Federal Depository Library
Penn State Libraries
Federal Depository Library since 1858
General Search & Information
Most government agencies link to their publications and data on their web sites. The sites below will help you to find the government agencies or departments that have publications related to your research topic.
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USA.govSimilar to Google, but for government documents. Start here to find out which government agency has the information you are looking for.
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Federal Digital System (FDSYS)An online database that gives free access to official publications from all three branches of the United States Government.
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govinfowebsite of the Government Publishing Office (GPO). Find publications from all 3 branches of government. Currently a beta site to eventually replace FDSys., Content primarily from Congress, The President, and The Courts. Regularly updated with new content.
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United NationsStart here to find information and publications by and about the United Nation, its history, member states, programmes, and specialized agencies.
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European Unionfind information about the European Union as well as its history, laws, and documents & publications.
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PA.govthe official website of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The CAT: the Libraries' online catalog
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CAT - Penn State Library Cataloguse The CAT to find books, CD/DVD, and digitized titles in the Penn State Libraries' collections. Note: you will not find journal articles in The CAT.
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Searching The CAT: Video Tutorialslearn to use The CAT to find materials in all formats in the Penn State Libraries.
Note: you will not find journal or newspaper articles in The CAT.
Using The CAT to find government information
Start by typing your search term into The CAT.
Scroll down to the bottom of the results list page and then Limit your Location by using the drop-down Location menu to choose 2nd Floor Paterno - US Documents. Note that searching for International Documents requires that you use a different location limit: 2nd Floor Paterno - International Documents.
LionSearch
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LionSearchan integrated search of books, e-books, research articles, newspaper articles, and other publications.
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LionSearch Tutorialsshort videos explaining the basics of LionSearch.
Using LionSearch to find government information
From the Libraries' home page, simply type your subject term[s] and click Enter:
At your results screen, limit your content type to government documents:
Click More... under the Content Type menu
Click Government Documents, then Apply to retrieve government documents available from the Libraries' collections and from Libraries' databases.
