Selected New York State legal resource
| New York State | Online Subscription | Print/Other Media - Current | Print/Other Media - Retrospective | Free Internet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | LRS (1995 to current) | Yes | Yes | NYS Assembly Bills (1999-current) NYS Legislature (1995-current) |
| State of NY Legislative Digest/Index – bill tracking, introductory records, subject index to bills, etc. | Yes | Begins 1905 | ||
| Session Laws (Chapter Laws) | State Session Laws (on-site use only) 1691- 1995-current NYS Legislature | Yes | Yes | NYS Legislature (1995-current) |
| NYS Consolidated Laws | Fastcase (2009-2016) | Yes | Yes | NYS Legislature 1909 Consolidation in NYS Library Digital Collections |
| NYS Register – provides notice of NYS agency rule making activity | Yes | Begins 1979 | NYS Dept of State (2003 to current) NYSL Digital Documents - NYS Register Collection (1994 to current) | |
| New York Codes Rules and Regulations (NYCRR) | Fastcase (2011, 2012, 2015) | Yes | Consolidated- 1945 to current Some unconsolidated- promulgated prior to 1945 by individual agencies | Selected rules on various NYS agency web sites Unofficial version on the Department of State Website |
| Governor's Bill Jackets | Yes Most recent year in Governor's Counsel's Office 518-474-7182 | 1905, 1921- recent years | NYS Archives - Digital Collections (1995 – recent) | |
| Governor's Veto Jackets | Yes Most recent year in Governor's Counsel's Office 518-474-7182 | 1905, 1926 - recent years | NYS Archives - Digital Collections (1995 – recent) | |
| Governors' Public Papers | Up to 1991 when publication ceased | NYSL Digital Documents - Governors' Papers NYS Archives. Archived Governor websites. Current on Governor's website. | ||
| NYS Legislative Annual – sponsor's and governor's approval memos | Begins 1946 | |||
| Senate and Assembly Publications – committee reports, hearings, etc. | Yes | Yes | NYSL Digital Documents - NYS Government Collection (varies) NYS Assembly - Legislative Reports NYS Senate - All Committees | |
| Agency Reports | Varies | Yes | NYSL Digital Documents Collection (varies) Selected reports on various NYS agency web sites | |
| Agency Opinions (NYSL has a guide to locating these, call 518-474-5355) | Fastcase (Attorney General Opinions only, links to website) | Yes | Yes | Selected on various NYS agency web sites |
| New York Law Journal | Yes | Yes |
Notes:
Legislative History – A NYS legislative history can be compiled by Reference Librarians. A history may include:
- bill jacket,
- sponsor's memo,
- committee reports,
- Governor's approval memos,
- annual reports of administrative departments, and
- reports from commissions, task forces, or public hearings.
In addition, indexes, session laws and other sources may be reviewed. Consequently, legislative histories are time consuming. To request a legislative history call the Reference Desk at 474-5355. For instruction on how to conduct a legislative history, see the NYSL Legislative History Tutorial.
Selected legal resources for states other than New York
| New York State | Online Subscription | Print/Other Media - Current | Print/Other Media - Retrospective | Free Internet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bills | Legal Information Institute * | |||
| Session Laws (Chapter Laws) | Fastcase (Varies) | Varies | Yes | Legal Information Institute * |
| Consolidated Laws | Fastcase (varies) | Yes | Varies | Legal Information Institute * |
| Register – provides notice of agency rule making activity | Legal Information Institute* | |||
| Administrative Codes | Fastcase | Legal Information Institute* | ||
| Legislative Publications – committee reports, hearings, etc. | Varies | Legal Information Institute* (varies widely) | ||
| Agency Reports | Varies widely | Legal Information Institute * (varies widely) | ||
| Agency Opinions | Fastcase (Attorney General Opinions from selected states) | Varies widely | Legal Information Institute * (varies widely) |
Notes:
*Legal Information Institute is Cornell Law School's gateway to legal information for the 50 states, one of the most convenient one-stop sources for this information.
Selected Federal legal resources
| New York State | Online Subscription | Print/Other Media - Current | Print/Other Media - Retrospective | Free Internet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Statutes at Large | Yes | Begins 1789 | GPOAccess - Statutes (1951-2011) American Memory (1789-1875) | |
| Public Laws | Fastcase (current year only, must use Browse to find it) | Yes | Yes | GPOAccess - Public Laws (1995 to recent) Congress.gov (Legislation) |
| US Code | Fastcase (2006, 2010, 2013, 2015, 2016. Accessible by Browsing) | Yes | Yes | GPOAccess - US Code (1994 to recent) US House of Representatives (1994 to recent) |
| US Code Congressional Administrative News — includes public laws plus selected congressional committee reports | Yes | Begins 1951, previously published as U.S. Code Congressional Service 1941-1950 | Congress.gov (Congressional Reports) Committee Reports (1995 to current) | |
| Federal Register | Fastcase (links to GPO) | Yes | Begins 1936 | GPOAccess - Federal Register (1994 to current) |
| Code of Federal Regulations | Fastcase (current only) | Yes | Begins 1939 | GPOAccess - Code of Federal Regulations (1996 to current) |
| Congressional Record | Yes | Begins 1789 Includes historical predecessors | Congress.gov Congressional Record (1995 to current) American Memory (Congressional Record 1873-1875 and historical predecessors) | |
| Congressional Quarterly—weekly review of Congressional activity | Yes | Yes |
Notes:
The NYS Library is a Regional Federal Government Depository Library.
Newspapers
| New York State | Online Subscription | Print/Other Media - Current | Print/Other Media - Retrospective | Free Internet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newspapers | Various NYSL databases | Yes | Yes* | Varies |
*The New York State Library has extensive holdings of newspapers, from 1603 to the present date. The strength of the collection is New York State English-language newspapers. The collection has limited holdings of non-US and foreign language newspapers.
Newspapers – Alerts may be set up for many of our online newspapers.