The Fred Parks Law Library has been a selective U.S. government documents depository since 1981. The Government Documents Department is open to the South Texas College of Law community and to the general public. Government documents must be used in the library and cannot be checked out. Photocopiers are, however, available for use by patrons.

The library also purchases some government publications, which increases the breadth and depth of its government documents collection. Because the library primarily exists to serve law students and faculty, the government documents collection emphasizes law and related disciplines including political science, criminal justice, and international relations.

Documents in Paper Format

Part of the government documents collection exists in paper format and is shelved on the first floor of the library. These items are in compact, or movable, shelving and are arranged by the U.S. Government Printing Office's Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc) call number. For an explanation of the SuDoc classification system, please visit: (SuDoc).

Major sets in paper on the first floor of the library include:

Some heavily used paper government documents are cataloged with a Library of Congress call number (not a SuDoc number) and are housed in the library's main collection.

Major sets in paper in the main collection include:

Documents in Microformats

Many more of our government documents exist in microfiche or microfilm, and can be viewed in the microforms area on the library's first floor.

Documents in Electronic Format

Many government publications now appear in electronic format and are accessible in the library on CD-ROMs, DVDs, or through the Internet using computer terminals available in the library.

Purchased Documents in Microformats

The library's federal depository collection has been augmented by the purchase of major microfiche and microfilm collections from publishers such as Lexis-Nexis. Indexes to many of these collections are available in print on the first floor of the library or electronically by using the subscription database Congressional Universe.

Major purchased sets in microfiche and microfilm found on the first floor of the library include:

Finding Government Documents

To locate a government document in The Fred Parks Law Library, search STELLA, the library's online catalog, by subject, title, author, keyword, or call number.

A map of the library may assist in locating government documents. Maps are available on the second floor of the library or on our website: Maps.

The Government Documents Librarian and the Government Documents Assistant both office on the first floor of the library, and usually are available on weekdays to assist patrons in locating items. Feel free to contact them for assistance.

The reference librarian on the second floor of the library also may assist patrons in locating government documents. The reference librarian may be contacted using one of the courtesy telephones on each floor of the library by dialing x1712.

Internet Resources for Government Documents

A host of federal government information is now available electronically. Some of the major information sources are:

GPO Access (Free website of the U.S. Government Printing Office, the publisher of most federal government documents.)

FirstGov (Free official U.S. Government web portal.)

FDSys (GPO's Federal Digital System is graudaully replacing GPO Access. FDSYs is currently in beta testing but the migration of information from GPO Access into FDsys will be complete in mid-2009.)

Thomas (Free legislative information site provided by the Library of Congress.)

American Memory-A Century of Lawmaking for A New Nation (Free collection of historic Congressional documents by the Library of Congress).

Congressional Universe (Subscription service database of U.S. legislative information from Lexis-Nexis. This database is paid for by The Fred Parks Law Library.)

Houston Area Network of Documents Information(HANDI) (Free information on all federal depository libraries in the Houston area.)

Please see the library's webpage of Legal Research Links-Federal for more federal government information.