Social Work 520: Preliminary Considerations

Getting Started

Begin by identifying what you already know about your policy or act or program. The information with which you start will affect your approach to the research. Listed below are factors to assess and consider before you get started:

Policy or act or program?

Determine whether you want the history of:

1. A policy guides the government in response to it's people's needs; or
2. An act or statute that became law and funded programs or
3. A program funded by an act that don't necessarily share a name.

Dates

Identify the approximate date when the act or statute was passed or amended. This will help you identify which sources to consult.

Tracing the History

1. Things you'll need

You will need the following information:

• the name of the act, and
• the Public Law (P.L.) number.

For help identifying this information, consult the page ..................................................

2. Things you may need

Additionally, you may need the following information:

• The Public Law (P.L.) number (for statutes or acts); and
• the bill number, and 
• the topic or subject of the statute or act;
• the approximate date of introduction or passage of the statute or act.

For help identifying this information, consult the page.........................................

Preliminary Citations & Topical Information

Take note of all the citation and subject information you have for the statute or bill you are researching.

If you lack any of the citations necessary to locate a compiled legislative history or to compile your own, consult the other sections of this tab (Finding Bill Numbers or Finding the PL Number), which will enable you to use what you already know about the statute or bill to fill in the missing information.

On each page, find the heading that applies to your situation; there you will find a list of sources to consult to locate the other citations.