Research Guides: Federal Administrative Law: Regulations

Federal Register

Introduction

The Federal Register Act in 1935, required the Federal government to publish all the administrative rules and regulations, Presidential proclamations and executive orders and any other documents that have "general applicablity and legal effect" in the Federal Register. The Federal Register is published every business day.

Sources for the Federal Register

Federal Register on govinfo.gov The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Govinfo.gov carries the Federal Register back to its 1936 inception.
Federalregister.gov An unofficial, HTML (XML-based) edition of the daily Federal Register. The FR is the daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. Documents are organized and displayed in an easier to read format with extensive navigation aids and links to related material, such as the Code of Federal Regulations and the United States Code. Includes web tools and user aids designed to help people find material relevant to their interests. Federalregister.gov goes back to 1994.
Federal Register on HeinOnline The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday - Friday except for Federal holidays. HeinOnline carries it back to its inception of 1936.
Federal Register on Lexis UC Law students, faculty, and staff only. The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Lexis carries it back to its inception of 1936.
Federal Register on Westlaw UC Law students, faculty, and staff only. The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Westlaw carries it back to its inception of 1936.
Federal Register on Nexis Uni The Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Nexis Uni carries it back to its inception of 1936.
Federal Register on ProQuest Congressional he Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. ProQuest carries it back to 1980.
Justia Regulations he Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents. It is published Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. Justia has it going back to 2005.

How to Find Material in the Federal Register

Indexes

The Federal Register includes a cumulative monthly index arranged by agency, with the December index covering the entire year.

Keyword Searching on Electronic Databases

Use advance searching and fields/segments where you can.

List of CFR Sections Affected (LSA)

Introduction

This publication provides citations to the Federal Register for any changes since the last annual update of the CFR title. The LSA is issued monthly and cumulates annually.

Sources for the LSA

List of CFR Sections Affected on Govinfo.gov The List of CFR Sections Affected (LSA) lists proposed, new, and amended Federal regulations that have been published in the Federal Register since the most recent revision date of a Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) title. It is published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration. Each LSA issue is cumulative and contains the CFR part and section numbers, a description of its status (e.g., amended, confirmed, revised), and the Federal Register page number where the change(s) may be found. The LSA is issued monthly. Govinfo.gov contains the LSA back to 1997.
Federal Register: CFR List of Sections Affected on HeinOnline The List of CFR Sections Affected (LSA) lists proposed, new, and amended Federal regulations that have been published in the Federal Register since the most recent revision date of a Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) title. It is published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration. Each LSA issue is cumulative and contains the CFR part and section numbers, a description of its status (e.g., amended, confirmed, revised), and the Federal Register page number where the change(s) may be found. The LSA is issued monthly. The LSA on HeinOnline goes back to 1953.

Code of Federal Regulations

Introduction

The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is a subject arrangement of general and permanent regulations. A regulation will be published first in the Federal Register and later be codified in the CFR. The print CFR is revised yearly on a quarterly basis:

Titles 1 -- 16 as of January 1
Titles 17 -- 27 as of April 1
Titles 28 -- 41 as of July 1
Titles 42 -- 50 as of October 1

Sources for the CFR

eCFR The Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR) is a web version of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) that is updated daily. The eCFR is an editorial compilation of CFR material and amendments published in the daily Federal Register. Generally the eCFR is current within two business days. While this is an authorized government publication, it is not official.
CFR on Govinfo.gov
CFR on HeinOnline The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. HeinOnline'ss coverage of the CFR is comprehensive, containing all volumes dating back to inception (1938).
CFR on Lexis UC Law students, faculty, and staff only. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. This link is for the current CFR, however, archived editions go back to 1981.
CFR on Westlaw UC Law students, faculty, and staff only. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. This link is for the current CFR, however, archived editions go back to 1984.
CFR on Bloomberg Law UC Law students, faculty, and staff only. The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. This link is for the current CFR.
CFR on Nexis Uni The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. This link is for the current CFR.
CFR on ProQuest Congressional The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States. The CFR on ProQuest Congressional goes back to 1981.
CFR on LII The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is the codification of the general and permanent rules and regulations published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government of the United States.

How to Find Regulations in the CFR

CFR Indexes

CFR Index and Finding Aids
- On govinfo.gov
- On HeinOnline
Westlaw CFR Index
Lexis CFR Index

Parallel Table of Authorities and Rules

Use it to find regulations relating to a statute or presidential proclamation.

Govinfo.gov (within the CFR Index and Finding Aids)
HeinOnline (within the CFR Index and Finding Aids)

Reference from the United States Code Annotated or United States Code Service

Sometimes when looking at a particular statute in the United States Code Annotated or United States Code Service you will find a reference to a related administrative regulation.

Reference from a Secondary Source or Loose-leaf

A good topical secondary source or loose-leaf service will refer to or reproduce regulations.