Federal Legislation

Committee Prints are background research or reports that are prepared by Committee staff, the Congressional Research Service or outside consultants. Some examples of committee prints are Committee rules and calendars, compilations of laws, transcripts of markup sessions or other proceedings, legislative descriptions and analyses, draft reports and bills, directories, statistical materials, historical and situational reports. The subjects of the committee prints vary and the topics are usually related to their legislative or research activities.

In 1983 (98th Congress) the Senate began a numbering system for official committee prints still in use today, (e.g. "S. Prt. 108-3"), but the House does not have any type of numbering system for committee prints. However, some House and Joint committees use their own internal numbering systems.