Research Guides: Social Work: Policies & Laws

Polices & Laws

Policies and laws often impact social work programs and work. This page provides information on where and how to search for information related to policy and law for the State of Colorado as well as United States federal government.

Colorado Legislation

Colorado Revised Statutes
The legal code of Colorado, the codified general and permanent statutes of the Colorado General Assembly.
Colorado Legislative Council Research Publications
Publications and links to other states and federal legislative history. Provided by University of Denver Law Library.

Step-by-Step Guide to Finding Colorado Legislation

Colorado General Assembly
Official website. Provides full text of bills, laws & other legislative material online from 1997 onwards.

There are multiple ways to find bills.

To view current bills:

Click on "Bills" near the top of the page.
Search for a current bill by number, sponsor, or keyword. OR
Click on "See All Bills" to view all of the current bills. OR
Scroll down a little bit to browse bills by subject.

To find past bills:

Click on "Bills" near the top of the page.
Under the "Bills drop down menu, select Bills Digest OR Prior Sessions.
- Bills Digest includes information back to 2006.
- Prior Sessions includes information back to 1997.

To find bills by committees:

Click on "Committees" near the top of the page.
Click on the Committee of interest.

Use the links on a bill's page to view the bill, history, analysis, committee reports, and votes.

Federal Legislation

Westlaw This link opens in a new window
WestLaw is a collection of law-related resources. It includes important analytical sources, such as Am Jur 2d and the ALR's, as well as law reviews and journals. Primary Law Sources are also included, such as the United States Code Annotated (USCA or US Code), Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), and the Federal Register, as well as state statutes and regulations, and all federal and state cases.
govinfo This link opens in a new window
Provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government - Executive (including departments and agencies), Legislative, and Judicial. Service of the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO). Formerly named FDsys and GPO Access.
Congressional Publications This link opens in a new window
Comprehensive access to U.S. legislative information, including laws, proposed bills and statutes, hearings, legislative histories, congressional committee information, campaign contributions and PAC activities, the "Congressional Record", the historical "Congressional Index", and the "Serial Set", as well as articles from the "National Journal". Right-hand column has tips on how to use the Congressional interface.Note: Email yourself a copy of the article instead of a link.