Government Information

Government documents: comprehensive databases & portals

Publications from many national, provincial (territorial or state) and municipal (region, city, town) governments - and from most international government organizations (IGOs) - can be found on the Internet, with a simple Google search.

NOTE:   NOT all government publications are online and often, Google search results are too large to properly sort through. 

For a more controlled searching experience or for finding documents that have been gathered together based on subject or jurisdiction, try one of the following sites, below.

Canada (all levels of government)

• Omni Use Advanced Search to find government documents from across all levels of government; include geographic location (e.g. Canada or Ontario) as an "Author/Creator".
• Canadian Research Index Federal, provincial & municipal government documents available on microfiche (1982 to present); check Omni or the internet to find publications in print and/or online.

Canada (federal, specifically)

• Government of Canada Publications (main federal site)
  • Advanced Search
  • Find publications by department or agency
• Canadian Government Publications Portal Internet Archive's collection of digitized serials from the federal & Ontario governments, many back to the mid-1800s or early 20th century; see a list of titles & holdings.

Canada (provincial & territorial, specifically)

• Legislative Assembly of Ontario Library Catalogue 
• Publications Ontario The Ontario Government's portal for free & priced publications, both digital & in print.  N.B.> Do NOT pay for any publication:  Check first for the title in Omni &/or with the Government Information Librarian, who may be able to find you a freely available copy.
• Canadian Government Publications Portal Internet Archive's collection of digitized serials from the federal & Ontario governments, many back to the mid-1800s or early 20th century; click here for a list of titles & holdings.
• GALLOP Portal: Government and Legislative Libraries Online Publications Portal From the Association of Parliamentary Libraries in Canada, find Canadian provincial & territorial publications.

Canada (municipal, specifically)

• AMCTO Municipal Google Search A basic search engine crawl across 420 of Ontario's municipalities, as set up by the Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO)
• FCM (Federation of Canadian Municipalities) A directory of close to 2,000 municipalities & their links, organized by province and territory.

United States

• GovInfo  "Free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government."
• USAGov Publication collections, as issued by individual departments.
• PAIS International (1915 to present)  Select "Government & Official Document" as a "Document type".
• Omni  Use Advanced Search to find government documents; include geographic location (e.g. "United States" or Hawaii) as an "Author/Creator".

United Kingdom

• UK national government publications From the British Library, links to key government document collections.
• U.K. Parliamentary Papers Digitally scanned Sessional Papers from the 18th century (1701-) through to the 2009/10 parliamentary session & supplementary material from Great Britain's House of Commons. (Some House of Lords papers, if presented to the House of Commons.)  
• Hansard Online Full text of UK members’ debates, 1803 to the present. Includes both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. View Full Description
• Omni Use Advanced Search to find government documents; include geographic location (e.g. "United Kingdom" or "Great Britain" or Scotland) as an "Author/Creator".

International

• Omni Use Advanced Search to find government documents; include geographic location (e.g. Australia or "United Nations") as an "Author/Creator".
• International Organizations: Selected Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs), as listed by the United States Library of Congress.
• UN-iLibrary: Freely available United Nations "publications", from 1945 to present.
• OECD iLibrary Access to books, journals, reports, papers and other resources from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
• Publications Office of the European Union "The official provider of publishing services to all EU institutions, bodies, and agencies." 
• PAIS International (1915 to present)  Select "Government & Official Document" as a "Document type".

Custom Google Searches for Government Information

Many sites now offer "customized" Google searches for government information (websites & publications) from specific jurisdictions.  You will find 2 such interfaces, BELOW.

Be Aware: Results may completely vary from one hosting site to another and from these sites to a search done directly in Google.

• Tip When Using Google For Government Information Searches:
  • Try BOTH a customized search site and then a direct search in Google; compare results.  

Not sure where to start or want the most recent information posted on a government website?

Try these ideas first, before turning to Google:

• Go directly to the AUTHORING GOVERNMENT AGENCY (i.e. Nova Scotia Government, United Nations, etc.) &/OR
• try one of the GOVERNMENT PUBLICATIONS PORTALS listed in the "Getting Started" tab, above.

Custom Google Searches for Government Information (as hosted on the University of Waterloo Library site):

Government information from: Canada, United States, Africa, Asia and Pacific, the Caribbean and Latin America, the Middle East, International Government Organizations (IGOs) & Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs).

Custom Google Searches for Government Information (as hosted on the Queen's University Library site):

Government information from: Canada, United States, Mexico, Africa, Asia and Pacific, the Caribbean and Latin America, the Middle East, International Government Organizations (IGOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) & Think Tanks.

Browse the Library's Government Information Subject Guide to find sources & tips on searching for legislative (parliamentary) material, legislation, public policy and statistics & data.

Access to Information & Privacy (ATIP) and Freedom of Information (FOI) requests:

(1) Canada:

(2) United States:

• FREEDOM OF INFORMATION - FOI RESOURCES (SunshineWeek.org; Sunshine Week is coordinated by Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications)  "Sunshine Week is a nonpartisan collaboration among groups in the journalism, civic, education, government and private sectors that shines a light on the importance of public records and open government."
• Requests (MuckRock Foundation): Searchable repository of public records obtained through FOIA requests.

Government Website Crawls:

(1) Canada

(2) United States:

• Collection Search (Internet Archive): Search the End of Term crawls for 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 & 2024; crawls of Donald Trump's Tweets; COVID information crawls; & crawls of PDF documents from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests (up until its closure on September 30, 2023).