United States Statutes at Large

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The United States Statutes at Large, commonly referred to as the Statutes at Large, is the official source for the laws and resolutions passed by United States Congress.

The Statutes at Large are generically referred to as the "session laws" of the Congress. They are part of a three-part model for publication of Federal statutes consisting of (1) slip laws, (2) session laws, and (3) codification.

Publication began in 1845 by the private firm of Little, Brown and Company under authority granted by a joint resolution of Congress. In 1874, Congress transferred the authority to publish the Statutes at Large to the Government Printing Office, which has been responsible for producing the set since that time.

Every law, public and private, ever enacted by the Congress is published in the Statutes at Large in order of the date of its passage. Until 1948, all treaties and international agreements approved by the Senate were also published in the set. In addition, the Statutes at Large includes the text of the Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, the Constitution, amendments to the Constitution, treaties with Indians and foreign nations, and presidential proclamations.

Today, large portions of the Acts of Congress denominated as "public laws" are drafted as amendments to the United States Code. Once enacted into law, an Act will appear in the Statutes at Large and will either add to, modify, or delete some part of the United States Code. Provisions of the public laws that contain only enacting clauses, effective dates, and similar matters are not generally codified. Private laws also are not generally codified.