U.S. Congress records: bills, votes, members and debates
The records of the U.S. Congress are published by the House of Representatives, the Senate, the Library of Congress through Congress.gov and the Government Publishing Office through GovInfo. Together they cover bill text and status, roll-call votes, member lists, committee reports and the Congressional Record. Fact-checkers use them to verify what a member said or how they voted and what a bill contains.
What it publishes
- Bill text, status, sponsors and actions on Congress.gov.
- House roll-call votes from the Clerk of the House and Senate roll-call votes on Senate.gov.
- Member directories for both chambers.
- The Congressional Record of floor debates, on GovInfo and Congress.gov.
- The United States Code, on GovInfo.
Key datasets
- Congress.gov
Bills, resolutions, amendments, committee reports and the Congressional Record.
- House roll-call votes
Each House recorded vote with member positions.
- Senate roll-call votes
Senate recorded votes by Congress and session.
- House directory
Representatives by state and district, with party and committees.
- Congressional Record (GovInfo)
Official record of debates, by date.
APIs and downloads
- Congress.gov APIJSON API for bills, members, votes and committee data; free key required.
- GovInfo U.S. CodeOfficial U.S. Code in HTML, PDF and XML.
When it publishes
Votes appear on the House Clerk and Senate sites shortly after they are taken; the Congressional Record is published the morning after each sitting day.
How to use it to check a claim
- For a vote, cite the roll-call number, chamber, Congress and date.
- For a quotation, check the Congressional Record for that day; members can revise remarks, so compare with video if wording matters.
- For a bill, check its latest action and which version (introduced, passed one chamber, enrolled) the claim is about.
Common mistakes
- Bills with the same number exist in every Congress; include the Congress number.
- Congress.gov blocks some automated readers; open pages in a browser or use the API.
How many members of Congress are there?
535 voting members: 435 representatives and 100 senators. The House also has non-voting delegates and a resident commissioner.
How do I find how my representative voted?
Use the House Clerk's roll-call votes page or the member's page on Congress.gov.
Questions answered using this source
Links checked 14 October 2026. This page describes what the source publishes and gives no verdict on any claim.