Slip law

In the United States, a slip law is an individual Act of Congress which is either a public law (Pub.L.) or a private law (Pvt.L.). Slip laws are published as softcover unbound pamphlets, each with its own individual pagination.^[1] They are part of a three-part model for publication of federal statutes consisting of slip laws, session laws, and codification. Session laws are compiled into the Statutes at Large (Stat.), and codification results in the United States Code (U.S.C.).

Public and private laws are prepared and published by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR) of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).^[2] At the end of a Congressional session, slip laws are compiled into the Statutes at Large, which are called "session laws", published by the Government Printing Office (GPO).^[2] Today, most of the public laws, but not private laws, are drafted as amendments to the United States Code.

See also

• United States Statutes at Large
• United States Code

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the U.S. Government Publishing Office.

1. Bast, Carol M.; Hawkins, Margie A. (2013). Foundations of Legal Research and Writing (5th ed.). Clifton Park, New York: Delmar. p. 138. ISBN 9781285402604.
2. Public and Private Laws: About, United States Government Printing Office, retrieved 2011-02-25, Public and private laws are prepared and published by the Office of the Federal Register (OFR), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). ...After the President signs a bill into law, it is delivered to the Office of the Federal Register (OFR), National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) where it is assigned a law number, legal statutory citation (public laws only), and prepared for publication as a slip law. ...At the end of each session of Congress, the slip laws are compiled into bound volumes called the Statutes at Large, and they are known as 'session laws.' ...Every six years, public laws are incorporated into the United States Code, which is a codification of all general and permanent laws of the United States. A supplement to the United States Code is published during each interim year until the next comprehensive volume is published.

Further reading

• "Slip Laws" from Federal Statutes: A Beginner's Guide at the Library of Congress

External links

• Public and Private Laws (1995–present) at Govinfo (U.S. Government Publishing Office)
• Public Laws (1951–present) at Congress.gov
• Private Laws (1951–present) at Congress.gov