United States Statutes at Large facts for kids

The United States Statutes at Large, often called the Statutes at Large, is the official collection of all the laws and agreements made by the United States Congress. Think of it as a giant library of every new rule or decision Congress has passed. Each new law or resolution is first called a slip law. These are either public laws (for everyone) or private laws (for specific people or groups).

At the end of each session of Congress, all these individual slip laws are gathered together. They are then organized and published in the Statutes at Large. This collection helps people find and understand the laws that govern the country. It's part of a three-step process for publishing federal laws: first, individual slip laws; then, the Statutes at Large (which are like session laws); and finally, the United States Code, which organizes all current laws by topic.

What Are Laws and Resolutions?

When the United States Congress wants to make a new rule, they create a document called a bill. If this bill is approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, and then signed by the President, it becomes a law.

Public vs. Private Laws

There are two main types of laws recorded in the Statutes at Large:

• Public Laws: These are laws that affect everyone in the country. For example, a law about taxes or environmental protection would be a public law. They are usually abbreviated as "Pub.L."
• Private Laws: These laws are much less common. They deal with specific individuals or small groups, often about things like immigration or claims against the government. They are abbreviated as "Pvt.L."

Understanding Resolutions

Besides laws, the Statutes at Large also includes "concurrent resolutions." These are special decisions or statements made by Congress that don't become full laws. They often express the opinion of Congress or deal with how Congress operates.

How Laws Are Published

The process of publishing federal laws in the U.S. follows a clear system to make sure everyone can access them.

Step 1: Slip Laws

When a bill becomes a law, it's first printed as a single, separate document. This is called a slip law. It's the very first official version of the new law. Each slip law gets its own number, like "Public Law 117-1" (meaning the first public law passed by the 117th Congress).

Step 2: Statutes at Large

After a full session of Congress ends, all the slip laws passed during that session are collected. They are then put together in large, numbered books called the Statutes at Large. These books are organized in the order the laws were passed. This makes it easy to see all the laws from a specific time period.

Step 3: United States Code

The Statutes at Large shows laws in the order they were passed. But imagine trying to find all laws about, say, education, if they were passed over many years! That's where the United States Code comes in. The United States Code takes all the current federal laws and organizes them by topic. So, all education laws are grouped together, all tax laws are grouped together, and so on. This makes it much easier to find all the rules on a specific subject.

Why Are the Statutes at Large Important?

The Statutes at Large is a very important historical and legal record. It provides a complete and official account of every law and resolution passed by the U.S. Congress since 1789. Lawyers, judges, historians, and even students use these volumes to understand how laws have changed over time and what the exact wording of a law was when it was first passed. It's like a time capsule of American legal history!

Images for kids

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  A few volumes of the Statutes at Large

See also

In Spanish: United States Statutes at Large para niños