Subject and Course Guides: Urban Planning and Public Affairs: Policy Documents

Policy Review Organizations

CRS Reports from Congress
These documents were prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or material from a third party, you may need to obtain the permission of the copyright holder if you wish to copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.
Congressional Budget Office
Since 1975, CBO has produced independent analyses of budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget process. Each year, the agency’s economists and budget analysts produce dozens of reports and hundreds of cost estimates for proposed legislation.
Government Accountability Office
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress. Often called the "congressional watchdog," GAO investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars.
Every CRS Report
CRS is Congress’ think tank, and its reports are relied upon by academics, businesses, judges, policy advocates, students, librarians, journalists, and policymakers for accurate and timely analysis of important policy issues. The reports are not classified and do not contain individualized advice to any specific member of Congress.
White House Office of Management and Budget
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) serves the President of the United States in overseeing the implementation of his vision across the Executive Branch. Specifically, OMB’s mission is to assist the President in meeting his policy, budget, management and regulatory objectives and to fulfill the agency’s statutory responsibilities.
Federal Register
Published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents.
Policy Archive
A comprehensive digital library of public policy research containing over 30,000 documents.

CQ : Congressional Quarterly Researcher
Provides snapshots of current affairs. Single-themed reports are researched and written by experienced observers from a range of viewpoints. From 1923 to present.
CQ Researcher Reports are published 44 times per year and cover political and social issues, with regular reports on topics in health, international affairs, education, the environment, technology and the U.S. economy. Each 13,000-word CQ Researcher report is a unique work, investigated and written by a seasoned journalist.

Think Tank Pages

The 50 Most Influential Think Tanks in the United States
The institutions on this list make up the 50 most influential think tanks in the United States.
Wikipedia List of Think Tanks in the US
This is a list of notable think tanks in the United States.
Harvard Custom Think Tank Search
Think Tank Search searches the websites of institutions that generate public policy research, analysis, and activity. These sites are affiliated with universities, governments, advocacy groups, foundations, non-governmental organizations, and businesses. Inclusion is based upon the relevancy of subject area to HKS coursework and scholarship, the availability of the think tank’s research in full-text on the website, and the think tank’s reputation and influence upon policy making. The list represents a mixture of partisan and non-partisan think tanks.

Local Chicago Policy Resources

City of Chicago Programs and Initiatives
Information on various City of Chicago Programs & Initiatives.
City of Chicago Rules and Regulations Portal
The City of Chicago Rules and/or any other documents that appear on this site may not reflect the most current Rules adopted by a City of Chicago Department. The City of Chicago provides these documents in one location for informational purposes. These documents should not be relied upon as the definitive authority for local administrative rules. The City of Chicago department that issued the Rules should be consulted prior to any action being taken in reliance upon a City of Chicago rule
Mayor's Press Releases

News Sources

Chicago Tribune (1985-current)
This publication's detailed indexing helps users quickly find the news information they need.
Each issue is indexed thoroughly, so they have access to not only top news stories but also the information contained on the various sections of the paper.
Nexis Uni
New version of Lexis Nexis Academic. Nexis Uni features news, business, and legal sources, radio and television transcripts, federal and state court cases, U.S. Supreme Court decisions back to 1790, and full-text law review articles. See the Newspapers Research Guide [ link https://researchguides.uic.edu/newspapers/top ] for library database coverage of the top 20 U.S. newspapers.
Newspaper Source Plus
Current major newspapers and selected regional newspapers plus newscast transcripts. See the Newspapers Research Guide [ link https://researchguides.uic.edu/newspapers/top ] for library database coverage of the top 20 U.S. newspapers.
Our EBSCOhost databases will be moving to a new user interface starting Monday, May 19th, 2025 with the exception of CINAHL which will transition on August 1st.
For additional information about searching and managing results, please visit the EBSCOhost Transition Center.
Please send additional queries or comments to: ask@uic.libanswers.com
This collection includes cover-to-cover full text for USA Today, The Christian Science Monitor and The Times (London) as well as selected full text from more than 180 regional newspapers including: Boston Globe, Detroit Free Press, Houston Chronicle, Miami Herald, San Jose Mercury News, etc. Full text transcripts are also included from Face the Nation, CBS Evening News with Dan Rather, 60 Minutes, O'Reilly Factor, Hannity & Colmes, National Public Radio, etc.
America's Newspapers
America's News enables library patrons to pinpoint information on people, issues and events in the local area or around the country.
This comprehensive resource offers tens of millions of current and archived full-text articles from news sources nationwide in a single, fully searchable online database.

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Urban Planning and Public Affairs

Policy Review Organizations

Think Tank Pages

Local Chicago Policy Resources

News Sources

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