WestlawNext
A state can have up to five different types of legislative documents available, including:
- Legislative journals (e.g., VA-LH-JRNLS)
- Messages from the state governor (e.g., WA-LH-MSG)
- Status reports and chronological history of bills (e.g., WI-LH-REP)
- Transcripts of hearings and debates (e.g., CT-LH-TMY)
- Voting records (e.g., NY-LH-VOTES)
The following databases are also available for states:
- Bill text and bill tracking databases (e.g., CT-BILLTXT, CT-BILLTRK-OLD)
- Session law databases (e.g., CT-LEGIS, CT-LEGIS-OLD)
To access a state's Legislative History Database
- From the Directory > All Content tab > Legislative History > choose a State
- Coverage varies by state and may include documents related to laws passed by the state legislature including bill histories, House and Senate journals and roll call votes, and governors' messages.
- You can search a state's Legislative History database and apply filters and search within results
WestlawNext (three methods of researching legislative history from a code section)
- From the Credit(s) of an annotated code section
- While viewing an annotated code section, from the History tab, choose "Legislative History Materials" to access legislative history materials relevant to a statute section, such as committee reports, floor testimony, and executive messages