Tutorial Start               History FAQs

The bill I am researching is from the time period prior to 1965.  Where do I go from here?

(You will need to go to a library to complete your research.  Here is a list of libraries with the necessary materials.)

Unfortunately, no committee minutes exist for years prior to 1965.  (Legislative committee minutes do not exist prior to 1965 as the committees were not required to retain records of hearings. Not all standing committees kept minutes from 1965 through 1973. The Assembly adopted a standing rule in 1973 to maintain the minutes of standing committee meetings. The Senate adopted a similar rule in 1975.)

· First, look up the bill in the Senate History or Assembly History volume for the appropriate year.  The History will show the chronology for the bill, including which committees held hearings.  Copy the chronology.  This will act as a guide when compiling your history, and as a table of contents to the finished product.  The first History volumes were produced in 1947.

· Second, look up your bill in the Assembly Journal and Senate Journal.  Each Journal has an index of bills, referring you to the pages where your bill is mentioned or acted upon.  In the Journal you will find any amendments made to the bill, votes on the Assembly or Senate floor, and legislator comments if the legislator asked to have his/her comments entered into the Journal.  If the legislator did not ask to have the comments entered, the Journal will simply read, “Remarks made by Senator X.”

· The final step is to copy all the versions the bill went through during the process:  the introduced version of the bill, any reprints (redrafts) if the bill was amended, and the enrolled (final) version of the bill.  The enrolled version is found in the Statutes of Nevada.  Introduced bills and reprints will not be available at all the libraries linked to above, or may only be available for a certain date range.  Please check with the staff of the library to see what they have on hand.  The Research Library has reprints going back to 1911.

What else might I need to know, or where else might I look?