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your partner in legislative research
Legislative Reference Library of Texas
your partner in legislative research
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National Library Week 2018

Apr 10

posted by TexasLRL in National Library Week

In honor of National Library Week, we compiled some interesting facts about the Legislative Reference Library. Did you know…

  • The LRL's current location on the second floor of the State Capitol has been in continuous use as a library since 1889. Learn more about the library's adaptive historical room treatment.
  • The Legislative Reference Library was created by Acts 1969, 61st Leg., p. 154, Ch. 55 (Senate Bill 263) and placed under the direct supervision of the Texas Legislature. However, the LRL's beginnings date to 1909, when the newly formed Texas Library and Historical Commission (now the Texas State Library and Archives Commission) was directed to establish "a section of the State Library for legislative reference and information" (Acts 1909, 31st Leg., p. 126, Ch. 70 (House Bill 142).
  • The library's print collection includes original bill files from the 63rd Legislature (1973) to the present, session laws dating back to the Republic of Texas, Texas House and Senate Journals back to the 1890s, Texas agency documents, books and periodicals covering a wide range of topics, and more. Our oldest Texas print title is the Laws Passed at a Special Session of the Sixth Congress of the Republic of Texas, dated 1842.
  • Our librarians are consistently working to add digitized records to our already significant collection of electronic resources. The Legislative Archive System, Texas Legislators: Past & Present, and Constitutional Amendments are just a few of the many digital resources that can be accessed at the Capitol and beyond.
  • The Legislative Clipping Service and Clippings Archive marked its 40th anniversary in 2016 and covers the period 1900 to the present. In addition to clipping articles from about 25 Texas daily newspapers, the database includes links to bills and reports referenced in the clippings.
  • This blog, Points of Interest, hit the 1 million views mark in February 2018. With posts ranging from bill statistics to resources for interim hearings to historical perspectives and more, the blog is just one more tool we use to share our resources with the legislative community and public.

This is only a brief glance at the Legislative Reference Library's efforts to serve members of the Texas Legislature, state agencies, and the public. We invite you to explore our website, read our blog, follow us on Twitter and Pinterest, and/or subscribe to one of the library's RSS feeds to learn more about our tools and services available for legislative research.

 

Image: The Texas State Library, circa 1915. Photo courtesy of the Texas State Preservation Board.

Cover image: Rendering detail of the LRL by Laura Chapa. Image courtesy of the Texas State Preservation Board.

This entry was posted on April 10, 2018 at 2:15 PM and has received 1071 views. Print this entry.