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Forms,
Vital Records, & Draft Registration
Congress,
Government Officials, & Legal Information
Statistics,
Travel, & Country Information
Labor
Laws, Worker’s Compensation, Small Business, & Job
Information
Hot
Topics & Miscellaneous Information
FORMS, VITAL RECORDS, &
DRAFT REGISTRATION
Where
do I go to get a birth or death certificate?
How
do I get a Social Security Card?
How
do I check my Social Security earnings statement?
Where
can I get a copyright form?
Where
can I get Federal and State tax forms and publications?
How
do I register for the draft?
Where
can I obtain military records?
Where
can I find a listing of government forms available on the
Internet?
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CONGRESS, GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, AND LEGAL
INFORMATION
Who
is my representative in the California Legislature?
Who
is my representative in the United States Congress?
Where
can I find information on campaign contributions?
Where
can I find general information on the structure of the United States
Government?
Where
can I find a directory of United States Government Department and
Agencies?
Where
can I find the name of current U.S. officials like the Secretary of
State?
What
is the Congressional Record?
How
does a bill become a law?
Where
can I find the laws for the United States?
Where can I find the laws for
California?
Where
can I find out about the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)?
Where
can I find the Child Support Guidelines for the State of
California?
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STATISTICS,
TRAVEL, AND COUNTRY INFORMATION
Where
can I get a passport and/or visa?
Where
can I find tips, regulations, health advisories and warnings for traveling
outside the United States?
Can
you help me find information on a specific country?
Where
can I find demographic and economic statistics?
Where
can I find out about recreation and camping sites in the United
States?
Where
can I find out about California road conditions?
Where
can I find out about travel delays from U.S. airports?
Where
can I find statistics on Internet and computer usage in America?
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LABOR LAWS,
WORKER’S COMPENSATION, SMALL BUSINESS, & JOB INFORMATION
Where
can I find out about state and federal government job openings and how to
apply?
Can
you help me find job openings listed on the internet?
Can
you help me find information on starting, financing, and running a small
business?
What
are the Child Labor Laws for the State of California?
What
is the minimum wage?
Where
can I find wage estimates for a particular occupation?
Where
can I find out about Licensed Occupations in California and other
states?
Where
can I find out about California’s Workers’ Compensation System?
Where
can I find information about companies that have been awarded government
contracts?
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HOT TOPICS &
MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
Where
can I find information on patents and trademarks?
Where
can I find information on government auctions?
Where can I find information on recalls?
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FORMS, VITAL RECORDS, & DRAFT
REGISTRATION
Where do I go to get a birth or
death certificate?
The Department of Health and Human Services
publishes a document titled "Where
to Write for Vital Records." Look up the state in which the event
occurred to find the address and fee information for obtaining birth,
death, marriage, and divorce certificates. Since vital records are
handled at the state level, Internet services vary greatly.
You can find the home pages for all fifty state governments by using State and
Local Government on the Net. From the state home page you can
search for information on how to request vital records from that
state.
How do I get a Social
Security Card?
The Social
Security Office has detailed instructions and the necessary forms to
obtain a new or replace a lost Social Security Card available on their web
site.
How do I check my Social
Security earnings statement?
You should check your social
security earnings statement at least once every three years for errors. To
do so you need to request a Personal Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statement from
the Social Security Administration.
Where can I get a copyright
form?
The copyright office has basic information on copyrights
and the necessary forms available on their web site.
Where can I get Federal and
State tax forms and publications?
Federal tax forms and publications are available from
1992 to the current tax year on the Internal Revenue Service web
site. California tax
forms are available from the California Franchise Tax Board's web
site.
How do I register for the
draft?
The Selective Service System has information regarding the
draft including a section for registering online.
Where can I obtain
military records?
Military and Federal civilian employee
records are housed at the National
Personnel Records Center in St. Louis.
Where can I find a listing
of government forms available on the Internet?
Uncle
Sam—Forms from the Feds is a listing of downloadable government
electronic forms. The site is not comprehensive, however, it does contain
the forms most asked for by the public.
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CONGRESS, GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, AND LEGAL
INFORMATION
Who is my
representative in the California Legislature?
Look up both
the Senator and Representative for your district by zip code.
From the Vote Smart home page, page down to the bottom of the page and
enter your zip code. The resulting page will show you who your Federal and
State representatives are.
Who is my representative in
the United States Congress?
Not sure which district
you are in? Then try this lookup service by zip
code
Where can I find information on
campaign contributions?
Opensecrets.org maintains a web site with information on
money spent in U.S. elections. It includes information on individual
states. For similar information on candidates running for federal
office visit the Federal Election Commission web site.
Where can I find general
information on the structure of the United States
Government?
The House of Representatives and the
Congressional Research Service have provided answers to frequently asked
questions regarding the Constitution, Congress, the Presidency, and the
Supreme Court in the publication Our
American Government. For information on the United States Court System
go to the Federal
Judiciary Frequently Asked Questions page.
Where can I find a directory of
United States Government Department and Agencies?
The U.S.
Government Manual is the official handbook of the Federal Government.
It contains comprehensive information on government agencies including: a
listing of principal officers, telephone numbers, addresses and a general
overview of the purpose and role the agency has in the Federal Government.
The U.S.
Government TTY Directory has department phone numbers for individuals
who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have speech disabilities.
What is the
Congressional Record?
The Congressional Record is the most widely recognized
published account of the debates, proceedings, and activities of the
United States Congress.
How does a bill become a
law?
The legislative process is
detailed in both a senate and a house report. Click on one of the
following links for an explanation of how a bill becomes a
law.
The Legislative Process Tying It All Together
Summary
of House Description of the Legislative Process
How Our
Laws Are Made
House description of the legislative process
Enactment of a Law
Senate description of the
legislative process
Where can I find the laws of the
United States?
The United States
Code contains the text of laws currently in force. Laws recently
enacted by Congress and not yet codified into the US Code are found in the
Public Laws. Regulations issued by executive branch
agencies are available in the Code of Federal Regulations. Proposed regulations and
regulations adopted so recently that they are not yet in the Code of
Federal Regulations, may be found in the Federal
Register or through Regulations.gov. For laws of other countries go to
the Library of Congress Guide to Law Online. For Tribal Constitutions and
Codes go to the Native
American Constitution and Law Digitization Project.
Where can I find the laws for
California?
The California
Statutes contain the text of current laws enacted by the California
Legislature. Statutes for other states can be found using the following
sources: State Statutes and Legislation and FindLaw
State Resources.
Where can I find out about the Freedom
of Information Act (FOIA)?
The American
Civil Liberties Union handbook, Using the
Freedom of Information Act: A Step-by-Step Guide, available on
their web page, gives information on FOIA basics and how to fill out a
FOIA request. Your Right to Federal Records (pdf) will also answer
some basic questions about FOIA requests.
Where can I find the Child
Support Guidelines for the State of California?
Child Support
Guidelines can be found at the Support Guidelines
webpage. Look under California Family Code sections
4050-4076. The formula for calculating child support is in Family
Code section 4055.
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STATISTICS, TRAVEL, AND COUNTRY
INFORMATION
Where can I get a passport and/or
visa?
The Consular Affairs office has
information on passport and visa
services and application forms available on their web site.
Where can I find tips,
regulations, health advisories, and warnings for traveling outside the
United States?
Find out about
foreign entry requirements, travel
warnings, general travel tips, health
advisories and custom regulations from government web
sites.
Can you help me find
information on a specific country?
The government has several publications
that contain general information about specific countries. Some of these
include the CIA World Factbook, Country Studies, Background
Notes, and Country Commercial Guides. For more in depth
information, Export.gov provides a market
research library for individuals wishing to export
materials.
Where can I find demographic
and economic statistics?
The best
sites for demographic and economic statistics produced by the federal
government are the Census
Bureau, the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Economic
Statistics Briefing Room, the Social
Statistics Briefing Room, the Statistical
Abstract of the United States, and FedStats.
Where can I find out
about recreation and camping sites in the United
States?
For information about recreation on federal lands
try Recreation.GOV.
For information on National Parks try ParkNet.
Where can I find out
about California road conditions?
The California Department of
Transportation has information regarding road conditions.
Where can I find out about travel delays from U.S.
airports?
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) maintains
the Air Traffic Control
System Command Center on the web. This site offers real-time
status reports on many of the nation's busiest airports. For
information on a particular airlines performance history, including delays
and consumer complaints, visit the web site of the FAA Aviation Consumer
Protection Division. This site also includes some travel
tips. For flights to and from John Wayne Airport, scroll down
to "More Information" on their website and click on "Live Flight Information." For
flight schedules to and from LAX, click on their "Flight Schedules"
button.
Where can I
find statistics on Internet and computer usage in
America?
There are two publications on the Internet that
include these kinds of statistics. Falling through the Net: Toward Digital Inclusion
and A
Nation Online: How Americans are Expanding Their Use of the Internet
.
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LABOR LAWS, WORKER’S
COMPENSATION, SMALL BUSINESS, & JOB INFORMATION
Where can I find out
about state and federal government job openings and how to
apply?
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for the federal government
and the state of California have information regarding
government job openings available on their Web sites. For
information on how to apply for a federal job, including electronic copies
of necessary forms, go to the Applications
for Federal Employment page of the OPM Web site.
Can you help me find
job openings listed on the internet?
California Job Bank lists current job openings
throughout the state of California.
Can you help me find
information on starting, financing, and running a small
business?
There are several government web sites containing
small business information. The U.S.
Business Advisor is a gateway to some of this information. The Small Business Administration
has information on financing and starting a small business. They also sponsor the Small Business
Classroom with interactive business guidance. The Internal Revenue
Service has the Small Business Corner with helpful links for starting
and operating a small business. OSHA has a Small Business Resource page with safety and health
information specific to smaller employers.
Information specific to California businesses can
be obtained from the California Small Business Development
Center.
What are the Child Labor
Laws for the State of California?
The California Department of Industrial
Relations Division of Labor Standards Enforcement has an overview of Child Labor Laws on their web site. For
information on federal labor laws for teenagers go to the Youth Rules section of
the Department of Labor's web site.
What is the minimum
wage?
The current federal
minimum wage and state minimum wage laws can be found on the U.S.
Department of Labor web site.
Where can I find wage
estimates for a particular occupation?
Wages by Area and Occupation and Occupational
Employment and Wage Estimates are available on the Internet from the
Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Where can I find out
about Licensed Occupations in California and other states?
The
Licensed Occupations Tool allows you to search by state or occupation
to find out about licensing requirements for specific occupations.
Where can I
find out about California's Workers’ Compensation System?
The
California Department of Labor has a web site for the Workers’
Compensation Division which provides a general overview of the system,
forms, and answers to frequently asked questions about workers’
compensation. It also has a link to a pamphlet called "A Guide for Injured
Worker" that explains your rights to worker's compensation benefits
and how to obtain them.
Where can
I find information about companies that have been awarded government
contracts?
Information on federal government contractors is
available from a variety of sites. The Federal
Procurement Data Center has a database that is searchable by
contractor name or geographic location. They also provide the Federal Procurement
Report online. This report provides a statistical overview of
the procurements of more than 60 federal agencies. The Central Contractor Registration
Database provides access to information on over 150,000 vendors
registered to do business with the Department of Defense, NASA, and the
Department of Transportation. The Small Business Administration's Pro-Net and Sub-Net provide
information to small businesses regarding procurement and subcontracting
opportunities. You will also find an online version of the Subcontracting Opportunities Directory on the SBA web
site. The Commerce Business Daily is also available online and is
searchable by awardee name. For current
procurement opportunities with the federal government go to the Federal Business
Opportunities web page.
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HOT TOPICS & MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION
Where can I find information on
patents and trademarks?
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has a wonderful web
site that includes answers to frequently asked questions, forms, fees, and
searchable databases of existing patents and trademarks. The databases are
somewhat limited in their scope, therefore, it is important to read the
help sections and important notices before beginning your
search. Patents and trademarks each have their own separate section.
Where can I find information on government
auctions?
There is a listing of links to government surplus sales/auctions available from the
FirstGov website. In addition, you can find listings for government
sales and auctions, including regional sales, through the Treasury
Department.
Where can I find information on recalls?
This is a one-stop shop for U.S. government recalls
where you can go to search for recalls on vehicles, food, medicine,
and other consumer products.
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Updated 4/10/08 vgc
| 
Government Depository
Collection