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During the interim, legislators begin preparing for the next legislative session through interim charges, committee hearings, and research. An important tool for legislators is the Legislative Reference Library, or LRL. The primary purpose of the Legislative Reference Library is to satisfy the reference and research needs of the Legislature, its staff, and its committees. Whenever possible within this framework, the library assists the public and other state agencies with legislative research.
The Legislative Reference Library was created in 1969, prior to which it existed as the Legislative Reference Division of the Texas State Library. In the early 1960s, the division's holdings consisted of 20,000 bound volumes, mostly law books, statutes of all 50 states, and reference books. Included in the holdings was a card file indexing all bills introduced in the Texas Legislature since the early 1920s and a newspaper clipping file with over 90,000 clippings. Today, the library's collection has grown to approximately 49,400 titles and 134,772 volumes. The oldest Texas print title is the Senate Journal from the 3rd Legislature, dated 1850.
The core collection includes Texas resources (statutes, session laws dating back to the Republic of Texas, Texas House and Senate Journals back to the 1890s); original bill files from the 63rd Legislature to the present; statutes for all 50 states; selected federal sources; Texas agency documents; and more than 500 subscriptions to magazines, law reviews, and newsletters. The print collection is enhanced by electronic sources, many of which are available on the library's website and include pre-1973 legislation; information on past and present legislators; gubernatorial documents and vetoes; constitutional amendments; state budgets; redistricting; and Texas law timelines.
One of the most helpful things the LRL does is compile a list of articles from publications across the state which pertain to legislation or issues of state-wide importance. These clips are compiled every day, and allow legislators and their staff to quickly peruse news from across the state. These clips, many other informational reports on state issues, and, during the session, bills, are available to the public on the Library's website.
For more information on the Legislative Reference Library, please visit the website www.lrl.state.tx.us. You can contact my office by writing to P.O. Box 2910, Austin, TX 78768-2910 or by emailing me at larry.phillips@house.state.tx.us. My district office phone number is (903) 891-7297.
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