Revised June 1, 1986 John E. Byrne, Director of the Federal Register. Frank G. Burke, Acting Archivist of the United States. For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, DC 20402 7-16-36 Preface As the official handbook of the Federal Government, The United States Government Manual provides comprehensive information on the agencies of the legislative, judicial, and executive branches. The Manual also includes information on quasiofficial agencies, international organizations in which the United States participates, and boards, committees, and commissions. A typical agency description includes a list of principal officials, a summary statement of the agency's purpose and role in the Federal Government, a brief history of the agency, including its legislative or executive authority, a description of its programs and activities, and a "Sources of Information" section. This last section provides information on consumer activities, contracts and grants, employment, publications, and many other areas of public interest. The 1986/87 Manual was prepared by the Presidential Documents and Legislative Division, Office of the Federal Register. Rachel L. Jefferies was Chief Editor, and Kimberly M. Ashworth and Cassandra R. Costley were Associate Editors. THE FEDERAL Register and ITS SPECIAL EDITIONS The Manual is published as a special edition of the Federal Register (see 1 CFR 9.1). Its focus is on programs and activities. Persons interested in detailed organizational structure, the regulatory documents of an agency, or Presidential documents should refer to the Federal Register or one of its other special editions, described below. Issued each Federal working day, the Federal Register provides a uniform system for publishing Presidential documents, regulatory documents with general applicability and legal effect, proposed rules, notices, and documents required to be published by statute. The Code of Federal Regulations is an annual codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register. The Code is divided into 50 titles that represent broad areas subject to Federal regulation. The Code is kept up to date by the individual issues of the Federal Register. The Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents serves as a timely, up-to-date reference source for the public policies and activities of the President. It contains the remarks, news conferences, messages, statements, and other Presidential material of a public nature issued by the White House during the week reported. A companion publication to the Weekly Compilation is the Public Papers of the Presidents, which provides public Presidential documents and speeches in convenient book form. Volumes of the Public Papers have been published for every President since Herbert Hoover, with the exception of Franklin D. Roosevelt, whose papers were published privately. OTHER OFFICE OF THE FEDERAL REGISTER PUBLICATIONS The Office of the Federal Register publishes slip laws, which are pamphlet prints of each public and private law enacted by Congress. Slip laws are compiled annually as |