If you're writing a research paper or report, you probably need to reference government documents. Every time you mention one of them in your report, you will also need a citation that refers to that document. In general, you should include a text citation, as well as a complete citation at the end of the work, through a page dedicated to bibliographic references. The format of these citations varies depending on whether you use the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), or Chicago style.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: MLA Style
Step 1. Include the government and the agency
The full citation in the bibliographic references section begins with the full name of the government and agency that produced the report. Includes all administrative units starting with the largest and ending with the smallest, separated by commas. Put a period at the end of the last administrative unit.
Example: United States, Congress, House, Senate Judiciary Committee
Step 2. Enter the title of the document
Immediately after putting in the name of the government and agency, write the title of the document. Capitalize the first word, as well as proper names, and italicize titles of printed documents. For online government documents, enclose the title in quotation marks. Finally, put a period at the end of the title.
- Example of a printed document: United States, Congress, House, Senate Judiciary Committee. Federal Rules on Insolvency Procedure, December 1, 2015.
- Example of online document: United States, Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Control mosquitoes at home".
Step 3. Finish the citation including the publisher and the date of publication
For printed documents, include the publisher's name followed by a comma. Put the year the document was published and put a period at the end. For online documents, italicize the name of the website where the document can be located followed by a comma. Include the specific date the document was published, then a comma, and finally the direct URL or “permalink” that leads to the document.
- Example of a printed document: United States, Congress, House, Senate Judiciary Committee. Federal Rules on Insolvency Procedure, December 1, 2015. Government Printing Office, 2015.
- Example of online document: United States, Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Control mosquitoes at home". Zika virus, May 5, 2016, www.cdc.gov/zika/prevention/controlling-mosquitoes-at-home.html.
Step 4. Include all administrative units in the citation in parentheses
The MLA style includes the author and page number in parenthetical citations. In the case of government documents, the government agency is considered as the author of that document.
- Example: (United States, Congress, House, Senate Judiciary Committee 14)
- Do not abbreviate the names of the countries or other administrative units. However, abbreviate those words that have a common abbreviation, such as "ministry." For example: (United States, Ministry of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 3)
- If the pages are not numbered, use explicitly numbered parts of the work, such as paragraphs or chapters, whenever available. If there aren't any numbered parts either, just use the name of the government agency.
Method 2 of 3: APA Style
Step 1. Begin the citation with the author's name
The complete citation begins with the last name of the author of the document followed by the initial of their first name. In the case of multiple authors, separate the names using commas and the ampersand "&" before the name of the last one. If the text does not provide an author's name, use the government agency that produced the document as the name. Put a period at the end.
- Example with the name of authors: Edwards, N., Sims-Jones, N., Hotz, S., & Cushman, R.
- Example with the name of the government agency: Ontario Ministry of Health.
Step 2. Write the year of publication in parentheses
After the author's name, open parentheses and write the year the document was published. Close the parentheses and place a period after their closing.
Example: Ontario Ministry of Health (1994)
Step 3. Write the title of the document in italics
Capitalize the initial of the first word, as well as proper names when writing the title of the document in the citation. Put a period at the end of the title.
Example: Ontario Ministry of Health (1994). Selected findings from the Ontario Health Survey Mental Health Supplement
Step 4. Put the publication information in the case of printed documents
Include the location, then a colon followed by the publisher's name. In the case of US government documents, the publisher will generally be the “Government Printer”. Generally, the publisher or the name of the government printer will be included in the document along with the publication information.
- Example: Ontario Ministry of Health (1994). Selected findings from the Ontario Health Survey Mental Health Supplement. Ottawa, ON: Ontario Central Printing Office.
- For government documents that have multiple authors, include a statement after the title that the report or document was prepared for a government agency. For example: Edwards, N., Sims-Jones, N., Hotz, S., & Cushman, R. (1997). Development and testing of components of a multifaceted intervention program to reduce the incidence of relapse to cigarette use during pregnancy and the postpartum stage for both women and their partners. Report prepared for Health Canada at the Community Health Research Unit, University of Ottawa, Canada.
Step 5. End the appointment with a direct URL or permanent link for the online documents
If the document you are citing is only available on the Internet, simply put the URL immediately after the title. If the document is available in print or in some other location, use the phrase "Retrieved from" followed by a colon, and then copy the URL.
- Example: US Office of the Comptroller General (June, 2012). Employment for people with disabilities: Little is known about the effectiveness of fragmented and overlapping programs. Recovered from:
- If the government agency that published the report is not listed as the author, include their name after the words "Recovered from." For example: Oscar-Berman, M. & Marinkovic, K. (2012). Alcoholism and the Brain: An Overview. Retrieved from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health:
Step 6. Use the author and year for in-text citations in parentheses
When including a citation or paraphrasing of information from the government document, please include the author's last name or the name of the government agency along with the year the document was published. Separate these items using a comma. For direct citations, place a comma after the year and include the page number where the citation appears after the abbreviation "p.".
- Paraphrase Example: (Ontario Ministry of Health, 1994)
- Direct citation example: (Ontario Ministry of Health, 1994, p. 24)
- If the document does not have page numbers, use paragraph numbers after the abbreviation "for".
Method 3 of 3: Chicago Style
Step 1. Start with the name of the government agency or ministry
The government agency or ministry is considered the author of the document. It includes the administrative units from the largest to the smallest. In your bibliographic reference, separate each unit with a period.
Example: US Home Office. National Park Service. Northeast region
Step 2. Write the title of the document in italics
Capitalize the first word, as well as all proper nouns or entities. Put a period at the end of the title, unless the author's name is included.
Example: US Home Office. National Park Service. Northeast region. Schoodic: Draft amendment to the general management plan and environmental impact statement
Step 3. Write the author's name if it is included
If the document shows the author's name, it must be included in the citation. Place a comma after the title, write the word "by" and add the author's name starting with his first name, followed by the second initial and last his last name. Note that it is not necessary to italicize your name.
Example: US Home Office. U. S. Geological Survey Assessment of Coal Geology, Resources, and Reserves in Montana's Powder River Basin, by Jon E. Haacke, David C. Scott, Lee M. Osmonson, James A. Luppens, Paul E. Pierce and Jay A. Gunderson
Step 4. Include any publication or report number
Many government documents have a specific report number, particularly those that are issued periodically. If you see a report or publication number at the top of the document, include it in your citation exactly as it appears in the document.
Example: US Home Office. U. S. Geological Survey Assessment of Coal Geology, Resources, and Reserves in Montana's Powder River Basin, by Jon E. Haacke, David C. Scott, Lee M. Osmonson, James A. Luppens, Paul E. Pierce and Jay A. Gunderson. Open File Report 2012-1113
Step 5. Finalize the appointment with the publication information
For printed documents, include the location of the publisher, followed by a colon, and then the publisher's name. Place a comma after this name and write the year the document was published. If you found such a document on the Internet, use the word "Accessed" and include the date you accessed it, along with a direct URL to its location.
- Example: US Home Office. U. S. Geological Survey Assessment of Coal Geology, Resources, and Reserves in Montana's Powder River Basin, by Jon E. Haacke, David C. Scott, Lee M. Osmonson, James A. Luppens, Paul E. Pierce and Jay A. Gunderson. Open File Report 2012-1113. Reston, Virginia, 2013. Accessed January 25, 2018.
- If the document was published by the ministry or government agency that you have already listed as the author, simply enter the location and year of publication. For example: US Department of the Interior. National Park Service. Northeast region. Schoodic: Draft amendment to the general management plan and environmental impact statement. Maine, 2004. Accessed January 25, 2018.
Step 6. Adjust the punctuation for the footnotes
Chicago style footnotes include the same information as the citation. However, separate items in a footnote using commas instead of periods. Put the location of the publication, the name of the publisher, and the year of publication in parentheses.