Government Information
This blog is created and maintained by Heather Whalen Smith, a reference and government documents librarian at Sojourner Truth Library at the State University of New York at New Paltz. If you have any questions or suggestions, please email them to Heather Whalen Smith at whalenh@newpaltz.edu
Satellite Images of Burma's Cyclone Flooding
NASA has satellite images of Burma before and after Cyclone Nargis hit.
Before & After:
The full article may be viewed here.
Tax Forms
Did you know that most tax forms are available online? Federal tax forms are available through the IRS from their website in PDF format. The most commonly used forms, 1040, 1040EZ, & W-4, can be accessed from the main page. There is also information on e-filing from the webpage. For filing with New York State, you can download most forms from the Department of Taxation and Finance Webpage also available in PDF format. Need to file for a state other than New York? The Federation of Tax Administrators has links the relevant taxation websites of all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
Election Resources
Created to enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act, the Federal Election Commission is a good source for information about election financing.
U.S. Census Bureau: Voting and Registration
Voting and Registration statistics from the U.S. Census.
President Bush's Final State of the Union Address
President Bush issued his last State of the Union Address last night (January 28th). Audio, video, pictures and transcripts are available on the White House webpage in the News Section under President Bush Delivers State of the Union Address.
The DEC has some Good News on Local Environmental Issues
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced on December 26th the creation of the Office of Invasive Species to deal with invasive species in New York State. Invasive species are non-native plants, animals or other life that threatens the biodiversity of the ecosystems they are introduced too. One example of an invasive species currently found in New York State is the zebra mussel, which is found in all of the Great Lakes and the Hudson River. The zebra mussel, which is native to the Caspian Sea, removes microscopic lifeforms and nutrients out of water they live in, often at the disadvanage of native species. You can read more about them at the USGS Great Lakes Science Center. The Office of Invasive Species will work to prevent and combat invasive species. You can learn more from the Department of Conservation’s press release.
More good news: the Department of Environmental Conservation has announced that $1.7 million in grants are available for the Hudson Estuary Grants program! Grants are available for municipalities and non-for-profit agencies. If you are interested in learning more and perhaps applying for a grant, information is available at the Hudson River Estuary Grants Program Webpage.
If you are interested in keeping up to date with the activities of New York State’s Department on Environmental Conservation, you can sign up for their EnvironmentDEC list, which provides you with monthly emails on DEC policies and activities.
New @ STL: Historical Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections
Historical Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections 1788-2004
Call Number: G1201.F9 H5 2006 / Reference
Two pages of maps for each election from 1788 to present include:
- One national map showing the winning candidate for each county
- One national map per major candidate, including important third-party candidates
- Snapshot data and statistical charts on popular and electoral voting, candidate names and parties, and voter turnout
(Taken from CQ Press)
New Books: The Supreme Court Compendium & Historical Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections
The Supreme Court Compendium: Data, Decisions & Developments
Call Number: KF8742 .S914 2007 / Reference
The Supreme Court Compendium is a comprehensive source of historical and statistical information on the U.S. Supreme Court.
GPO Unveils Online Guide to House and Senate Members
This new guide published by the GPO allows users to search 110th Congress Members district, hometown, or groups of Members by state, party affiliation, or number of terms. It is a quick and easy way to search Congressional Pictorial Directory and Congressional Biographical Directory with information from the Congressional Directory coming soon. You can access the Guide to House and Senate Members here.
Terrorism activities in the US
The FBI has published its newest edition of its report summarizing
terrorist activities in the US. The newest report - “Terrorism
2002-2005” can be found as follows and the previous reports are listed
below:
PDF — http://www.fbi.gov/publications/terror/terrorism2002_2005.pdf
HTML — http://www.fbi.gov/publications/terror/terrorism2002_2005.htm
Previous Reports
Terrorism 2000/2001
Terrorism in the United States:
1996
1997
1998
1999
National Strategy for Homeland Security
From the Bush Administration report:
“The purpose of our Strategy is to guide, organize, and unify our Nation’s homeland security efforts. It provides a common framework by which our entire Nation should focus its efforts on the following four goals:
- Prevent and disrupt terrorist attacks;
- Protect the American people, our critical infrastructure, and key resources;
- Respond to and recover from incidents that do occur; and
- Continue to strengthen the foundation to ensure our long-term success.”
