The United States Government Manual 2000/2001, Preface, Contents

• Pages: i-vii

The United States Government Manual

2000/2001

Office of the Federal Register

National Archives and Records Administration

Revised June 1, 2000

Raymond A. Mosley,

Director of the Federal Register.

John W. Carlin,

Archivist of the United States.

On the cover: The Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial during the restoration of the monument (from the holdings of the National Park Service).

In preparation for the bicentennial of the Nation's Capital and the new millennium, the National Park Service embarked on a mission to repair the external damage to the monument caused by weather and time and renovate various systems of the interior of the monument. The monument, which opened to the public in 1888, was erected in honor of the Nation's first President, George Washington, and is the tallest freestanding masonry structure in the world. The restoration project includes repairing the stonework, cleaning the facade, modernizing the heating and cooling systems, improving the elevator, and updating the facilities and refurbishing the exhibits on the observation level. To beautify the monument during its restoration while creating a safe workplace for restoration workers, National Park Service constructors erected scaffolding that, in the words of designer Michael Graves,

``echoes the obelisk's beauty even while covering its exterior.'' For more information on the Washington Monument and its restoration, scheduled for completion in 2000, visit the National Park Service Internet site at www.nps.gov/wamo.

Special thanks to Terry J. Adams, Office of Public Affairs, National Park Service for his cooperation and permission to use the photograph of the monument for the cover of the Manual.

For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office

Superintendent of Documents, Mail Stop: SSOP, Washington, DC 20402-9328

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 quasi-official agencies; international organizations in which the United States participates; and boards, commissions, and committees.

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 2000/2001 Manual was prepared by the Presidential and Legislative Publications Unit, Office of the Federal Register. Maxine L. Hill was Lead Editor, Karen L. Ashlin was Managing Editor, and Anna Glover was Chief Editor, assisted by Brad Brooks and Karen Thornton.

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 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 contains 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 the United States Statutes at Large. The Statutes volumes contain all public and private laws and concurrent resolutions enacted during a session of Congress;

recommendations for executive, legislative, and judicial salaries; reorganization plans; proposed and ratified amendments to the Constitution; and Presidential proclamations. Included with many of these documents are sidenotes, U.S. Code and statutes citations, and a summary of their legislative histories.

Publication Availability

The publications of the Office of the Federal Register are available for sale by writing to the following address:

Superintendent of Documents

P.O. Box 371954

Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954.

Publications are also available for sale through the Government Printing Office online bookstore, at www.access.gpo.gov/su--docs/

sale.html, and from Government Printing Office bookstores located in several major cities. Telephone inquiries should be directed to 202-512-

1800.

Electronic Services

The Office of the Federal Register maintains an Internet site for public law numbers, the Federal Register's public inspection list, and information on the Office and its...