| Guide to Citing Canadian Government Publications | |
Citing government publications in a bibliography often presents difficulties not found with other types of publications. The citations for government publications should conform as much as possible to the style used for the other sources cited. However, to identify government publications adequately, the standard elements: author, title, place, publisher, and date are not always enough. This guide should be used to supplement the standard citation manuals. The suggested forms can be modified to whatever style you are using, but the elements included in the citation should be present whatever the citation style. The basic citation forms used in this guide are based on The Complete Guide to Citing Government Information Resources by Diane Garner and Diane Smith, 1993 ed. (Z7164 G7 G37 Ref.) and Li & Crane's Electronic Styles: A Handbook for Citing Electronic Information, 1996 ed. (PN 171 F56 Ref.). These and some standard citation manuals are listed at the end of this guide. Basic Citation Form (Print Sources):Authoring/Issuing agency. Title. Edition. Place: Publisher, Date. (Series elements). (Notes). 1. Publications of Government Ministries, Departments, Boards, Agencies, etc.AUTHOR/ISSUING AGENCY:Begin each entry with the political jurisdiction (country, province, or municipality) and then the name of the government body responsible for issuing the document:
The jurisdiction is not required if it is contained within the issuing body's name:
Include any branch, department, division or sub-division of the government body, if given, in descending order:
If a personal author is given as well as the government body, enter the personal author after the title:
Documents prepared for the government by consultants should be cited with the consultants listed as personal authors:
When more than one body has issued the work, use the one that is more prominently featured on the title page; if they are all equally prominent, use the first one and give the others in a note at the end of the citation.
TITLE:When the name of the government body is part of the title, it does not have to be repeated in the title. For example: The title page reads: "Report of the Special Senate Committee on the Pearson Airport Agreements":
Series titles and numbers should be added at the end of the citation:
PUBLISHER:The publisher is usually the government body responsible for issuing the document. However, if a major printer or distributor is given (e.g. Queen's Printer, Canadian Government Publishing, or the former Supply and Services) use this as the publisher:
DATE:If a publication has no date visible anywhere, use the initials 'n.d' to indicate this. If you have a good idea of what the date might be (from a library catalogue or bibliography) use this date in square brackets. NOTES:Required notes are anything not covered by the previous entries that the reader needs to know to find exactly the same material you have consulted. For example: formats (microfiche, loose-leaf, etc.), unpublished papers, government assigned numbers, etc.)
2. Parliamentary and Legislative PublicationsThese documents have special characteristics with some different citing requirements. For Debates, Journals, Committee Proceedings, for example, give the legislative body and its subsidiary parts as you would a department and its branches, and including the Parliament number and session:
The following abbreviations are commonly used for Acts: S.C.= Statutes of Canada, R.S.C.=Revised Statutes of Canada, c.=chapter, s=section, ss=sections, ( )=paragraph, but unless you are writing a legal paper or for a legal audience it is usually advisable to give more detail. (Use the short title of an Act when available):
A great deal of government information is now available in formats other than paper. In most cases the examples given above still apply, with the format indicated in the note. However, for electronic sources there are additional elements required to enable a reader to locate the same information. Basic Citation Form (Electronic Sources):For sources on CD-ROM or diskette, the note is the last element required in the citation. For Internet sources or other forms of online databases, the URL or online address, and the date the source was accessed are required. Since electronic sources often contain many separate databases or files, you may need to cite a part of an electronic source as well as the source. Electronic Source cited in full:(Entire databases, online documents are treated as books.) Issuing Agency of content. Title. (edition), (Medium). Place, if available: Supplier, Date, if available. (Note specifying format in more detail, number of diskettes, software, or other, if required). Available: URL or online address [Date accessed].
Electronic Source cited in part:(Electronic journal articles, archived mailings, or information taken from a distinct database on a web site are treated as articles.) Authoring/Issuing Agency of the part's content. "Title of part" (accession number or other identifying number). In: Title. (edition), (Medium). Place, if available: Supplier, Date, if available. (Note specifying format in more detail, number of diskettes, software, or other, if required). Available: URL or online address [Date accessed].
For more details on citing government publications see The Complete Guide to Citing Government InformationResources by Diane Garner and Diane Smith (Z7164 G7 G37 Ref.). The standard citation manuals such as Turabian's Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (LB 2369 T92 Ref.) or the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (LB 2369 G53 Ref.) -- used in the humanities -- and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (BF 76.7 P83 Ref.) -- used in the sciences -- should be consulted for the general rules of footnoting and bibliographic style. Citation guidelines for electronic sources are covered in Li & Crane's Electronic Styles: A Handbook for Citing Electronic Information. (PN 171 F56 Ref.); excerpts available at http://www.uvm.edu/~ncrane/estyles/. For additional help in citing government information please ask at the Library Reference Desk. |
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