The following are some of the best peer-reviewed, academic journals for research on contemporary Canadian local and provincial government and politics, followed by other useful journals and magazines which frequently publish articles on these topics.

Canadian Research Index. (Formerly Microlog Index, Publicat Index, Urban Canada, ProFile.) Toronto: Micromedia ProQuest, 1973 - .

The following are selected online provincial newspaper directories, indexes and collections, most useful for finding news going back to 1945:
Alberta Newspapers Collection. http://www.ourfutureourpast.ca/newspapr/
Historical Directory of Newfoundland and Labrador Newspapers. http://www.library.mun.ca/qeii/newspapers/index.php
Saskatchewan News Index. http://library2.usask.ca/sni/

For the latest provincial government news see the web sites of the provincial/territorial governments and look for "What's New", press releases, media rooms, newsletters, events calendars, etc. This Government of Canada News page links to the main provincial and territorial government press release pages: Provincial and Territorial News.

For news from provincial/territorial legislatures see:
Canadian Parliamentary Review "Legislative Reports" section. By Parliament of Canada, Table Research Branch. Quarterly. 1978 - . http://www.parl.gc.ca/Infoparl/english/index.htm
The "Legislative Reports" section of each issue summarizes important legislation passed or under consideration, committee activities, etc. for each of the provincial and territorial legislatures.

The monthly Provincial Legislative Record and more frequently updated Canadian Legislative Pulse site, both by CCH Canada provide updates to provincial/territorial legislation for a fee. See Primary Sources -- What's Happening Now for the official legislative sites which provide this information up to date and for free.

For municipal/local government news, see the provincial departments responsible for municipal affairs and their links to the official web sites of municipalities (listed in Part 2: Clarification - General Facts). Local government news is also compiled by the following:

Municipal Information Network. By Jaguar Media Inc. http://www.municipalinfonet.com/
This site displays news stories on municipalities for the last 30 days organized by date or region and archived stories are searchable for up to the past year, by province, subject category or keyword.

MuniMall Newsletter. By University of Alberta and Alberta Municipal Affairs. http://www.munimall.net/newsletter/index.nclk
MuniMall is an educational portal for municipal government students, teachers and practitioners and has an excellent free online newsletter that briefly describes and links to important news articles on local government across Canada. Archived issues are online from 2001 on.

Political parties, some research organizations, municipal federations, and other related organizations also provide news on local & provincial government and politics on their web sites (see selected research organizations below and Primary Sources -- What's Happening Now.)

Government Web Sites:
The latest, most well-known publications are generally available on the provincial or local government's web site. See Publications Pages of Provincial and Territorial Government Web Sites, by the Government of Canada Publications. (Note: Some of these links lead only to certain kinds of documents. Check also the main pages for the province or agency.) See the links provided to the official provincial/territorial and municipal government web sites in Part 2: Clarifying - General Facts.

Libraries:
While large university library catalogues and the AMICUS union catalogue can be useful for finding some provincial documents, the main depository libraries for provincial government information are now generally just the Legislative Libraries in each province and territory. These libraries will have many more documents than the government web sites, as they collect and preserve them over the years. Systematic programs to download electronic documents and make them accessible through the legislative library catalogues generally started after 2000 and are slowly progressing in most provinces. Search their online library catalogues for provincial government documents in print and electronic form. Many of these also provide monthly checklists of new publications.

Provincial/Territorial Legislative Libraries:

• Alberta Legislature Library
• British Columbia Legislative Library
• Manitoba Legislative Library
• New Brunswick Legislative Library
• Newfoundland and Labrador Legislative Library
• Northwest Territories Legislative Library
• Nova Scotia Legislative Library
• Nunavut Legislative Library
• Ontario Legislative Library
• Prince Edward Island
• Québec Bibliothèque de l'Assemblée nationale
• Saskatchewan Legislative Library
• Yukon Territory

Government Publication Lists:
Besides the Publications pages on provincial and some municipal government web sites, more comprehensive, historical publication lists or bibliographies exist for all provinces and territories. Many of these can also be used to track changes in department and agency names. The following are selected titles (note exact titles and publishers may vary) for coverage from 1945 on:

• Alberta:
  Government Publications Relating to Alberta: A Bibliography of Publications of the Government of Alberta from 1905 to 1968, and of the Publications of the Government of Canada Relating to the Province of Alberta from 1867 to 1968. By John Forsyth, 1971. Thesis in 8 vols.
  Alberta Government Publications. Public Affairs Bureau, 1973 - . Online.
  
• British Columbia:
  British Columbia Government Publications Monthly Checklist. Crown Publications, 1970-2001 (print). Online by Legislative Library, 2001 - .
  
• Manitoba:
  Manitoba Government Publications. Legislative Library, 1970 - . Monthly with annual cumulations. Only most recent years Online.
  
• New Brunswick:
  Publications of the Governments of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, 1758-1952. By Olga Bishop. Ottawa: National Library, 1957.
  New Brunswick Government Documents: A Checklist of Government Documents Received at the Legislative Library. 1955 - . Monthly with annual cumulations. Online: 2000 - .
  
• Newfoundland and Labrador:
  List of Publications Offered by the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Information Services, 1974-1978. Selected publications Online: 1995 - .
  
• Northwest Territories:
  Publications of the Governments of the North-West Territories and the Province of Saskatchewan, 1877-1947: Preliminary Checklist. By Christine MacDonald, Legislative Library, 1948.
  Government Publications Catalogue. Dept. of Information, 1977 - .
  Checklist of Northwest Territories Government Publications. Legislative Library, 1994 - . Online: 1994 - .
  
• Nova Scotia:
  Publications of the Governments of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, 1758-1952. By Olga Bishop. Ottawa: National Library, 1957.
  Publications of the Province of Nova Scotia. Legislative Library, 1967 - . Monthly Checklist Online: 1995 - .
  Publications Catalogue: Nova Scotia Government Bookstore. 1974 - . Online.
  
• Nunavut:
  Publications. Legislative Library, 1999 - . Online.
  
• Ontario:
  Publications of the Government of Ontario, 1901-1955. By Hazel MacTaggart. Toronto: U. of Toronto Press, 1964.
  Publications of the Government of Ontario, 1956-1971. By Hazel MacTaggart & Kenneth Sundquist. Toronto: Min. of Gov't Services, 1975.
  Ontario Government Publications: Monthly Checklist. Publisher varies, 1971 - . Annual: 1979 - .
  Publications Ontario. Ministry of Government Services, 1989 - . Annual. Online.
  
• Prince Edward Island:
  Publications of the Governments of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, 1758-1952. By Olga Bishop. Ottawa: National Library, 1957.
  PEI Provincial Government Publications Checklist. Island Information Service. Monthly. 1976 - .
  
• Québec:
  Répertoire des publications gouvernementales du Québec, 1867-1964 and 1965-1968. By A. Beaulieu et al. Secrétariat de la Province, 1968 and 1970.
  Catalogue de l'Editeur Officiel du Québec. 1966 - .
  Publications gouvernementales du Québec reçues à la bibliothèque nationale du Québec. 1981- . Online: 2001 - .
  
• Saskatchewan:
  Publications of the Government of the North-West Territories 1876-1905 and the Province of Saskatchewan 1905-1952. Legislative Library, 1952.
  Saskatchewan Publications 1974/75/76 and Supplement. Saskatchewan Library Association, 1977.
  Checklist of Saskatchewan Government Publications. Legislative Library, 1976 - . Monthly with annual cumulations. Online: 1997 - .
  
• Yukon Territory:
  Yukon Bibliography. Boreal Institute for Northern Studies, 1963 - 1987.
  Catalogue of Yukon Government Publications. Government Services, 1995 - . Annual.

Access to Information Requests:
If you have identified provincial or municipal government information that should be available to you, either directly or through libraries, but is not, then you should make a formal request under the Access to Information legislation of the appropriate province or municipality. Every province and territory has similar legislation to the federal Access to Information Act (usually called "Freedom of Information" or "Right to Information") which generally includes access to all provincial and municipal government records, excluding sensitive personnel files and some financial information. In some provinces there is a separate municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. This legislation gives the public the right to access government information, and if not supplied, to file an appeal with the Provincial Commissioner or an Ombudsman who will review the situation.

See Provincial and Territorial Information and Privacy Commissioners by the Library of Parliament, for details on these Acts, how to request information, file an appeal, previous requests and reviews, etc.
Some municipalities also have Freedom of Information Offices (e.g. City of Toronto's CAP Office).

For contact information or links to the web sites of registered provincial political parties in each province, see the links from the Chief Electoral Officer's web site in each province/territory.

Political party financial information (election expenses, contributions, etc.) must also be reported by all provincially registered parties and are made public. See the Chief Electoral Officer's web site for each province/territory. Even if there is a separate office for political financing, there will be a link to it from the official provincial Elections or Chief Electoral Officer's web site. (For example, this information can be found in the Annual Report of the New Brunswick Office of the Supervisor of Political Financing.)

Canada West Foundation. http://www.cwf.ca
A nonprofit research institute founded in 1970 to study the political, economic, environmental and other issues affecting the region, its provinces and territories and to advocate for the region. Its research publications include several on local government, some available online. CWF also sponsors conferences, focus groups and other events.

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA). http://www.policyalternatives.ca/
Founded in 1980, CCPA is an independent, nonpartisan research institute interested in social and economic justice. It is well known for its federal and provincial alternative budgets. They also publish many research papers on provincial and local government and public policy issues.

Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN). http://www.cprn.com
A nonprofit policy think tank founded in 1994 to create knowledge and inform public debate on social and economic issues in Canada. Their key research areas include "Cities and Communities", "Citizen Engagement", "Democracy, Governance and Citizenship", etc. They publish news releases, research reports, policy briefs, commentaries, etc. available online.

Canadian Urban Institute (CUI). http://www.canurb.com/home.php
Established in 1990 by the City of Toronto and the Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto, this nonprofit organization's purpose is to conduct research to enhance policy making and the management of urban areas and exchange information between urban areas in Canada and internationally. One of its publishing areas of interest is "urban governance, systems and infrastructure". These and its other research publications are available online. The CUI also sponsors conferences, seminars, and provides intern opportunities.

Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM). (See also Municipal Associations in each province/territory.) http://www.fcm.ca
A professional association for elected municipal officials since 1901, FCM represents over 1,600 members including provincial and territorial municipal associations, cities and small urban and rural communities. It undertakes and sponsors research and lobbies the federal government on municipal policy and program matters. Some of its publications: research papers, policy statements, submissions to government, etc. are available online. Select "Links" and scroll down to see links to the provincial/territorial municipal associations which also post publications useful for research on local government.

Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance. Munk Centre for International Studies, University of Toronto. http://www.utoronto.ca/mcis/imfg/index.htm
This institute conducts research on government finance and governing structures in Canada's large cities with the goal of finding solutions to their fiscal problems. Its publications (articles, papers, presentations, newsletter and others) are available online. The institute also sponsors conferences, visiting speakers and other educational events.

Intergovernmental Committee on Urban and Regional Research (ICURR). http://www.muniscope.ca/default.aspx
ICURR was created in 1967 at a meeting of First Ministers to exchange information between all levels of government on urban, rural and regional issues. It is funded by the Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation and each of the provinces and territories. The Muniscope web site was developed to disseminate information to ICURR partners and to others for a fee. Research reports are listed and available for purchase to non-members. Non-members must register to search the library holdings of over 11,000 documents collected on Canadian urban, rural and regional issues, and to see the annotated list of new acquisitions. More information and services are available to members.

Local Government Institute. Centre for Public Sector Studies, School of Public Administration, University of Victoria. http://web.uvic.ca/padm/cpss/lgi/index.htm
Founded in 1995, LGI is a research organization dedicated to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of local governments. The site has information on their research projects and a list of their articles, reports, presentations, working papers and books.

Eastern Eye: A Nova Scotia Filmography 1899-1973. http://www.gov.ns.ca/nsarm/databases/easterneye/ By Nova Scotia Archives & Records Management.
An online bibliography of over 2,500 film, video and selected television productions created by, for or about Nova Scotians from 1899 to 1973. It can be searched by subject, genre, name, etc. and includes several on municipal and provincial government and politics.

See also Primary Sources - Recorded Images in the main Part 5 of this guide for more details on how to find videos, and Provincial/Local Primary Sources - Recorded Images for selected examples of primary source audiovisual materials on this topic and their finding aids.