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These sources provide background on areas of U.S. public policy and describe the institutions and people who influence them.
Guide to U. S. Economic Policy by 
Guide to U. S. Foreign Policy by 
Guide to U. S. Health and Health Care Policy by 
Science and Politics: An A-to-Z Guide to Issues and Controversies by These sources provide overviews of controversial issues, usually with pros and cons representing major perspectives.
Scholarly articles can provide very robust information on the need for, and effectiveness of, various public policies. In addition to searching the databases on the General Resources page, you can also search databases on subjects related to the public policy you are researching. For example, if you are studying education policy, you could search education databases.
To find databases on your area of interest, use the Databases by Subject page.
Congressional Research ServiceThe Congressional Research Service (CRS) is Congress's in-house think tank, providing research on all types of policy issues and affects of potential legislation for the legislative branch.
Note: some foreign policy related CRS reports are only available in partial form online because they use classified information.
Until recently, CRS reports were not directly published to the public, and the following sites made access to them available. All new reports should now be available from the official source above.
Think tanks and advocacy groups are major sources of policy research and proposed public policies. Some of these organizations are very influential in the federal government, and presidential administrations often draw from these groups when looking to fill policy-making positions. Many of these organizations have explicit ideological or partisan perspectives, which you should account for as you use their research.
The American Policy Directory from the University of Oregon Libraries is a near-comprehensive collection of US think tanks and advocacy groups. It is organized by policy areas to help you find organizations working in areas that interest you.