Occasionally, the text of a bill is included as well as analysis of its content. Most bills, however, die in committee. For these bills there will be no report. Committee reports provide an excellent source for legislative intent. They include the general intent of committee members as well as revealing minority statements by legislators who disagree with the bill.
Reports frequently contain a section by section analysis of the proposed legislation.
If different versions of a bill are passed by the House and the Senate, a conference committee must meet to reconcile the differences. The first number refers to the session of Congress. Conference Committee Reports are assigned a number within either the House or Senate Report series. The Legal Information Center receives reports in print from the Judicial Committees, the Finance Committees, the Joint Committee on Taxation, and the House Ways and Means Committee. The SuDoc number will help you locate these items.