Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing | Vol. 22 | No. 1 | Fall 2013 46

Cite as: Patrick J. Charles, Reading and Understanding a Source Credit in the United States Code, 22 Perspectives: Teaching Legal Res. & Writing 46 (2013). Reading and Understanding a Source Credit in the United States Code “The organization, structure, and By Patrick J. Charles Both non-positive and positive law titles contain designations Patrick Charles is the Interim Director of the Chastek laws; however, they are the result of different in non-positive Library and Assistant Professor of Law at Gonzaga processes. Non-positive law titles contain separately University School of Law in Spokane, Wash. enacted statutes that have been arranged by the law titles differ editors of the U.S. Code.4 The organization, structure, significantly from The United States Code and designations in non-positive law titles differ The United States Code (U.S. Code) is the official significantly from statutes passed by Congress. statutes passed by version of the permanent and general laws of Congress has enacted positive law titles into law in Congress. Congress. It is organized in a broad subject- their entirety, including the organization, structure, 5 ” matter arrangement and consists of fifty-one designations, and text. Essentially, Congress titles.1 A new edition of the U.S. Code is published takes the entire title and enacts it into law. every six years, and a cumulative supplement A source credit immediately follows the text of is published each year in between editions. each section of the U.S. Code. The source credit The Office of the Law Revision Counsel of lists the law that enacted the section along with the United States House of Representatives is any amendments, and explains the derivations to responsible for preparing new editions and each section. The source credit provides the public supplements to the U.S. Code. It also prepares law number (or chapter number for legislation legislation to enact titles of the U.S. Code into prior to 1957) and citation to the United States positive law. Twenty-six titles of the U.S. Code2 have Statutes at Large (Statutes at Large) for the original been enacted into positive law, and pursuant to 1 enactment and any amendments. If a U.S. Code U.S.C. § 204 (a), the text is legal evidence of the law title has been enacted into positive law, it will contained in those titles; it is positive evidence of provide the public law number and Statutes at the law. The other twenty-five titles of the U.S. Code Large citation in which Congress enacted the title are prima facie evidence of the laws they contain.3 into positive law. There will also be a “Historical and Revision Notes” section indicating where that statutory section was located in the non-positive law title of the U.S. Code and the source credit for the non-positive law statutory section. 1 On December 18, 2010, Congress passed Public Law No. 111- 314. This created title 51 of theUnited States Code and is entitled This information is useful for several reasons. National and Commercial Space Programs. This statute revised and restated certain laws relating to national and commercial @@ The source credit provides the statutory space programs, http://uscode.house.gov/browse/prelim@ derivation for each section and shows how title51&edition=prelim. many times a section has been amended. If 2 According to the Office of Law Revision Counsel, the following titles of the U.S. Code have been enacted into positive law: 1, 3, 4, 5, one knows how many times a section has been 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 17, 18, 23, 28, 31, 32, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 44, 46, amended then one can determine what the 49, and 51, http://uscode.house.gov/about/info.shtml.

3 For a more in-depth discussion of positive law and the United States Code, see Michael J. Lynch, The U.S. Code, the Statutes at Large, 4 Office of the Law Revision Counsel, Positive aw Codification, and Some Peculiarities of Codification, 16 L.R.S.Q. 69 (1997) and http://uscodebeta.house.gov/codification/legislation.shtml. Druet Cameron Klugh, Are You Positive About “Positive Law”?, 10 Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing 81 (2002). 5 Id. Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing | Vol. 22 | No. 1 | Fall 2013 47

statutory law was at some specific point in time the Statutes at Large. In non-positive law titles by looking at previous editions of the U.S. Code. of the U.S. Code, this is known as the “base law,” and it is the act on which the U.S. Code section @@ The source credit provides information that is based and of which it remains a part.7 is crucial when compiling a legislative history. To compile a legislative history for the original The source credit also indicates that 42 U.S.C. enactment of a statutory section or any of its § 4054 has been amended twice. First on December amendments, one needs the public law number 31, 1973, by § 111 of title I of Public Law No. or the citation to the Statutes at Large. 93-234, and again on November 30, 1983 by § 451(d)(1) of title IV of Public Law No. 98-181. @@ For non-positive law titles of the U.S. Code, the source credit is necessary to verify the accuracy Example of an “As Added” Source Credit in of a code section. In a non-positive law title of Non-Positive Law Titles of the U.S. Code the U.S. Code, if there is a conflict between the 2 U.S.C. § 439a language of the U.S. Code and the Statutes at Large, the language of the Statutes at Large governs.6 (Pub. L. 92-225, title III, § 313, as added Pub. L. 107-155, title III, § 301; Mar. 27, 2002, 116 Basic Elements of a U.S. Code Source Credit Stat. 95; amended Pub. L. 108-447, div. H, Generally, each entry in the source credit title V, § 532, Dec. 8, 2004, 118 Stat. 3272.) following a U.S. Code section in non-positive After the text of each section of the U.S. Code, and positive law titles consists of: the source credit lists the source laws that enacted @@ Public law number citation (or chapter and amended that section. The first law listed in citation if enacted prior to 1957) a non-positive law title is the base law. The words “as added” preceding a law in the credit indicates @@ Division, titles, and section numbers (if any) that it amended the base law to add the section. @@ Date of enactment The source credit for 2 U.S.C. § 439a tells the @@ Statutes at Large citation reader that 2 U.S.C. § 439a is based upon § 313 of title III of Public Law No. 92-225. This section However, there are variations to this basic format, (2 U.S.C. § 439a) was not part of the base law and the most common are listed below for both non- (Public Law No. 92-225) and because of this positive law and positive law titles of the U.S. Code. there is no reference to the Statutes at Large. Example of a Source Credit in Non- Section 439a was added on March 27, 2002, by Positive Law Titles of the U.S. Code title III, § 301 of Public Law No. 107-155. In other words, § 301 of Public Law No. 107-155 42 U.S.C. § 4054 amended Public Law No. 92-225 by adding § 313. (Pub. L. 90-448, title XIII, Sec. 1334, Aug. 1, 1968, It was later amended by div. H, title V, § 532 of 82 Stat. 583; Pub. L. 93-234, title I, Sec. 111, Dec. Public Law No. 108-447 on December 8, 2004. 31, 1973, 87 Stat. 981; Pub. L. 98-181, title IV, Sec. 451(d)(1), Nov. 30, 1983, 97 Stat. 1229.) The source credit for 42 U.S.C. § 4054 indicates that this section of the U.S. Code initially came from § 1334 of title XIII of Public Law No. 90-448, which was passed into law on August 1, 1968, and can be found on page 583 in volume 82 of

7 Office of the Law Revision Counsel, Detailed Guide to the United States Code Content and Features, III. Source Credits, http:// 6 United States v. Welden, 377 U.S. 95, 98 n. 4 (1964). uscodebeta.house.gov/detailed_guide.xhtml - source_credits. Perspectives: Teaching Legal Research and Writing | Vol. 22 | No. 1 | Fall 2013 48

Example of a Source Credit in Positive Conclusion Law Titles of the U.S. Code Source credits to the U.S. Code indicate when a statutory section was first passed into law and how 23 U.S.C. § 302 many times it has been amended. This is important (Pub. L. 85-767, Aug. 27, 1958, 72 Stat. 912; in determining if the language of a statutory section Because Pub. L. 89-574, § 11, Sept. 13, 1966, 80 Stat. has changed through the years and in compiling “ 770; Pub. L. 105-178, title I, § 1212(a)(1), (2) a legislative history. If a legal researcher knows Congress passed (A)(i), (B)(ii), June 9, 1998, 112 Stat. 193.) what to look for and can understand the different the entire title into In positive law titles of the U.S. Code, a source variations to a source credit in the U.S. Code, then it makes both of these tasks much easier. positive law, each credit looks like a source credit in non-positive law titles; however, they do not have a base law. Because © 2013 Patrick J. Charles section ‘is part of Congress passed the entire title into positive law, the title itself and each section “is part of the title itself and neither comes from, nor is a part of, any other law.”8 In neither comes situations where a section was a part of the title from, nor is a when it was enacted into positive law, the citation to the legislation enacting the title into positive part of, any other law is the first citation in the source credit. Title 23 of the U.S. Code was enacted into positive law, as law.’ indicated in the source credit for 23 U.S.C. § 302, ” on August 27, 1958, by Public Law No. 85-767. It has been amended twice; first on September 13, 1966 by § 11 of Public Law No. 89-574, and again on June 9, 1998, by title I, § 1212(a)(1), (2)(A)(i), (B)(ii) of Public Law No. 105-178. Example of an “Added” Source Credit in Positive Law Titles of the U.S. Code 32 U.S.C. § 902 (Added Pub. L. 108-375, div. A, title V, § 512(a) (1), Oct. 28, 2004, 118 Stat. 1878; amended Pub. L. 109-364, div. A, title X, § 1071(b) (1), Oct. 17, 2006, 120 Stat. 2400.) In situations where a section of a positive law title of the U.S. Code was not included in the title when it was enacted as positive law but was added to the title by a subsequent act, the source credit will begin with the word “Added” followed by a citation to the act amending the section.9 The source credit for 32 U.S.C. § 902 indicates that it was added by div. A, title V, § 512(a)(1) of Public Law No. 108-375, and later amended by div. A, title X, § 1071(b)(1) of Public Law No. 109-364.

8 Id.

9 Id.