Note: All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.
A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.
Author
Government Documents often have a group/corporate author listed instead of a specific person's name. The author may be the name of a department, commitee or agency.
When the government department, agency or committee that created the document is also the publisher, omit the publisher name to avoid repetition. The names of parent agencies, if applicable, may be used as the publisher.
Titles
Capitalize the first letter of the first word of the title. If there is a colon (:) in the title, also capitalize the first letter of the first word after the colon.
Capitalize the first letter of proper names in titles, such as names of places or people.
Place of Publication
Omit the publisher location in the reference unless they are works associated with specific locations (e.g. a conference presentation). For cities in the US and Canada list the city name and the province or state code. For other countries, list the city name and the country. Examples: Toronto, ON ; Tokyo, Japan
Electronic Government Documents
Many government documents are now published electronically as well as in print. Provide the publisher name and the url.
Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee. (Year of Publication, Month Day). Title of document: Subtitle if given (edition if given and is not first edition). Publisher Name. URL
Example:
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. (2022, October 13). Speech and language developmental milestones. United States Department of Health & Human Services. https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/speech-and-language
In-Text Paraphrase:
(Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Year)
Example: (National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 2022)
In-Text Quote:
(Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Year, Section Name section, para. Paragraph Number if more than one paragraph in section)
(National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 2010, 4 to 6 Months section, line 3)
Note: When there are no visible page numbers or paragraph numbers, you may cite the section heading and the number of the paragraph in that section to identify where your quote came from.
Abbreviating Corporation/Group Author Name in In-Text citations:
Author names for corporations/groups can often be abbreviated. The first time you refer to the author, provide the full name, along with the abbreviation.
If the group name appears in the text of your paper, include the abbreviation in the in-text parenthetical citation:
Example: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA, 2019) assisted in the rescue of 40 dogs.
If the group name first appears within a parenthetical citation, include the full group name as well as the abbreviation in square brackets:
Example: Forty dogs were rescued in Bendena, Kansas (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals [ASPCA], 2019).
Provide the full group name (without an abbreviation) in the reference list entry:
American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. (2019, November 21). Justice served: Case closed for over 40 dogfighting victims. https://www.aspca.org/news/justice-served-case-closed-over-40-dogfighting-victims
Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee. (Year of Publication). Title of document: Subtitle if given (edition if given and is not first edition). Publisher Name.
Example:
National Health Council. (2007). Americans' experience with chronic illness care in 2007.
Note: When the government department, agency or committee that created the document is also the publisher, omit the publisher name in the reference.
In-Text Paraphrase:
(Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Year)
Example: (National Health Council, 2007)
In-Text Quote:
(Name of Government Department, Agency or Committee, Year, p. Page Number)
Example: (National Health Council, 2007, p. 4)