Legislative Highlights
The U.S. Constitution states that “The Congress shall have Power…To make all Laws.” The original laws enacted by Congress are preserved at the National Archives. This page highlights some of the most historically significant laws Congress has passed throughout the nation’s history.
Declaration of War against Spain, April 25, 1898
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Civil Rights Act of 1960, May 6, 1960
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Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, August 2, 1946
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An Act Providing for the Education of Colored Children in the...
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An Act to Establish a Department of Agriculture, May 15, 1862
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The Jay Treaty, Exchange Copy, November 19, 1794
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“Title IX” of the Education Amendments of 1972, June 23, 1972
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Morrill Land Grant Act, July 2, 1862
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Joint Resolution Proposing the Seventeenth Amendment to the...
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Pacific Railway Act, approved July 1, 1862
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The Homestead Act, May 20, 1862
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