The reference and research services of the German Bundestag

Abstract

Abstract Unlike the Research Services of the parliaments of the English-speaking world and Japan, the Reference and Research Services of the German Bundestag, which convened for the first time in 1949, also comprise the secretariats of the committees, including the Petitions Committee and its five divisions for processing the petitions and submissions received from constituents. Initially, the parliamentary library, set up in 1949, did research. The research divisions, or subject matter areas, which were established in 1964, all developed from the library. They do not form part of the parliamentary library; rather, the library is a division of the Reference and Research Services, which make up one of the directorates-general of the Administration of the German Bundestag. This article gives an overview of the organization of the Reference and Research Services, their main fields of work, and the information which they provide to assist the German Bundestag.