Did you know the federal government publishes and distributes print and electronic publications for free on a wide-variety of consumer topics?

In fact, the Government Printing Office’s Pueblo Distribution Center hit a record in May by shipping its one billionth consumer publication since its opening in 1971.

Curious to see what kinds of publications the government produces? You can browse, order and download publications on everything from health to finance at Publications.USA.gov

Image description: Various photos from several federal government Tumblr blogs. Read on to learn more about some of the great blogs you should be following!

From the National Archives:

From the Bureau of Land Management:

The Federal Government on Tumblr

Increasingly, federal agencies are using Tumblr to share photos, science, events, initiatives, and other great content with the Tumblr community.  Here’s a list of some awesome federal government blogs you should be following on Tumblr.  It’s probably not exhaustive, but these are the ones we know about that post more than occasionally.  

Reblog and help share the word:

America’s Great Outdoors: The Department of the Interior shares an amazing photo a day of your public lands.

Archivist of the United States: The Tumblr of our “collector in chief” at the National Archives, David S Ferriero.

Bureau of Reclamation: Reclamation, an Interior Department agency, is the largest wholesale water supplier and the second largest producer of hydroelectric power in the United States, with operations and facilities in the 17 Western States.

Congress in the Archives: Since the First Congress in 1789, the records of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate have documented the history of the legislative branch.  The National Archives helps you explore this history.

Conservation at Work: The Natural Resources Conservation Service, part of the Department of Agriculture, posts photos of conservation on farms and other private lands across the nation. 

Fish and Wildlife Service: The Pacific Region of the FWS encompasses extraordinary ecological diversity.  Photos, science, and more.

Internal Revenue Service: Because who doesn’t want tax information on Tumblr?  Useful tips, videos, etc., straight from the IRS.

My Public Lands: The awesomeness of the Bureau of Land Management, which manages more than 245 million acres of amazing lands, as told by students, interns, and newer employees.

Our Presidents: One space to bring the past 13 Presidents together. Discover behind-the-scenes history here.  Managed by the National Archives.

National Archives: News and current events from the United States National Archives and Records Administration whose holdings include the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, military records, Presidential records, and millions of other documents related to the Federal Government.

Peace Corps: Life is calling.  How far will you go?  Get up close with the amazing work done by peace corps volunteers.

U.S. Department of State: Videos, photos, testimony, and updates from the State Department.  Foreign policy updates on Tumblr—how cool is that?

Today’s Document: Highlighting interesting documents the National Archives’ holdings—both the well-known and the obscure—to observe historical events (usually the significant events but sometimes just the curious ones). 

USA.gov:  Government made easy.  On Tumblr.  Enough said.

US National Archives Exhibits: Images and stories from the National Archives related to “Searching for the Seventies: the DOCUMERICA Photography Project,” the newest exhibition on display at the Archives’ facility in Washington, DC.

But wait, there’s more!

Preservation at the National Archives: All things preservation at the National Archives and Records Administration. Posts to this site come from all of the Preservation Programs departments, including: Conservation, St. Louis Preservation, and National Preservation Programs. 

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library:  Dedicated to the memory of our nation’s 35th president and to all those who through the art of politics seek a new and better world.

LBJ Time Machine: Taking a trip through time, from the birth of Lyndon Johnson in 1908 through 2013 at the LBJ Library and Museum.

FDR Library: Follow the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum as we count down to the rededication of the Roosevelt Library and the opening of the new permanent museum exhibits.

The Tumblrweed Times from the National Archives at Riverside, CA: We are the National Archives at Riverside—a unit of the U.S. National Archives. Our records document the Federal government in the western states of Arizona, southern California and Clark County, Nevada.

The government has information on a number of topics in American Sign Language. Find videos on our YouTube playlist: 

It’s complicated. The Law Library of Congress explains.

Sequestration, sometimes called the sequester, is a process that automatically cuts the federal budget across most departments and agencies.

Congress included the threat of sequestration in the Budget Control Act of 2011 as a way to encourage compromise on deficit reduction efforts.

Congress couldn’t agree on a budget by the deadline set in the Budget Control Act, so mandatory budget cuts were scheduled to go into effect on January 2, 2013.

Congress stopped the cuts from happening by passing the American Taxpayer Relief Act on January 2. This law pushed the budget cuts back until March 1, 2013.

If Congress cannot agree on a budget to reduce the deficit by March 1, then sequestration would happen and $85 billion in spending cuts would go into effect.

These reports give detailed information about the amount that programs may be cut and which programs are exempt from sequestration:

• White House Office of Management and Budget Sequestration Reports to the President and Congress
• Congressional Budget Office Report on Estimated Impact of Automatic Budget Enforcement Procedures Specified in the Budget Control Act
• Congressional Research Service Report on Budget “’Sequestration’ and Selected Program Exemptions and Special Rules” (PDF)