This is so cool. The Federal Digital System is maintained by the US Government Printing Office. You can search government records online through their database. Of course not all records are online, and this database only accesses Federal records. But now you know you have a pretty solid tool for scanning US government literature produced by the Printing Office.
For example, using the search tool I was able to find this PDF file on DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT PUBLIC AND INDIAN HOUSING PROGRAMS. Now, if you’re not affected by these programs it’s kind of boring stuff, but this is government transparency in action.
Here is another example of something mundane you can find: A court grants a motion for continuance in a criminal trial. There must be a LOT of court motions on file in the database. Probably some interesting decisions, too.
This court decision denying a motion includes a background section that provides extensive details of how a former Federal employee stole over $100,000 from the government through 20 years. The former employee is supposed to repay all the stolen money. You have to wonder if that will ever happen. Who is going to hire this person?