Legislative history supplies evidence of an enactment’s purpose and intended meaning

Evidence

If textual analysis does not suffice to answer the legal questions in a case, a judge may also consult the “legislative history” of the enactment—that is, materials generated in the course of adopting the statute or constitutional provision. To determine the meaning of a statute, a judge may trace its evolution through the records of commit- tee hearings, committee reports summarizing the legislation and its purposes, and statements of legislators during floor debates. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 2460

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines legislative history and enumerates its evidentiary materials.
• XREF: connects to: Group intentions cannot be reliably ascribed to legislatures — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 2482; No single legislative intent exists because enactments emerge from group deliberation — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1228; Congress can withhold executive power through legislative history as decisively as through enacted words — Henry M. Hart, Jr. and Albert M. Sacks, The Legal Process: Basic Problems in…, 2813 (+5 more)