TOPN: Table of Popular Names


What's in a popular name?

Laws acquire popular names as they make their way through Congress. Sometimes these names say something about the substance of the law (as with the '2002 Winter Olympic Commemorative Coin Act'). Sometimes they are a way of recognizing or honoring the sponsor or creator of a particular law (as with the 'Taft-Hartley Act'). And sometimes they are meant to garner political support for a law by giving it a catchy name (as with the 'USA Patriot Act' or the 'Take Pride in America Act') or by invoking public outrage or sympathy (as with any number of laws named for victims of crimes). History books, newspapers, and other sources use the popular name to refer to these laws. Why can't these popular names easily be found in the US Code?

How the US Code is built.

The United States Code is meant to be an organized, logical compilation of the laws passed by Congress. At its top level, it divides the world of legislation into fifty topically-organized Titles, and each Title is further subdivided into any number of logical subtopics. In theory, any law -- or individual provisions within any law -- passed by Congress should be classifiable into one or more slots in the framework of the Code. On the other hand, legislation often contains bundles of topically unrelated provisions that collectively respond to a particular public need or problem. A farm bill, for instance, might contain provisions that affect the tax status of farmers, their management of land or treatment of the environment, a system of price limits or supports, and so on. Each of these individual provisions would, logically, belong in a different place in the Code. (Of course, this isn't always the case; some legislation deals with a fairly narrow range of related concerns.) The process of incorporating a newly-passed piece of legislation into the Code is known as "classification" -- essentially a process of deciding where in the logical organization of the Code the various parts of the particular law belong. Sometimes classification is easy; the law could be written with the Code in mind, and might specifically amend, extend, or repeal particular chunks of the existing Code, making it no great challenge to figure out how to classify its various parts. And as we said before, a particular law might be narrow in focus, making it both simple and sensible to move it wholesale into a particular slot in the Code. But this is not normally the case, and often different provisions of the law will logically belong in different, scattered locations in the Code. As a result, often the law will not be found in one place neatly identified by its popular name. Nor will a full-text search of the Code necessarily reveal where all the pieces have been scattered. Instead, those who classify laws into the Code typically leave a note explaining how a particular law has been classified into the Code. It is usually found in the Note section attached to a relevant section of the Code, usually under a paragraph identified as the "Short Title".

How the LII Table of Popular Names works.

Our Table of Popular Names is organized alphabetically by popular name. You'll find three types of link associated with each popular name (though each law may not have all three types). One, a reference to a Public Law number, is a link to the bill as it was originally passed by Congress, and will take you to the LRC THOMAS legislative system, or GPO FDSYS site. So-called "Short Title" links, and links to particular sections of the Code, will lead you to a textual roadmap (the section notes) describing how the particular law was incorporated into the Code. Finally, acts may be referred to by a different name, or may have been renamed, the links will take you to the appropriate listing in the table.

W.A.A.C. (Women&aposs Army Auxiliary Corps) Act

W.A.C. (Women&aposs Army Corps) Act

W. J. (Billy) Tauzin Satellite Television Act of 2004

Wadsworth-Kahn Act

Wagner Foreign Credits Act

Wagner-Peyser Act

Walhalla National Fish Hatchery Conveyance Act

Walker Tariff Act

Wall Street Transparency and Accountability Act of 2010

Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge Act

Wallowa Forest Service Compound Conveyance Act

Walnut Grove Land Exchange Act

Walsh Act (Additional Federal Judges)

Walsh Act (Contempts)

Walsh-Healey Act

Wampanoag Tribal Council of Gay Head, Inc., Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1987

War Brides Act

War Claims Act Amendments of 1954

War Claims Act of 1948

War Contracts Relief Act

War Crimes Act of 1996

War Crimes Rewards Expansion Act

War Damage Insurance Act

War Declaration Against Germany

War Declaration Against Italy

War Declaration Against Japan

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1938

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1939

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1940

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1941

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1942

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1943

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1944

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1945

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1946

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1947

War Department Civil Appropriation Act, 1948

War Finance Corporation Act

War Hazards Compensation Act

War Housing Appropriation Act

War Labor Disputes Act

War Manpower Commission Appropriation Act, 1944

War Manpower Commission Appropriation Act, 1945

War Manpower Commission Appropriation Act, 1946

War Minerals Relief Act

War Mobilization and Reconversion Act of 1944

War Orphans&apos Educational Assistance Act of 1956

War Overtime Pay Act of 1943

War Powers Resolution

War Risk Insurance Act

War-Risk Insurance Fund Act

War Time Act

War Time Passport Act

War Time Prohibition Act

Warehouse Receipts Act (District of Columbia)

Warm Springs Study Act of 1988

Warner Canyon Ski Hill Land Exchange Act of 1997

Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act

Warrant Officer Act of 1954

Warrant Officer Management Act

Warren Act (Reclamation)

Warsaw Convention (International Air Transportation)

Wartime Violation of Italian American Civil Liberties Act

Washington Metropolitan Region Development Act

Washington National Airport Act

Washington Park Wilderness Act of 1988

Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route National Heritage Act of 2000

Washington State Wilderness Act of 1984

Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Act

Waste Isolation Pilot Plant Land Withdrawal Amendment Act

Water and Waste Act of 2016

Water Bank Act

Water Bank Extension Act of 1994

Water Desalination Act of 1996

Water Facilities Act

Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 2014

Water Infrastructure Improvement Act

Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act

Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1956

Water Quality Act of 1965

Water Quality Act of 1987

Water Quality Improvement Act of 1970

Water Research and Development Act of 1978

Water Resources Development Act of 1974

Water Resources Development Act of 1976

Water Resources Development Act of 1986

Water Resources Development Act of 1988

Water Resources Development Act of 1990

Water Resources Development Act of 1992

Water Resources Development Act of 1996

Water Resources Development Act of 1999

Water Resources Development Act of 2000

Water Resources Development Act of 2007

Water Resources Development Act of 2016

Water Resources Development Act of 2018

Water Resources Development Act of 2020

Water Resources Development Act of 2022

Water Resources Planning Act

Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2014

Water Resources Research Act Amendments of 2006

Water Resources Research Act of 1964

Water Resources Research Act of 1984

Water Supply Act of 1958

Water Supply, Reliability, and Environmental Improvement Act

Watermelon Research and Promotion Act

Watermelon Research and Promotion Improvement Act of 1993

Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act

Ways and Means Act (Civil War)

Weapon Systems Acquisition Reform Act of 2009

Weapons of Mass Destruction Control Act of 1992

Weapons of Mass Destruction Prohibition Improvement Act of 2004

Weather Modification Reporting Act of 1972

Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017

Weather Service Modernization Act

Web-Based Education Commission Act

Webb-Kenyon Act

Webb-Pomerene Act (Export Trade)

Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008

Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009

Weeks Law

Wei Jingsheng Freedom of Conscience Act

Weights and Measures Act (District of Columbia)

Weir Farm National Historic Site Establishment Act of 1990

Weir Farm National Historic Site Expansion Act of 1994

Weir Farm National Historical Park Redesignation Act

Wekiva Wild and Scenic River Act of 2000

Welch Act

Welfare and Pension Plans Disclosure Act

Welfare and Pension Plans Disclosure Act Amendments of 1962

Welfare Integrity and Data Improvement Act

Welfare Reform Extension Act of 2003

Welfare Reform Extension Act of 2004

Welfare Reform Extension Act of 2005

Welfare Reform Extension Act, Part VIII

Wellton-Mohawk Transfer Act

Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century

West Los Angeles Leasing Act of 2016

West Los Angeles VA Campus Improvement Act of 2021

West Point Act

West Point Cadet Act

West Valley Demonstration Project Act

West Virginia Admission Act

West Virginia National Interest River Conservation Act of 1987

Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Convention Implementation Act

Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination Act

Western Hemisphere Drug Elimination Technical Corrections Act

Western Oregon Tribal Fairness Act

Western Reserve Heritage Areas Study Act

Western Shoshone Claims Distribution Act

Western Water Policy Review Act of 1992

Wetlands and Wildlife Enhancement Act of 1998

Wetlands Loan Act

Wetlands Loan Extension Act of 1976

Whale Conservation and Protection Study Act

Whaling Convention Act of 1949

Whaling Treaty Act

Wheat and Wheat Foods Research and Nutrition Education Act

Wheat Research and Promotion Act

Wheeler-Case Act

Wheeler-Lea Act

Wheeling National Heritage Area Act of 2000

Wherry Act (Housing Near Military Establishments)

Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989

Whistleblower Protection Coordination Act

Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012

White Act (Collisions on Great Lakes)

White Cane Safety Day Act

White Charger Act

White Clay Creek Study Act

White Clay Creek Wild and Scenic Rivers System Act

White-Collar Crime Penalty Enhancement Act of 2002

White Earth Reservation Land Settlement Act of 1985

White Horse Hill National Game Preserve Designation Act

White House Conference for a Drug Free America

White House Conference on Handicapped Individuals Act

White House Conference on Productivity Act

White House Conference on Small Business Authorization Act (1984)

White House Conference on Small Business Authorization Act (1990)

White House Police Act

White Mountain Apache Tribe Rural Water System Loan Authorization Act

White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Act of 2010

White Phosphorous Matches Act

White Pine Blister Rust Protection Act

White Pine County Conservation, Recreation, and Development Act of 2006

White Russian Act

White-slave traffic Act

Whitman Mission National Historic Site

Whole Veteran Act

Wholesome Meat Act

Wholesome Poultry Products Act

WIC Farmers&apos Market Nutrition Act of 1992

WIC Infant Formula Procurement Act of 1992

Wichita Project Equus Beds Division Authorization Act of 2005

Widows&apos Pension Act

WIIN Act

Wilcox Air Base Act

Wild and Scenic Rivers Act

Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992

Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act

Wild Horse Annie Act

Wilderness Act

Wildfire Disaster Recovery Act of 1989

Wildfire Suppression Aircraft Transfer Act of 1996

Wildfire Suppression Assistance Act

Wildland Fire Mitigation and Management Commission Act of 2021

Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Programs Improvement Act of 2000

Wiley Act (Homestead Lands, Alabama)

William F. Goodling Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act of 1998

William Howard Taft National Historic Site Boundary Adjustment Act of 2001

William Levi Dawson Chair of Public Affairs Act

William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021

William T. Coleman, Jr. and Norman Y. Mineta Department of Transportation Headquarters Act

William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008

Williams Act

Williamson Act (Veterans&apos Administration)

Williamson County Water Recycling Act of 2004

Willie O&aposRee Congressional Gold Medal Act

Willis-Campbell Act

Wilmot Proviso (Slavery in Territories)

Wilson Act

Wilson Act (Northern Pacific Railroad)

Wilson&aposs Creek National Battlefield Boundary Adjustment Act of 2004

Wilson Tariff Act

WIN Demonstration Program Extension Act of 1988

Wind Cave National Park Boundary Revision Act of 2005

Wind Energy Systems Act of 1980

Windfall Tax Extension Act

Winding Stair Mountain National Recreation and Wilderness Area Act

Wine Equity and Export Expansion Act of 1984

Winnebago Land Transfer Act of 2023

Winslow Act

Winter Run Chinook Salmon Captive Broodstock Act of 1993

WIOA Technical Amendments Act

WIPA and PABSS Extension Act of 2010

WIPA and PABSS Reauthorization Act of 2009

WIPO Copyright and Performances and Phonograms Treaties Implementation Act of 1998

Wire Act

Wireless Communications and Public Safety Act of 1999

Wireless Telecommunications Tax and Fee Collection Fairness Act

Wireless Telephone Protection Act

Wisconsin Wilderness Act of 1984

Witness Security Reform Act of 1984

Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts Act

Women in Aerospace Education Act

Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations Act

Women, Peace, and Security Act of 2017

Women&aposs Armed Services Integration Act of 1948

Women&aposs Business Center Amendments Act of 1999

Women&aposs Business Centers Sustainability Act of 1999

Women&aposs Business Development Act of 1991

Women&aposs Business Ownership Act of 1988

Women&aposs Educational Equity Act

Women&aposs Educational Equity Act of 1974

Women&aposs Educational Equity Act of 1978

Women&aposs Educational Equity Act of 1994

Women&aposs Educational Equity Act of 2001

Women&aposs Educational Equity Amendments of 1984

Women&aposs Entrepreneurship and Economic Empowerment Act of 2018

Women&aposs Health and Cancer Rights Act of 1998

Women&aposs Health Research and Prevention Amendments of 1998

Women&aposs Naval Reserve Act

Women&aposs Progress Commemoration Act

Women&aposs Suffrage Centennial Commemorative Coin Act

Women&aposs Suffrage Centennial Commission Act

Women Veterans Health Programs Act of 1992

Wood Residue Utilization Act of 1980

Woodrow Wilson Memorial Act of 1968

Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge Authority Act of 1995

Wool and Woolens Act (Tariff)

Wool Manufacturer Payment Clarification and Technical Corrections Act

Wool Products Labeling Act of 1939

Wool Suit and Textile Trade Extension Act of 2004

Wool Suit Fabric Labeling Fairness and International Standards Conforming Act

Work Hours and Safety Act of 1962

Work Made For Hire and Copyright Corrections Act of 2000

Work Relief and Public Works Appropriation Act of 1938

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act

Worker Economic Opportunity Act

Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009

Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008

Workers&apos Family Protection Act

Workers Technology Skill Development Act

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act

Workforce Investment Act of 1998

Working Families Tax Relief Act of 2004

World Cup USA 1994 Commemorative Coin Act

World&aposs Fair Act

World War Adjusted Compensation Act

World War I American Veterans Centennial Commemorative Coin Act

World War I Centennial Commission Act

World War II 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act

World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2013

World War Veterans&apos Act, 1924

Wounded Officers Recovery Act of 2017

Wounded Veterans Recreation Act

Wounded Warrior Access Act

Wounded Warrior Act

Wounded Warriors Federal Leave Act of 2015

Wright Amendment Reform Act of 2006

Wright Brothers Day Act

Wunderlich Act

Wyoming Land Act

Wyoming Wilderness Act of 1984