SUPERINTENDENT OF DOCUMENTS (SuDoc)

FILING RULES FOR U.S. GOVERNMENT DOCUMENTS

 

1. Every SuDoc number contains a colon (:) which is the Great Divider. It separates
    the SuDoc number into two distinct parts -- the prefix (or class stem) and the suffix.

Full SuDoc Number   Prefix (Class Stem) Suffix

A 1.34:583

                A 1.34:

        583

ED 1.302:H 43

           ED 1.302:  

        H 43

HE 20.3182:C 76/997

       HE 20.3182:  

        C 76/997

PrEx 3.10/4:Af 8/6/998

       PrEx 3.10/4:

        Af 8/6/998
SI 8.2:L 19

                SI 8.2:    

        L 19

Y 1.1/8:102-334

              Y 1.1/8:

        102-334

                        
                                                      
2. Filing is done by comparing prefixes. Use the SUFFIX only when two PREFIXES are
    IDENTICAL.         

SUDOC NUMBER ORDER

   SHELVE BY:
  A 1.34:583    A 1.34:
  ED 1.302:H 43    H 43 (suffix) since prefixes match -- ED 1.302:
  ED 1.302:P 26    P 26 (suffix) since prefixes match --  ED 1.302:
  HE 20.3182:C 76/997    HE 20.3182:
  PrEx 3.10/4:Af 8/6/998    PrEx 3.10/4:
  SI 8.2:L 19    SI 8.2:
  Y 1.1/8:102-334    Y 1.1/8:

           

3. All punctuation (slashes, dashes, periods, and parentheses) serves only to separate
    whole numbers. There are NO decimal numbers in SuDocs as there are in LC.

INCORRECT ORDER

CORRECT ORDER
              ED 1.1:            ED 1.1:
              ED 1.115:            ED 1.2:
              ED 1.14:            ED 1.14:
              ED 1.2:            ED 1.115:

          
4. The year of publication is designated by its last three digits and is preceded by a slash
    (e.g. /998 = 1998).  Use the year only when the prefixes AND suffixes are IDENTICAL.
    The same rule applies to volume, appendix, issue, and page numbers which may appear
    at the end of the SuDoc number.

A 1.16:C 22/985 Identical prefixes/suffixes -- A 1.16:C 22 -- refer to year
A 1.16:C 22/986 Identical prefixes/suffixes -- A 1.16:C 22 -- refer to year
A 1.16:C 22/987 Identical prefixes/suffixes -- A 1.16:C 22 -- refer to year
A 1.16:C 22/2 Different suffixes -- A 1.16:C 22  vs.  A 1.16:C 22/2

                       
5. Before the colon, letters are filed AHEAD of numbers.   Following the colon, letters are
    filed AFTER numbers.

BEFORE THE COLON

FOLLOWING THE COLON

             GA 1.5/a:               Y 4.Ag 8/1:99-211
             GA 1.5/2:               Y 4.Ag 8/1:Sa 4
             GA 1.5/3:               Y 4.Ag 8.1:T 12

                                      

6.  NOTHING always comes BEFORE SOMETHING.

A 1.1:985

"A" comes before "AE"
AE 1.1/2:992 "2" comes before "2-7"
AE 1.1/2-7:995  

                 

Please consult with a trained shelver in ANY cases where you are uncertain about the correct filing order.