If you wanted to read the text of a recently passed or proposed bill in the United States before the internet, how would you do so? Did libraries or some other resource maintain and provide transcripts of ongoing legislation or was newspaper (and later radio and television) relied upon to summarize the happenings of government?
I recognize that much of this would've evolved over time from the 1770s to the 1970s as transportation and communication improved and as the belief in a right and responsibility to be politically informed was cemented and extended to more groups, not to mention differences in proximity as a factor, so I am not expecting one neat and tidy answer. If my question's scope is too large, then I would be most interested in knowing how this functioned during the Cold War era with particular emphasis on rural America.
Did libraries or some other resource maintain and provide transcripts of ongoing legislation or was newspaper (and later radio and television) relied upon to summarize the happenings of government?
Both. Most people just relied on the press to tell them what the government was doing. But if you really wanted to know, you could go to a library and find somewhat current information.
Twice per month when Congress is in session, the Government Publishing Office publishes a record of Congress's proceedings called the Congressional Record.
By law, the Congressional Record is distributed to the various government agencies, to members of the press, and to federal depository libraries (44 U.S.C. section 906). The Federal Depository Library Program (first established by the Printing Act of 1895 and modified several times thereafter) designated certain libraries in the country to house and make available to the public everything the government printed. These libraries automatically receive copies of the Congressional Record.
Practically speaking, for an average citizen, this meant driving to the main library downtown and going to the periodicals section.
I think a more common way that people heard about current legislation (speaking anecdotally as someone who lived in the 20th century) was by being a member of a political activist organization (e.g. an environmental advocacy group, or a pro-choice/pro-life organization, or something like that). You'd get a monthly newsletter in the mail that among other things reported on current legislation of interest to the members of the organization.
Edit: Looks like Reddit doesn't like the section symbol. It erased part of a paragraph where I had inserted one.