The Constitution of the United States requires that the President "from time to time" give the Congress information on the state of the Union (Article 2, Section III). In addition, Article 2, Section II of the Constitution notes that the President "may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices." The annual reports of the executive branch are one of the oldest series of government publications, and, for the most part, along with statistical reports, and special reports on a variety of issues, constitute the majority of executive branch publications in the nineteenth century.
Congress dominated the publication and distribution of government documents in the nineteenth century. Most executive branch documents were published as House and/or Senate Documents. These were submitted to Congress as required by the Constitution or upon specific requests by Congress. When research was done by the executive branch, in authorizing the printing, Congress required that it be printed as part of the Congressional series. Consequently most of the documents produced by the executive branch in the nineteenth century are contained in the United States Congressional Serial Set.
