----------------------------Original message---------------------------- THE FOLLOWING IS BEING POSTED ON GOVDOC-L, MAPS-L, AND LAW-LIB. ------------------------------------------------------------------ | T H E D U P O N T C I R C L E R E P O R T E R | | | | An Informal Newsletter for the Federal | | Depository Library Community | | May 5, 1993 No. 3 | ------------------------------------------------------------------ CONTENTS: * Trouble in Capitol City * What If We Do Nothing? * What Can We Do? * Suggested Readings for More Information ------------------------------------------------------------------ TROUBLE IN CAPITOL CITY The Federal Depository Library Program is in trouble -- BIG TROUBLE! Structural, organizational, and budgetary weaknesses that have hindered the program for years have been exacerbated by the recent onslaught of electronic government information products and services. Budget problems at all levels -- from the Federal government to the local depository library -- have forced a reevaluation of the way public information is being delivered through the program. Many regional depository libraries are reconsidering their regional status, no longer able to handle the collection and other burdens of the system. And as new technologies develop, different delivery mechanisms are emerging that do not bother to include depository libraries. The underlying ideals behind a "depository library" are still as valid as ever -- all citizens have a right to access public information in all formats, and depositories play an integral role in providing free and open access to govenment information. The question is how can a system established around a print-based, 19th Century model adapt to the very different dissemination and access requirements of the current information environment?! The Dupont Circle Group is attempting to focus discussion on the problems and issues facing the Depository Library Program in an effort to formulate a proposal for an improved program for access and delivery of government information. Please lend your voice to the discussions by participating in local, state, regional, and national meetings which will address these issues. For more information, please contact any member of the Dupont Circle Group. ******************************************************************** WHAT IF WE DO NOTHING? Given the current budgetary situation and the rapid development of information technologies and delivery mechanisms to the citizen, the following is a view of the Federal Depository Library Program environment in five years if the status quo is maintained: * The national information infrastructure will continue to develop at an increasingly rapid pace, with or without depository libraries. * Less information will be available through the Depository Library Program to stimulate small businesses and other entrepreneurial enterprises. * Less information will be available through the Depository Library Program to citizens to make informed political and social decisions. * Less information will be available through the Depository Library Program to students to further their education and to the general public for life-long learning. * Less information will be available through the Depository Library Program to researchers for innovations in scientific and technological developments. * Less information will be available through the Depository Library Program to scholars for the furthering of human knowledge and social good. * What is available through the Program is increasingly distributed to taxpayers in untimely, inappropriate, and unusable formats. * The long term and continuous history of budget deficiencies will continue to plague the Program and deteriorate information services to the public. * The diffusion of electronic government sources will continue without structure or organization, making it more difficult for the average citizen to access public information. * The GPO and the FDLP are effectively locked out of online electronic information dissemination, constricting the availability of these tax-supported resources to the public. * As more critical government information is disseminated electronically, what remains in the FDLP becomes increasingly less relevant and less useful. * As individual libraries are forced to take on greater responsibilities in locating and acquiring government publications and information services, the overall costs to the public will increase. * As the government information environment becomes increasingly decentralized and complicated, citizens will not know where to turn for information. * Scattered and unconnected channels of distribution will develop leading to waste, duplication, and inefficiency. * GPO's diminished role will negatively impact on the identification and bibliographic control of government information sources, and citizens will not know where to look for information. * Unstructured dissemination will further divide citizens into the information "haves" and "have nots." * Some libraries will find the Program is not meeting the needs of their communities and will drop out, thus further reducing overall public access. * "Back to the Future" -- As the basic components of the FDLP are undermined, the public faces a return to the costly and chaotic days before the Printing Act of 1895. ******************************************************************** WHAT CAN WE DO? Changes are ocurring in the national information infrastructure. Whether depository libraries will continue to be a part of this infrastructure will depend on the community's actions. We must take an active role in determining our future and the future of public access to government information. The documents developed by the Dupont Circle Group attempt to focus discussion on these issues. These documents begin to outline the mission, goals, and benefits of a depository library program. In addition, they propose models for governance and service of a depository library program. Above all, the documents ask questions that need input and responses from all of us in the depository community. The Dupont Circle documents referred to here will be distributed beginning with the next issue of the Reporter. (In addition, we are working on setting up an FTP site where the documents will also be available.) These documents are not a "final result" but rather a suggested start for discussion. Local, state, and regional associations and library groups are encouraged to add these discussions to their upcoming meetings. All members of the depository community should be provided the opportunity to contribute toward reshaping the Depository Library Program. Discussion sessions are being planned for the national meetings of the American Library Association, the Special Library Association, and the American Association of Law Libraries. State GODORT meetings in Minnesota, Florida, and other states will also address these issues. Reports from these meetings will be posted here, to further discussion and present the status of our progress. It is the hope and intent of the Dupont Circle Group that the input and feedback from all of these discussions can be coalesced to form a consensus report on the future direction of the depository program (to be completed by mid-October). ******************************************************************** SUGGESTED READINGS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Cornwell, Gary, et al., "Problems and Issues Affecting the U.S. Depository Library Program and the GPO: The Librarians' Manifesto," Government Publications Review, vol. 20, no. 2 (March/April 1993), pp. 121-140. [NOTE: See also in the same issue of GPR articles by Paul Massa, J. Timothy Sprehe, and Bruce Morton.] "GPO/2001: Vision for a New Millennium," Government Printing Office, 1991. SuDoc: GP1.2:V82. "Informing the Nation: Federal Information Dissemination in an Electronic Age," Office of Technology Assessment, 1988. SuDoc: Y3.T22/2:2In3/9 (also Exec. Summary). Kahin, Brian, "Information Policy and the Internet: Toward a Public Information Infrastructure in the United States," Government Publications Review, vol. 18, no. 5 (September/ October 1991) pp. 451-472. "National Publications Act of 1979," Committee Print prepared for the Committee on House Administration, 1979. SuDoc: Y4.H81/3:N21. Oakley, Robert, et al., "Alternatives for Restructuring the Depository Library Program: A Report to the Superintendent of Documents and the Public Printer from the Depository Library Council," April 1993. Rhulin, Michele, et al, "National Research and Education Network and the Federal Depository Library Program," Documents to the People, vol. 19, no. 2 (June 1991), pp. 106-109. Dupont Circle Reporter/Number 3/May 5, 1993 ################################################################