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2004 Federal Depository Library of the Year Award Nomination Deadline Extended Until July 16

To ensure that all eligible depository libraries have ample time to be nominated for GPO’s Federal Depository Library of the Year award, the nomination deadline has been extended from May 1, 2004 to July 16, 2004.

The Federal Depository Library of the Year award provides special recognition for a library that furthers the goal of the Federal Depository Library Program by ensuring that the American public has free access to its Government's information through:

• Outstanding service to meet the Federal government information needs in the library’s service area

• Creativity and innovation in developing specific community programs for use of Federal government information or a dramatic increase in their community’s usage of Federal government information

• Leadership in creating public service programs that can be emulated by other Federal Depository Libraries

"Winning the Federal Depository Library of the Year award enabled us to increase awareness of our library in the community and among our colleagues. It also gave us the "bells and whistles" we needed to raise our profile with our library board. I think any depository library could greatly benefit from winning."

The chosen library will be announced at an award ceremony, which will take place during the fall 2004 Depository Library Conference and meeting of the Depository Library Council. The conference will be held in Washington, DC from October 17-20, 2004. GPO will provide travel to and lodging during the Conference for the depository coordinator and library director from the winning library.

You are invited to nominate any Federal Depository Library, regardless of its size or type. To apply, go to:

(Past winners, libraries of current Depository Library Council members, and libraries on probation are ineligible for consideration.)

Jeff Turner has joined Information Dissemination (Superintendent of Documents) as Director of Marketing, in the Library and Customer Relations Service, effective May 3, 2004. Mr. Turner has extensive commercial marketing experience, and is highly qualified to help develop GOP’s initiatives in marketing, promotions, creative services, account management and market research as they relate to Information Dissemination programs.

Mr. Turner comes to GPO from Nextel Communications, where he was a Major Account Executive. Prior to that, Mr. Turner served as Director of Marketing for three different companies, including Wilcoxon Research, The Daycon Companies, and National Instrument Company.

Mr. Turner has a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Maryland, and a Bachelor of Arts with Distinction degree in Psychology from the University of Virginia.

Dr. Larry A. Blevins has joined Information Dissemination (Superintendent of Documents) as Director of the Education and Development Office, Library and Customer Relations Service, effective May 3, 2004. Dr. Blevins has extensive experience both in government and in academia and is highly qualified to help develop GPO’s initiatives in education, training, and technological applications in the Federal Depository Library Program.

Dr. Blevins comes to GPO from the U.S. Marine Corps, where he was the Deputy Director of the College of Continuing Education and Director of the Distance Learning Program. Other positions during his career include Dean of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ VA Learning University; Director, Performance Development Department of the Internal Revenue Service; Distance Learning Program Manager, Federal Aviation Administration, and other related positions in the Department of the Navy, the U.S. Army Military Police School, and the U.S. Army Infantry School. Dr. Blevins has led numerous state-of-the art training initiatives, including the incorporation of existing and emerging distance learning technologies. He has received many awards for his innovative work.

Throughout his career, Dr. Blevins has taught over 30 graduate and undergraduate courses as both adjunct and full-time faculty at numerous colleges and universities. Dr. Blevins is an honors graduate from Auburn University with a doctoral degree in vocational and adult education, a master’s degree in criminal justice from Auburn University, and undergraduate degrees from Columbus State University.

Annual Item Selection Update Cycle for FY2005 Begins June 1, 2004

The annual opportunity to add item numbers to depository library selection profiles takes place in June and July, 2004. From June 1 through July 30, depositories may make additions, which will take effect at the beginning of fiscal year 2005 on October 1. GPO recommends that libraries review their current selections in terms of their communities’ government information needs and change their selections accordingly.

GPO strongly encourages libraries to select electronic information products whenever they are available, when they fit the library’s collection plan for Federal Government information. About 60% of new Federal Depository Library Program titles are available in electronic format, and in recent months two-thirds of the new FDLP titles were "online only."

The Update Cycle period is the only time that items may be added. Items may be dropped at any time. Adds do not take effect until October 1.

Information about the Item Selection Update Cycle appears in Administrative Notes, on the FDLP Desktop News page at <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/tools/news.html>, and on the GPO-FDLP-L listserv at <http://listserv.access.gpo.gov>.

Note: No information packet will be mailed to depository libraries.

(Drops will be recorded and activated as soon as they are entered.)

The 2004 Update Cycle will take place electronically on the Web. Libraries will be responsible for entering their own amendments to selections using the Web site "Amendment to Item Selections" on the FDLP Desktop Web site at: <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/tools/amendment.html>. On this Web site, you will control the input, and the changes will be recorded instantaneously.

You will need your depository library number and internal password to submit your additions or deletions.

If your library does not have Web access, please contact:

OR

Automatic confirmation of the changes you input is a function of the Web application. In addition, if you enter your e-mail address along with your depository library number and internal password when filling out the online selection update form, an e-mail confirmation of your transactions should be sent to you. However, we have, in the past, experienced some problems with the e-mail confirmation component of this application. For your records you may want to print out and/or save the Web page confirmation that appears as soon as you hit the Submit button. When you save the file, change the file name extension from .cgi to .html to view the page in a Web browser.

In preparing to amend your depository's item selection profile for fiscal year 2005, please consider the following:

• GPO requests that documents librarians conduct a zero-based review of the depository’s current item selections by carefully examining the need for each item.

• Librarians should not make their collection development decisions in a vacuum. GPO encourages cooperative collection development to ensure that all relevant items are available within a local area or region without unnecessary duplication of little used documents.
• After consulting with other depositories, documents librarians should delete any items not actually needed to serve current or anticipated future needs of the public. If appropriate, a library should add relevant items needed by its clientele.

• Regional libraries may choose a single format when an item is offered in both microfiche and paper formats.

• Selective libraries must choose only a single format when an item is offered in both microfiche and paper formats.

Depositories should select items at a level at least half the average rate of libraries of a similar size and type. Exceptions are made for depositories with a written collection development policy certifying that their current selection rate of tangible and electronic information products effectively meets the public’s government information needs.

Use the chart of selection averages in Administrative Notes, v. 25, # 4 (3/15/04), p. 8, to help determine your appropriate selection rate. This chart is also available on the FDLP Desktop at: <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/coll-dev/itemchrt.html>.

For further information, see "Review of GPO Position on Item Selection Rates" in Administrative Notes, v. 22, # 5 (3/15/01), p. 3.

Item Lister shows your current item selections and all of the items currently available through the Federal Depository Library Program. Item Lister can be found on the FDLP Desktop Web site at: <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/tools/itemlist.html>. Your drops will be reflected in Item Lister the next week after you make them. Adds will be activated, and added to Item Lister, on October 1, 2004. During the Annual Selection Update Cycle only, Option 5, Pending Adds, is added to Item Lister. This will show what adds you have made during the Update Cycle. These adds are pending, and go into effect October 1 at the start of the new fiscal year.

For both drops and pending adds, the library should monitor Item Lister to ensure that the submissions were recorded correctly.

• Consult the List of Classes in paper or download the file on the FDLP Desktop Web site to aid in your evaluation of item numbers and titles. The electronic List of Classes is located at <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/loc/index.html>.

• Check out the collection management tools available on the Documents Data Miner, a cooperative partnership between Wichita State University and the GPO, at:

• New item numbers added to the list of item numbers available for depository selection, can be found in several locations:

Postings of new item numbers, discontinued classes, class corrections and other changes to the List of Classes are found in the WEBTech Notes database at: <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/tools/webtech.html>.

The WEBTech Notes database is also available in dbf format on the Federal Bulletin Board at: <http://fedbbs.acess.gpo.gov/library/list/files/?lib=WEBTECN>.

Each library is assigned a unique internal password for FDLP administrative functions, such as submitting the Biennial Survey, amending item selections, and updating the directory entry.

Passwords provided by GPO should be secured and only authorized users should be allowed to submit adds and drops for a library.

If depository library staff do not have the library's internal password, the designated depository library coordinator or the library director should submit a request for this information by using the "Ask a Question" feature on the GPO help service at http://www.gpoaccess.gov/help/index.html. Libraries must protect all user ids and passwords.

Libraries notify GPO of changes to their selection profile by submitting their adds or drops on the "Amendment of Item Selections" form found on the FDLP Desktop Web site at: <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/tools/amendment.html>. You will need your depository library number and internal password to process your amendments. Internal passwords begin with "FDLP" followed by a series of numbers. Information on how to fill out the Web form and whom to contact are accessible by clicking on various buttons on the form.

If you have specific questions or comments, please contact Joe Paskoski at <jpaskoski@gpo.gov> or by fax at 202-512-0877.

If you mistakenly delete an item number or select an item number that you really wanted to delete, you must contact GPO. Do not try to re-input the correct selection by entering another transaction on the "Amendment to Item Selections" Web form. To report all errors or discrepancies in your selection profile, contact:

Changing Formats

If you want to change from paper to microfiche for dual distribution items, GPO suggests the following procedure to reduce gaps in holdings:

1. Add the microfiche item during the update cycle.
2. Once the new selection is distributed in October, delete the paper item.

For example, to change the Federal Register selection from paper to microfiche, add item 0573-D in June or July, for implementation in October. Then use the Web "Amendment to Selections" form to delete item 0573-C after you begin receiving microfiche copies.

Titles distributed under item numbers 0154-B, 0556-C, and 1004-E are distributed to all depository libraries whether your library selects these items or not. GPO will distribute other titles under these item numbers throughout the year if the informational content is deemed relevant to all depository libraries. Please do not drop these item numbers from your selection profile.

If you have deleted item numbers for paper and electronic titles, GPO will stop shipping the publications within 1-2 weeks of your Web transaction. You should not claim publications listed under these items on shipping lists dated after the date you submitted the deletion.

Deletion of microfiche item numbers will take effect beginning the week after the amendment was submitted.

Deletions can be submitted to GPO throughout the year.

Libraries will be able to make additions to their selection profile only during the Annual Selection Update Cycle (June 1, 2004 through July 30, 2004).

All additions must be posted to the Web site by July 30, 2004.

All additions remain pending until they are activated on October 1, 2004. Libraries will begin to receive new publications with shipping lists dated October 1, 2004 and after.

Do not base your claims for missing depository publications on additions made during this update cycle period until the first shipping list is distributed for FY 2005 (after October 1, 2004). If you do, the claims will not be honored.

GPO will always indicate on the shipping list which selection update period governs the item distributions. Continue to claim from your 2004 selection profile during the update cycle period.

GPO Catalogs Historic and Fugitive
Census Documents

GPO cataloging staff have undertaken a special project to catalog the historic Census documents dating to 1790 that the Bureau of the Census has recently posted on its Web site at: <www.census.gov/prod/www/titles.html>.

GPO staff are simultaneously cataloging "fugitive" documents from the 1990 and 2000 Censuses, adding PURLs where applicable, and working to ensure the accuracy of the existing cataloging records.

Public Printer Bruce James Picks Five New Depository Library Council Members

Public Printer of the United States Bruce James has announced the appointment of five new members to the Depository Library Council to the Public Printer. James made the announcement earlier this week during the Depository Library Council spring meeting in St. Louis, Missouri.

"These individuals have dedicated their lives to ensuring that every American has access to Government information. The new members join an experienced, dynamic and passionate council, and together we will work on the future of information dissemination in the digital age," James said.

Evelyn Frangakis is currently at the New York Public Library, where she is the Aaron and Clara Greenhut Rabinowitz Chief Librarian for Preservation of the Barbara Goldsmith Preservation Division.

Ann Miller is the head of Duke University’s Public Documents and Maps Department. She previously served as the Chair of the American Library Association’s Government Documents Roundtable (GODORT) and is currently its Treasurer.

Bill Sudduth is with the University of South Carolina, where he is the Head of Documents, Microforms, Maps and Newspaper Collections. He was the Chair of GODORT from 2002 until 2003.

Susan Tulis is also a former Chair of GODORT and is no newcomer to the Council. She served two previous terms, 1990-1993 and 1984-1987. She is currently with Southern Illinois University Carbondale, where she is the Associate Dean for Information Services.

Walt Warnick is the U.S. Department of Energy’s Director of the Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI). In 2001, he received two awards for his efforts with transforming the DOE information dissemination functions into electronic media.

The Depository Library Council is an advisory body formed to provide advice to the Public Printer on topics related to the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP). The Council is made up of 15 representatives from the Government information community who each serve 3-year terms. The Public Printer appoints five members every year.

The draft plan is available at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/clr.doc
Comments may be directed to Judy Russell at jrussell@gpo.gov.

GPO will proactively acquire and preserve tangible and electronic copies of Government publications for inclusion in the Collection based on the requirements of all GPO information dissemination programs. In addition to publications acquired, harvested, or created for the information dissemination programs, the Collection will include agency source data files acquired pursuant to the OMB compact or other GPO services to publishing agencies. GPO will provide online public access and other information products and services derived from the digital preservation masters and other items in the Collection.

Over time, the Collection will become a comprehensive set of tangible and electronic titles that will backstop the tangible collections in regional depository libraries or shared repositories into which regional library collections may be consolidated in the future.

GPO will explore the potential for establishing contractual relationships with libraries and other organizations to house the tangible Collection versus maintaining and preserving the tangible and electronic collections ourselves. The plan will be developed in consultation with the library community.

• The Collection is primarily created to support the FDLP goal of no-fee permanent public access, but also supports other GPO information dissemination and preservation programs, including print-on-demand for publications sales.

• GPO will have an enterprise-wide Collection of digital materials, including preservation masters and access copies.

• Collection assets will be maintained in geographically dispersed locations.
• Collection management will be benchmarked against the criteria for assurance developed by the Center for Research Libraries.

• Collection preservation activities will be based on the agreement between GPO and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) designating GPO as an archives affiliate.

• The Collection includes the existing FDLP Electronic Collection.

• The Collection’s contents will be described by standard metadata schemes. Bibliographic records will be included in the National Bibliography and accessible through GPO’s online catalog.

• Digital and tangible assets in the Collection’s "dark archives" are held primarily for preservation rather than public use. There are no direct users of the print copies in the dark archive.

• Access copies of the Collection’s electronic assets will be publicly accessible.

• GPO will acquire tangible copies from a variety of sources, including the transfer of portions of the legacy collection from depository libraries to GPO.

• It will take three to five years to assemble the tangible Collection and digitize the 2.2 million titles (60 million pages) in the Collection.

• It is estimated that the depository library community and others will make an initial investment of $50 million to digitize legacy collection print materials.

• GPO has included $1.5 million in its FY 2005 Salaries and Expenses Appropriation request to cover the initial startup costs for the Collection. GPO estimates the Government’s portion of establishing and managing the Collection at approximately $1.5 million per year for the next five years.

• The tangible products in the Collection will exist as a source and a backup for the digital objects Collection. After digitization, copies of the original publication, even if disbound, will be retained and preserved in case the item must be digitized again in the future.

• Digital objects in the Collection, whether harvested or created by GPO, will be certified as authentic, official versions.

Keeping America Informed In the 21st Century:
A First Look at the GPO
Strategic Planning Process —
"A Work in Progress"

The U.S. Government Printing Office’s core mission, Keeping America Informed, dates to 1813 when Congress determined the need to make information regarding the work of the three branches of government available to all Americans. This is the inherent function of government which GPO carries out for Federal agencies on behalf of the public. The GPO is the Federal government’s primary centralized resource for gathering, cataloging, producing, providing and preserving published information in all its forms.

Since its inception, GPO has offered Congress, the courts, and government agencies a set of centralized services to enable them to easily and cost effectively produce printed documents according to a uniform set of Federal government specifications. In addition, GPO has offered these publications for sale to the public and made them widely available at no cost through the Federal Depository Library Program

As the technology for creating printed products changed, so did the GPO. As new information formats came into use, such as microfiche and CD–ROM, GPO was an early adopter. GPO offered training in these new media for agencies and librarians, all the while maintaining a uniform set of government standards.

As computers became available for typesetting in the 1960’s, GPO was again at the forefront. Long before there were industry standards for processing text into type, GPO developed its own set of standards to create uniform government publications. The standards were directed toward creating printed products and modified as required for other hard-copy output.

When electronic distribution of documents over the Internet arrived in the early 1990’s, no one inside or outside of government anticipated the sweeping publishing revolution that would occur inside of ten years. In 1994, when the GPO first distributed the Congressional Record over the Internet, the same data coding standards that were used to create typeset pages were adapted for the electronic text because no one could envision the day when printing would become secondary to, or even replaced by, documents created digitally by authors and distributed electronically from their source.

Before consumer-friendly, full-text, search engines were invented, everyone assumed the goal was to place "typeset" pages equal to printed pages in an electronic database which could be searched through a table-of-contents and viewed on a computer screen. Only esoteric and expensive private publishing services offered specialized search of document fields or full text.

Neither the GPO nor any other government agency properly estimated the impact of "desk-top" publishing on the creation, dissemination and preservation of U.S. Government information. As a consequence, there is now a near total breakdown of government publishing standards.

The impact of this breakdown is just now coming into focus. Because of the ease of creating a new publication from a computer desktop, agencies have found they no longer need the traditional GPO printing services-- they can easily send their work to an in-house "duplicating" shop or avoid the traditional GPO bureaucracy by simply buying their printing directly from a local vendor. And, in some cases, they can avoid the time and cost of printing by publishing directly to the "web." Each of these steps has led to the breakdown of government information standards and deprived the public of the uniform and predictable availability of official government documents. It also deprives future generations from having an accurate record of the work of our government.

The time has arrived to build a new model for government publishing based on the technologies now available and those that will soon be here. While it is clear that no one can fully anticipate the future evolution of technology and its impact on publishing, it is also clear that digital technology as we know it today will be the fundamental building block for the future as far as we can see.

While standards by their nature imply following a discipline that limits flexibility, any new government publishing model must strive to allow maximum flexibility for government publishers within a framework that assures unimpeded public access to the official information of their government and that ensures a perpetual, authentic record of the government.

For the first time in history, it is now practical to consider the creation of a fully digital database of all known government documents, searchable by character strings, with the ability to display on a computer screen the hard copy image if one exists. Such a database would be constructed to be used for multiple purposes such as producing print-on-demand documents and disseminating official government documents over the Internet.

By law and tradition, GPO has been the principal provider of publishing services for the Federal government. There is no other agency with the breadth and depth of skills and the knowledge required for the production and dissemination of published government information in all forms. No other agency is specifically funded by Congress to provide information dissemination services for all branches of the Federal government. The GPO needs to take the lead in creating digital standards for official documents of the United States Government.

GPO must deploy the technology needed by its federal customers and the public to gather and produce digital documents in a uniformly structured database in order to authenticate documents disseminated over the Internet and to preserve the information for permanent public access.

GPO needs to work with its library partners to develop a new model for no-fee public access through the FDLP, which must include a fully digital database of all past, present and future U.S. Government documents, augmented database search and retrieval tools, and increased training to enable librarians to better serve the 21st century information needs of their patrons.

GPO needs to develop a customer service model that partners with its agency customers at the program level in order to provide a range of support and solutions for their publishing needs and responsibilities from creation to dissemination whether digital or printed publications.

GPO will need to make significant investments in workforce development in order to train its existing employees in the skills required for 21st century printing and information processing.

In order to efficiently and effectively meet the continuing in-house printing needs of Congress and its agency customers, and to provide for a modern information processing environment, GPO will need to relocate to a facility sized and suited for its present and future requirements. Its current North Capitol Street building complex is both too large and too antiquated for its needs and continues to drain the organization of resources better used for investments in the technology and equipment needed to carry out its mission.

Please submit comments to:
strategicplanning@gpo.gov

Remarks of Superintendent of Documents
Judith C. Russell

I want to join Bruce [James, Public Printer], Sara [Parker, Missouri State Librarian] and Dan [Barkley, Chair of the Depository Library Council] in welcoming you to St. Louis for this meeting of the Depository Library Council. It is a pleasure to be with you again and to continue our discussions on the future of the Government Printing Office (GPO) and the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP).

I am delighted that so many of you have made the effort to be here, and particularly to see so many library directors here to help us address some very important issues. I am also conscious that many of our colleagues were not able to be here with us. I urge you to take home all that you learn from this conference and share it with others in your institution and in your community. Encourage them to review the documents that we are discussing and submit their comments to GPO. It is important that we include the entire library community – not just the depository libraries – in these discussions and provide them with an opportunity to participate and make their views known.

The highlight of this meeting will be the Public Printer’s remarks tomorrow afternoon, which will be the first public presentation of the initial results of the strategic planning process that Bruce James began when he arrived at GPO 16 months ago. We are concluding the first phase – the fact gathering phase – and preparing to use the facts as a foundation on which to build the strategic plan for keeping America informed in the 21st century and beyond.

In keeping with Bruce’s presentation, the overall theme of the meeting is planning for the future – and the various reports and initiatives that we will discuss over the next few days will help us set priorities and keep our forward momentum, even as we continue to work on the strategic plan. I look forward to some lively discussions and expect to go back to Washington with lots of good ideas.

As you can see, we have an agenda that is filled to over flowing. I want to take a few minutes to talk briefly about several topics that we will discuss in depth later in the meeting. The first of these is the set of initiatives that relate to preservation of and improved access to the legacy collection of tangible items in your libraries.

Last summer I had the privilege of participating in a conference hosted by the Center for Research Libraries and funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The topic was Preserving America's Print Resources, aptly called the PAPR conference. One statement that was made at that conference was that Federal and other government documents were among our most at risk printed resources because we were relying merely on the multiplicity of copies to preserve these documents. Everyone is counting on someone else to take care of these materials. The speaker elaborated, saying that our libraries were not doing active preservation of most government documents, although some collections were better protected than others because they were in closed stacks or had some temperature and humidity control. He felt that we were running the risk of losing many – if not all – of the printed copies of some documents more or less simultaneously from neglect. (The picture that was left in my mind was of lemmings rushing toward and plunging off of a cliff.) That comment was not made by me or by someone affiliated with a depository library – it was not even made by a librarian - and yet once it was made, everyone in the room was struck by the truth of the statement. And everyone encouraged GPO to take a leadership role in addressing the issue and seeking solutions.

I had already begun to talk with the library community about the need to better manage the legacy collections in depository libraries both for improved public access and for preservation, but the PAPR conference increased my sense of urgency.

For almost two hundred years the U.S. government has sent its documents out to the people and, as a result, we have an incredible national asset in the collections that your libraries house and the expert staff that have evolved to assist the public to use the materials effectively. We have an opportunity – and an obligation – preserve that asset, even as we plan for a 21st Century digital depository library system that respects the foundation of the current program, but is not constrained by it, and that takes optimum advantage of the enormous volume of electronic resources that are, and will become, available.

One of the strengths of the current system is that no single natural or man-made disaster can wipe out the collective record of our democracy because it is housed in hundreds of libraries throughout the nation. We must find creative ways to reduce the burdens of the large historical collections in our regional depository libraries and other large selective libraries, while preserving a reasonable number of sets of the print publications and maintaining a distributed system that protects these assets and ensures permanent public access.

Several of the sessions this week will focus on efforts that are planned – or underway – to address the management and preservation of the legacy documents collections. One is the movement toward shared repositories, or shared housing agreements, that would allow multiple libraries to eliminate some of the redundancy in their collections. These initiatives, which are still in the early stages, will help us move toward a smaller number of comprehensive sets of print publications that can be more readily preserved. We are not going to preserve every government document in every depository library. We can't even afford to fully preserve the 53 sets in our regional depository libraries. But we do need to decide as a community how many sets of tangible documents should be preserved and take the necessary steps to establish – and support – consolidated collections that are as comprehensive as possible, so we can actively preserve a reasonable number of sets.

Tonight at 7:00 p.m., Melissa Trevvett from the Center for Research Libraries (CRL) will present a decision framework for federal repositories that CRL has prepared for GPO. Once completed, this framework can be used to evaluate the level of assurance provided by print repositories based on their physical characteristics, resources, governance and other factors. In order to establish repositories that consolidate our assets and focus our preservation efforts, each participating library must have the assurance that the repository can fulfill its obligations. The decision framework will help us decide on the essential characteristics for trusted repositories. [The discussion draft of the decision framework is available at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/decisionmatrix.pdf.]

In that same session, we will discuss the draft plan for establishing a Collection of Last Resort – a secure "dark archive" that will become, over time, a comprehensive collection of tangible and electronic titles that will backstop the regional collections and shared repositories. In reviewing other initiatives, like JSTOR, it has become clear that multiple "light archives" are not sufficient to protect these assets. The highest level of assurance comes from a collection of last resort that – as the name implies – is not used unless all other resources have failed. Archivists will tell you that the best way to preserve a tangible asset is to house it under ideal conditions and avoid all use because every time you use it, you put it at risk and subject it to wear and tear. [The draft plan for the Collection of Last Resort is available at <http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/clr.pdf>.]

These initiatives – shared repositories and a collection of last resort – do more for preservation than they do for public access. So the third, and essential, leg of the stool is the commitment to digitize the entire legacy collection of U.S. government documents – an estimated 2.2 million print publications totaling approximately 60 million pages – and make sure that those documents are available, in the public domain, for permanent public access. The intent is to make sure that the entire collection is digitized for preservation purposes, with a variety of access files derived from the digital preservation masters.

Monday morning we will discuss several aspects of the digitization initiative. Last month GPO hosted a meeting of experts on preservation digitization to discuss current specifications for the creation of digital preservation masters. The report on that meeting includes a proposed set of minimum specifications for digitizing documents from the legacy collection. GPO is seeking feedback on that proposal. And we expect to hold a similar meeting in May to discuss metadata standards for the digitization initiative. Both specifications are essential to building a true collection, rather than a random set of digital objects. GPO will also develop a proposed governance plan and make it available for review. [The report of the meeting of experts on preservation digitization is available at <http://www.gpoaccess.gov/about/reports/preservation.pdf>.]

GPO also recognizes the need to develop a list of priority titles or series that should be among the first materials to be digitized, so we are conducting a survey to identify, and then rank, the titles, so libraries will have some guidance as they select projects. In recent discussions with the working group leading the Association for Research Libraries (ARL) initiative to collaborate with GPO on the legacy digitization project, there was some discussion about the characteristics of titles for the initial digitization projects. There was general agreement among that group that we needed some early successes to build confidence in the overall project and excitement about it, so priority should be given to titles that were of high interest to one or more types of libraries, in good condition and available to be guillotined for relatively rapid, low-cost digitization. Priority should also be given to titles that, if digitized with sufficient quality and made accessible, some libraries would be willing to give up in tangible form, thus freeing their paper sets for deposit in shared repositories or the collection of last resort.

At that meeting one of the ARL directors said, "We need to signal clearly that we have started and that we are not going to stop until we finish digitizing the entire collection." The enthusiasm for this project has been enormous – in libraries of various sizes and types and in federal agencies that also want preservation of and improved access to their historical publications. The session on Monday is your opportunity to influence the criteria that will be used for selecting the priority titles to begin this project and the specifications that will be used to create the digital preservation masters.

Last fall, Bruce asked the Council and the attendees at the October meeting in Washington, DC, to help GPO determine the boundaries of free public access through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), outside of which GPO might develop a new economic model for the Sales Program that could generate $30 to $50 million in additional revenue annually. The model must be one that is acceptable to publishing agencies, complements free public access through the FDLP, and avoids inappropriate competition with commercial publishers – a tall order to say the least. Last month, GPO convened a meeting of representatives from the library community, the information industry and federal publishers to discuss the feasibility and characteristics of such a model. That report and the report from the Council to the Public Printer, which includes a substantive discussion of this topic, are the subject of the session that will begin at 3:30 p.m. this afternoon. This is a topic that is sure to generate some energetic discussion. [The report of the meeting on the future of the Sales Program is available at <http://www.gpoaccess.gov/about/reports/preservation.pdf>.]

Before I hand this over to TC [Evans, Deputy Superintendent of Documents], I want to give you a quick update on several other issues.

We have nearly completed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Library of Michigan that will let us place the first depository services consultant out into the community to provide training and work directly with local depository libraries. We have several other proposals in-house or promised, and we are eager to move forward to fill the 12 positions that we have allocated for this purpose. These will be GPO employees, and their salaries, benefits and travel expenses will be paid by GPO, but we are hoping that each consultant will have a sponsoring depository that will provide office space and other support, as the Library of Michigan is doing.

The MOU will be posted once it is completed. Although there may be variations depending on the circumstances and requirements of other hosting institutions, this will serve as a template. You can share the MOU with your general counsel or others in your institutions who are reviewing hosting issues. Similarly, several libraries that have submitted proposals are willing to share their documents.

If you are interested in serving as a consultant or offering to host a consultant, or just need more information, please talk to Kevin [O’Toole, Director, Library and Customer Relations], TC or me.

A number of libraries that have left the program and many selective libraries that remain in the program have expressed dissatisfaction with the statutory provision requiring that every title, once received, must be retained for a minimum of 5 years. GPO has proposed replacing that requirement with a provision that would allow retention criteria to be established by the Superintendent of Documents. Dan is chairing an ad hoc committee to develop guidelines that will support implementation of the proposed amendment by defining the criteria to be issued by my office in lieu of the current statutory mandate to retain all tangible items for a minimum of 5 years. The default requirement is to retain tangible items for a minimum of 5 years as currently provided by statute. Therefore, the guidelines only need to define criteria that are to be applied to tangible items considered for disposal prior to the end of the 5-year retention period.

I have asked the committee to:

• Develop criteria for evaluating items for disposal prior to 5 years. For example: An electronic copy is available that is suitable for substitution.

• Identify categories of materials eligible for disposal before 5 years. For example: Ephemeral materials, such as posters, pamphlets, calendars, bookmarks (providing specific item numbers as examples).

• Reiterate the current exceptions to the 5-year rule. For example, superseded titles.

The intent is to have a document available for review and approval at the summer meetings of ALA and AALL. Once we have approved criteria, and the support of the major library associations, GPO will ask the authorizing committees to amend the statute.

Last year I accepted a request from the AALL to reinstate paper distribution of the Supreme Court slip opinions, but I made the paper slip opinions available only for law libraries and regional libraries. At that time, I asked for recommendations for additional titles that that were deemed essential for libraries of various sizes and types. GPO received some recommendations, but none with a sufficient volume to warrant action. This summer, once the survey on priority titles for digitization is completed, I will initiate a similar survey on essential titles for public use in paper format. There will be an opportunity to recommend titles for consideration, followed by a period of voting to identify titles that are of sufficient interest to warrant action.

A major part of the fact gathering for the GPO strategic plan was a report from the General Accounting Office (GAO) that the Congress requested on behalf of GPO. The data gathering for the report has been completed, and GAO has briefed GPO about the results, which are extremely helpful and reinforce data gathered from other sources. GAO has given GPO a set of PowerPoint slides that outline the findings, and Congress has concurred that GPO can accept those preliminary findings and proceed with the strategic plan. GAO expects to publish its report in June or July and make it available to the public at that time.

After the fall council meeting last year, GPO received a number of requests to web cast portions of future Council meetings. We explored the feasibility and cost of web casting Bruce's presentation tomorrow afternoon, so it could reach a broader audience. In the end, we decided not to offer a web cast, primarily because this is the initial presentation of the fact gathering and Bruce expects to make adjustments to it based on feedback from this audience. Also, he wants to present it to the Congress and other audiences in person, so he has the opportunity to gage their response and answer their questions.

Finally, let me explain to you that I have asked the Council to focus on two major topics at this meeting: management of the legacy collections and planning for the future of a 21st Century digital depository library system. I have already mentioned a number of specific reports and issues that we will be discussing and debating over the next few days.

We have a lot of work to do to sustain the momentum on these important issues. I do not want Council distracted by operational issues that are better addressed in other ways. We have a general open forum scheduled on Tuesday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. and a GPO Access open forum scheduled on Wednesday morning at 10:30 a.m.

I urge you to take any operational issues to the committee. I assure you that the Council and GPO will review and respond to operational issues that you bring forward, but Council will not be focused on operational issues except through its committees. I would also like to remind you that the HELP link on GPO Access [http://www.gpoaccess.gov/help/index.html] will provide you access to the new knowledge base of frequently asked questions and allow you to submit your questions and comments for review and response by GPO staff. A request submitted through the HELP link will receive prompt attention and be tracked to make sure that you receive a timely and accurate response.

We have an exciting year ahead of us. GPO will continue to work with the library community to encourage and facilitate the establishment of shared repositories into which tangible collections can be de-duplicated and provided with active preservation. We will expand our efforts to obtain materials from the community for the Collection of Last Resort. GPO will work with you to begin the digitization of the legacy documents collection for both preservation and access. We will begin cataloging of the retrospective (pre-1976) materials by conversion of our shelf list and other means, and we will pursue other initiatives to help you better mange the retrospective materials and make them more accessible to users in and outside of your libraries.

Simultaneously, we will be working with you on an orderly, but accelerated, transition to a digital FDLP, which will continue to cause depository librarians to change from managers of collections into managers of electronic services, a trend in libraries that is not limited to government documents. This will change the ways that GPO acquires, preserves and provides access to electronic files. It will also require GPO to offer different services to depository libraries, including increased training and other support. We are eager to learn about services that you would like to have from GPO in the future.

Finally, the impact of the transition to a digital FDLP is already substantial and will become more substantial with the passage of time. So we have an urgent need to plan for the future of the Federal Depository Library Program and of GPO in order to ensure public access to authentic government information, now and in the future. We must "get out of the box" and take a fresh look at the mission we share and determine the best means to accomplish it. This meeting is an opportunity to explore options and begin to shape the future. I am looking forward to our discussions.