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This article was originally published as the Summary and Selected Findings of the E.D. TAB of the same name. The universe data are from the State Library Agencies (StLA) Survey. | |||
Introduction
This report contains data on state library agencies in the 50 states and the District of Columbia for state fiscal year (FY) 2003.1 The data were collected through the State Library Agencies (StLA) Survey, the product of a cooperative effort between the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA), the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS), the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), and the U.S. Census Bureau. This cooperative effort makes possible the 100 percent response rate achieved for this survey. The frame or source of the list of respondents for this survey is based on the list that COSLA maintains of state library agencies. The FY 2003 survey is the 10th in the StLA series. The data upon which this report is based are final. Data from previous administrations of the survey have been revised, and a complete list of references can be found on page 65 of the full report. Background A state library agency is the official agency of a state that is charged by state law with the extension and development of public library services throughout the state and that has adequate authority under state law to administer state plans in accordance with the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) (P.L. 104-208). Beyond these two roles, state library agencies vary greatly. They are located in various departments of state government and report to different authorities. They are involved in various ways in the development and operation of electronic information networks. They provide different types of services to different types of libraries. They provide important reference and information services to state governments and administer the state libraries and special operations such as state archives, libraries for the blind and physically handicapped, and the State Center for the Book.2 The state library agency may also function as the state's public library at large, providing library services to the general public. This report provides information on the range of roles played by state library agencies and the various combinations of fiscal, human, and informational resources invested in such work. Some state library agencies perform allied operations, services not ordinarily considered a state library agency function. These special operations may include maintaining state archives, managing state records, conducting legislative research for the state, or operating a museum or art gallery. The state library agencies of the District of Columbia, Hawaii, and Maryland are different from the other state libraries in a variety of ways. They are administrative offices without a separate state library collection. In the District of Columbia, which is treated as a state for reporting purposes, the Martin Luther King Memorial Library, the central library of the District of Columbia Public Library, functions as a resource center for the municipal government. In Hawaii, the state library is located in the Hawaii State Public Library System. State law designates Enoch Pratt Free Library's central library as the Maryland State Library Resource Center. These collections are reported on the NCES Public Libraries Survey (PLS) and thus are not reported on the StLA Survey, to avoid duplication. The state library agencies of the District of Columbia, Hawaii, and Maryland administer LSTA funds and report LSTA revenue and expenditures in this report. The District of Columbia and Maryland state library agencies administer and staff the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (LBPH). The Library of Congress owns the LBPH collections. Purpose of survey The purpose of the StLA Survey is to provide state and federal policymakers, researchers, and other interested users with descriptive information about state library agencies. The data collected are useful to (1) chief officers of state library agencies; (2) policymakers in the executive and legislative branches of federal and state governments; (3) government and library administrators at the federal, state, and local levels; (4) the American Library Association and its members or customers; (5) library and public policy researchers; and (6) the public, journalists, and others. Decisionmakers use this survey to obtain information about services and fiscal practices. Organization of this report This report presents selected findings and background information about the survey. The body of this report is composed of tables providing an overview of state library agencies during the 2003 fiscal year. The tables present data on six main topics.
The survey asks each state library agency about the kinds of services it provides, its staffing practices, its collections, its income and expenditures, and more. The data include services and financial assistance provided to public, academic, and school libraries, and to library systems. When added to the data collected through the NCES surveys of public, academic, and school libraries,3 these data help complete the national picture of library service. Congressional authorization The StLA Survey is conducted in compliance with the NCES mission to "collect, report, analyze, and disseminate statistical data related to education in the United States and in other nations, including . . . assisting public and private educational agencies, organizations, and institutions in improving and automating statistical and data collection activities. . . . The Statistics Center may establish one or more national cooperative education statistics systems for the purpose of producing and maintaining, with the cooperation of the States, comparable and uniform information and data on early childhood education, elementary and secondary, postsecondary education, adult education, and libraries, that are useful for policymaking at the Federal, State, and local levels." (H.R. 3801, Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 [ESRA 2002]) Selected Findings
Governance
Collections and services
Services to public libraries Public libraries serve all residents of a given community, district, or region, and typically receive financial support, in whole or part, from public funds.
Services to academic libraries Academic libraries are integral parts of colleges, universities, or other academic institutions for postsecondary education, organized and administered to meet the needs of students, faculty, and affiliated staff.
Services to school library media centers School library media centers (LMCs) are integral parts of the educational program of elementary and secondary schools, with materials and services that meet the curricular, information, and recreational needs of students, teachers, and administrators.
Services to special libraries Special libraries are located in business firms, professional associations, government agencies, or other organized groups. A special library may be maintained by a parent organization to serve a specialized clientele; or an independent library may provide materials or services, or both, to the public, a segment of the public, or other libraries. Special libraries include libraries in state institutions. The scope of special library collections and services is limited to the subject interests of the host or parent institution.
Services to systems Systems are groups of autonomous libraries joined together by formal or informal agreements to perform various services cooperatively, such as resource sharing or communications. Systems include multi-type library systems and public library systems, but not multiple outlets under the same administration.
Service outlets and staff State library agency service outlets have regular hours of service in which state library agency staff are present to serve users. The state library agency, as part of its regular operation, pays the staff and all service costs. The main or central outlet is a single unit library where the principal collections are located and handled. Other outlets have separate quarters, a permanent basic collection of books and/or other materials, permanent paid staff, and a regular schedule of hours open to users. Bookmobiles are trucks or vans specially equipped to carry books and other library materials. They serve as traveling branch libraries.
Revenue Sources of state library agency revenue are the federal government, state governments, and other sources, such as local, regional, or multijurisdictional sources. State library agencies may also receive income from private sources, such as foundations, corporations, Friends of Libraries groups, and individuals. State library agencies may also generate revenue through fees for service or fines. Revenue may be designated for aid to libraries, for the current and recurrent costs necessary for the provision of services by the state library agencies, or other purposes.
Expenditures Operating expenditures are the current and recurrent costs necessary for the provision of services by the state library agencies. Operating expenditures include LSTA expenditures for statewide services conducted directly by the state library agencies and administration of the LSTA funds. Not included are the LSTA expenditures for grants and other funds distributed to libraries.
Public policy issues State library agencies had a combined total of $26 million in grant and contract expenditures to assist public libraries with state or federal education reform initiatives. The area of adult literacy and family literacy accounted for 85 percent of such expenditures, and prekindergarten learning account-ed for 15 percent. State library agencies with total revenue of $50 million or more directed 92 percent of reform initiative funds to adult and family literacy and 8 percent to prekindergarten learning. For state library agencies with revenue of less than $4 million, 63 percent of reform initiative funds went to adult or family literacy and 37 percent of such funds were spent on prekindergarten learning.
Footnotes 1See the section on Reporting Period in appendix A of the full report for more information on state fiscal year. 2The State Center for the Book, which is part of the Center for the Book program sponsored by the Library of Congress, promotes books, reading, and literacy, and is hosted or funded by the state. 3The NCES Public Libraries Survey collects data from U.S. public libraries. The Academic Libraries Survey collects data from postsecondary institution libraries. The "School Library Media Center Questionnaire" of the NCES Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) collects data from elementary and secondary school library media centers. 4The number of outlets by user group may not sum to total outlets because some outlets serve multiple user groups. 5This includes staff not reported under administration, library development, or library services, such as staff in allied operations. 6Federal income includes State Program income under the LSTA (P.L. 104-208), income from Title II of the Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) (P.L. 101-254), and other federal income. Note: LSCA was superseded by LSTA, but LSCA Title II funds are still active.
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