Robert A. Hinton, Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis was excused due to illness. Sharon A. Hogan, University of Illinois at Chicago resigned from Council in March 2002 due to illness.

Chair Andrea Sevetson welcomed everyone and had the Council members and audience introduce themselves. Doris Helfer is joining Council to finish out the term of Roberta Shaffer who resigned.

Mr. DiMario talked about the upcoming appropriation hearings and the September 11 supplemental funds. GPO has approval for the new Integrated Library System (ILS). The White House has indicated its intent to nominate Mr. Bruce James as the new Public Printer. Mr. DiMario, various GPO staff and Andrea Sevetson have had an opportunity to meet with him.

Mr. Buckley indicated funding was requested and granted for the GPO Access backup and mirror site. The Pueblo, CO distribution center will be the site of the combined backup and mirror site.

Regarding the security concerns and requests for withdrawal of documents, the USGS CD-ROM is the only one so far, but GPO has asked for clarification as to what "sensitive" means. The Office of Homeland Security is working on this but it is unknown when this will be available.

Electronic Preservation Committee – Paul Arrigo reported the committee planned to work on three things: GPO’s response to the need for the geographically separated GPO Access backup, the geographic backups for Partners and the distribution of electronic publications. The committee compiled a list of requirements that would be necessary for entrance to a distribution program and discussed the need for a letter to go out to survey for interest before proceeding.

• Creating a retention schedule
• Creating metadata
• Preservation of metadata
• Harvest metadata automatically
• Handling the files
• Migration issues
• Refreshing the files
• Some geographic redundancy
• Storage in environmental controlled facility
• Must purge docs when requested by GPO for security
• Value added materials are no longer to be considered an official document
• Download information automatically

Operations Committee – Linda Fredericks reported they will be looking at several issues including the Documents Data Miner, a request to have all libraries display the FDLP logo on their websites, and a concern that was expressed about downloading information on to State level archives.

Cataloging and Locator Committee – Dena Hutto reported on three issues. GPO is having problems recruiting and hiring new catalogers due to the classification level they are required to use. The Library of Congress hires catalogers at a higher step than GPO has permission to. They are also looking into PURLs for serials and the need to keep them current. The third issue involves cataloging the tangible products which GPO makes available only electronically.

Communications and Information Committee – Charlene Cain indicated they had been asked to come up with a list of strategies for marketing. Their ideas were delineated in a draft letter to the Public Printer. In response to Recommendation #5, GPO has started to draft a marketing plan entitled "US Government Information: Make the Connection @ Federal Depository Libraries." They are also tracking the Lieberman bill (S 803) on E-Government.

Permanent Public Access – John Stevenson reported the PPA has not met so he had nothing to report.

Chair Sevetson talked about her expectations for members during the meeting. She also reported on her meeting with Bruce James and the draft letter to him regarding depository issues. She asked the Communications committee to review it.

Council also discussed GPO’s responses to the Fall recommendations.

Paul Arrigo, Daniel C. Barkley, Charlene C. Cain, Barbara J. Ford, Linda Fredericks, Cathy Nelson Hartman, Doris Small Helfer, Dena Hutto, John C. Kavaliunas, Greta E. Marlatt, Mary Redmond, Andrea Sevetson and John A. Stevenson.

Mr. Spencer Watts, Mobile Public Library, welcomed everyone to the City of Mobile on behalf of Mayor Michael C. Dowd. He gave a brief overview of the history of the city. Two Azalea Trail Maids also extended welcomes.

Robin Haun-Mohamed, Chief, Depository Services Branch, welcomed everyone and went over logistics.

Andrea Sevetson, Council Chair, welcomed everyone and called the meeting to order. Robin Haun-Mohamed, Willie Thompson and Vicki Tate were all recognized for their efforts in making all the arrangements and putting together the sessions. The usual "Council Aerobics" included asking everyone to respond by geographic areas – oceans, mountains and rivers.

John Stevenson provided the overview of the Sunday evening working session.

Mr. DiMario expressed his pleasure at being at the meeting and commented on the partnership that exists between GPO and the depository community. He noted it is an uneven one with GPO acquiring and distributing the publications and the library community doing the majority of the work.

Mr. DiMario introduced Doris Helfer, who is replacing Roberta Shaffer, and the other new Council appointees. (See Administrative Notes, April 15, 2002, v. 23, no. 5 -- http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/adnotes/ad041502.html)

Mr. DiMario read a letter from Senator Mark Dayton, current Chair of the JCP. This letter was in response to a GPO invitation to the members of the JCP inviting them to attend the meeting. Mr. DiMario was also pleased to be able to announce the approval by the JCP for the $1.9M request to purchase an Integrated Library System (ILS) to upgrade the current legacy system.

Mr. DiMario reminisced about his career within the Government Printing Office that began in 1971. He held several positions culminating with his current one. He announced that the White House has indicated their intention to nominate Mr. Bruce R. James as the next Public Printer. He has met with Mr. James and provided him with information and names of individuals who would help him have a better understanding of the Depository Library concerns. Mr. James is very familiar with the printing industry but not so with the library community and is interested in learning more about us. Mr. DiMario’s best guess is that it will be several months before he is confirmed and sworn in.

Mr. DiMario indicated they have not heard anything on their request for funding. Congress was generous to GPO with the issuance of the supplemental appropriations after September 11. Included in GPO’s request for the supplemental appropriations were the funds for a mirror site. These funds were approved and Pueblo, CO has been chosen as the location.

Regarding their requests for funding, Congressman Charles Taylor (NC) is still the Chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee and he is still skeptical of what GPO does although he has modified his opinion somewhat in recent years. Senator Richard Durbin (IL) is the new Chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee and he has expressed some concern about the Sales Program. The great success of GPO Access has caused significant declines in sales and the impact of agencies producing more and more in electronic format has also caused a decrease in printing, further impacting GPO revenues.

Mr. DiMario expressed his thanks for allowing him to serve and wished everyone well.

See remarks, Administrative Notes May 5, 2002, (v. 23, no. 6) -- http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/adnotes/ad050502.html

See remarks, Administrative Notes May 5, 2002, (v. 23, no. 6) -- http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/adnotes/ad050502.html

See remarks, Administrative Notes May 5, 2002, (v. 23, no. 6) -- http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/pubs/adnotes/ad050502.html

Jim Veatch, Library HQ, asked if there was any information about the status of the Department of the Interior Web sites due to the lawsuit. He noted the National Park Service was now back online.

TC Evans gave an unofficial answer that he heard they were being allowed back on a service or bureau basis after review, and about half were now back. He didn’t know what the timetable was.

Roberta Palen, Chicago Public Library, inquired about her concern that so many of the smaller depositories seem to be dropping. She wanted to know if they were giving notice or reasons for their decisions. She wanted to know if there was any coordination and who was going to pick up the slack.

Andrea Sevetson responded that Council was also aware of the problem and concerned and would be hearing a presentation later in the day from Claire Hoffman who has been studying this issue.

Gil Baldwin responded that GPO rarely gets advance warning, that usually the decision has been made and it is a matter of mechanics by the time they have been notified. They would very much like more notice. The State Planning process should address what to do when libraries relinquish their status.

Fran Buckley also indicated he wished they would consult with GPO as the program can be flexible and GPO would be happy to consult with them.

Linda Fredericks indicated that preliminary findings seem to indicate that they were generally small or medium, most are public or small liberal arts schools and some have been in the program for 100+ years while others are relatively recent entrants.

Andrea Sevetson indicated that Council has been following up and contacting those that are dropping to see why.

Paul Arrigo asked if there have been any new libraries added to the program.

Robin Haun-Mohamed responded with a brief overview of the newest participants.

Paul Arrigo asked if TC Evans could give an explanation of the PKI (Public Key Infrastructure) security software.

TC Evans responded that it was a phased approach since there are numerous issues. They will be conducting a pilot with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. This will be their first foray into the actual use of PKI signing to start the assurance process of information that ultimately ends up in GPO Access. There is a vetting process as well, signing up those with the authority to sign.

Trisha Cruse, California Digital Library, asked if this was security for digital objects or was it for authentication.

TC Evans responded there were several levels. They want to make sure the proper person is authorizing and that they are not altered along the way. There will be a free reader so the user can access the information.

Julia Wallace, University of Minnesota, commented on the issue of libraries who were dropping. In her region, it was mostly small libraries. She thinks there might be more opportunities designating new libraries as new congressional redistricting occurs. She also feels that Regionals should be aware enough to get wind if a library is considering dropping though sometimes the decision is made at the director level and no discussions are held. She mused that GPO Access has been a little too successful!

Andrea Sevetson asked if GPO was looking for new topics. She suggested a listserv for what’s new and maybe something like the table of contents for the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents or other similar serials.

TC Evans responded that they would welcome such suggestions (send suggestions to gpoaccess@gpo.gov) and that they could do a "What’s New on GPO Access." Other serials are a little more complicated since they are agency documents and they are paid to do them (e.g. Federal Register and National Archives Records Administration).

Julia Wallace, University of Minnesota, asked about GPO’s New Titles by Topic service. When a library wants to buy a copy of a publication that we will probably not be getting in a tangible format, we still need to know for sure before buying that we aren’t going to get them and that they are available from the bookstore.

TC Evans responded that he would talk to the relevant parties to see if something could be arranged.

Jim Veatch, Library HQ, asked if there had been an increase in the usage of Ben’s Guide since GPO began pushing it.

TC Evans indicated there have been incremental increases along with the various pushes. They do measure usage and it is generally busy in conjunction with the school year. They are trying to work with the education community to see what events are the catalysts for sending it up one month versus others. We are running at about 800,000-900,000 retrievals per month.

John Stevenson asked if, when an agency asked GPO to set up a Web site, does GPO provide a template or does the agency have a fully formed idea.

TC Evans responded they do work with agencies and they will do everything from building the site from scratch to just mounting it. There are certain "good practices" that they try to get them to work with and they try to make sure the design includes fast loading.

Cathy Hartman indicated she has conversations with GPO about migrating from WAIS databases and would GPO comment.

TC Evans indicated they were looking at which databases would be available to migrate next year.

Committee chairs gave brief overviews of their membership and major issues.

Dena Hutto – Cataloging and Locator Committee

Linda Fredericks – Operations Committee

Paul Arrigo – Electronic Preservation

Charlene Cain – Communications

Andrea Sevetson briefly talked about her meeting with Bruce James and the draft letter she gave him. This draft came from work that Sharon Hogan had done with Council in Fall 2000, to develop a vision for the Program of the Future.

Mr. Buckley distributed and explained SOD 72 (Agency Request to Withdraw Information Products From Superintendent of Documents Program) and GPO’s plans for procedures for implementing SOD 72. He indicated they previously had a procedure but not a written policy. There was a lively discussion about this issue as well as the memo written by Tom Susman regarding this issue (see "Removal or Destruction of Federal Depository Library Documents," http://www.arl.org/info/frn/gov/Susman.html).

Claire Hoffman, Head Librarian at Pennsylvania State University, Abington, gave Council a presentation on her research into the many reasons libraries are leaving the Depository Program. The data she was able to collect covered October 1992 through October 2000. She gave an overview of her findings which she plans to publish. During the targeted time, 104 libraries have dropped. Some of the highlights of her findings include:

Information gleaned from letters, self-studies and inspection reports indicated many had various problems identified during inspections, and had been rated as noncompliant or unsatisfactory. Other issues included staffing problems, space issues, money, requirements, decreased usage, technical requirements, reorganization (changed priorities) and the perception that "everything is on the Internet."

Council members and the audience asked her questions about her findings and there was considerable discussion about the issue and possible solutions.

Council met and worked in small groups on committee work.

Although Mr. DiMario’s acknowledgement of the outgoing class is usually done on the final day, because he and Mr. Buckley needed to leave, Mr. DiMario spoke to Council and thanked them (and the audience) for their participation. He considers the program to be very important and is proud to have been a part of it for so long. He commended the dedication of the staff and GPO as well as the depository community for being "true professionals." He thanked Council for their "due diligence" and acknowledged the 5 outgoing members. He asked for a moment of reflection on behalf of Sharon Hogan who was gravely ill. Subsequent to this meeting, Council learned of Sharon’s death on April 27. He presented certificates to Linda Fredericks, Mary Redmond and Andrea Sevetson.

Chair Sevetson presented Mr. DiMario with a small token of their appreciation for all his efforts.

Since the morning sessions were all very related to the issues Council was working on, the decision was to move the working sessions to Monday evening and attend the morning sessions.

Those sessions were:

Value of Participating in the FDLP: How Depository Coordinators Can Effectively Convey this Message to Library Administration (a response to Recommendation #5, Fall 2001)

• Barbara Ford, Assistant Commissioner, Chicago Public Library and Mary Prophet, Denison University.

Web Documents Digital Archive Pilot Project

• George Barnum, Manager, Electronic Collection, LPS

USGS and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Information dissemination policies in light of changes since September 11, 2001)

• Tom Smith, Nuclear Regulatory Commission
• Hedy Rossmeissl, U.S. Geological Survey
• Sandy Schwalb, Defense Technical Information Center

Committee Chairs reported on the committee discussions regarding the recommendations and commendations they would be responsible for. Council then discussed the recommended actions and made assignments for the actual writing of them.

Council members wrote the various recommendation, commendations and action items.

Council reviewed the draft recommendations, commendations and action items. TC Evans gave an overview of the prototype of the new GPO Access. Council gave some feedback and was favorably impressed overall.

The Freshman class opted to take Greta Marlatt up on her offer and announced that she would remain as Secretary for another year.

Cathy Hartman (incoming Chair) and Andrea Sevetson (outgoing Chair) have provided updated information for the Council website and it was decided that the Chair and Chair Elect will be the defacto Web committee.

Committee assignments were reviewed and updated. While some assignments were made in advance, the incoming class will be added in October when they are available to indicate their preferences. The assignments are as follows:

Paul Arrigo (Chair)
Dan Barkley
Greta Marlatt
John Stevenson

Cataloging

Dena Hutto (Chair)
Paul Arrigo
Doris Helfer
John Stevenson

Communications

Charlene Cain (Chair)
Dena Hutto
Barbara Ford
John Kavaliunas

Operations

Dan Barkley (Chair)
Charlene Cain
Greta Marlatt
Michelle McKnelly
John Phillips
Mary Prophet

Wednesday, April 24, 2002, Plenary Session, 11:45 a.m.

Chair Sevetson made her closing remarks. She thanked Robin Haun-Mohamed for all her hard work and excellent programs and Willie Thompson for all his behind the scenes work. She also thanked Greta Marlatt for being secretary and announced she had graciously agreed to do it again next year.

Council read their recommendations, commendations and action items.

Chair Sevetson opened the floor up to the audience for questions and comments.

John Phillips, Oklahoma State University, indicated that the Regionals had met and they share some of the similar concerns about libraries leaving the program. They would send their list of recommendations to GPO.

Dan Barkley asked that the list be transmitted to Council as well.

George Carlson, Santa Clara University, asked about Recommendation no. 7, Retention and Recruitment of GPO Catalogers. He was concerned that it talked about online but didn’t really mention tangible items.

Dena Hutto responded that the recommendation had been structured to address concerns that it not specify cataloging of only tangible items but others as well.

Chris Brown, University of Denver, had a question about Recommendation no. 8, Integrated Library System. He was concerned about the wording "own the source code" as he felt there might a problem.

Dan Barkley responded that he thinks GPO does need to own the source code and the most vendors are unlikely to have a problem. Making changes is very expensive.

Steve Sexton, Georgia Southern University, suggested that Recommendation no. 8 would work better if the wording were changed around.

Andrea Sevetson encouraged the audience to send other comments to Council. She thanked Vicki Tate for making local arrangements.

She thanked Mary Redmond and Linda Fredericks for their efforts as part of her class and presented them with small gifts. She also thanked Council for their hard work and good humor before turning the gavel over to Cathy Hartman.

On behalf of GPO, Gil Baldwin thanked the outgoing class for all their work and participation. He also thanked the rest of Council for a very productive meeting and the audience for their participation.

Cathy Hartman thanked Robin Haun-Mohamed and Willie Thompson for the great sessions and all their help. She expressed her appreciation to the Senior class and especially Chair Sevetson for including her in many things throughout the year so that she would be well equipped to take over as Chair. Both Chairs gave out gifts.

Meeting adjourned at 12:25 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Greta E. Marlatt
Council Secretary