ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries


404

Washington 
Hotline

C arol C. H enderson

Thanks to  ACRL 
leg islative n e tw o rk
By now, many o f you w ho 
have agreed to be part o f the 
ACRL Legislative N etw ork 
have been called into action a 
few times this year to help fight 
the most serious threat in de­
cades to continuation o f a fed­
eral role in support o f academic 
and research libraries, and li­
brary education and research.

At this writing, the House 
passed on May 26 a supple­
mental appropriations bill 
(HR 2244) which w ould defund the college li­
brary technology program, library research, and 
library literacy projects. The targets were pro­
grams the Clinton Administration proposed for 
elimination in FY94, but which had not yet 
obligated funds for FY93. Despite the fact that 
grants w ere within weeks o f being awarded, 
the House rescinded these three library pro­
grams and 11 other education programs to help 
pay for a scaled-down version o f the Clinton 
economic stimulus package.

The Senate is about to take up this bill, 
and it is not yet clear whether Senators w ill 
f o llo w  th e H ou se lea d  or return to the 
Administration’s recom m ended financing—a 
cut o f 0.45 percent on all programs. Mean­
while, a House subcommittee is about to make 
recom m endations for FY94, for w h ich the 
President recomm ended zero for all Higher 
Education Act library programs.

Many o f you made great efforts to get your 
legislators to sign a joint letter recommending 
restoration o f these funds spearheaded by Rep. 
Dale Kildee (D-Mich.). This was a major cam­
paign begun on Library Legislative Day on April 
20. The letter was delivered to the House ap­
propriations subcommittee on May 6 with 84 
signatures. This is a good  showing in less than 
tw o weeks time.

Many o f you have gone to work again and 
again on behalf o f these programs. Although 
the outcome is not yet known, a round o f ap­
plause is due to all o f you w h o responded. 
Your efforts are appreciated, and really do make 
a difference. The funding subcommittees each 
have a total amount o f money to allocate, as 
determined by the earlier congressional bud­
get process. The question is whether library

programs will be part o f that 
total, or w h eth er library 
funds will g o  to some other 
program  within the sub­
co m m ittee’s jurisdiction. 
The squeaky w h e e l...etc. 
Thanks to all o f you w ho 
squeaked loudly!

H o w  to subscribe to 
A LA W O N
If you have been following 
alerts and new s through 
ALAW ON, the ALA Wash­
in g to n  O ffic e  N e w s lin e  

available on the Internet, you’ve been getting 
lots o f detail on late-breaking developments 
such as the library program funding emergen­
cies referred to above. If not, here’s a reminder 
on how  to subscribe:

ALAW O N is an irregular publication o f the 
American Library Association Washington O f­
fice, 110 Maryland Avenue, N.E., Washington, 
DC 20002-5675. Phone: 202-547-4440; Fax: 202-
547-7363; Internet: alawash@alawash.org. Edi­
to r an d List O w n e r: F red  K in g  (fd k @  
alawash.org). A LA W O N  is available free o f 
charge, and may be redistributed, with appro­
priate credits.

T o  subscribe, send the message “subscribe 
ala-wo [your name]” to listserv@uicvm (Bitnet) 
or listserv@uicvm.uic.edu (Internet). Back is­
sues o f A LAW O N  are available from the list 
server. T o find out what’s available, send the 
message “send ala-wo filelist” to the listserv. 
The ALA-W O filelist contains the list o f files 
with the exact filename and filetype. T o  get a 
particular file, issue the com m and “send 
filename filetype” to the listserv. D o not in­
clude the quotation marks in your commands.

GPO electronic access bill passed
Fortunately, there is good  news to report as 
well. S. 564, the Government Printing Office 
Electronic Information Access Enhancement Act 
o f 1993, is on its w ay to the President’s desk, 
follow ing House passage on May 25, 1993. The 
Senate passed the bill in March. This measure 
w ill provide direct electronic access to public 
information through an online system estab-

Carol C. Henderson is deputy executive director of 
ALA’s Washington Office; bitnet: cch@alawash.org

mailto:alawash@alawash.org
mailto:listserv@uicvm.uic.edu
mailto:cch@alawash.org


405

lished at GPO— free o f charge through deposi­
tory libraries, and at the incremental cost o f 
dissemination to others.

Rep. Gerald Kleczka (D-W is.), w h o m oved 
S. 564, said the bill:

1) provides for online access to the Con­
gressional Record, the Federal Register, and 
other publications distributed by the Superin­
tendent o f Documents;

2) provides for the establishment o f an elec­
tronic directory o f federal public information 
stored electronically;

3) provides for an electronic storage facility;
4) requires the Superintendent o f Documents 

to distribute agency electronic information at 
the request o f the issuing agency;

5) requires that fees for access to the direc­
tory and the system, including information

stored in the electronic storage facility, are to 
approximate the incremental cost o f dissemi­
nation o f the information. The one exception 
is that depository libraries w ill be able to ac­
cess the directory, and system provided for in 
the bill, including the information stored in the 
electronic storage facility, free o f charge;

6) requires the Public Printer to report on 
the directory, the system o f access, and the elec­
tronic storage facility not later than December 
31 o f each odd numbered year.

The report is to include an analysis o f cost 
savings in comparison with traditional forms 
o f information distribution.

N o increase in funding was authorized in the 
bill. GPO is to implement the system o f access, the 
electronic directory, and the electronic storage fa­
cility within its current budget. ■

(D a ta fica tion  cont. f r o m  page 400)
• Access and communication may be dis­

criminatory if only Internet technology is utilized.
• Authentication o f information/data is more 

o f a problem with the Net than with printed 
materials.

• Government agencies in particular need 
“W elcom e Centers” to provide immediate in­
formation/documentation for a plethora o f pub­
lic needs which could be facilitated by the In­
ternet.

• There are real barriers to ubiquitous ac­
cess, particularly for the over 50% o f public 
libraries that serve populations o f under 10,000.

During the conference references to vari­
ous Internet resources and lists abounded. Reg­
istration packets included printed information 
from many o f the presenters and a listing o f all 
attendees with e-mail addresses for easy follow-up.

 In addition to network personnel, the 
con feren ce w as w e ll attended by systems 
people and librarians, with several entrepre­
neurs in evidence. It was very rewarding to 
see several Internet luminaries in attendance 
and to realize that these folks continue to share 
their vision and expertise on the Net without 
regard for financial profit.

From the perspective o f this reporter, the 
rural datafication conference was an unquali­
fied success. O f course, persons with a rural 
background like myself may have to change 
our understanding to accommodate the inclu­
sion o f any underserved community as a p o ­
tential audience. In closing the meeting, Michael 
Staman, president o f CICNet said that the con­
ference proceedings w ould be published and 
that another rural datafication conference would 
be held next year. ■