The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has published a white paper, 'Strategic Directions for the Federal Depository Library Program' (FDLP). The paper calls for a reframing of the FDLP to ensure a robust and effective program for the future.
The US Government Printing Office (GPO) is engaged in a strategic planning process regarding future directions for the FDLP. With GPO and the library community, the Depository Library Council to the Public Printer will be discussing the future needs and strategic vision of the FDLP at the upcoming Depository Library Council meeting in Tampa, Florida, beginning on April 20, 2009.
In support of the Depository Library Council's request for community-wide input to the planning process, ARL has issued a white paper that notes that the current FDLP strategic planning process should lead to a flexible, sustainable, reconfigured programme that reflects the needs and interests of users of government information and participating libraries; embraces the digital networked environment; and importantly, encourages collaborative network-based services while ensuring a smooth and orderly transition to a new program framework. It further states that the underlying principles of the programme should continue, in particular the long-standing principle of no-fee access to government information.
The white paper, available online at http://www.arl.org/pp/access/fdlp, provides an environmental context for the FDLP. It discusses the current opportunity to reframe the programme, presents selected regional cooperative initiatives that demonstrate new directions, and suggests that reframing the FDLP presents a unique opportunity to explore cooperative print-management strategies.
