CRIV CONNECTION

Author: Cornelius Pereira, Head of Technical Services, University of South Carolina

The first part of this Annual Meeting & Conference program with Jennifer Bryan Morgan (Jerome Hall Law Library at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law), focused on how her library was adapting to the Digital Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) in concert with its obligation as a Preservation Steward. She explained that the Federal Depository has historically focused on the disposition of tangible documents, with some born-digital publications making up most of the distribution—especially since the 1990s, when electronic materials began to come into focus.

The Digital FDLP is based on three categories of items: a selection of titles in an unlimited quantity, another where only 50 copies each will be distributed, and a third where 20 copies will be distributed. This is all tied to the Preservation Steward commitment, so there is accountability through access and stewardship. Each of these categories contain a smattering of select titles, and some of these include such major legal/historical titles as Foreign Relations of the United States, Serial Set, Code of Federal Regulations, Congressional Record, United States Reports, etc. Participating in a Digital FDLP helps with the accessibility to digital titles in the catalog, promotes access through GovInfo, Congress.gov, Catalog of Government Publications (CGP), and Discover.Gov, and supports the retention, gap-filling, and catalog coordination between associated libraries. This is particularly relevant since retention matters to R1 libraries in support of research and preservation. This also maintains legislative and regulatory history for the library in question as well as the region. Libraries are slowly adapting to this program, and while print remains essential for historical access, there is a strong concern for long-term digital preservation. This is, therefore, a combination of digital innovation with physical stewardship.

Morgan was of the opinion that libraries are slowly, and unevenly, adapting to this digital environment, while print remains the go-to format for many patrons. Cataloging and discovery gaps are prevalent but there are benefits to the digital environment if support is available, and she indicated that the FDLP needs to balance such innovation with more pairings through stewardship responsibilities.

Indiana’s 28 Federal Depository Libraries were engaged in a survey to get a better understanding of this change to a digital environment, and to determine next steps for their regional collaboration. It was indicated that several of these libraries already serve as GPO Preservation Stewards. This survey determined that some libraries were reducing their reliance on print, as they suffered a loss of some key print series, while others continued to catalog and retain legacy print, especially rare or historic items. As is the case when libraries have to adapt to new provisions, the author found some common usage points through the use of CGP, GovInfo, and agency links in the catalogs throughout the state, but there were also gaps created by the concurrent closure of MARCIVE, with some variance between the use of PURLs and the integration of digital records. What was also discovered was the uncertainty of what priorities lay ahead for the cataloging department and how digital links were going to play a role in the catalog. Digital access and preservation concerns were also noted among these Indiana libraries, with concerns expressed about the loss of transparency and historical continuity, how certain users might be left out based on this digital divide, and how cyber risks continue to pose problems through data integrity and malware exposure, among other areas of concern. Political interference was also noted as being one of the factors that drove this level of uncertainty. Some of the advantages discussed between these libraries with this digital integration included easier integration into discovery tools, improved remote access, faster processing due to reduced shipping delays, and the expanded use of digital resources in instruction.

As far as usage trends are concerned, the results were a mixed bag, with the usual ebbs and flows—particularly from patrons using the libraries for historical research—but overall, the public seemed unaware of most of the digital tools within the FDLP. Training to assist in the discovery and use of such resources as webinars and the FDLP Academy is available, but librarians expressed their concerns about limited staff expertise and time, despite the strong interest they had in training on metadata, outreach, and teaching with digital documents.

The Preservation Stewardship program is entirely voluntary for depository libraries where they commit to long-term care of specific print publications through a signed Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). In collaboration with the GPO, the library in question defines specific titles that the library will steward through an itemized inventory, which is as detailed as it is cumbersome for individual libraries to undertake. Those that engage in this program enhance their visibility through institutional recognition on a national scale, while also ensuring preserved print access to certain titles. This MOA also specifies that items need to be assessed for their condition, catalogs have to be updated to clearly mark those volumes within such an MOA, and there is also a need to indicate the stewardship status. There is an understanding for each library undertaking such a stewardship agreement to assess its holdings on a regular basis, maintain suitable environmental storage, and repair and/or replace damaged or lost copies within the MOA.

As they move forward, there are plans to distribute the results of this survey among all Indiana Depository Libraries, while attending to training needs and content lacunae, in their attempts to model such a digital environment for other states.

The second part of the presentation contained Scott Mattheson (Government Publishing Office), who discussed the growth of this Digital FDLP along with the digital preservation of items. He began by showing us that GovInfo, LOCKSS-USDOCS and Archive is all housed within programs that preserve the digital components of each program in maintaining our digital repositories. He detailed the fact that such a digital environment provides for broader access through cooperative cataloging, non-MARC metadata, and the many outlets also discussed by Morgan above, and the individual institutional discovery service outlets. Mattheson discussed a major code set currently in the planning stage and showed how 200+ years of print are accessible through a digital interface via the Digital FDLP. There are training resources available, and the FDLP has designated Jessica Law as the new manager for this environment. Mattheson stressed that one of the main areas of support could be the regional librarian at your library. He spoke about how websites and guides could enhance our discovery services, and he suggested we share Academy sessions or presenters in instruction sessions. Finally, he reminded us that the promotion of such materials are ably supported through a host of public events.

This session was moderated by Cate Kellet, head of cataloging and metadata services at the Lillian Goldman Law Library at Yale Law School.