A Huge Expanding Warehouse of Government Documents

"A popular Government without popular information, or the means of acquiring it is but a prologue to a Farce or Tragedy; or perhaps both. Knowledge will forever govern ignorance; and a people who mean to be their own Governors must arm themselves with the power that knowledge gives." (James Madison, 1822.)

To this end, the United States Government distributes copies of its documents through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP).

City College joined the select group in 1884 when it was designated a depository library. Currently, there are 1,391 depository libraries in the FDLP.

Beyond Paper

In the 1970s, the GPO started using means other than paper to distribute government documents. Microfiche was cheaper than paper, took up less space, and cost less to ship. But it increasingly came to be seen as a transitional medium between paper and online access.

In the 1990s, with the introduction of the GPO Access Program, online access became a reality with many documents available on the day of publication.

At first, these services were available free to depository libraries, with other users charged for the information. As of Dec. 1, 1993, they're now free also to those linked by dial-up or Internet connections to electronic information.

Internet users can access the databases with a World Wide Web browser through the Superintendent of Documents' home page at: http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/ for full text and graphics. For text alone, Internet users can also telnet to swais.access.gpo.gov; then login as guest.

Since the FDLP is rapidly moving from paper to electronic format, we're beginning to see that electronic versions of many titles will be the only ones available through the FDLP.

There has been rapid proliferation of government information published on bulletin boards, Internet servers, and CD-ROMs. In addition to those items coming through the FDLP, many agencies have set up Web sites and put previously printed information there instead.

Areas of Concern

Continued migration to electronic formats will generate increased savings for taxpayers. But it must be managed appropriately to ensure that public access to important government documents is not lost.

This latter possibility may happen through channeling documents to the private sector and through inadequate preservation.

It's been of concern to many that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has at times been an arm of the information industry. They've attempted to subvert the FDLP by providing a narrow definition of a "government publication" and in essence to create a difference between paper and electronic formats. This difference would allow Federal agencies to use the argument that they need not provide electronic products and services to GPO for distribution to FDLP.

There has also recently been a concerted attack on the GPO. Information in government documents is created for and paid for by the public. The information industry has felt that users might pay for "value-added bells and whistles." Consequently they have taken government documents, gussied them up a bit, and resold them for many times the original price. By capturing OMB, they seek to eliminate what they consider "unfair competition," namely, the government-produced product. They will take our information paid for by us, and sell it back to us at vastly inflated prices.

The second possibility, inadequate preservation, is even more of a problem.

We have no assurance that today's information in digital formats will be available and accessible in the future. Although librarians and preservationists are concerned with the issue, it is generally true that producers of digital information are not, and this includes the government.

If public information in electronic formats is to be saved for future users, preservation should begin at the time the data is released, Unless a magnetic tape, for instance, is copied or refreshed regularly, the information on the tape may be lost. Furthermore, unless the information migrates to new forms of media that can be accessed by new forms of software and hardware, the information will be effectively lost. Handy examples are 8-track tapes and, increasingly, records.

Paper vs Electronic

Michael F. Dimario, Public Printer, spoke to the House Oversight Committee on Printing Reform on Aug. 1, 1995. In a noteworthy remark, he said: "Mr. Chairman, whatever its faults, ink-on-paper today is still the most egalitarian of information formats. It is accessible, transportable, and economical. It is still recognized as the official medium for government documents. It still has the best chance of preservation for future generations. It still is sought by vast numbers of Americans who use government information for a wide variety of purposes, including the most basic use of all: holding the government accountable for its actions."

"The information may be out there, but librarians will have to surf the Net. It is like a huge expanding warehouse with books piled everywhere and no system for finding the one you want." Superintendent of Documents Wayne Kelly. Feb.4, 1995.

Arthur Knieriem
artcc@cunyvm.cuny.edu