Indiana Light Archives for
Federal Documents
Cheryl Truesdell
How did we come up with this crazy idea?
Government Printing Office and Federal
Depository Libraries evolving vision for an
electronic documents system including:
National Bibliography – GPO to purchase an
ILS system and systematically develop
cataloging for all documents
Digitizing the Legacy Collection – GPO
developing a plan to digitize all documents not
currently in electronic format
GPO proposes a system of “dark” and “light”
archives distributed throughout the United
States that would be responsible for
maintaining the legacy and current collection
GPO developing a harvesting system to
systematically capture electronic documents
not in the depository system
Indiana’s Response…
Brief history and evolution - 2003
• At the IU Council of Head Librarians Judie
presented a brief description of the issues facing
depository libraries today in the era of electronic
information. Meeting of IU documents librarians
recommended.
• Documents librarians convened and discussed
building a complete, retrospective federal
depository collection in the ALF.
Brief history and evolution – 2004
• IU Council of Head Librarians drafted a charge
to the newly formed IU Depository Library
Group:
– provide a proposed plan and timeline for eliminating
duplication of electronic records in the Marcive profile
– Delineate pros and cons of reducing the number of
print copies of U.S. government publications retained
permanently by the IU Libraries
Brief history and evolution – 2004
– Outline the implications of using the ALF as a
shelving location for print copies not needed onsite
with the goal to keep at least one copy of every print
document in ALF
– Define delivery standards and “restricted use” criteria
– Examine the issues of shared cataloging
responsibilities among IU Libraries for these
publications and for shared records management
responsibilities.
Brief history and evolution – 2005
• IU Documents Group Status Report
– Established goals
• Enhance access to government documents and information
• Free staff from more routine activities in order to concentrate
on value-added activities (such as building databases,
working on digital projects, etc.)
• Save space, processing time and duplication of effort
• Fill in collection gaps
• Establish a base that could be expanded to include other
Indiana depositories
Brief history and evolution – 2005
• IU Documents Group Status Report
– Recommendations
• All electronic-only selections will be re-assigned to
IU’s Main Library. No other library will include
electronic-only items in the MARCIVE profile in the
future. Electronic-only selections will be assigned
to the “Online” library location in IUCAT.
• Share the cost and labor of adding the URL to the
record of the tangible format.
Brief history and evolution – 2005
• IU Documents Group Status Report
– Recommendations
• IU Main Library will select all available printed
documents starting FY2005
• Process all IU Main printed selections to the ALF
• Move one copy of every title available to ALF
• Circulate all copies with certain exceptions
Brief history and evolution – 2005
• IU Documents Group Status Report
– Recommendations
• Delivery standards assume that users will use electronic
versions of physical documents whenever possible
• All items will be loanable/deliverable except for restricted
items (rare or fragile items)
• All others will be a normal circulation or “in-library use only”
• Items less than 25 pp will be scanned and sent electronically
• Microfiche will be copied if longer than 50 pp
• Desktop delivery within 24-36 hours; campus to campus
delivery within 2-3 days (assumes all campuses have 5days/week Wheels delivery
Brief history and evolution – 2005
• IU Documents Group Status Report
– Recommendations
• Cataloging of MARCIVE supplied electronic serials
• Cataloging of non-depository items
• Shared cleanup of records, e.g., changed
monographic records – many with updated URLs
Brief history and evolution – 2006
• IU Library Director writes to Judith Russell,
Superintendent of Documents to “officially express our
intent to serve as a light repository for historical federal
documents”
• The concept of the “light” repository is based on the
assumption that this tangible archive would serve as a
backup to a publicly accessible digital collection
• Outlined IU’s questions to GPO on comprehensiveness,
discard policy, duplication, cataloging assistance,
preservation standards, delivery requirements
Brief history and evolution – February 2006
Enter Academic Libraries of Indiana (ALI)
• Directors of Indiana University, University of
Notre Dame and Purdue University report back
to an ALI meeting concerning conference they
attended sponsored by Association of Research
Libraries “The Future of Government Documents
in ARL Libraries”
• Recommended that ALI build upon the current
IU Documents Group Plan
Brief history and evolution – June 2006
• Planning meeting for Indiana GPO Light Archive
– Attended by Directors of IU, Purdue, Notre Dame and the
Indiana State Library and representative government documents
librarians
– The group agreed that the ultimate goal is development of one
comprehensive, well-preserved, secure, centralized collection of
federal documents in tangible format
– In the meantime task force was convened to develop a way to
create a distributed collection based on the holdings of the
participating libraries
– Everyone present agreed to commit time and resources to work
on the project. Task Force established: Lou Malcomb, IU, Bert
Chapman, Purdue, Laura Bayard, Notre Dame, Anika Williams,
ISL, Cheryl Truesdell, IPFW
Brief history and evolution – August 2006
• Meeting of Indiana Depository Librarians
– Forty-one depository librarians and directors, representing all but
ten of Indiana’s depositories attended
– All agreed that we should proceed towards a shared,
collaborative light repository for federal and state documents
– All agreed that we should adopt the revised disposal guidelines
pending approval by the Superintendent of Documents, Judith
Russell
– What began as a project involving only the nine depositories in
Indiana University was now a project involving all of the
depositories in Indiana, and indeed, all of the libraries of Indiana
Brief history and evolution – Sept. 2006
“The Legacy Collection in a Digital Age: The
Indiana Plan for a Light Government
Documents Depository: A Meeting with the
Superintendent of Documents” outlined
Indiana Plan and asked for response from
GPO
Brief history and evolution – Sept. 2006
• Some questions & concerns by GPO
– Legal ruling on Indiana’s proposed Disposal
Guidelines
– Written memorandum of understanding by
participating libraries outlining commitment
now and in the future
Brief history and evolution – October 2006
Indiana Gets the Green Light!
Meeting with the Sup’t. of Documents
 All participants of the light archive will sign a
selective housing agreement that describes
which libraries are involved, which parts of the
collection they are responsible for, and what
support services they will provide, and “an out
clause”
Brief history and evolution – October 2006
 In the near term the shared light archive
collection will be a distributed collection housed
at IU, Purdue, Notre Dame and ISL
 All publications included in the light archive will
be cataloged
 Participants will provide ILL and reference
services for those areas of the collection for
which they are responsible
 Wheels will include all depository libraries
Brief history and evolution – October 2006
 There is a consensus among the Indiana
depository libraries that this is an acceptable
arrangement
 Indiana may revise its Disposal Guidelines to
reflect availability of documents in distributed
light archive
 Nothing in the disposal guidelines will cause
Indiana to be without a comprehensive collection
of Federal depository resources
Where are we now?
ALI Indiana Light Archive for Government
Documents Planning Group has met
monthly and so far has:
Issued revised Indiana Guidelines for
Disposal of U.S. Government Depository
Documents
New Disposal Guidelines
 Indiana federal depository libraries have agreed to build a “light archive” of
all U.S. government depository documents. The core of the archive
currently resides in Indiana University’s Auxillary Library Facility (ALF) and
Government Information, Microforms & Statistical Services (GIMSS),
Bloomington, Indiana, and the Indiana State Library, Indianapolis, Indiana.
It has been determined that these libraries already contain close to 100% of
federal depository documents distributed from 1976 to the present. The
Indiana State Library, Indiana’s Regional Federal Depository Library, has
determined that Indiana selectives do not have to prepare disposal lists for
federal depository documents issued from 1976 to date, with the stipulation
that documents received from GPO within the last 5 years cannot be
discarded
 In addition, Indiana federal depository libraries are encouraged to continue
to offer through a disposal list any post-1975 document (s) that they
consider historically significant or important to Indiana
 Indiana federal depository libraries must continue to compile disposal lists
for pre-1976 documents.
Indiana State Library is developing a Webbased Needs & Offers list as required by GPO
The Group has created a Web page which
includes many of the documents issued so far
in this process
The Group has developed the Stewardship
concept for the distributed light archive
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Libraries assuming responsibility for an
agency or department’s publications are
known as collection stewards and will
maintain perpetual custodial
responsibilities for these publications and
ensure that users will have timely and
efficient access to them
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Collecting – Stewards will build and retain
comprehensive collections for their
department or agency…They should focus
on acquiring and providing optimum
cataloging for print, microform, or
electronic versions of these publications
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Preservation – Stewards should maintain
preservation standards for print and
microform materials compatible with
professional best practices and within
institutional resources. Materials
stabilization should be a minimum
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Delivery – It is expected that users will use
electronic versions of physical documents
whenever possible
All items should be loanable/deliverable
except “restricted” items (rare or fragile)
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Delivery Guidelines
All items should be loanable/deliverable
except “restricted” items (rare or fragile)
Loanable items should have regular
circulation periods and shipped by Wheels (23 days)
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Delivery Guidelines
Paper items less than 25 pages, microform
items under 50 pages, and CDs, DVDs and
Floppies should be scanned and delivered
electronically (24-36 hrs, M-F)
All items should be cataloged and available
through INCAT
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Cataloging All material in all formats 1976 to present
Stewards agree to provide or ensure bibliographic
records in WorldCat, INCat with level 3 holding
statements meeting or exceeding current BIBCO
and CONSER standards
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Cataloging All material in all formats in the future
Stewards agree to provide or ensure bibliographic
records in WorldCat, INCat meeting or exceeding
current BIBCO and CONSER standards to the
piece level (monographic series full analyzed) with
level 4 holdings statements
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Cataloging All material in all formats pre-1976
Stewards commit to provide or ensure availability
of bibliographic records at some point in the future
that meet or exceed current BIBCO and CONSER
standards in WorldCat/INcat. Stewards will
provide a cataloging plan for all un-cataloged
materials within two years of this agreement
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Reference/Instruction
Stewards for individual departmental and
agency collections will acquire, maintain, and
seek to expand their knowledge of their
department and agency’s organizational,
political, and policymaking practices, and
information resources
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Reference/Instruction
Stewards for individual departmental and agency
collections will provide instruction in finding and using
information resources of these departments and
agencies
This instruction can be provided through the
classroom, to colleagues within the institution at
conferences or through Web sites and online tutorials
Indiana Light Archive Collection Stewardship
Guidelines
Professional Development/Training
Professional development and training will
involve ongoing activities, presentations and
help sessions
Presentations will be given on a rotating basis
by all Indiana Light Archive task force
participants
Indiana Light Archive Stewardship
Current Status
I-LIGHT Group is still selecting departments and
agencies for stewardship
State Library is still working on Needs & Offers
database
Cataloging guidelines are being discussed with
steward library cataloging units
Pursuing with OCLC an ILIT symbol for
designation of an archive copy
What does this mean for IPFW?
 IPFW can weed without preparing discard lists
documents 1976 to within last five years
 Better access to U.S. Federal documents
 Role of other IU and Indiana depositories not
clearly defined, but it is felt that
 IPFW must commit to stewardship of one or more
parts of the collection
 Or IPFW must to assisting IU in its stewardship of the
collections it chooses
Stay Tuned….