Executive Summary This ninth Annual Report of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) covers the twelve-month period from October 1, 1979, through September 30, 1980. Most of the activities of the Commission during this period arose from, or were related to, the first White House Conference on Library and Information Services, the planning for and conduct of which were assigned to NCLIS by Public Law 93-568. The national White House Conference, held November 15 through 19, 1979, in Washington, D.C., had been preceded by 57 pre-conferences in the states and territories and by six pre-conferences for special constituencies and topics. In terms of attendance (more than 3,600 total) the five-day Conference was the largest White House Conference ever held in one location, and the delegates produced a total of 64 resolutions 25 by voice vote in plenary session and 39 by paper ballot (See Appendix VIII). The five theme areas of the Conference, addressed Library and Information Services for: • Meeting Personal Needs • Enhancing Lifelong Learning • Improving Organizations and Professions • Effectively Governing Society • Increasing International Cooperation The final report was the first White House Conference report submitted in multimedia format, including, in addition to the printed summary, a videotape overview of the Conference, audiotapes of the plenary sessions, and microfiche of the supporting documents. Following up on the 64 resolutions passed by the White House Conference the Commission facilitated the first meeting of an Ad Hoc Committee of White House Conference delegates from each state, territory, and special constituency (including one public and one professional representative from each) to oversee and promote implementation of the resolutions. At this meeting, the group, now called the White House Conference on Library and Information Services Taskforce (WHCLIST), developed a governance structure, elected officers and a steering committee, and developed recommendations concerning the tasks to be undertaken, the agent(s) for implementing each task, and the time frame for implementation of each. Annual meetings are planned, the next being in the fall of 1981. In the meantime, the delegates and alternates will continue communicating via newsletters, telephone, and correspondence. During Fiscal year 1980, the Commission established three new task forces, and a fourth task force established in 1979 continued its efforts. The ongoing Task Force on Public/Private Sector Relations has made substantial progress toward developing principles and guidelines for evaluating the proper roles for each sector in cases where there is potential for conflict. The new task forces are concerned with: Community Information and Referral Services, Library and Information Services for Cultural Minorities, and the Role of the Special Library in Nationwide Networks and Cooperative Programs. The need for these task forces was expressed in various resolutions of the White House Conference. In addition to the task forces, the Commission undertook several new activities during the year. The long-standing cooperation with the Library of Congress and support of the Nationwide Data Base Program continued and a new project, a study of Intergovernmental Library Cooperation, was initiated. A new task force on improving international cooperation was planned and approved but its implementation was delayed because of budget constraints. Also, during the summer of 1980, the Commission finally met undisturbed by the usual day-to-day business, to consider the evolving roles and goals of the Commission. The Commission continued its support of American National Standards Committee Z39, which is responsible for the development of standards in the library, information and publishing fields, and also continued its extensive liaison activities with other Federal Government agencies in both the Executive and Legislative Branches, with agencies at other levels of government, with professional and trade associations, and with the public at large. When the Commission's Executive Director since 1974 resigned, an intensive nationwide search was conducted to select a successor. In September 1980, Dr. Toni Carbo Bearman was chosen from 84 applicants by unanimous vote of the Commission. She will report for duty in November 1980. Introduction The National Commission on Libraries and Information Science is a permanent independent agency in the Executive Branch, established through Public Law 91-345, which was signed into law by the President on July 19, 1970. Background of the Commission The origin of the Commission can be traced directly to a previous Commission-The National Advisory Commission on Librariesestablished by President Lyndon B. Johnson in September of 1966 by Executive Order Number 11301. The Advisory Commission had been charged to: (1) Make a comprehensive study and appraisal of the role of libraries as resources for scholarly pursuits, as centers for the dissemination of knowledge, and as components of the evolving national information systems; (2) Appraise the policies, programs, and practices of public agencies and private institutions and organizations, together with other factors, which have a bearing on the role and effective utilization of libraries; (3) Appraise library funding, including Federal support of libraries to determine how funds available for the construction and support of libraries and library services can be more effectively and efficiently utilized; and (4) Develop recommendations for action by government or private institutions and organizations designed to ensure an effective library system for the Nation. The Advisory Commission was to provide "its independent analysis, evaluation, and recommendations with respect to all matters assigned" to a parent Committee composed of the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare, the Secretary of Agriculture, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology, and the Director of the National Science Foundation. The Librarian of Congress was also invited to be a member of the Committee.* *A list of Advisory Committee and Advisory Commission Members is shown in Appendix III. The Advisory Commission was to submit its final report and recommendations to the Committee no later than one year after its first meeting, and both the President's Committee and Advisory Commission were to terminate ninety days after the final report of the Commission was submitted to the President's Committee. The report was submitted to the Committee on July 1, 1968, and delivered to the President by the Committee on October 3, 1968. The fundamental recommendation of the National Advisory Commission on Libraries was that it be declared national policy, to be enunciated by the President and enacted into law by the Congress, that the American people should be provided with library and informational services adequate to their needs, and that the Federal Government, in collaboration with state and local governments and private agencies, should exercise leadership assuring the provision of such services. This recommendation forms the base for its remaining recommendations. The Commission identified a series of objectives for "overcoming current inadequacies" as follows: • Provide adequate library and informational services for formal education at all levels. • Provide adequate library and information services for the public at large. • Provide materials to support research in all fields at all levels. • Provide adequate bibliographic access to the Nation's research and informational resources. • Provide adequate physical access to required materials or their texts throughout the Nation. • Provide adequate trained personnel for the varied and changing demands of librarianship. It then formulated five recommendations for achieving the objectives: 1. Establishment of a National Commission on Libraries and Information Science as a continuing Federal planning agency. 2. Recognition and strengthening of the role of The Library of Congress as the National Library of the United States and establishment of a Board of Advisors. 3. Establishment of a Federal Institute of Library and Information Science as a principal center for basic and applied research in all relevant areas. 4. Recognition and full acceptance of the critically important role the United States Office of Education currently plays in meeting needs for library services. 5. Strengthening state library agencies to overcome deficiencies in fulfilling their current functions. It took but two short years to move through both houses of Congress, and to the President for signature, a bill which established the permanent Commission recommended by the Advisory Commission. It took almost another year before Commissioners were actually appointed, confirmed, and funds appropriated for the Commission. The first meeting of the Commission was held immediately thereafter (in September of 1971), and the Commission's first Executive Director, Charles H. Stevens, was hired in December, 1971. Composition and Role of the Commission The Commission is composed of the Librarian of Congress and 14 Members appointed for staggered five-year terms by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. The law stipulates that its Chairman be designated by the President. The law also provides that five Members of the Commission shall be professional librarians or information specialists, and that the "remainder shall be persons having special competence or interest in the needs of our society for library and information services, at least one of whom shall be knowledgeable with respect to the technological aspects of library and information services and sciences, and at least one other of whom shall be knowledgeable with respect to the library and information service and science needs of the elderly." The Commission, with primary responsibility for developing or recommending overall plans for, and advising the appropriate government agencies and legislative committees on the provision of library and information services adequate to meet the needs of the people of the United States, is authorized to (1) advise the President and the Congress on the implementation of national policy; (2) conduct studies, surveys, and analyses of the library and informational needs of the Nation, and the means by which these needs may be met; (3) appraise the adequacies and deficiencies of current library and information resources and services and evaluate the effectiveness of current library and information science programs; (4) develop overall plans for meeting national library and informational needs and for the coordination of activities of Federal, state, local, and private agencies regarding library and information sciences; (5) promote research and development activities; (6) submit to the President and the Congress a report on its activities during the preceding fiscal year, and (7) make and publish such additional reports as its deems to be necessary. Addition of Responsibility for the White House Conference New responsibilities were assigned to the Commission toward the end of 1974 with the signing of Public Law 93-568, which charged the |