Library for the last several years. This system is Mead Data Central's LEXIS. Arrangements for access through the Federal Library Committee were completed in September and began in November 1981.

Our use of commercial data bases has increased 12 percent from the previous fiscal year and increased 127 percent since fiscal year 1979. In order to keep pace with the requests from Senate offices, we have tried to subscribe to services which both have the information we need and allow us to maximize the funds allocated for this purpose. However, at this time, we are requesting a $3,000 increase or 10 percent more for these services.

Micrographics Center

The Center was used 627 times during the year, a decrease of 12 percent

from the previous year.

A major improvement was achieved by the relocation of the Center to Room S-418, which had been acquired the previous year and renovated specifically for its present use. Planning also included six new microform storage cabinets which were acquired and installed. As a result, the Library has obtained both a more convenient and secure location and a needed expansion of storage space. Collection Development

Book Collection:

The Library ordered 697 books in fiscal year 1981.

Over 1,393 new items were received and processed, and 1,015 old titles were recataloged, requiring the preparation of 1,617 new sets of catalog cards.

The book ordering program initiated in fiscal year 1980 with Blackwell North America has been working very satisfactorily. The dealer automatically notifies us about the availability of newly-published books on American government, politics, history and economics and sends us those we select.

Periodical Collection: During fiscal year 1981, the Library investigated the services of three periodicals, jobbers and selected F. W. Faxon Company to handle virtually all of its subscriptions. This program is expected to result

in the elimination of purchase orders and in vastly reduced invoicing and vouchering. We placed our order with Faxon in September, and service began in January 1982.

Microform Collection: Two major microform acquisitions were added during the year. The first was a set of Congressional committee prints not previously available in either the Senate Library or the Library of Congress, obtained

from Congressional Information Service. A comprehensive index to these prints

was included.

The second was the proceedings of Congress from 1789 to 1978 as recorded in the Annals of Congress, the Register of Debates in Congress, the Congressional Globe, and the Congressional Record. This set was received from Information Handling Service in exchange for using our volumes for filming.

We also entered a standing order with CIS for a microfiche collection of previously unfilmed Congressional committee hearings which were not in the collection of either the Senate Library of the Library of Congress. In addition, we ordered the CIS U.S. Congressional Committee Hearings Index, which will provide for the first time a comprehensive subject and witness index from the mid-1800's to 1970.

Government Documents Collection: In August 1979, the Library was designated as a Government Depository Library, and the program has been working satisfactorily. We have systematized the selection of publications, and materials have been arriving reliably. We now feel we can eliminate our traditional sources of acquiring Executive Branch publications.

We recently began to convert this collection to a SuDocs classification arrangement which we expect to be a long-term project.

LEGISLATIVE DEPARTMENTS

This year I am presenting some of the more significant accomplishments of our legislative staff.

Calendar of Business

The Senate Calendar of Business is continually being revised to provide more concise information for those who follow the Senate floor operations. A new section was added to the Calendar this past year. This new section is entitled "Bills and Joint Resolutions Read the First Time." Items are placed here after being read for the first time and objection is made to the second reading. Being listed in the Calendar calls attention to these particular measures which must be dealt with on the next legislative day.

Lights and Bells

Another important change, relative to the Legislative Clerks, is the designation of six lights and bells (buzzers) that tells that the Senate is in a temporary recess period within the confines of the daily session. original six bell signal that shows that morning business has been concluded

The

is still used, but these six lights then cut off immediately. The six lights showing a temporary recess stay on for the period of the recess and then cut off. This change has been well received by everyone in the Senate.

Senate Journal

The year 1981 has seen a gradual improvement in the composition of the Senate Journal. The turnaround time for the printing of galleys and page proofs has been shortened, both by the elimination of the printing of revised galleys, and by a commitment on the part of the Government Printing Office toward processing and returning all materials (manuscripts and galleys) on a fairly regular basis.

A printed form has been devised to notify the Chief Reporter and Bill Clerk of the addition of cosponsors to amendments when requested verbally by a Senator at the rostrum (rather than in debate or in writing), thus ensuring the information being shown both in the Congressional Record and in the LEGIS

system.

During this current year, the Journal has been able to offer an additional service, namely, the furnishing of certain statistics to the Majority Leader. He frequently cites the time consumed during the consideration of a major piece of legislation, along with other information, such as the number of amendments considered together with their disposition, roll call votes, etc.

Printing of Bills

With respect to GPO, our most outstanding problem over the years has been the turnaround time on our "hot list" items. In the past, it has been inadequate, and our worst response from GPO has seemed to come when we have been most pressed to get material to the floor. This year, however, the problem has been less serious, and the turnaround time on "hot" items has been much improved. The reasons for this include better communication between this office and GPO, and our attempt to limit the number of items placed on the list to those which are truly important. We have tried to be realistic in our requests and have tried to cut down by about half on the number of items which we consider to be priority matters. This has required a great deal of communication with the Republican Scheduling office so that we are aware of those matters which they (rather than a reporting committee, for example) consider to be important. Generally speaking, only matters that are scheduled for

imminent floor action are placed on the list. Furthermore, GPO knows we are

making an attempt to be more reasonable in our requests and understands that when we describe an item as hot, we mean it. As a result, we have had very few problems with printed material not being available at the time of floor consideration. This system will only continue to work well if the Scheduling

office lets us know when a priority matter is being processed.

LEGIS

We are in the process of changing the LEGIS status step numbers and text and implementing a time stamp feature in the data entry system. This will allow us to more accurately enter status information as it happens on the floor. The time stamp feature will permit the system to order the information it receives in the sequence in which we enter it. As a result, as long as we enter the data in the order in which it happens, the chronological sorting of the data should be accurate. Furthermore, new status step numbers and new text within many steps will permit action reflected in the system to more closely resemble the action which took place on the floor or in committee. The status step system is still not perfect, but it is as close as it is likely to be for some time (provided these new features work out as planned).

The LEGIS system has enabled us to generate for the Congressional Record material necessary for the Record's Introduction of Bills and Joint Resolutions, Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions, and Reports of Committees. The Computer Center has also provided the capability to print a report containing the submission of simple and concurrent resolutions for the Record.

Delivery of Referred Bills

Additionally, there is one specific area where a change in present policy

will save us time and energy in the elimination of unnecessary paperwork. This involves the hand delivery of referred bills to committee. In the past, when a bill was introduced, it was the responsibility of the Bill Clerk's office to hand deliver a copy of the bill to the committee to which it had been referred. We received a copy of the bill from GPO, generated duplicate receipts on our printer, listing the bill title and the committee referral, and then had someone from Office Services deliver the bill and return to us the signed receipt which we then filed. We did this nearly 2,500 times this session alone. The fact is that when an introduced bill is printed, GPO delivers copies of the bill to the committee to which it is referred and keeps a record of this delivery. In addition, the Senate Document Room delivers

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copies to the committees, so it was determined that our work was unnecessary and redundant. Therefore, on November 24, 1981, we sent a letter to all committees indicating that in January 1982 we would stop this practice.

Several committees complimented us on this reduction in paperwork and its associated cost savings.

Nominations

Again this year, considerable time has been expended on the further implementation of computer programs to automate the routine work of the Executive Clerk. With the exception of the Executive Calendar program, all the changes have been in connection with Presidential nominations. During this session of the Congress, nomination messages (other than nomination lists), committee reference and report forms, receipts and resolutions of confirmation have all been generated from LEGIS.

Executive Calendar and Journal

The program for computer-generated production of the Executive Calendar is now completed, has been tested during the final weeks of the first session, and is expected to be available for the second session of the Congress. As a part of this program, a more complete and detailed report on the status of nominations reported or confirmed by the Senate is now available on LEGIS. Work will continue in 1982 to automate production of the Executive Journal.

Enrolled Bills

In general, the quality of the bills and resolutions have improved typographically. The turnaround time, the time when it is submitted to the GPO for printing and when it is delivered to the Enrolling Clerk, has improved but not sufficiently enough to eliminate the necessity for "hand engrossing" many bills because the printing copy has not returned from the GPO. We will pursue this matter with GPO in 1982.

Precedents

The Parliamentarian's office delivered to the Senate on time an extraordinary contribution to its ability to function well, the computer file of all Senate precedents since the cutoff date for the latest edition of Senate Procedure. As a result, Senators and Senate staff have an up-to-date view of Senate procedures and practices available at all times by using the published Senate Procedure and Precedents file in LEGIS.