Mr. BENJAMIN. On the position Woman's Coordinator, is that internal? Mr. CURRAN. Yes. Mr. BENJAMIN. Do we have any programs in terms of the equal rights provision, having separate programs for women? Mr. CURRAN. We have an affirmtive action program for minorities and women. Women are considered minorities in the equal opportunity act. They are defined as being part of that program. This is a sub-part of the umbrella affirmative action program for the Library of Congress. EXPLAIN EXHIBIT PROGRAM POSITION REQUESTS Mr. BENJAMIN. Exhibits program, 9 new positions? Mrs. NEMEYER. You and Mr. Shipley gave me a marvelous opening with this morning's conversation about the exhibits. Through the exhibits and publishing programs we are seeking innovative ways and means to share with you and your constituents the extraordinary and ofttimes unique materials in our Library's collection. We now have only 6 positions in the Exhibits Office. We are requesting 9 new positions; two of these 9 are resubmitted from 1978. In 1978 we requested 5 positions and received none. Of the 9 positions, one is at a GS-12, 2 at GS-11, one is at a GS-9, 3 at GS-7, and one is at a GS-4. We have with us today Mr. J. Michael Carrigan, the Library's Exhibits Officer. He has been with us about a year, coming from the National Portrait Gallery. He is a great asset to our Library's exhibits program. If you care for any further details about the 9 requested positions described on page 89, of the 1979 Justification of Estimates I would ask Mr. Carrigan to provide these. Mr. BENJAMIN. If you want to expand on that, go right ahead. Mr. CARRIGAN. The Library has had an exhibits program for about 35 years. It has been a very modest type of program. What we have been trying to do in this part year is to improve our research for the exhibits themselves, and to try to develop a comprehensive system of programming to use our exhibits presentations to call attention to the wide variety of treasures we have. It is one thing to stick materials into exhibits cases; it is another to present the exhibits professionally and help people enjoy and learn from them. ADDITIONAL EXHIBIT AREAS PLANNED At the present time we have 2 major and a number of minor exhibits spaces. In addition to the Madison and Main buildings, we are planning, a series of orientation areas and small exhibits in the Thomas Jefferson Building. These plans are reflected in our budget request. The 9 requested positions are essential if we are to have the staff (and the equipment) to build our exhibits in-house, and, importantly, to fabricate improved and better safeguarded traveling exhibits to send across the country. Mr. BENJAMIN. You have indicated 9 positions; you have 6 on board, as I recall. Mr. CARRIGAN. That is correct. Mr. BENJAMIN. 15 positions; how much of that would be devoted to traveling exhibits? Mr. CARRIGAN. It is hard to divide this number, but I would say about 4 people. In explanation, for an exhibits operation to function effectively, each member of the Staff acts as part of a total team. Several people will be working with other curatorial staff within the Library on research; several people engaged in designing in-house exhibits will have dual functions, also designing traveling shows. Repeatedly in past years, a great effort would be made to put together an in-house exhibit. When the show was ended, that was it. There has rarely been any advance provision, to allow that show to travel across the country. Mr. BENJAMIN. I assume then you are talking about more traveling, that is the traveling exhibits; if that is so, you are going to have associated problems of security and probably your exhibits will be built a little bit differently so they can be dismantled and assembled somewhere else where you do not have all the tools you have here. Mr. CARRIGAN. Yes, that is correct. WHAT ARE FUTURE STAFFING PLANS Mr. BENJAMIN. Let me take you ahead 5 years, to 1983. In 1983 what do you think your request would be, if it is for 15 positions today? Mr. CARRIGAN. I am only up to 1982. Mr. BENJAMIN. All right. Where are you in 1982? Dr. BOORSTIN. See how modest we are, Mr. Chairman. Mr. CARRIGAN. Personnel? If things go the way we are hoping they will, I would say we probably will need an additional 3 to 5 people in 1982. Next year, however, there would be a significant increase in the request for personnel, because we will be much closer to the opening of the Madison Building. Mr. BENJAMIN. What I am really trying to get at, is the number you are requesting here in anticipation of the Madison Building? If so, is there adjustment? Mr. CARRIGAN. Because we are so understaffed at the present time, it is important to understand that, while we are called the Exhibits Office, we are functioning in many ways similar to a major museum. The Library is not a museum, but our job parallels that in many ways. We are actually producing exhibits. That is one part of our job. We are helping to orient visitors to the Library buildings. We are planning at the present time more elaborate general orientations to welcome patrons and guests to the Library. In addition and this is a big part of our task, we process all loan requests from all institutions and groups when those requests are for materials that will be exhibited by the borrowers. So condition reports, all registrarial duties, in addition to any of the security problems, are all processed through our office. Quite frankly, I think the Library has been very lucky in the past, to have escaped major damage to some of the treasures; lucky that we have not encountered some lawsuits because we have not had the manpower to take the kinds of preventive measures necessary to insure the safety of our collections. Mr. BENJAMIN. I guess what you are really telling me is that this increased request for 9 people is not because of the fact that the James Madison Building is going to open, but just to bring you up to where you think you should be at the present time with your present facilities, is that correct? Mr. CARRIGAN. That is partly the case, for there also is planning underway and will be during 1979, in connection with major Madison exhibits. Mr. BENJAMIN. If I understand Dr. Boorstin, we are also planning ahead for the renovation of the Library of Congress Main Building. That is why I was trying to find out if you are really relying on what is going to happen in 1980 and the few years thereafter, but you are not. You say you are understaffed now and this is the number we should have now? Mr. CARRIGAN. That is right. SPECIAL CONSIDERATION SOUGHT Dr. BOORSTIN. May I add something? Dr. BOORSTIN. I would like to urge the committee to give special consideration to this request, because it is not really so much an expansion as it is an effort to capitalize on and make beneficial to the widest possible audience the collections we have been spending these millions of dollars to collect and house over the years. In many ways our exhibits program simply provides windows to the Library to make this material available both to people who come to Washington and to people throughout the country. These are complementary considerations, because if we awaken the interest of people through traveling exhibits, then when they come to Washington they want to see the Library. We do not want to disappoint them by having inadequate exhibits. This is a program which has been terribly neglected in the past. As part of our outreach efforts, we do want to develop the exhibits program and we hope the committee will consider this favorably, Mr. Chairman. CURRENT LEVEL COSTS OF NONPERSONALS Mr. BENJAMIN. Thank you. For nonpersonnel services you are asking an increase of $1,493,026, $889,741 of which is for current level. Is this to cover increases in prices of items currently consumed? Please explain. Mr. CURRAN. $206,000 of that is not an increase. It is a comparative transfer from the furniture and furnishing account for repair of machines, we think it is more appropriate in this area and is not an increase. Mr. BENJAMIN. I guess I just explained your request for transfer of $206,000, because you feel it more appropriate here? Mr. CURRAN. It is a repair, rather than a capital expenditure. Mr. BENJAMIN. Under growing workload we have a request for travel and transportation, $60,685; would you justify that? Mr. APPLEBAUM. Part of that has to do with the National Program for Acquisitions and Cataloging; the rotation of overseas staff has been instituted and that does require transportation of household effects as well as travel. Mr. BENJAMIN. Rent, communications and utilities, $62,300. Mr. APPLEBAUM. $12,000 of that is for rental of exhibit space and equipment at professional conferences, $32,300 for word processing equipment and $18,000 to provide additional local telephone service. Mr. BENJAMIN. Printing, $43,300. Mr. APPLEBAUM. This increase includes $28,300 to satisfy greater demands for photoduplication work and $15,000 to reprint Library publications no longer in print but still in demand. Mr. BENJAMIN. Other services, $157,000. Mr. CURRAN. This amount, the other services, first of all, comes back to exhibits; of that $157,000, $21,000 is part of the exhibits program, to help plan exhibits, lighting and security, and of course the special signs, $9,500. In the next item, supplies and materials, $280,000, $252,000 of that is for the exhibits program. So we have in these 2 items, other services $157,000, supplies and materials $280,000 together, $282,500 of that is for the exhibits program and is in support of the new positions which Mr. Carrigan was talking about; the wherewithal, the supplies and materials, contract efforts. He has a list of those that he can elaborate on in more detail if you like, or we can supply it for the record. Mr. BENJAMIN. I would appreciate that for the record. [The information referred to follows:] |