Public Policy Connections

New posts now on SLA Blog

Dear Readers,

SLA is consolidating many of its blogs to make it easier for information professionals to learn about new professional education offerings, job postings, conference presentations, and other developments.

All new blog content will now be published on SLA Blog.  Click here for instructions for subscribing to new posts in all categories, or just the ones that cover topics of interest to you. 

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Sunshine Week 2012 Webcast: Secrecy, Disclosure and the Risks for Security and Accountability

All too often, government transparency and national security are viewed as opposing forces. In reality, transparency and security are not always in contention.

On Friday, March 16 from 1:15pm to 3:30pm EDT, OpenTheGovernment.org, with support from several organizations including SLA, will present two panels featuring experts from both inside and outside government:

Whistleblowers & the Press: Roles and Risks in Divulging Information Needed for Accountable Government , and

Secret Government and Secret Laws: Do claims of national security trump open and accountable government?

The event will be held in the Knight Conference Center at the Newseum (555 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington DC).

There is no charge to attend, but attendees are encouraged to reserve seating in advance. To register, please contact Ashlie Hampton at ahampton@freedomforum.org, or 1-202-292-6288. Please provide your name, title, affiliation and contact information for agenda updates and other news.

Read the full details: Sunshine Week 2012 Webcast

Groups Oppose Bill that Threatens to Cut Off Access to Taxpayer-Funded Research

On February 9, thirty organizations, including SLA, sent a letter to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in opposition to the Research Works Act (H.R.3699), a bill designed to roll back a hard-fought-for policy that secured no-fee public access to NIH’s taxpayer-funded research, and also to block the development of similar policies at other federal agencies.

The NIH Policy on Enhancing Public Access is part of legislation signed into law by President Obama on March 11, 2009. It requires eligible NIH-funded researchers to deposit electronic copies of their peer-reviewed manuscripts into the National Library of Medicine’s online archive, PubMed Central (PMC). Full texts of the articles are made publicly available and searchable online in PMC no later than 12 months after publication in a journal.

The Alliance for Taxpayer Access, a coalition of patient groups, physicians, researchers, educational institutions, publishers, and health promotion organizations that support barrier-free access to taxpayer-funded research, has set up a site that makes it easy to learn more about the issues, and contact your Congressman.

Read: Letter to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee

EPA Releases New Tool with Information about Water Pollution across the U.S.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released a new tool that provides the public with important information about pollutants that are released into local waterways. Developed under President Obama’s transparency initiative, the Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) Pollutant Loading Tool brings together millions of records and allows for easy searching and mapping of water pollution by local area, watershed, company, industry sector, and pollutant. Americans can use this new tool to protect their health and the health of their communities.

Read EPA Press Release

CALL TO ACTION: Oppose H.R. 3699, a Bill to Block Public Access to Publicly Funded Research

A new bill, The Research Works Act (H.R.3699), designed to roll back the National Institute of Health’s (NIH) Public Access Policy and block the development of similar policies in other federal agencies, has been introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives. Co-sponsored by Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), the bill was proposed on 16 December 2011, and referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

The Special Libraries Association strongly supports the NIH’s popular Public Access Policy.  This new bill would essentially reverse the NIH’s Public Access Policy and prevent other Federal agencies from developing similar policies to provide timely public access to taxpayer-funded research.

Supporters of public access need to speak out against this proposed legislation. The Alliance for Taxpayer Access, of which SLA is a member, strongly urges you to contact the offices below to express your opposition today. A draft letter is available for all those who would like to join the opposition:

 --Representative Issa
@DarrellIssa
http://issa.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=597&Itemid=73
Fax (202) 225-3303

--Representative Maloney
@RepMaloney
https://maloney.house.gov/contact-me/email-me  (Using zip code 10128-3679)
Fax: (202) 225-4709

--Members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee – especially if you’re a constituent. http://1.usa.gov/zDqnne

--Your representative – through the Alliance for Taxpayer Access Action Center: http://www.congressweb.com/cweb2/index.cfm/siteid/sparc

IMLS Releases New Five Year Strategic Plan

The  2012 – 2016 IMLS Strategic Plan identifies the mission of Institute of Museum and Library Services to inspire libraries and museums to advance innovation, learning and civic engagement by providing leadership through research, policy development and grant-making.

Five strategic goals will drive IMLS activities and investments:

Strategic Goal 1: IMLS places the learner at the center and supports engaging experiences in libraries and museums that prepare people to be full participants in their local communities and our global society.

Strategic Goal 2: IMLS promotes museums and libraries as strong community anchors that enhance civic engagement, cultural opportunities, and economic vitality.

Strategic Goal 3: IMLS supports exemplary stewardship of museum and library collections and promotes the use of technology to facilitate discovery of knowledge and cultural heritage.

Strategic Goal 4: IMLS advises the President and Congress on plans, policies, and activities that sustain and increase public access to information and ideas.

Strategic Goal 5: IMLS achieves excellence in public management and performs as a model organization through strategic alignment of IMLS resources and prioritization of programmatic activities, maximizing value for the American public.

Read IMLS Press Release

Groups Support the Presidential Records Act Amendments

On November 2, 2011, more than thirty organizations backing greater accountability and transparency in government, including SLA, wrote a letter in support of the Presidential Records Act Amendments of 2011, H.R. 3071. The bill provides a framework for the assertion of privilege by a former president and clarifies the rights and obligations of the incumbent president and the Archivist of the United States in dealing with such claims.

Specifically, the bill imposes a time limit in which a former president must assert any claim of privilege upon a determination of the Archivist to make available to the public a record of that former president. The bill also establishes processes for managing the disclosure of records upon the assertion of privilege by a former president, and grants to the incumbent president the power to decide whether or not to uphold any privilege claim of a former president. Further, the decision of the incumbent president to release a document over a claim of privilege by a former president controls, absent a court order to the contrary.

Read letter.

Special Projects of the U.S. Copyright Office Announced

On October 25th, Register of Copyrights Maria A. Pallante made public the Priorities and Special Projects of the United States Copyright Office  for October 2011 through October 2013. The document articulates 17 priorities in the areas of copyright policy and administrative practice, as well as 10 new projects designed to improve the quality and efficiency of the U.S. Copyright Office’s services in the 21st century.

“Congress has charged the Copyright Office with administering the United States Copyright Act and performing important public services for the nation,” Pallante said. “The work plan presented here reflects the commitment of the office to address current complexities in the copyright system and prepare for future challenges.”

Read News Release: Director of U.S. Copyright Office Announces Priorities, Special Projects for Next Two Years

Read Document.

UCLA Streaming Video Case Dismissed

On October 3, 2011, the United States District Court in California dismissed a lawsuit charging UCLA with violating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and other provisions of copyright law. The Ambrose Video and the Association for Informational Media and Equipment (AIME) lawsuit challenged UCLA's practice of streaming previously purchased video content for educational purposes. The ruling suggests that educational institutions are entitled to stream legally purchased DVDs on campus without the permission of copyright holders.

Read More:
UCLA Streaming Video Case Dismissed
DMCA allows DVD ripping if you own the DVD

Obama Administration's Commitment to Open Government: A Status Report

On September 16 2011, the White House is released The Obama Administration's Commitment to Open Government: A Status Report.  

This status report highlights the breadth of the Administration’s commitment to open government, documents the substantial progress made on many of the Administration’s open government initiatives, and anticipates continued progress. Although not an exhaustive compilation of our open government efforts, this report provides a compelling picture of how far the Administration has already come towards forging a more open government.

Read more on the White House Blog