F e d e r a l D e p o s i t o r y L i b r a r y P r o g r a m ADMINISTRATIVE NOTES Newsletter of the Federal Depository Library Program --------------------------------------------------------------------- March 15, 2001 GP 3.16/3-2:22/05 (Vol. 22, no. 05) --------------------------------------------------------------------- Review of LPS Position on Item Selection Rates "...An appropriate level of selections should be at least one-half the average item selection rate of libraries of similar type and size..." (Instructions to Depository Libraries, July 2000, p. 6) Questions have been raised about how this measure is applied to libraries during self-study and inspection reviews as the transition to a more electronic Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) accelerates. The Library Programs Service (LPS) has long viewed this measure as a starting point to compare collection development activities among depositories. The numbers themselves should not be viewed as absolute benchmarks. In completing the self-study or during on-site inspections, depository coordinators are asked to explain any major divergence from this measure. For the final analysis, inspectors take other factors into consideration. Whether the library is involved in cooperative collection development efforts, using online government resources or obtaining Federal Government information from other sources is also taken into account. The complexity of collection development issues facing depository librarians today speaks to the primary importance of a well thought out collection development policy. The policy should contain user and community profiles. Issues such as collecting intensity levels, cooperative collecting arrangements, and how various formats are handled should be addressed as well. As the transition to a more electronic depository distribution environment is accelerating, strategies for the inclusion of online resources in the library's collection and decisions for implementing "FDLP Guidelines on Substituting Electronic for Tangible Versions of Depository Publications" should also be part of the collection development policy. All these factors help explain why a library's item selection rate may vary from the average item selection rate for libraries of a similar type and size. New size definitions went into effect October 1, 2000 after the Depository Library Council's approval at its spring 2000 meeting (see Administrative Notes, v 21, # 7, May 1, 2000) . The changes were based on the 1999 Biennial Survey results. Libraries were placed in the small, medium, or large category based on the response given in question two of the same survey, which asked for the total collection size of the library. The true measure of a library's collection development success is not the degree of adherence with the guideline in the Instructions, but whether the depository library is meeting the Government information needs of people in the area it is obligated to serve. This topic will be more thoroughly addressed at the Federal Depository Library Conference to be held in Alexandria, VA October 14-17, 2001. The draft agenda will appear in the July issue of Administrative Notes.