For immediate release:
August 10, 2009

For more information, contact:
Lee Anne George
Association of Research Libraries
202-296-2296
leeanne@arl.org

Public Access Policies, SPEC Kit 311, Published by ARL

Washington DC—The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has published Public Access Policies, SPEC Kit 311, which explores the role ARL member libraries are playing in supporting public access policies in their institutions.

The concept of a public access policy for research results is based on the premise that government-funded research results should be freely available without barriers to taxpayers, who provide support for the funding. With the recent enactment of the US National Institutes of Health Public Access Policy and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Policy on Access to Research Outputs, much attention has been devoted to public access policies. Many academic and research libraries have taken the lead in developing resources and services to support authors who are required to comply with these policies.

This survey was distributed to the 123 ARL member libraries in February 2009. Respondents were asked to provide information on staffing, partnerships, and resources and services developed for public access policy (PAP) compliance support, and the challenges related to providing such support. Seventy libraries (57%) from sixty-seven institutions responded to the survey. Of the respondents, sixty-three were at libraries located within the United States (90%) and seven were at libraries located in Canada (10%).

The majority of the responding libraries provide, or plan to provide, resources and services that help authors affiliated with their institution (and/or the author’s support staff) to comply with public access policies. Thirty-seven respondents (53%) indicated that more than one library within their system provides PAP compliance support; eleven (16%) indicated that just one library within their institution is providing this support. Four other institutions (6%) are planning to support PAP compliance. Of the libraries that do not provide such support, eight (11%) indicated that another department or unit within their institution provides compliance support. Eight others (11%) responded that their institution offers no PAP compliance support.

This SPEC Kit includes documentation from respondents in the form of PAP Web sites, compliance FAQs and flowcharts, handouts and slides from presentations to faculty and library staff, and sample letters to publishers.

The table of contents and executive summary from this SPEC Kit are available online at http://www.arl.org/bm~doc/spec-311-web.pdf.

ORDERING INFORMATION


SPEC Kit 311, Public Access Policies

Cathy Sarli, Ellen Dubinsky, Bob Engeszer, and Ruth Lewis • August 2009 • ISBN 1-59407-823-8 • 184 pp. • $45 ($35 ARL members)

Shipping and Handling

US: UPS Ground, $10/publication 


Canada: UPS Ground, $15/per publication


International and Rush Orders: Call (301) 362-8196 or e-mail pubs@arl.org for quote.

Payment by check, money order, MasterCard, or Visa is accepted. Make check or money order payable in US funds to the Association of Research Libraries, Federal ID #52-0784198-N.

Order from:

ARL Publications Distribution Center
PO Box 531
Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0531

Phone: (301) 362-8196 
 Fax: (301) 206-9789
E- mail: pubs@arl.org

Web: http://www.arl.org/resources/pubs/pubsorderform.shtml

SPEC KITS EXCHANGE INFORMATION


Designed to examine current research library practices and policies and serve as resource guides for libraries as they face ever-changing management problems, each SPEC Kit contains a summary analysis, survey questions with tallies, pertinent documentation from participating libraries, and a reading list and Web site references for further information on the topic.

SUBSCRIBE TO SPEC!


2009 SPEC Kit subscription (ISSN 0160-3582): $225 ARL member/$295 nonmember, six issues per year, shipping included (additional postage may apply outside North America).

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 123 research libraries in North America. Its mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is on the Web at http://www.arl.org/.