Statement

Statement from the The Library Copyright Alliance (LCA) regarding U.S. copyright policy.

lca-copyright-agenda-statement-dec08.pdf

The American Library Association (ALA) and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) submitted this statement for the record to the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on the Constitution hearing titled, "Restoring the Rule of Law" held on September 16, 2008.

testimony-ruleoflaw-23sept08.pdf

Analysis from ARL and SPARC asserting that the NIH Public Access Policy is fully consistent with the United States Copyright Act, has no relation to the Berne Convention and the TRIPS Agreement, is consistent with the trend among the United States' trading partners to make publicly funded research articles freely available on the Internet, and is fully consistent with the Administrative Procedures Act (APA).

nihpolicy_copyright_july2008.pdf

The American Library Association (ALA) and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) submitted this statement for the record to the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled "FISA [Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act] Amendments: How to Protect Americans' Security and Privacy and Preserve the Rule of Law and Government Accountability" on October 31, 2007.

fisa-statement-31oct07.pdf

The American Library Association (ALA) and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) (the "Libraries") seek language in the RESTORE Act and other FISA modernization proposals that ensures judicial review of law enforcement requests for library patron records or surveillance of library users through library networks.

protecting-privacy-22oct07.pdf

The undersigned organizations are concerned about the current language for Critical Infrastructure Information in the Homeland Security Act of 2002, which contains ambiguous definitions that could unintentionally allow companies to keep broad categories of information secret and provisions that restrict the government's ability to use the information.

fix-foia-statement-2002.pdf

The Protect America Act (PAA) has broad implications for libraries and library users. As Congress considers amending the Act prior to its sunset, the library community (the "LC") asks that its interest, and those of its users, be protected in the final bill language by requiring a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ("FISC") to access the facilities of, or to obtain other information from, libraries in the United States.

paa-and-libraries-5oct07.pdf

H.R. 107, the Digital Media Consumers' Rights Act, is needed to restore a proper balance in copyright law between the rights of copyright users and the rights of copyright owners--a balance that is essential to the future conduct of research and education in the digital age.

107libstatement23june04.pdf

Collectively ARL libraries hold more than 470 million print volumes. These works are complemented by many digital works and special collections. Preservation has long been an area of significant activity both for ARL and its member libraries. In 2007, the ARL Task Force on the Future of Preservation in Research Libraries convened a group of preservation experts and association leaders who issued a set of recommendations for ARL, associations sharing ARL’s preservation concerns, and ARL member libraries. This statement expresses the emphasis the task force sees for research libraries and their preservation mission: “For the scholars and researchers we serve to have enduring access to scholarship in all formats, ARL members libraries must invest in maintaining strong local and cooperative preservation programs.”

preservation-responsibility-24july07.pdf

Statement from ARL, SPARC, and ALA refuting the argument of several publishers of scientific, technical, and medical (STM) journals who argued that proposed legislative changes to the NIH Public Access Policy would violate U.S. treaty obligations under Article 13 of TRIPS and Article 9 of the Berne Convention, and potentially constitute a "compulsory license."

public-access-statement-nih-july07.pdf