The National Plan for Access to U.S. Government Information

  • Last Updated: May 25, 2023
  • Published: December 02, 2021

The National Plan for Access to U.S. Government Information fulfills the information needs of the public and ensures that Government information is available in perpetuity, when and where it is needed.

Whether in a library or online, our goal is to create, sustain, and enhance programs that ensure Federal Government information is acquired, cataloged, digitized, made findable, preserved for future generations, and disseminated broadly.

In order to achieve this vision, the National Plan sets the groundwork and provides long-term strategies for the success and growth of:

  • The Federal Depository Library Program (statutory program)
    The FDLP will continue its evolution to be agile, scalable, flexible, user-centric, and outcomes-based. Extensive partnerships with Federal depository libraries and other Federal agencies and organizations will be key to long-term growth and success. Providing depositories with a rich education program, new services, and flexibilities that will allow for serving diverse communities in the most comprehensive way possible are top goals of the FDLP.

  • The Cataloging and Indexing Program (statutory program)
    The C&I Program will continue to enhance its cataloging and metadata creation through the National Bibliographic Records Inventory and its lifecycle management of Government information processes. Acquiring, harvesting, cataloging, discovery tools, and preserving will all play roles in the achievement of a comprehensive Catalog of U.S. Government Publications, both historical and moving forward. Again, partnerships with Federal depository libraries and other Federal agencies and organizations will be key to long-term growth and success.

  • The Federal Information Preservation Network (GPO strategic initiative)
    The creation of FIPNet affords the public with guaranteed, long-term access to resources, materials, and expertise from libraries, Government entities, coalitions, and organizations. This program will ensure permanent public access to historic, at-risk publications and resources of significant value to the public. Depository libraries will benefit from the added resources and the sustainability of those resources for their patrons. Based on formal partnerships with GPO, FIPNet partners will provide an added guarantee that our rich history will be accessible for future generations to come. GPO is currently in the process of developing types of FIPNet partnerships, standards, guidelines, and best practices.  More information on FIPNet.

Background

Numerous factors and initiatives provided evidence of the need for a National Plan.

What began as the “National Plan for the Future of the Federal Depository Library Program,” has evolved into the broader picture of ensuring access to U.S. Government information, of which the FDLP plays one of three parts. For this reason, the National Plan is now formally known as the “National Plan for Access to U.S. Government Information.”

Components of the National Plan

  1. Introduced FIPNet to the Library of Congress and National Libraries: March 2015
  2. Launched the website for the National Plan for Access to U.S. Government Information: April 2015
  3. Present the National Plan at the 2015 DLC Virtual Meeting: April 2015
  4. Present the National Plan at national library conferences: Summer 2015

Related Resources

National Plan Presentations

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