Biden Administration Announces Historic Open Access Policy for Taxpayer-Funded Research

"The new policy is the culmination of a nearly 20-year effort by public access advocates, including the library community. “This is an enormous leap forward,” said Heather Joseph, executive director of SPARC, which has long pushed for public access policies. “For the first time, everyone will have free and immediate access to the results of all federally funded research to speed solutions for global challenges—from cancer to climate change.” According to Joseph, U.S. taxpayers currently spend more than $80 billion on research each year, yet much of that research is often locked behind paywalls.

The move comes after the Trump administration in 2019 was said to be considering a similar move, which drew a sharp rebuke from the Association of American Publishers.

“If the proposed policy goes into effect, not only would it wipe out a significant sector of our economy, it would also cost the federal government billions of dollars, undermine our nation’s scientific research and innovation, and significantly weaken America’s trade position,” said AAP CEO Maria A. Pallante, in a 2019 statement. “Nationalizing this essential function—that our private, non-profit scientific societies and commercial publishers do exceedingly well—is a costly, ill-advised path.”

With the announcement of the new OSTP policy this week, however, AAP officials voiced their opposition but adopted a more concilatory tone...."