Library Community Encourages FCC to Make Materials Accessible via FDsys | Association of Research Libraries® | ARL®

"On Monday, December 2, ARL joined others in the library community in a letter (PDF) requesting that the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) make its primary legal materials and publicly available comments accessible via the Government Printing Office (GPO) Federal Digital System, FDsys. The signatories noted that, 'In doing so, the Commission stands not only to improve the public’s access to official government information and ability to participate in critical governmental processes during periods of crisis, but serve as a model for other agencies to implement the principles of President Obama’s Open Government Initiative.' The letter cites the fact that FDsys remained accessible during the prolonged government shutdown in October, giving the public access to such government information as the Congressional Record, the Federal Register, and bills and laws. Furthermore, GPO partners with the LOCKSS-USDOCS program, a private LOCKSS ('Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe') network, which replicates content to various geographic locations, providing an additional redundant mechanism for making information publicly accessible in the event of a shutdown."